8x68S owner's opinions

[Russel. G. Keith]

AAAAAAAAAA Guys
Dumb question but if you are out in the field with just a water bottle and your old rifle are you alone?
But then if you are out in the bush with afore said rifle and DONT want to be found are you lost?
MMMMMMMMMM I don't think so................ beautiful rifles guys.
My Missis gave me a strange look when she read the above and muttered something about no point in kicking him out he LIKES sleeping on the floor.
Be safe Guys
Russel
PS I have been to long away from the bush I can now parallel park..............way way to long in the UK

 

[Gert Odendaal]

If I have to make a choice between my wife and my rifles,,,??????......I surely will miss my wife...but it is all for a good course....

 

[THeunsM]

Hi Gert, I've just joined the site.
Did you build the 8x68?
I just received mine. I built it on a Bruno VZ24 action, Walther match grade barrel (26 inch), 1/10 twist.
I managed to shoot 9mm grouping @ 100m with 180gr factory ammo.
My intention is to handload 220gr swift A-Frame though.

 

[Mannlicher]

9mm grouping @ 100m with 180gr factory ammo.

KS or DK from RWS ?

Mannlicher

 

[8x68]

If I have to make a choice between my wife and my rifles,,,??????......I surely will miss my wife...but it is all for a good course....

+1

 

[Mannlicher]

My intention is to handload 220gr swift A-Frame though.

8x68S and 220 gr A-Frame are a very good combination ! Load it with VV N 560 for my Steyr Prohunter.
Took PG from springbok to Giraffe without problems. Better than all 300 Magnum´s ...

Mannlicher

 

[8x68]

I have an old BRNO ZKK 602 in 8x68S. Love it. Shoots great.....groundhogs don't know what hit them. Stops their charge every time!
Haven't been able to try any of the "premium" bullets offered at the range but had decent success with Sierra 175gr spitzers. I had a 3 shot 1.04" group at 200yds using 71gr H4350 with WLRM Primers and RWS cases.
Nosler 200gr Partitions shot exceptionally well. All were under a MOA at 100yds.
Hornady 220gr SPPT: Best group was a 5 shot 1" grouping at 100yds. 3 shots were touching (0.50"). Load was 67.4gr's IMR 4831, WLRM Primers, RWS cases. Avg velocity 2808fps
Groundhog load: Hornady 150gr SPPT, 73.5gr's IMR 4350, WLRM Primers, RWS cases. Avg vel was 3200fps
Too bad this calibre didn't take in North America. Great round!

 

[Gert Odendaal]

TheunsM

Is it the 8x68S Johan Greyling of Witbank build you?

I know Johan Greyling is currently building three 8x68S rifles with Walther barrels...Johan Mentioned he build one of the 8x68S rifles for somebody but the person has not yet collect it...

I am currently busy with a .500 Jeffery building project ( his son Iwan is doing the 3D printing of the bottom metal/trigger guard/Willie Koekemoer is doing the CAD drawing for me)....if I completed this build I surely will commence with my 8x68S since I will have a 404 Jeffery Magnum bottom metal /trigger guard that evolved from my .500 Jeffery build... Johan wants me to get these 3D printed bottom metal/trigger gaurds/magazine box cast so we can commence with more dangerous game /Magnum caliber builds...
Enjoy your 8x68S and please upload photos...

Gert

 

[Gert Odendaal]

Good day 8x68
I always wanted the following two calibers ..a 404 Jeffery and a 8x68S hunting rifle..I believe that is all you really need in any situation...the 8x68S being my favorite caliber by all means...it is the greatest caliber to own..hitting like a ton of bricks...penetrating anything you aim at..killing instantly...I am currently shooting with it`s smaller brother , the 8x57JS and I can assure you it is a deadly caliber on all plains game...imagine what the 8x68S is capable of..... So, yes , within a short span of time I will be as fortunate as you to have a 8x68S hunting rifle...

