Sauer 404 Rifle

[Manny R]

Fellow Hunters & Shooters,
I have a question I wish to pose out here. I have a Sauer 404 Rifle with interchangeable barrels. I have a 300 Win Mag & a 404 Jeffrey. I am thinking of purchasing another barrel and therefore lies my question.
Do I get a 223, 243 or 6.5 Creedmoor Barrel. I enjoy going to the range and plinking targets at 200,300,400,500 yards. I also want a caliber for night hunting for cats in Africa and a caliber with good ballistics and knock down power. I am not looking to shoot mule deer, elk etc but trying to get a sense which barrel would work best for me as a 3rd barrel for my Sauer 404. One last thing I do not reload that is why I wish for a cheaper bullet than my 300 Win Mag.
Thanks for any info you can share.

 

[machinistbutler]

I have a Sauer barrel in 6.5 SKAN, same as 6.5x55 , for a SSG3000. . I really like it, .

 

[Tra3]

For sure a 6.5CM. It is not as cheap as a .223, but works better for target practice, especially at longer range. It is so common now that ammo (when available) will be reasonably priced. Also, it will work great as a deer rifle with mild recoil. It also works for PG if you want, and I’ve taken an elk with one (although it would not be my first choice).

 

[Randy F]

Fellow Hunters & Shooters,
I have a question I wish to pose out here. I have a Sauer 404 Rifle with interchangeable barrels. I have a 300 Win Mag & a 404 Jeffrey. I am thinking of purchasing another barrel and therefore lies my question.
Do I get a 223, 243 or 6.5 Creedmoor Barrel. I enjoy going to the range and plinking targets at 200,300,400,500 yards. I also want a caliber for night hunting for cats in Africa and a caliber with good ballistics and knock down power. I am not looking to shoot mule deer, elk etc but trying to get a sense which barrel would work best for me as a 3rd barrel for my Sauer 404. One last thing I do not reload that is why I wish for a cheaper bullet than my 300 Win Mag.
Thanks for any info you can share.

.223 is where I would go for what you say you want to do with it. Cheaper round, flat shooting, and plenty good for smaller game IMHO.

 

[Bullthrower338]

6.5x55

 

[Berettaco]

I would probably lean towards a .270

 

[One Day...]

Hello Manny R;

This is a hunting rifle for hunting, right? not for shooting matches or playing sniper, right?

When you speak of hunting cats in Africa at night, you are not talking about leopard or lion, right?

The primary purpose is training/practicing/plinking, right?

In this case the .223 Rem is by far the best choice in as much as:
--- it has plenty of accuracy potential for 300 yard shooting practice off the sticks, and will happily go 400 or 500 yards off the bench (which is already plenty far enough for hunting, and I have not seen too many benches in the bush ),
--- it has all the power you could wish for any wild cat, the Tiny Ten, fox, jackal, and most small size antelopes etc.
--- it is dirt-cheap to shoot, which is a major attribute of a training/plinking caliber if this is indeed the primary purpose.

I have done it myself. On my Blaser R8 I have a .375 H&H and a .300 Wby barrels - plus a .257 Wby barrel for mountain hunting - and a .223 Rem practice barrel with which I shoot almost weekly 30 to 60 rounds off the sticks at 300 yards on a 6" steel plate (I live literally 5 minutes from public land in Arizona).

For plinking/practice purpose I am very happy with Federal Eagle bulk 55 gr FMJ. The last 1,000 rounds case I bought - prior to COVID - cost me in the $250 range if memory serves, and I hope the current ~$400 price will go back to normal if there ever is an after COVID At any rate even at $400 per 1,000 rounds it is still $0.40 per shot as opposed to $1.5 to $3 per shot for the .243 Win or 6.5 CM, if can find any...

PS: it makes sense to put a scope with an adjustable elevation turret on it (mine has a Swarovski Z3 4-12x50 BT) because at 300 yards and beyond the drop is such that it is easy to miss the 6" plate without it...

If the primary purpose is NOT training/practicing/plinking, but completing a 3-rifle battery (you already have semi-heavy and medium) then a .25, .26, .27 caliber is likely a better choice but training will get pretty expensive, especially if you shoot often

 

[Manny R]

I am leaning towards the 6.5 but I have a 270 and in a Remington 700 that I have killed lots of deer...a moose,Dall Sheep and even a Grizzly

 

[Manny R]

My Sauer 404 is my now go to hunting rifle which I love. The cats I am talking about are like Civit in Africa.I like what you had to say and Thanks. I really like Swarovski Scopes. I have 2 Z6 on my Sauer and like the Z3 you speak about