My plan is to use Winchester 270 brass but I also have quite a bit of 30-06 brass. For those of you that have used both, do you find much variation within a particular load that is good with 270 brass when you switch to 30-06 brass? I know with my 308s, my rifles tend to prefer one type of brass and do not shoot so well at all with others unless tweaked. Even then there is no guarantee it will work at all.
Using 30-06 and 270 Brass for 6.5-06
- Thread starter Turpentine
- Start date
I can tell you this if you use 270 brass you've got a lot of neck to remove as they are longer 30 06 neck down I think you would have to anneal possibly even next turn
Watch your neck thickness. I bought a rifle that came with 25-06 brass. The necks were so thin they started splitting on the third load. 30-06 brass necked down needed neck turning. I removed the drama from my life and rechambered it to 6.5-284 the same as my other rifles. Your chamber may be different.
I trim, chamfer, and deburr in 1 step with a Forster 3 in 1 so trimming isn’t bad at all. The prep is much easier than prepping Lake City brass for my 308s. 25-06 brass really isn’t an option for me. I could buy some I guess but id rather use the buckets full of 270 and 30-06 I already have without incurring the extra expense.
As long as he's using projectiles that don't need to go below the doughnut area always a problem with necking up has been for me anyway much prefer to go necking down
NZ_Fclass
Silver $$ Contributor
Been thete, done that. It's by far the best option. The calibre needs good bullet selection, as the softer projectiles, for say the 6.5 Swede, wont make it to the target ( ask me how I know).
Years ago I necked 100s of 30-06 down to 25-06 in 1972, don't believe I ever bought any 25-06 brass for about 10 yrs, until it was widely available and on sale, then I bought a few thousand. Don't own a 25-06 today is was rebarrel to a long action 30" 8 twist barrel in 308 win and heavy bullets seated way out in 30-06 detachable mag 200 SMK 2856 fps 715 BC or 225 ELDM .777 BC 2675 fps or 230 ATIP at 2620 fps for a less expensive LR rifle. The barrel was ordered for a 250 Atip 300 RUM project, but decided to chamber it for a 308 win to see what was possible...after shooting the 308 I put the 300 RUM 30" on hold even though it's ready to feed 4.020" cartridges and the action machined...it's 26" throated barrel is runing 250 Atip at 2985 fps so a 30" should be close to 3100 fps...but I haven't ordered the 300 RUM reamer...lost some interest in this project...cause ya have to drive farther to shoot it at the distances where it has an advantage over the altered 308
L A which is doing very well....but I have a bunch of RUM brass and 250 Atips ...so it will get done.
L A which is doing very well....but I have a bunch of RUM brass and 250 Atips ...so it will get done.
Not trying to be a smart guy but where do you find Winchester 25-06 brass? That stuff hasn't been seen it a coon's age.
Did you buy a used 6.5-06 Rifle? Many of the older versions actually might have been chambered for the thicker 06 brass. If you are building a Rifle from the ground up with a new custom chambered Barrel, there are many improved versions available to take advantage of that 270 Brass and it's longer neck. My favorite design uses the 6.5x47 Lapua top end mounted on 270 Brass.
WyleWD
Silver $$ Contributor
I bought 100 at the local Cabelas about 6 weeks ago. They also had Remington 25-06 available. WD
Been awhile, I’ve been quite busy. I have not had as much time with load development as I would like. My sized necks are around .2885-.289. Loaded necks are around .291 with Winchester or Federal 270 brass. Fired necks are just shy of .296 with Winchester or Federal 270 brass so throat diameter and neck expansion look ok. Trimming the 270 brass is no big deal at all with the Forster tool. Its very quick and I’ve learned with this tool to look for wobble in the case while trimming. If it’s chucked up and the pilot is in the neck I shouldn’t be getting any wobble in the body of the case. If I see any wobble there I will generally discard the case. I’ve worked out a good load with low SD and ES. Groups run around 3/8”-1/2” if I can do my part. I’m thinking neck tension may be just a little too much so I thought about looking into a bushing die. i also may turn and anneal necks just to clean the necks up. i get just a little bit of variation if I measure diameter at different spots on loaded necks when I rotate the round.
Your neck tension is good @ ~0.002”. You have ~ 0.005-0.006” of neck clearance, which is not excessive. I would look into a carbide mandrel before a bushing die. Then the ID of the case will be consistent. I wouldn’t put in the time & effort turn cases with the current amount of neck clearance, just to improve on a 3/8-1/2” gun.
You never mentioned what your intended use is for the rifle.
L.Sherm
Silver $$ Contributor
What is short?
I use an X Die in my 308 and 223 which uses a mandrel and prohibits case lengthening. I like that particular setup but it isn’t offered in 6.5-06. I’ve done a lot of measuring in the last few days and really just need to do more load work up And try some 140s as well. I probably have about 60 rounds through it now. Any advice on who to get to make a mandrel. I have used a Lee collet before and liked it in 308. I had also thought about getting a die honed out.
This rifles purpose is informal shooting to 1200 yards and long range deer and hog depredation. No competition or anything like that. I want accuracy, as much as I can get out of it and honestly if it’ll stay under 1/2” I’m fine with it. I haven’t found the load yet that is consistent enough to give me good 1000 yard groups so I need to dial in on consistent speed a bit. I did shoot 1 group of 140s today that was consistent across the chronograph but my main focus has been on 147s.
Unfortunately one of my biggest hindrances to good groups is table manners. I broke my back 17 years ago and it took 9 operations to put Humpty Dumbty back together again. I have 11 fused vertebrae from tailbone to shoulder blades, a titanium plate and disc in my neck and have constant spasms everywhere. If I keep those under control my groups stay decent.
Its a 6.5-06 A Square Match Criterion barrel in Sendero profile. Not the AI. While the Ackley is interesting, I don’t want anything that has to be fireformed.
No sir I built this rifle myself. The barrel is a Criterion 6.5-06 A Square match in Sendero profile. I’ve been trying some different loads and for 147s it does seem to prefer 30-06 Brass. 140s seem to do better in the 270 Cases. Which honestly isn’t a bad problem to have.
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