30-6.5prc

[Lucky6547]

Hello,
Curious if this compares well to a 300wsm or saum?
Thanks,
Ken

 

[B23]

Case capacity wise a 30-6.5PRC would be nearly identical to a 30-284. The SAUM case has a fair bit more and the WSM has quite a bit more case capacity than does the 6.5PRC case.

Hornady has their new 7mm PRC which will be very comparable, in case capacity, to the WSM.

 

[Evan]

@tom posted this picture that I think is really useful!

There's a sizeable capacity difference and I'm waiting with bated breath for Tom to update us on if it will get the ~200gn bullets up to a good node.

 

[Edd]

If you are wanting a 30-6.5 PRC, look at a 300 RCM.

 

[Gtscotty]

A .30 Cal with 70gr capacity? That sounds very, very familiar.

 

[Hammer101st]

If you are wanting a 30-6.5 PRC, look at a 300 RCM.

I was gonna build one of these in a savage SA but ammo and brass fell of the face of the planet that was a couple years ago this would be a perfect little cartridge for the hills of western PA

 

[Fuj]

You'll pay more for the cases but add in the Sherman line.

 

[Alex Wheeler]

@tom has some data on the 30 prick. I think he was getting 2950 with his 204 and varget. Certainly an overachiever.

 

[Lucky6547]

@tom posted this picture that I think is really useful!
View attachment 1358073
There's a sizeable capacity difference and I'm waiting with bated breath for Tom to update us on if it will get the ~200gn bullets up to a good node.

So what does 12gr of water equate to in terms of powder and velocity?
Thanks,
Ken

 

[Evan]

So what does 12gr of water equate to in terms of powder and velocity?
Thanks,
Ken

Can't say, but it looks to me like a 30-06 with a case head and design that can stand up to modern benchrest's abusively high pressure!

 

[Phys86]

Any update to the 30 prick? Varget seems very fast to put in that size case

 

[Ray Gross]

I built one to hunt with this year. I hunt over large farm fields in Michigan. i've always used a 308 and for the most part haven't needed more. Last year I watched a nice buck all season, but he never got close enough and that was the impetus to build a little more gun. I designed a reamer around the Berger 180 Elite Hunter shortly after last season, but it took a while to get all the stuff I need. My goal was that 180 at 2800fps with a 20" barrel and a can. That would get me out past 600 yards. I have found 3 powders so far (Superformance, Big Game & N550) that get me to 2950mv without pressure signs. I am sure I am pushing the limits, probably past, but it is not showing.

As it turned out I got him this year, with the new rifle, at at about 300 yards. It was very windy this season and I had been watching him several nights out beyond 700 yards. But I wasn't comfortable taking a shot in 20+ mph winds.

I am a little chicken to try Varget with the 180's. N150 pressured out early with the 180's, but pushes 150-155gr bullets to 3150+ easily. Talking to the guys at Hammer bullets, they suggested N140… So maybe Varget or N140 are just the ticket. We'll see.

It is a fun little rifle to shoot. It's got enough oomph for what I need without punishing me each time I pull the trigger.

I didn't realize anyone else was working on a 6.5 PRC necked up to 30 cal until I stumbled onto this thread. I have a revised design that shortens the throat a bit because I think the Elite Hunters shoot a bit better close to the lands.

 

[B Nettesheim]

I built one to hunt with this year. I hunt over large farm fields in Michigan. i've always used a 308 and for the most part haven't needed more. Last year I watched a nice buck all season, but he never got close enough and that was the impetus to build a little more gun. I designed a reamer around the Berger 180 Elite Hunter shortly after last season, but it took a while to get all the stuff I need. My goal was that 180 at 2800fps with a 20" barrel and a can. That would get me out past 600 yards. I have found 3 powders so far (Superformance, Big Game & N550) that get me to 2950mv without pressure signs. I am sure I am pushing the limits, probably past, but it is not showing.

As it turned out I got him this year, with the new rifle, at at about 300 yards. It was very windy this season and I had been watching him several nights out beyond 700 yards. But I wasn't comfortable taking a shot in 20+ mph winds.

I am a little chicken to try Varget with the 180's. N150 pressured out early with the 180's, but pushes 150-155gr bullets to 3150+ easily. Talking to the guys at Hammer bullets, they suggested N140… So maybe Varget or N140 are just the ticket. We'll see.

It is a fun little rifle to shoot. It's got enough oomph for what I need without punishing me each time I pull the trigger.

I didn't realize anyone else was working on a 6.5 PRC necked up to 30 cal until I stumbled onto this thread. I have a revised design that shortens the throat a bit because I think the Elite Hunters shoot a bit better close to the lands.

I really appreciate it when you guys at Manson add notes and descriptions to the prints!!

 

[Ray Gross]

I really appreciate it when you guys at Manson add notes and descriptions to the prints!!

Thanks Brian!

 

[WSnyder]

@Ray Gross I noticed the transition angle (neck to throat) is 30°. Just curious, was that you or Manson that spec’d that and any particular reason for it?

 

[LVLAaron]

I really appreciate it when you guys at Manson add notes and descriptions to the prints!!

+1 Love it.

