So i just seen these for the first time. They have a BC of .584 which is better than the tipped 130 grain bullet. I tried looking online for more info about them and found nothing. I have a 6.5-47 Lapua with a 1-8.5 twist bartlein barrel and I currently shoot the 123 grain Matchings with very good accuracy. I stay away from any of the 140 grain bullets because my barrel is a 8.5 twist. Anybody shooting these 130s? What twist rate barrel do you have also. Thanks!
6.5mm 130 grain Sierra Matchking "non tipped"
- Thread starter stinnett1981
- Start date
Interesting, where did you find these bullets?
Fast14riot
Gold $$ Contributor
I have a couple hundred of pull down 130smk I use for fire forming in my 260AI, they shoot great with no load development and being pulls. I shoot a 26" 8 twist. They average about 3/4 moa for 10 shot groups at 100 yards.
According to Bryan Litz's field tests - Ballistic Performance of Rifle Bullets 3rd edition - the new-model ('pointed') 123gn SMK and the 130gn TMK have identical BCs. (123: 0.530 G1 / 0.272 G7; 130 TMK: 0.532 G1 / 0.273 G7 over the 3,000 to 1,500 fps in-flight band.) The 123 gets there despite its lighter weight through significantly less drag generation. It has a longer-radius nose than the 130 which increases efficiency at the possible cost of being a bit more jump-sensitive, even if it still well short of being an out and out secant ogive VLD type.
It also has a shorter bearing surface than the 130 which reduces pressure all other things being the same, so allied to 7gn less weight, should allow usefully higher MVs.
Note that this applies solely to the new-model 123gn SMK which is factory meplat-pointed and packaged in the new purple-mountains label box, and which therefore dates from Sierra resuming production of this model after the great components shortage period. The older unpointed model in the plain green box has a longer bearing surface and shorter nose with a 1-calibre lower ogive radius, generates a bit more drag, and has a lower BC as a consequence. (The new version will almost certainly require a different seating depth too / different seater die setting. Despite this Sierra hasn't warned users of any need to change anything or avoid mixing the pair AFAIK, nor given it a revised part number.)
Go on Sierra's home page. Look at rifle bullets. Then use the filter and choose 6.5mm bullets and 130 grain. They are also for sale at Natchez.
If they're pointed, they're the revised model.
(There isn't any consistency in Sierra's practices for those bullets dropped during the shortage and reintroduced in 'pointed' form. A few models have been changed to a longer / lower drag form as here but many - eg the 0.224 80 gn and 0.243 107 gn MKs are unchanged apart from the closed meplat.)
The bullets I'm talking about are not pointed. There is no green polymer tip. Just a small metplate "spelling". I have seen the pointed 130 grain Matchkings. Those been out for several years, but this is the first time I seen the 130s without a green polymer tip. Attached is a picture from Sierra website.
Attachments
New bullet it seems - no. 1729 - introduced at SHOT in January. Because of its newness, there isn't any independent data as yet.
If you go here and scroll down, there is a side by side pic of the MK and older TMK.
https://forum.snipershide.com/threads/sierra-6-5mm-130gr-smk-1729.6983165/
You can see it's a longer and higher ogive radius value design than the TMK. As with all recent MatchKings, it's clearly factory 'pointed' (ie meplat forced closed in a die). It appears to have a very high claimed BC.
If you go here and scroll down, there is a side by side pic of the MK and older TMK.
https://forum.snipershide.com/threads/sierra-6-5mm-130gr-smk-1729.6983165/
You can see it's a longer and higher ogive radius value design than the TMK. As with all recent MatchKings, it's clearly factory 'pointed' (ie meplat forced closed in a die). It appears to have a very high claimed BC.
Sierra is also making 100 grain matching. You can buy them from sierra but nobody else carries them ! Sierra says they don't know why !
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