Calibre for Kipplauf style rifle.

[Toots]

If a man was to be giving serious thought to buying a Kipplauf style rifle (specifically in this case a Haenel Jaeger 9) then what calibres should he consider?

I really fancy one as something a little bit different to the usual bolt action. Currently have .243 that's a keeper and .308 that I would happily sell on to make way for a Jaeger 9.

I understand that a rimmed cartridge (7x57R) would and should be the choice of the traditionalist (myself included) but sadly factory ammo is not readily available in the UK and I'm reluctant to get my head round reloading for another calibre. This leaves .270 and .308 as obvious choices for all UK deer species.

I have no experience of .270, or kipplauf style rifles for that matter but am conscious that this might be a bit of a "feisty" combination? (the only one the Importers have in the UK at present is in this calibre).
Would .308 be a better choice?
Or should I get Viking to order me one in 7x57R, suck it up and source some brass and buy some dies?

Any advice from those with more experience than myself greatly appreciated

 

[palmer_mike]

7x57r would be great
Sure you’ll probably have to reload for it but that would be part of the fun? (Well it would for me lol)

 

[Woodsmoke]

I'm a .270 man myself. Much prefer it over the .308, but that's just personal choice. From a practical point of view, if you want to maximise this particular rifle's potential, I'd go against my own advice and choose .308 out of the two, purely from the perspective of having a far greater range of options to reload from

 

[deeangeo]

Hmmm a nice break action in 7x57R .. that would be sweet.

 

[Freeforester]

I think it's possibly the main reason they're of limited popularity over here, the market just isn't big enough for the shops to carry such relatively obscure cartridge sizes, and we aren't so many here compared to Germany and the Alpine countries where they are more popular and thus catered for.

 

[Shootgun]

6.5X68 RWS will be my choice, especially if you reload for it.

 

[Heym SR20]

I would go with the 7x65r.

 

[243varmint]

6.5x55 will do everything you need and won’t kick you to much in a light weight mountain rifle.

 

[Kalahari]

303 ?????????????

David.

 

[Andy-shooter]

Mine (k95 stutzen) is 308 and I love it. Great performance from a 33” rifle with a 20” barrel. So easy to handle and shoot in woodland.

Some of the common hunting rounds (inc 270 I believe) really do need a longer barrel to get the best out of them and having a long barrel in a kipplauf sort of defeats the point.

Would you moderate it?

 

[enfieldspares]

Is the .30 R Blaser an option? Ammunition might be hard to come by (and long term may become moribund) so maybe 7x65R is a better choice as that calibre will always endure. Regarding 7x57R then Joe Beatham at Gunshop EB has cases for reloading and, I think, Norman Clarke at Rugby has factory loaded ammunition. But 7x65R is a better choice than 7x57R. I'd pass on .270 WCF as I feel that the bullet weight options are too limited. I've owned one, or two, since I killed my first deer with one in 1989 but have never really liked it as the bullet weight and bullet type choice is limited even today.

 

[Uncle f]

.308 k95 the mutts nuts

 

[enfieldspares]

Would you moderate it?

I know nothing. But would that extra weight on the muzzle not defeat the purpose of the thing as being a lightweight rifle? And, also, make it unbalanced as there's no weight of a bolt and receiver to at least act as a counterweight like it does in a conventional turnbolt gun? I see that the Haenel is available in .30 R Blaser. Here's a man with either a lazy mouth or terrible regional French accent.

 

[Lateral]

Haenel 9 Brake Action


The Haenel is very light, 2.3-2.4kg, + whatever your scope weighs.

If you were considering a Blaser K95 Stutzen, which comes with a short barrel, I'd be avoiding calibres that work best with a longer barrel, due to the case capacity, and making sure of a reasonable powder burn.

However, the Haenel appears to come in a 600mm barrel for non magnum calibres, so burn rate shouldn't be an issue.

So I guess the first thing you need to decide, is just how punchy are you prepared to go. Some people are much more tolerant than others.

Worst case, I'm sure a good gun smith could fit a "kick stop" into the stock, which noticeably reduces recoil.


I'm waiting for a K95 stutzen, and specifically chose the 7x57R as a very capable calibre, without too much recoils, that works well in a short barrel.

 

[mchughcb]

My mate has a Haenel No9 in 9.3x74R.

The obvious choice is nothing bigger than 30-06. The issue is quite simply recoil. If you are the type of person that shoots a few deer a year, then you probably want to enjoy a few sessions down the range. Firing anything bigger than a 7x57R is not going to be pleasant off the bench. Offhand or kneeling is okay. The haenel is a very light gun and combine that with moderate powered deer calibre its going to belt your arm a lot.

In the order of simplicity I'd go with 308Win as suggested. If you can get some 7x57R then I'd consider this as well. My first combination gun was and still is a 7x57R using 175gr Hornady interlocks or Woodleigh PP. It is very, very pleasant to shoot compared to my 30-06. Accuracy is good, extraction is good, killing power is good, penetration is good, projectiles are good. Only brass was a PITA but once you get your 100 x RWS brass you can crack on for decades.

Enjoy!

 

[Toots]

Thanks for the replies fellas.

I have read plenty to suggest that the 7x57R is a well behaved and capable calibre (as Lateral says) and it is only the lack of readily available factory ammo that goes against it in my eyes. Something in me feels it should be a rimmed cartridge as its just sort of right in a rifle of this style. As is lack of moderator.

I do however already reload for .308 so that's making this calibre more attractive (and the massive availability of factory fodder). How easy is extraction of spent cases with a non rimmed round?

Some head scratching to do over the new year.

 

[deeangeo]

Thanks for the replies fellas.

I have read plenty to suggest that the 7x57R is a well behaved and capable calibre (as Lateral says) and it is only the lack of readily available factory ammo that goes against it .
How easy is extraction of spent cases with a non rimmed round?
Some head scratching to do over the new year.

The 7x57R rimmed case falls freely away from the breech in a break action, a .308 case will need to be extracted from the breech using finger nails.
Doesn’t necessarily mean a terribly slow reload, just require you to develop a technique of quick reloading.
I’ve shot many hinds & calves using a specific and well rehearsed reloading technique.
And more to the point, never lost or failed to take the quarry(s) I was after.

 

[enfieldspares]

In practical terms the rimmed case will always extract better assuming the kiplauf has an conventional extractor like a single barrel break open shot gun. This is because the full available diameter of the extractor will bear on the case. Whereas most break open single shot rifles for rimless cases rely on a small spring loaded chisel pointed stud set into the extractor at 90 degrees to the rim. I don't know if the Haenel uses that system. As you load the case pushes past this. The stud then comes out under the spring pressure to engage in the groove in the case. It works well enough but doesn't give as full a mechanical advantage as you'd have with a conventional rimmed case and conventional extractor as the effort of extraction is only at one small area with a stud and rimless case. Whereas with a conventional rimmed case and conventional extractor the effort is better distributed onto the cartridge. If everything goes well, this stud and rimless case, it's never a problem. When they don't go well it could be a nightmare.

 

[enfieldspares]

But...having watched this video...and heard the price....I've one thing to say only...HOW MUCH!



Heck! I didn't pay much more than that for my Laubscher in 7x64. And that came with a fitted leather case and Swarovski 'scope in Holland & Holland sidemounts.

 

[deeangeo]

I think Krieghoff make an auto-extraction version kipplauf ...