 

[Gert Odendaal]

TheunsM, as pointed out I will definitely get to build my 8x68S....I for a moment thought you bought one of Johan Greyling`s 8x68S..it is beautiful rifles and extremely accurate..but this can be said of all 8x68 S rifles since they all are accurate rifles by design... enjoy your 8x68S ..some one told me the best you could do is to use 220 gn bullets and seating them out to at least 91 mm that according to the person who owned a 8x68S will ensure maximum performance..I really would like to hear from owners of this prestiges caliber regarding this person`s point of view, any comments gentleman???

Here is a quote of the above mentioned opinion:
"
Keep in mind when building a 8x68S calibre, your total length of the round needs to be at least 91 mm, since you use S385 (72 gn /75 gn powder loads) with a220 gn Sierra Game king bullet and get velocity of 2850 f/s"
This person is explaining the use of a South African powder that is
Slow burning extruded propellant for magnum rifles

Category:
Extruded Propellant

 

[Mannlicher]

I take 87mm for the 220gr A-Frame and 71 gr N 560, 2820 f/s. COL depends on the magazine and the barrel, individual measuring has to be .

Mannlicher

 

[Odinsraven]

Have 8x68s and 8mm remington magnum both are amazing the 8x68s is a voere and the 8mm rem is a safari custom shop from remington. ...Both deadly accurate and easy to find accuracy for ....Both are tolerable recoil with good techniques. .....

Have supressors on both which makes them puppies. ......

Have collected over the past years every or nearly every bullet for the 8mm if woodleigh would only make 8mm 250gr fmj then buff proper would be on the cards ....However wildebeest at 400m drop like struck by the hammer of Thor. Have culled perhaps 200 animals from springbok thru to wildebeest and Kudu all drop to the shot .......

Shot a springbok at 20m for cat food .......not recommended if you wish to eat it however skin will be on the wall as a reminder of maybe maybe there is too much gun ...

 

[8x68]

Good day 8x68
I always wanted the following two calibers ..a 404 Jeffery and a 8x68S hunting rifle..I believe that is all you really need in any situation...the 8x68S being my favorite caliber by all means...it is the greatest caliber to own..hitting like a ton of bricks...penetrating anything you aim at..killing instantly...I am currently shooting with it`s smaller brother , the 8x57JS and I can assure you it is a deadly caliber on all plains game...imagine what the 8x68S is capable of..... So, yes , within a short span of time I will be as fortunate as you to have a 8x68S hunting rifle...

We think alike as I too have the venerable 404 Jeffery! I would hazard to guess that the 8x68S and the 404J are all you really need for Africa...but then what about my 9.3x62, 375H&H, 416 Rigby and for dessert the 450 Rigby! Just waiting for Matt to chime in.........

 

[Gert Odendaal]

As mentioned before one aspect I am contemplating when thinking about what I would like my self build 8x68S projects needs to include is a 28" barrel with a rifling twist of 1:9.45 ( like my 8x57 JS ) The rationale being since this is a heavy hitting longer distance rifle than the 8x57 JS ( bushveld rifle) it will give me the advantage of stabilizing a long heavy bullet , 220 gn to 250 gn over longer distances with more accuracy, meaning a tight rifling twist with a long heavy bullet...keep in mind this is my own opinion .
I was just wondering how I will be able to test my theory in practice ...theoretically it it is a sound theory..
I would like a discussion in this regard..

 

[THeunsM]

8x68S and 220 gr A-Frame are a very good combination ! Load it with VV N 560 for my Steyr Prohunter.
Took PG from springbok to Giraffe without problems. Better than all 300 Magnum´s ...

Mannlicher

 

[THeunsM]

TheunsM

Is it the 8x68S Johan Greyling of Witbank build you?

I know Johan Greyling is currently building three 8x68S rifles with Walther barrels...Johan Mentioned he build one of the 8x68S rifles for somebody but the person has not yet collect it...

