6.5mm something or another

[tammons]

Decided to start another 6.5mm thread, since I am now not quite sure about the 260. Thanks for enduring all my stupid questions.

I have decided to build a single shot rifle to shoot in competition but also to hunt occasionally thus one reason I want a 6.5mm bullet.

Seems like it is the best compromise between the best BC, best SD, managable recoil, good penetration on game and good long range accuracy.

I have ruled out the 6.5 magnums and the 6.5-284, too much recoil and barrel burners.

I also want something I can buy some factory ammo for, but also get brass for reloading without renecking fireforming etc.

I want a handload that will work out to 1000 yards and is still supersonic at that range.

That leaves me with either the

Remington 260
6.5x55
the new lapua 6.5x47
6.5mm grendal,underpowered for 1000 yards)

Are there any others I should consider ??

Right now I like the looks of the 6.5x55 swede, but the remington 260 has a small edge with more fps, but as I understand it handloads in the 6.5x55 would make up the difference.

The grendal looks underpowed.

The 6.5x47 is new but looks promising.

The 6.5x55 would probably be the cheapest to reload with top brass like lapua but there is probably more factory 260 ammo out there, not that factory ammo is the driving point. Hunting mid size game for me is a one shot deal, so hunting ammo last a long time. Lapua makes 6.5x55 brass but 260 brass is only available in remington.

Would the new 6.5x47 have any advantage over a 6.5x55 swede

Thanks in advance for any advise.

 

[Cheechako]

tammons

The 6.5x55 has been one of Europe's best all around cartridges for over 100 years. It would be hard to go wrong with it, in the right rifle/barrel/bullet combination. Good brass is available, as are dies.

I'm not sure where you got the impression that the 260 Rem will beat the 6.5x55 in fps unless you're talking about factory ammo loaded for the older M93 Mausers. The 6.5 will beat the 260 Rem with good handloads.

The 6.5 x 47 LAPUA is the new kid on the block and has a lot going for it. It won't match the 6.5x55 simply because it's a smaller capacity case, but unless you intend to do a LOT of really long range shooting, the capacity is not a problem. Excellant brass.

In the end, any of the three will do the job you're talking about. A good barrel, with the correct twist, and good bullets, are far more important than the particular cartridge you might pick.

JMHO

Ray

 

[tammons]

Thanks for the help. 6.5x55 it is.

 

[AlanPF]

I agree with the 6.5x55. Availability of Lapua brass is a plus. One thing you will need to take care with is the throat length if you're intending to use a range of projectiles for hunting/target - might need to be a compromise. But so will a few other things, depending on the types of hunting and target shooting you do.

Alan

 

[JavierMena]

The 6,5X55 Swedish is one of the most accurate cartridges ever. Although any weight between 95 and 160 some grains will do, it performs best with 120-142 grs accuracywise. The thing is, you must have the right rifle twist, which is 1 turn in 8". The old timers knew this, so all Mausers '96 around are even faster ... high sevens; why? they used to shoot 160 grs RN bullets, which need plenty of leade before the rifling begins,same tactics as with the 7X57). I mention this because nowadays many Scandinavians use it on moose, as you know, and that's plenty good for their needs. In fact, most rifles chambered for the Swede shoot better the longer the bullet is. In my country we hunt deer during the bugle in september, and you should see how the 6,5X55 kills them when the bullet lands where it's due. And our deer is more like the red stag than like a whitetail ...

Good shots.

JM.

 

[Rust]

Depends on what you plan on doing with it. My primary use any more is long range target shooting,like I get a chance to do it all that often anymore) so a few items determine my choices and minimize the amount of time correcting for inferior components.

Brass quality. Is there decent brass available OUT OF THE BOX? You can read that to mean does Lapua make brass for it without expanding or necking down, I got too old to waste a lot of time on that sort of nonsense anymore.

Does the cartridge/bullet combination have the ballistics to do what I want it to do which is reach 1,000 and be accurate enough that my shooting rather than my rig determines how well I do.

In my case, barrel life is not a consideration and I don't buy just one barrel at a time anymore either. There is always at least one spare on deck, chambered up. For those who want to shoot competition and worry about barrel life, take up rimfire competition. Seriously. A barrel is a consumable just like bullets, powder and primers.

Pretty much leaves the two choices as 6.5 Swede and 6.5 X 284. Both work, both have Lapua brass available and both should be loaded long enough to require the use of a standard length action if extraction of a loaded round is desired. In my case I'll stick with the 6.5 X 284 since you've really got to step on a 6.5 Swede to match the velocity I'm getting with what is essentially a middle of the road load. At that point the perceived advantage in barrel life of the Swede over the 6.5 X 284 evaporates.

One thing to make sure of, get your first big batch of brass BEORE you spec your reamer. Base your chamber neck diameter on your measurements of a couple of representative loaded dummy rounds out of that batch of brass. I don't really like to neck turn and Lapua brass allows me to go with a pretty snug no turn chamber. Just like the boys with the 6mm BRs.

I've stated in the past that I like to tinker around with gadgets and such a lot. This is true. But my purpose in doing so is to insure that what I do meets a certain quality standard, to find a few rejects basically, not to fix problems with an entire batch of inferior materials.

After I've said all of that, I am sort of looking at doing a 6 X 47 Lapua, sort of, maybe, somewhere along the line like maybe after the new action gets in... what with the Scenars and MKs and Tubbs new bullet... But if it does't work out no big deal, still got the 6.5 X284 in it DOES work.