 

[Ray Gross]

@Ray Gross I noticed the transition angle (neck to throat) is 30°. Just curious, was that you or Manson that spec’d that and any particular reason for it?

The 30° transition is a bit of an on going experiment of mine to see if the start of fire cracking can be delayed by laying the angle down, allowing heat to be conducted way from the convex corner more quickly. I have some other chamber designs with a 15° transition as well. I make no claims as to the actual effectiveness (yet), but it doesn't seem to hurt anything.

If you poke around in the SAAMI or CIP specs, you will find a number of standardized designs that have an angle other than 45°.

(sorry for derailing the thread)

 

[Monday shooter40]

Any news on this combo? i want to build one.

 

[Ray Gross]

Attached is the reamer I would probably use today for a hunting rifle, if I wanted to stick with Berger 180 EH's. (The rifle I built had a throat about .020 shorter). To be honest, I have not been able to find a decent grouping load with the Elite Hunters. So, an even longer freebore that would allow the Classic Hunters and the various Hornady, Noslers, Hammers, etc to seat out to magazine length might be a better path.

I built my rifle with a 20" barrel for use as a suppressed hunting rifle that was compact enough to stay inside the blind. Which it did. My suspicion with the poor grouping of the Elite Hunters is that I may need a 22-24 inch barrel to allow for a better powder burn. It is either that, or they just don't group well.

With pretty much anything 168-190gr shows some amount of muzzle flash, which I take to mean incomplete powder burn inside the barrel. I have another barrel on the way and I plan to start longer with it.

I have my rifle built on a short action with Hawkins Hunter mags. Maybe building it on a medium action that would allow a larger variety of bullets to seat out farther, might increase performance.

The Good-

I can easily get 180's to 2875fps with N160, H4350 & RL16. N550, Superformance & StaBALL6.5 will take them to 2950. I think the sweet spot is around 2875 with 180's in a 20" barrel.

Lighter 150-155gr bullets will run to 3200+ with N150. I have not spent as much time testing lighter bullets. The 166 Hammer Hunters look good at 3050 with N550

My brass is at 9 firings without any issues. All primer pockets are tight.

My goal was a 180 at 2800 out of 20" barrel, and it exceeded it. But once I got some loads up to 2950, now I want more out of it...

I used an 11/32 carbide drill to open up the die neck on a Redding 6.5 PRC Bushing die to make a full length sizing die and it works great. I had my awesome gunsmith open up a 308 Wilson seating die and a 308 MO's Gage with the chamber reamer to make seating die and a shoulder bump gage. I also made up a set of four expanding mandrels to neck the brass up. They worked great and i didn't ruin any brass in the process. I tried fireforming brass with Cream of Wheat. They didn't fireform well and it was much more trouble than the mandrels.

 

[Phys86]

Attached is the reamer I would probably use today for a hunting rifle, if I wanted to stick with Berger 180 EH's. (The rifle I built had a throat about .020 shorter). To be honest, I have not been able to find a decent grouping load with the Elite Hunters. So, an even longer freebore that would allow the Classic Hunters and the various Hornady, Noslers, Hammers, etc to seat out to magazine length might be a better path.

I built my rifle with a 20" barrel for use as a suppressed hunting rifle that was compact enough to stay inside the blind. Which it did. My suspicion with the poor grouping of the Elite Hunters is that I may need a 22-24 inch barrel to allow for a better powder burn. It is either that, or they just don't group well.

With pretty much anything 168-190gr shows some amount of muzzle flash, which I take to mean incomplete powder burn inside the barrel. I have another barrel on the way and I plan to start longer with it.

I have my rifle built on a short action with Hawkins Hunter mags. Maybe building it on a medium action that would allow a larger variety of bullets to seat out farther, might increase performance.

The Good-

I can easily get 180's to 2875fps with N160, H4350 & RL16. N550, Superformance & StaBALL6.5 will take them to 2950. I think the sweet spot is around 2875 with 180's in a 20" barrel.

Lighter 150-155gr bullets will run to 3200+ with N150. I have not spent as much time testing lighter bullets. The 166 Hammer Hunters look good at 3050 with N550

My brass is at 9 firings without any issues. All primer pockets are tight.

My goal was a 180 at 2800 out of 20" barrel, and it exceeded it. But once I got some loads up to 2950, now I want more out of it...

I used an 11/32 carbide drill to open up the die neck on a Redding 6.5 PRC Bushing die to make a full length sizing die and it works great. I had my awesome gunsmith open up a 308 Wilson seating die and a 308 MO's Gage with the chamber reamer to make seating die and a shoulder bump gage. I also made up a set of four expanding mandrels to neck the brass up. They worked great and i didn't ruin any brass in the process. I tried fireforming brass with Cream of Wheat. They didn't fireform well and it was much more trouble than the mandrels.

Thanks for sharing. Would you mind sharing what staball charges you used to get the 180 up to 2950? I've been testing staball in my 30-284ai you helped me design. I got it up to about 2940 but had a hard time determining if I'd hit pressure or not.

This 30-6.5 has me intrigued the same way the 30-284ai does, but it has the added bonus of a longer lasting primer pocket and apparently a hair more case capacity