I am currently busy with a .500 Jeffery building project ( his son Iwan is doing the 3D printing of the bottom metal/trigger guard/Willie Koekemoer is doing the CAD drawing for me)....if I completed this build I surely will commence with my 8x68S since I will have a 404 Jeffery Magnum bottom metal /trigger guard that evolved from my .500 Jeffery build... Johan wants me to get these 3D printed bottom metal/trigger gaurds/magazine box cast so we can commence with more dangerous game /Magnum caliber builds...
Enjoy your 8x68S and please upload photos...

Gert

Hi Gert,
Thank you, I will upload a few photos shortly!
No, Eugene Combrink from Magnum arms (Nelspruit South Africa) built my 8x68. I managed to import a Gun Blank from the UK. He also made the stock. It's quite a piece!

 

[THeunsM]

TheunsM, as pointed out I will definitely get to build my 8x68S....I for a moment thought you bought one of Johan Greyling`s 8x68S..it is beautiful rifles and extremely accurate..but this can be said of all 8x68 S rifles since they all are accurate rifles by design... enjoy your 8x68S ..some one told me the best you could do is to use 220 gn bullets and seating them out to at least 91 mm that according to the person who owned a 8x68S will ensure maximum performance..I really would like to hear from owners of this prestiges caliber regarding this person`s point of view, any comments gentleman???

Here is a quote of the above mentioned opinion:
"
Keep in mind when building a 8x68S calibre, your total length of the round needs to be at least 91 mm, since you use S385 (72 gn /75 gn powder loads) with a220 gn Sierra Game king bullet and get velocity of 2850 f/s"
This person is explaining the use of a South African powder that is
Slow burning extruded propellant for magnum rifles

Category:
Extruded Propellant

I will be using S365 propellant (South African)
RWS Cases
S365 Propellant (South African made)
220 Swift a-frame bullets
Federal Premium primers (Large caliber)

With regards to "cartridge overall length" (CAL):
I think it depends on the specific rifles chamber and free bore length which determines what the maximum CAL can be.
In my rifle (with 220gr Swift A-Frame) the maximum CAL is 89.9mm with the bullet pressing against the lands.(Note that my chamber and free bore length is according to caliber spec)
Obviously one has to seat the bullet deeper in order to get it away from the lands. So in my rifle, 91mm CAL is not possible with 220 A-Frame bullets. Maybe the Sierra Game king bullet has a different contour than the a-frame.

According to one of the most knowledgeable sources in SA (with regards to reloading) the suggested CAL should be 87mm specifically for a SWIFT A-Frame 220gr bullet.
This means that in my rifle there will be a 2.8mm jump to the lands.
He also mentioned that in large caliber rifles, the jump of the bullet should rather be more than less.

Theuns

 

[THeunsM]

 

[THeunsM]

I read up about the Obendorf Mauser action M98 , according to a very knowledgeable source it seems this action like the VZ24 is one of the best actions to build a custom rifle on. I will really enjoy preparing the action for a very accurate 8x68S medium/long hunting distance rifle...I think using a barrrel with a rifling twist of 1: 9.45 (8x57JS) will indeed afford me the opportunity to shoot a 220 gn bullet quite accurate out to longer hunting distances. As I pointed out previously a large cartridge capacity with a tight rifling twist will ensure a very accurate hunting rifle....

Hi Gert, I also wanted to shoot heavier bullets in my 8x68. Therefore I also opted for the 8x57JS standard twist rate initially but was advised as follows:

The velocity of the 8x68 bullet is much higher than the 8x57. Should one opt for the 1:9-45 twist rate the bullet actually "over step" the barrel rifling due to the high velocity of the bullet in the 8x68.

A 1:10 twist rate would eliminate this problem and still stabilize 220-250gr bullets perfectly. Based on this advise I went with 1:10 twist

Regards
Theuns

 

[Mannlicher]

My 8x68S-rifles: Steyr Prohunter with S&B 3-12x50 Zenith as a working rifle.
Bock-Drilling, K.Hauptmann, Ferlach, Austria - 20/76/ 5,6x50RMag/8x68S with Swarovski 8x56 for sunny days ...

Mannlicher