6.5x284 PET LOAD'S ANYBODY ?

[Mr. Ten-X]

For a good spell, the AMU used the SIE142MK with 53.0/N165. I used that load with Lapua brass and WLR primers for a few seasons and it shot every bit as good as I could point it. Not overly fast (2950fps), the load would really plant corn in the two barrels that I turned into tomato stakes.

 

[hogpatrol]

Brux 1-8, I use 47.7 of Hybrid 100V, BR2s, Lapua, 130 Berger VLD hunting, jammed .010.

 

[dennisinaz]

For a good spell, the AMU used the SIE142MK with 53.0/N165. I used that load with Lapua brass and WLR primers for a few seasons and it shot every bit as good as I could point it. Not overly fast (2950fps), the load would really plant corn in the two barrels that I turned into tomato stakes.

By pedestrian, I mean old school powders that don't provide much in the way of velocity. There are modern powders that really wake the 6.5-284 up. These include R17, Mag Pro and Superformance. There may be others. Like I said, I can get 3000 fps with these powders in a 25" barrel. It can't be done with 4350 or 4831.

It is a myth that the longer barrel lets you better use the slower powder. The pressure curve is well down before the bullet gets to 26", A higher velocity powder is going to give you higher velocities regardless the barrel length. If you are shooting 1000 yd BR, you will possibly benefit from the 30" barrel and the 4350 as you can easily get single digit ES. I can't get single digit with R17 but closer to 20 fps ES. This is of little consequence at 500 and 600 meters and not critical on HP targets.

I think it's dumb to load your 6.5-284 to perform like a 6.5x47 Lapua when you can make it really shine. I mostly hunt with mine these days and I really like the added velocity as I can stretch the distance where the bullets perform better.

I haven't tried it but I'll bet you could get 3200-3300 out of a 31" barrel and R17.

 

[Biggdawg]

Speaking of r17 has anyone used it with the barnes 127 lrx?

just looking for a good starting point was thinking 49-50 should be a good start point and work up from there.

 

[Jnewman]

I guess I will keep loading mine to preform like a 6.5x47 because my brass lasts longer my shoulder hurts less and the bullet still goes exactly where I want it to go guess I'm old school by using h4350!

 

[Mr. Ten-X]

^^^ e x a c t l y

The AMU must have had it all wrong

 

[Rtheurer]

Has anyone tried RETUMBO? I tested some H1000 this last spring.. It Shot OK but not as good as my Standard H4831SC load. Chrono and 100 yard groups looked great. Shot it at 600 and it didnt quite out shoot my standard. Looking at Quick Load Retumbo showes some awsome Velocity and Load Desnsity. Just wondering if anyone has given it a fair shake. If I could actually find Powder I ight test this summer.

RT

 

[ShootDots]

RT, last June, when I was developing a load in my 6.5 x 284 I also gave Retumbo a shot.. GREAT velocity, however, accuracy was less than stellar and the E.S.'s were about 30f.p.s. W-A-Y too much... My load of H1000 was awesome. It gave me 3030f.p.s., 12 or less E.S.'s and excellent accuracy. I never "cleaned" at 1000 yards, however, last summer at Bayou Rifles, we were shooting 15 shots for record instead of our "normal" 20 shots. During the 15 shot matches, I shot 2 cleans with that load... The "tightness" waterline was unreal!! But Retumbo did not do too well in my 6.5 x 284>>> TOO SLOW....

 

[Syncrowave]

Thanks for the explanation, DennisinAZ. I'm new to this cartridge and was not aware of much about those other powders.

Mr. Ten-X, what do you mean by "plant corn"? Never heard that expression, and I feel like Borat here...

 

[Mr. Ten-X]

"It really plants corn" is like "drills them very well".

 

[dennisinaz]

I guess everyone has the needs. If you are a competitive 1000 yd shooter then you know what powders are winning and don't need to ask a question like was asked on here. If you are really interested in learning something, then take what is posted and glean out of it what works for you. I have shot 1000 YD BR and know what worked for me and the guys that shot the same cartridge as me. When using a short barrel and especially for long range hunting, the 6.5-284 really like to be shot at 3000 fps. That why they use 30" barrels.

I have found, by experimenting with new,modern powders that you can get much more velocity that what we used to think was the limit. Accuracy is good enough. In a hunting rifle, if I find a load that has the velocity I want and accuracy is in the 3"-4" range at 600 yards, I quit looking any further and just start shooting. I found that trying to make every load better amounted to a dog chasing his own tail; he never catches it.

 

[Brent Martell]

I have not tried H1000 so I can not state how much better it works. I also do not shoot BR. As far as pet loads, that seems to be dependent of the rifles likes. For example I have 2 6.5-284s. 1 likes 56.5 grains of retumbo at .100 off the lands with 140 bergers. The other rifle likes .125 off the lands at 57 grains retumbo 140 VLD. The latter shot 3 groups of 3. I know, 5 shots, 10, 15.....whatever. I don't care. I am fine with .25 or less 3 shot groups especially if it seems to be consistent, I really don't like punching paper. It is a hunting rifle.

