6.5X55 VS 284

[strikernz]

Gidday
Ive been a long time reader first time poster here

I've reached a dilemma, Im building up a longer varmint hunting/target/steel rifle on a Barnard p action sitting in a walnut target stock,
But Im having trouble committing to a calibre, my mate has a .284 and he says its the way to go but on the other hand Im having second thoughts due to having to neck up cases, annealing etc vs a factory caliber case.

also what do you think about the barrel life and the killing/hunting power of either.

Ive looked on jbm and running the amax's 140 and 162 for the calibers respectivly at a speed of 2850 its not like Im giving up too much either away

So I'd like to here your experienced opinions on the status quo if I could please

regards

Steve

 

[Clod-NC]

Hi StrikerNZ

Welcome here first of all,I reckon you must be a next door neighbour,Kiwi guy,I'm from New Caledonia....So godday mate,and welcome,I can't help you with your question but I assume some very experienced folks here will do it more than you hope or expect;anyway in case you're still in need of info after their answers,you can also check that kiwi site called ballisticsstudies,it's run by a very cool guy called Nathan Foster;go and check,you'll like it I'm sure.A nice week end to you Striker,tata mate.

 

[strikernz]

Hi Clod-NC

cheers for that Ill check it out

 

[Ltdshooter]

Check out the 6.5x55 GW Improved. You will be pleased.

 

[ohnomrbillk]

I'm currently building a 6.5x55 BJAI.

Redding has dies on the shelf. You can purchase them from Grafs.

Manson did the original reamer, but anyone else can duplicate it.

Look at the price of Lapua brass for each chambering. That is what made my decision.

 

[JRS]

I'm currently building a 6.5x55 BJAI.

Redding has dies on the shelf. You can purchase them from Grafs.

Manson did the original reamer, but anyone else can duplicate it.

Look at the price of Lapua brass for each chambering. That is what made my decision.

Redding does NOT make dies for the BJ version. They make what is a standard 6.5x55 AI die. There is quite a bit of difference between the BJAI and AI version.

 

[strikernz]

im proberly more concerned about the amount of brass prep over any thing else, Is there anything preventing resonable accuracy if i just neck up 6.5-284 to 284, load and go shooting? just run a no neckturn chamber, no neckturning or anealing for the first few loads etc?

 

[D-mon]

Hi mate,
I am from Hamilton ;-)
You should contact Grant at True flite in Gisborne. he is running a 284 in his F-class rig and would tell you exactly the respective differences in term of reloading between the 6.5x55 (AI or not) ,6.5-284 and 284.
He has the reamers for all of them.

Nic

 

[Raptor]

I have shot out a couple of 6.5x284s and loved them but they were just to hard on barrels, now shoot a 284 and its the cats nuts!!! Mine is an absolute hammer. Its got over 1200rds through it and I just had it bore scoped and it hardly has any throat wear. My 6.5x284s were going way south but this many rounds.

I use WW brass in mine and it works great. I had mine set up to shoot 162 and 168s with a 28" barrel. I have never had a rifle that has such a consistant low vertical spread. Most times its under .5moa for verticle no matter what range you shoot it at.

 

[JRS]

The 6.5x55 BJAI gives up NOTHING to the 284. LAPUA and RWS brass available. Less powder. Load it and shoot it in the improved chamber. Can't ask for anything more

 

[turbo54]

Both are fine cartridges, and as you mentioned, the trajectory/drift to 1000 yards is pretty much six of one, and a half-dozen of the other.

My partner has a 260, and I have a 284. To ~750 yards, we can nearly interchange our dope. The 284 begins to gain a discernible advantage at about 750 yards, but it isn't obvious until 1000, meanwhile the 260 is doing just fine.

The 6.5x55 is essentially the same as a 260, and both of them have expected barrel lifes pretty much the same as a 284.

As far as I'm concerned, the key differences between a ~45gr 6.5mm and a ~55gr 7mm cartridge, are recoil, downrange energy and impact splash.

The 284, while not a "stout" recoiler, is noticeably heavier than a 260/6.5x55.

The splash the 175-180gr bullets make in the dirt when you miss is much more obvious @ 1000 yards than the 130-140gr bullets from the 6.5mm.

While I think a 6.5mm is totally capable of killing a deer @ 1000 yards, no doubt the 7mm will have more energy.

Closing thought: WW Super brass is just fine for the 284. You don't need the stuff from Finland.

 

[strikernz]

cheers guys Ill send off a few emails and go from there

 

[rimfiremac]

Comparing the 142 smk in 6.5 and the 180 vld in 7mm at the same launch speed of 2850 fps (out of plain vanilla Swede or 284 win cases), the 180 edges out the 142 in reduced wind drift by 15% at 1000 yds. 'Improving' either cartridge will change the numbers, of course, but that's outside the scope of attention. At the end of the day, the 7mm wins for performance. The standard 7mm's will beat all other standard cartridges up until the 338's.

 

[turbo54]

Comparing the 142 smk in 6.5 and the 180 vld in 7mm at the same launch speed of 2850 fps (out of plain vanilla Swede or 284 win cases), the 180 edges out the 142 in reduced wind drift by 15% at 1000 yds. 'Improving' either cartridge will change the numbers, of course, but that's outside the scope of attention. At the end of the day, the 7mm wins for performance. The standard 7mm's will beat all other standard cartridges up until the 338's.

You're comparing a top of the line Berger 7mm bullet to a "good" sierra 6.5mm. Not fair.

