• This Forum is for adults 18 years of age or over. By continuing to use this Forum you are confirming that you are 18 or older. No content shall be viewed by any person under 18 in California.

6BR, 105 Berger, Benchmark Powder

skeetlee

Lee Gardner Precision
Silver $$ Contributor
I am going to chamber myself a new Brux 6MM 8 twist barrel blank in a standard 6BR. I intend to shoot 105gr class of bullets.
I have been looking over my powder selection and I noticed I have an unopened 8LB jug of Benchmark powder. After a bit of research, I did find a few recipes calling for Benchmark with the 105 Berger VLD. In all my years of smithing and shooting I don't think I have ever heard or read of anyone using this combination? I even looked this recipe up in my Berger data book and it shows a load. So now I'm just curious. I am running low on varget, yet I have a nice supply of RE15. Should I even mess with this Bencmark powder? Anyone here ever use Benchmark in a 6BR with a 105gr bullet? I've got to know!
 
Benchmark is a little fast for 105 gr bullets in a 6BR. I use N-140, and Varget in my 8 twist barrel. I use H4895 for bullets 90 gr or less. The Berger 90s and H4895 make a good combination. If you are shooting 68 gr bullets, benchmark is a good choice.

PopCharlie
 
I don’t think I would rule out the possibility of this combination shooting well. I think it would be fair to say that this will not be a top speed combination. I find that the BR and its family of cases are very versatile when it comes to using powders outside the “optimal window” . I can run my dashers with H4895 through H4350 with minimal side effects. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the BR shoot well with Benchmark.

Run some tests and let us know the results. I think it’s accurate to say that most of us sit around and ponder questions such as this, but don’t always have the time to test every combination that we wonder about.
 
I finished chambering my BR yesterday. It was towards the end of the day and i was getting tired. I did however manage to shoot a couple groups to zero the scope for this morning. I just used RE15 and i think ill continue with RE15 today . Its a bit windy and cold this morning so ill wait until it warms up a bit. I have plenty of RE15 so i should be all set for at least the life of this barrel.
I wish i had a use for this jug of Benchmark. I hate to see it go unused. Especially when good powders are hard to obtain. Perhaps ill use this as an excuse to build another rifle. LOL
Lee Gardner Precision
 
I finished chambering my BR yesterday. It was towards the end of the day and i was getting tired. I did however manage to shoot a couple groups to zero the scope for this morning. I just used RE15 and i think ill continue with RE15 today . Its a bit windy and cold this morning so ill wait until it warms up a bit. I have plenty of RE15 so i should be all set for at least the life of this barrel.
I wish i had a use for this jug of Benchmark. I hate to see it go unused. Especially when good powders are hard to obtain. Perhaps ill use this as an excuse to build another rifle. LOL
Lee Gardner Precision

Lee,
You can't do that! Now we are all left wondering if the Benchmark will work. Inquiring minds want to know! Lol

Paul
 
Lee,
The benchmark works, however it wasn’t ideal. It showed signs of pressure fairly early. Around the 2680 mark with a 107. @ 2610 it showed real promise. 68 Hottenstein BT and benchmark is a whole different story! That BR loves that combo!
RL15 will work well (I think it’s a filthy powder to clean though) I just don’t use it much.
Shawn
 
RE15 is filthy. I had no idea just how dirty it was. I shot probably 25 rounds yesterday in between the snow showers and cleaned 3 times. Velocity was good and accuracy looked good as well so now I'm not sure if I'll stick with re15 or look elsewhere. I don't have a lot of choices on my shelf. I have a pound of Precision shooters but that won't get me far. I can't find any of that in stock either. Ill figure something out! Lee
 
RE15 is filthy. I had no idea just how dirty it was. I shot probably 25 rounds yesterday in between the snow showers and cleaned 3 times. Velocity was good and accuracy looked good as well so now I'm not sure if I'll stick with re15 or look elsewhere. I don't have a lot of choices on my shelf. I have a pound of Precision shooters but that won't get me far. I can't find any of that in stock either. Ill figure something out! Lee

It's black decoppering agent. Looks like goo. It's harmless.
 
Re15 is very dirty, but can be extremely accurate. It shot cleaner in hot loads, but I much prefer Varget. A lot of powders have de-coppering agents in them and don't soot up like RE15. All VV powders have it, and none of them shot real dirty like 15.
 
Re15 is very dirty, but can be extremely accurate. It shot cleaner in hot loads, but I much prefer Varget. A lot of powders have de-coppering agents in them and don't soot up like RE15. All VV powders have it, and none of them shot real dirty like 15.

There are lots of different decoppering agents. The Swiss version looks like black goo, it was a very early version. The Swedish version looks like gray ash. VV looks very similar to the Swedish.
 
RE15 is filthy. I had no idea just how dirty it was. I shot probably 25 rounds yesterday in between the snow showers and cleaned 3 times. Velocity was good and accuracy looked good as well so now I'm not sure if I'll stick with re15 or look elsewhere. I don't have a lot of choices on my shelf. I have a pound of Precision shooters but that won't get me far. I can't find any of that in stock either. I’ll figure something out! Lee
In 1 barrel I am shooting SW precision. 31.1 gr gives me V2881 average ES 6 SD 2.4. It lights out. Also look Lovex S062-02. I picked some up at www.ammericanreloading.com so cheap I only bought 8 pounds. Wish I bought more.
Alliant TS 15.5 is a fantastic powder but super hard to come by.

If you are stuck with RL 15 Free All deep penetration oil. Spray it in the bore, let sit overnight and it will wipe clean in one pass. Then normal clean. (I don’t have the patience to wait overnight)
AR Comp is another good one that is available at the moment.

Shawn
 
Last edited:
Lee,
The benchmark works, however it wasn’t ideal. It showed signs of pressure fairly early. Around the 2680 mark with a 107. @ 2610 it showed real promise. 68 Hottenstein BT and benchmark is a whole different story! That BR loves that combo!
RL15 will work well (I think it’s a filthy powder to clean though) I just don’t use it much.
Shawn
This is what I experienced w 105 Hybrids. Hit pressure sub 2700 FPS.
On a whim I tried it in a new 20" barreled 308 rifle I hunt with. Darn thing shot 5 rounds in a 5/8" group at 200 yards. Needless to say I stuck with I t in my hunting rifle
 

Upgrades & Donations

This Forum's expenses are primarily paid by member contributions. You can upgrade your Forum membership in seconds. Gold and Silver members get unlimited FREE classifieds for one year. Gold members can upload custom avatars.


Click Upgrade Membership Button ABOVE to get Gold or Silver Status.

You can also donate any amount, large or small, with the button below. Include your Forum Name in the PayPal Notes field.


To DONATE by CHECK, or make a recurring donation, CLICK HERE to learn how.

Forum statistics

Threads
166,005
Messages
2,207,597
Members
79,255
Latest member
Mark74
Back
Top