This latest rifle is a stock Savage model 116 with varmint contour 24" barrel. I am using a Sightron siii 6-24 x50. 57 grs Retumbo. .125. 2970 FPS. .25MOA or less. So far largest group was .20 MOA (250 rounds fired)
The other rifle has a stock savage just like the first with a NF 5.5-22 x56. 56.5 retumbo. .100. .3MOA at 2960 fps.
Federal 210M primers. Lapau brass.

 

[Kevin Stoughton]

Hello, I have a Savage BVSS in 6.5x284 with a 1x8 twist. Can anybody share a pet load with me. Weight of bullet doesn't matter at this point.
Thanks

Hello everybody!
I realize this is an old thread but I wanted to chime in since I have done a lot of shooting and load development with the 6.5x284 Norma. I have used almost every primer, powder and bullet combination out there and have found a lot of interesting results that surprised me and might surprise you too. I hope some of this information helps some of you out there.
Before I get into the specifics of loads and components used, I would like to address some of the questions that were asked below regarding barrel life with the 6.5x284 cartridge. Yes, this load can burn up barrels faster than some other cartridges but don't let that scare you away. It's a great round and it's inherently accurate. There is a lot of misinformation out there about what makes these barrels get "shot out" so fast and how long they actually last. I can tell you that the case dimensions are a major reason for the barrel life being short. It causes pressure to be higher than similar cases that don't have a similar shaped shoulder. Pressure from hot loads is the other significant factor. However, if you don't fire long, rapid strings and get your barrel super hot and you clean the throat thoroughly and often, you can easily get 1500+ rounds out of these barrels. Many people will chime in and say "no way" but I'm not just a computer troll spitting false information. I've used many barrels and shoot with a lot of people at a 1000yd range that use this caliber. Many of the competitors that say they only get 1200 or less take the barrels off of their gun before if is completely worn out. I've had barrels that don't show any signs of losing accuracy until the reach 1500+ rounds and from there, the accuracy decreases just a little at a time. If you are going to use this gun for hunting as many do, you will never even have to think about barrel life...unless you shoot a shit load of animals or miss a lot! Now that all of that crap is out of the way, on to what I have learned over the years!
My gun that I have most recently been doing load development for is a Remington 700 long action, left hand that has been blueprinted and highly customized. The barrel is a 26" Bartlein with a 1:8 twist that is mounted with the Remage barrel nut from Bugholes so that barrels can be switched out fast and easily, calibers can even be changed in minutes! Everything is sitting in a Masterpiece Arms chassis and topped with a Vortex 5-20x50 Razor, mounted with a 20moa Leupold Mk IV base and Vortex matched rings.
I use Lapua brass exclusively because it is the best, hands down! I also use CCI BR2 primers exclusively because they are the most accurate and consistent. Others may disagree but that is what I have found. As for the powder and bullets, I have narrowed down the powder to H4350 because day in and day out, it shoots best out of every 6.5x284 barrel and gun I've ever owned. It is also insensitive to changes in temperature and is very consistent. So, with all of that being said.....

My best load is:
Lapua brass, sized with Redding S Type, bushing style neck sizing dies (.292").
CCI BR2 primers
Berger 140 gr. Target Hybrid bullets
49.3 grains of H-4350 Powder which fills the case to about 90% of capacity and averages 2950fps. (26"bbl)
My coal is 3.165" long and is just touching the lands. The overall length of the cartridges is why I decided to build this gun on a long action instead of a short
A little side note; my best group(6 shots) with this load is .240". I shot it off of a bipod and rear bag. I realize that doesn't sound like a very great group, but the first three shots were literally in the same hole... exactly in the same hole. It looked like one bullet hole until I looked at the back side of the target and looked at the exit holes in the wood. The last three holes were exacly the same as the first three except they were .240 inches apart. My target looked like two holes .240" apart! I am absolutely certain that when some more bullets arrive in the mail that I will be able to shoot a 6 shot group that is one hole!

My second best load is:
I've also had very good luck with the exact same load except I swapped out the Berger 140 gr. bullets for the Nosler 140 gr. RDF bullets. I was told that the RDF bullets are very sensitive to seating depth like the Berger VLD's and I can see why. They look almost exactly the same except for the tip on the Nosler bullets which have a very small meplat. Because they look so similar and share most of their dimensions, they load the same too. I used the 3.165" seating depth and they shot almost as well as the Bergers.

My third best load is:
This load is very similar to the other two loads except that again, I switched the bullets. This time I used the Hornady 140 gr. ELD-M bullets(which are interchangeable with the ELD-X bullets as fas as loading goes). The powder charge is a little different than the above two loads. My load had a charge of around 48.5 gr. or so, I can't remember exactly to tell you the truth. It wasn't my best so I didn't even write it down.

I know some, if not most of you are wondering about SMK and Lapua Scenar's and my results with them. Sierras are great bullets and I have shot and used them a lot over the years. I never have been a big fan of Lapua bullets. The gun I shoot most often and the gun before that both did not shoot the Sierra Match Kings very well at all and I've never used Scenar's except a few times, long ago There are just a lot of better bullets out there in my opinion. To be honest, although SMK's have a great history and a healthy following, I think they are falling a little behind Berger, Nosler, Hornady and some of the custom bullets like JLK, Alco and the Warner Flat Line. The Warner Flat Line bullets are amazingly accurate at ELD ranges and the Alco bullets.

I've rambled on here way too long. I hope some of this information helps someone out there. KJS