A more apt comparison would be the .64 BC 175smk to the .59 BC 142smk...or .67 180 hybrid to .62 140 hybrid.

A 6.5x55 with 140 hybrid @ 2850 won't lose much to a 284 with 180 hybrid @ 2850.

Speaking of which, I don't have experience with 6.5x55 barrel lengths, but I do with 260 and 284. It is totally reasonable to expect 2850 from a ~26" 260 (assuming similar for x55), but the 284 will need more barrel to hit 2850...as in 28-30".

So, comparing 26" tubes, the 260/6.5x55 won't give up much at all to a 284.

 

[rimfiremac]

It might not be fair, I agree, but it's practical. I have a 6.5 Swede Tikka Sporter, and I'm a huge fan of the cartridge, having owned a few rifles chambered for it. However, I can't delude myself into thinking that it will win against the 284 in competition, which is why I'm having a 284 barrel made for it. The difference in nominal drift between the two cartridges is 15% from the pure numbers, both out of 30" barrels. That may be the difference of an x or a 10 or a 10 and a 9 on a bad gust.

 

[ohnomrbillk]

I'm currently building a 6.5x55 BJAI.

Redding has dies on the shelf. You can purchase them from Grafs.

Manson did the original reamer, but anyone else can duplicate it.

Look at the price of Lapua brass for each chambering. That is what made my decision.

Redding does NOT make dies for the BJ version. They make what is a standard 6.5x55 AI die. There is quite a bit of difference between the BJAI and AI version.

I'm happy to be corrected.

The guy at Redding who has done all of my die orders sent me a copy of the reamer print used for the dies. It is the same print Bob Jourdan sent to Dave Manson when he worked at Clymer. This includes still having Bob's name on the sheet.

From my email from Redding customer service:

"Note: SAAMI base diameter for the parent cartridge is .4794, about what the original Clymer reamer design should cut.

We have made a Type S Bushing Neck die for this version of the cartridge. The p/n is 71759.

With the Bushing Neck die, eventually you will need a Body die to bump the shoulders, it's p/n is 75759.

We have also made a Type S Bushing Full die, p/n 77759.

The full length die set is available, p/n 80759"

I had Dave Manson duplicate the original reamer he made for Bob Jourdan.

If I need to order a different size die, I'd sure like to do that before I size all this Lapua brass.

 

[JRS]

What dimension is shown for the neck diameter on the print? From what I can see, the part number listed is a 6.5x55 AI die set.

 

[ohnomrbillk]

What dimension is shown for the neck diameter on the print? From what I can see, the part number listed is a 6.5x55 AI die set.

0.298" neck

 

[NORTH OF 53]

I have two 6.5x55 improved rifles one a short 20" barrel hunting rifle and the other has a 29" barrel and is set up for F class. I have have not trouble running 130 VLDs or JLks at just over 2900 in my hunting rifle and I run 140s at 3000 in my F class gun. I can go faster but my gun does not shoot well at over 3000. Most 6.5 F class guns find that the shoot well from 2900-3000 ft/sec unless they can get to 3300 and no seems to be able to do that. The 284s/7MM do have a small edge on the first and some times even the second day of a three day shoot but by the end of the weekend many of the guys shooting 284s are starting to show signs of fatigue. This may or may not be a consideration for you but I can tell you, you can shoot a 6.5x55 improve everyday, all day not many people can do that with a 284.
As a side note the 7MM shehane sometimes run into the same problem the the 6.5s do. It can run faster than a 284 but not enough faster to reach the accuracy node for that gun so they end up shooting the same as regular 284. That is something you only find out after you build.

 

[flatlander]

I had a 30" Krieger med. Palma bbl chambered with a JGS Match 6.5x55 reamer back in 2002, and had a lot of good results at 1000yds shooting S142MKs at 2910fps out of it. Far as I'm concerned, the only downside to the std Swede is the case's body taper means trimming every other firing, even when the FL die is set up for minimal shoulder bump. So I bought a 6.5x55 AI reamer from PTG, and used it on a 30" Bartlein hvy Palma bbl for my BAT 3LL prone rifle. I haven't seen a whole lot of extra velocity with the AI, but I don't have to trim at all, and accuracy is every bit as good as the std. 6.5x55 produced in the Krieger. In fact, I set that Krieger back a thread and ran the AI reamer into it - and it shoots just as well as it ever did.

Also have three rifles chambered for the 284 - M700 LA in a McM A5, a spare 284 bbl for the above mentioned BAT 3LL, and a 28" Bartlein 5R for a DTA SRS. I've got brakes/suppressor mounts for the bbls on the M700 & DTA, and they're pleasant enough to shoot, even off the bench. But though the BAT 3LL weighs 15.25lbs with scope, it's definitely more fatiguing to shoot prone with sling by the end of a 3x1000 match than the same rifle with the 6.5x55AI bbl. I dunno about others' results, but 2800fps is about all I can get out of my 284s with any of the 180s, unless I use RL17. I've shot both the BAT & M700 with 284 bbls out at CRC's range near Byers, Co., and they are very effective in the switchy/changey winds out there. Shot my first clean score at 1000 with the M700 & S175MKs at CRC, and still have a good deal of respect for the 284. I had my reamer set up for WW brass, and that's what I've used all along. But, it seems very susceptible to developing loose primer pockets; that's been the case every time I've tried to get more than 2800fps out of my barrels with H4831 or N165. Don't know if Lapua will handle more pressure or not, but even if it will, you're going to have to cut the donut out of the neck after sizing it up to 7mm.