I have a .25/06 ai reamer. I have never shot a 25/06 ai. Does anyone have experience with this round shooting blackjack 131 bullets? Seems like it would be a rocket, just curious if it was easy to get loaded and run the 700 rounds out of it.
.25/06 ai
- Thread starter Forward543
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john pruitt
Silver $$ Contributor
It is a great caliber .I shot 110 accubonds drop what ever you shoot right now I love it.
You need to have a reamer ground for this bullet. If you don't have that you need to use a gunsmith who has the proper throating reamer to create the new throat or the right complete reamer.
Gunsmith near me has built 4-5 25-06 AI s for the 131 Blkjack bullet. Getting 3100-3200 fps depending on barrel length; some 26" and others as long as 30" inbench guns. 8 twist has been working fine... we re at 3500 elevation. BC has held up to 1400 yds, longest tested so far.
It's a hammer of a cartridge with that 131 !
Good luck.
It's a hammer of a cartridge with that 131 !
Good luck.
Do you know what freebore he has been using?
.040 ? I thought Saami was around .143
Preacher
Gold $$ Contributor
I thought the same, my reamer print shows free bore is .131
STOMP442
Gold $$ Contributor
I built one for a guy but I didn't get to do the load development on it. He claims its a beast with those Blackjacks and Retumbo. He's getting 3,167fps and some pretty stellar accuracy. Here are a couple pictures he sent to me. One five shot group and then a 10 shot group. Has me thinking of building one for myself.
It is, My Smith just got off the phone with BlackJack and they said .131 will work fine
PTG reamer... drawing has .050 Lead and .040 Throat .... so is that actually .090 FB ? Not my reamer thus I don't want to post print.
I do know that the full diameter of the bullet starting just ahead of BT seats right to bottom of cartridge case neck. Case is 2.525 long so a lot of neck available to chase lands as barrel gets round count up.
I do know that the full diameter of the bullet starting just ahead of BT seats right to bottom of cartridge case neck. Case is 2.525 long so a lot of neck available to chase lands as barrel gets round count up.
what kind of barrel life are you getting?
I've shot over 40K rounds of the standard 25-06 Rem and 25-06 AI over 54 years as my go-to rifles for everything except 1000 yard elk. The AI is the far superior version of this great cartridge but the straight 25-06 does better than most other cartridges across a wide variety of uses. For most antelope/deer hunting applications the 100g bullet at around 3500 fps is more deadly than anything short of the .257 Wby with better accuracy. Having hunted the prairie most of my life, about 75% of my shots have been running shots (and pronghorns fly) and this bullet makes them more predictable than anything I've shot. Within a couple hundred yards, that weight bullet hits where the cross hair is.
I shot a 25 Creedmoor in F-Class 600 competition using a 28" heavy varmint barrel and practiced at 1000 yards last season with the 131 Blackjack at 2950 fps. That bullet has outstanding precision but I would not select any of these 25 calibers for that type of competition. They are accurate enough to win but the barrels only lasted 1400 rounds and 25 shot relays heated the barrel up flaming hot on those 95 degree summer days. The 131g bullet is over bore and has a large bearing surface so it can heat barrels quickly. You MUST have a mirage tube on your scope to cut through heat mirage coming off the barrel after about 8 rounds on 95 degree days. I was happy to see that the cold barrel first round hits the X-ring just like the warm barrel rounds... great for hunting. The 25-06s with those bullets also have lost the "light recoil" attribute for which that cartridge became famous. The recoil seems somewhere between the .270 and 7mm Mag with the 131g bullets moving close to 3200 fps. Fine for hunting but it could wear you out in a 75 round competition. Shooting a couple hundred a day on 1000 yard p-dogs will leave you with a badly bruised shoulder.
I'm a hobbyist gunsmith and recently made two 25-06 AIs and one 25 WSSM. I'll be using the131g Blackjack or one of the big Bergers on long shots (mostly beyond 1000 yards) or elk shots; the Berger 115 for 1000 yard p-dogs, the 100g Interlock or Game King on deer and antelope out to 500 yards and the 75g Vmax for p-dogs, foxes & coyotes to avoid ricochets. All my 25 calibers shoot in the .2s with 26" Bartliens and these last three use Proof Research 26" Sendero contour barrels (great "carry rifles" weighing in at 7 pounds with titanium receivers).
There are many great cartridges but the 25-06 AI is one of the best if you hunt a wide variety of game, you hunt at long range or you want to be known as the best shot in your hunting camp. For various competition applications there are others that might be better for you for the reasons stated above. I like to keep the 131s on top of the powder column but you can live pretty well with RL26 in the 25-06 AI as long as you ream your necks to remove "donuts". If you get your reamers from Blackjack Bullets, they will see that you have the right reamer.
I shot a 25 Creedmoor in F-Class 600 competition using a 28" heavy varmint barrel and practiced at 1000 yards last season with the 131 Blackjack at 2950 fps. That bullet has outstanding precision but I would not select any of these 25 calibers for that type of competition. They are accurate enough to win but the barrels only lasted 1400 rounds and 25 shot relays heated the barrel up flaming hot on those 95 degree summer days. The 131g bullet is over bore and has a large bearing surface so it can heat barrels quickly. You MUST have a mirage tube on your scope to cut through heat mirage coming off the barrel after about 8 rounds on 95 degree days. I was happy to see that the cold barrel first round hits the X-ring just like the warm barrel rounds... great for hunting. The 25-06s with those bullets also have lost the "light recoil" attribute for which that cartridge became famous. The recoil seems somewhere between the .270 and 7mm Mag with the 131g bullets moving close to 3200 fps. Fine for hunting but it could wear you out in a 75 round competition. Shooting a couple hundred a day on 1000 yard p-dogs will leave you with a badly bruised shoulder.
I'm a hobbyist gunsmith and recently made two 25-06 AIs and one 25 WSSM. I'll be using the131g Blackjack or one of the big Bergers on long shots (mostly beyond 1000 yards) or elk shots; the Berger 115 for 1000 yard p-dogs, the 100g Interlock or Game King on deer and antelope out to 500 yards and the 75g Vmax for p-dogs, foxes & coyotes to avoid ricochets. All my 25 calibers shoot in the .2s with 26" Bartliens and these last three use Proof Research 26" Sendero contour barrels (great "carry rifles" weighing in at 7 pounds with titanium receivers).
There are many great cartridges but the 25-06 AI is one of the best if you hunt a wide variety of game, you hunt at long range or you want to be known as the best shot in your hunting camp. For various competition applications there are others that might be better for you for the reasons stated above. I like to keep the 131s on top of the powder column but you can live pretty well with RL26 in the 25-06 AI as long as you ream your necks to remove "donuts". If you get your reamers from Blackjack Bullets, they will see that you have the right reamer.
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Thanks Dakotaman for the info. I have a Sendero 25-06AI that has been skim bedded , SAKO ext, Bolt face squared, etc. by Kirby Allen. It is a fine rifle, it was my main rifle for WY. Antelope/Mule Deer hunts.
Have never had my 25-06 opened up to a improved version, but have thought of it, as I do like the A. I. cartridges.
Have shot this old 25-06 since around 1965 or so and killed a lot of deer and a few elk with the nosler partition in it.
Might just rechamber to A.I. in time. You should like yours, but go with a faster twist on those heavier/long bullets for stability.
Have shot this old 25-06 since around 1965 or so and killed a lot of deer and a few elk with the nosler partition in it.
Might just rechamber to A.I. in time. You should like yours, but go with a faster twist on those heavier/long bullets for stability.
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