Mike it was before that. We went from 62/63's to 65/68's. Probably trying to cheat the wind with higher BC's. As I recall that was in the mid to late 80's . Lester and a few others tried faster twists but it wasn't common. I remember trying a 13 and it didn't shoot well. But at that time my observation/tuning skills aren't what they are today. Understand we mostly had button rifled barrels and twist rates were limited and had a +/- factor. I currently shoot a 13.75-13.65 gain twist with bullets on .790" jackets.
6br twist rate
- Thread starter Kevin1990
- Start date
Agree, 13.5-14 is what the best shooters use in serious competition.
Does Hottenstein still make bullets?
He does. Just bought 1,000 30cal 112s from him about a month ago.
https://bulletcentral.com/search.php?page=1§ion=product&search_query=Hottenstein+bullets
They have a couple of flavors, 68 and 108’s in stock.
jackieschmidt
Gold $$ Contributor
I remember when the 13.5 craze hit in the early 2000’s.
Many of us were shooting the 68 grn FB bullets on .825 jackets out of 1-14 barrels, Fowlers in particular.
On some occasions, it was very noticeable that the bullet hole in the targets were not as round as they should be. About that time, Supplyers such as Krieger started selling a lot of 1-13.5 barrels. Lester Bruno was really pushing them.
I bought several and have not used anything slower since. The 1-13.5 king off became the go to twist for that bullet.
Many of us were shooting the 68 grn FB bullets on .825 jackets out of 1-14 barrels, Fowlers in particular.
On some occasions, it was very noticeable that the bullet hole in the targets were not as round as they should be. About that time, Supplyers such as Krieger started selling a lot of 1-13.5 barrels. Lester Bruno was really pushing them.
I bought several and have not used anything slower since. The 1-13.5 king off became the go to twist for that bullet.
dcali
Bullet Maker
You a lot of opinions/info so far, so I won't add to the suggestions, but I will pose a question - if you know you only want to shoot short range, why a BR? Part of the charm of the BR is its ability to shoot heavier bullets through a 1:8 or so. Otherwise, wouldn't it make more sense to go with a 6 PPC?
I like the ability to have no turn chamber, and overall I just like the BR because I’m familiar with it.
I thought I read somewhere that Lapua isn’t going to have .220 Russian brass any time soon. Not sure if I’m remembering correctly though?
Unfortunately, I think we're all in that boat but if you look around, on here and other places, brass has been available so far. I shoot Grendel brass and it's really been tough to find and for a while now. Still..it might cost your kids college tuition for a semester, but most brass can be found. Sucks for sure, but it is what it is. Blame Hunter and Joe but shoot what you feel comfortable with. I've yet to see a viable alternative to Lapua but I hope that changes. Nothing else is close that I've found so far, for the pressures we load to typically in short range BR. Several are loading down a bit but that comes at a price when everything matters at this level. With a tuner, ya might be able to load down just enough to keep you in the same upper node but adjust the tuner to maintain tune and preserve brass without giving up that upper node accuracy. Too soon to say for sure but I'm testing it too. Problem is, I've been down for a couple of years and not on my game to see the very subtle stuff. I'll be working with it more all the time but it'll take a little timer to get back where I was too. And yes, it matters in SR. Everything matters to a degree in sr but you have to shoot to know the difference. So, you're kinda damned if you do and damned if you don't...test other options, just to stay on your game.
I’m building 6BR Norma. Keep going back and forth on whether to piece a home made savage model 12 or have a beauty built by my smith. I’m looking for ragged holes at 200 yards with 68 grain BART Watson bullets and LT32 powder. Looks like it’s going to be a 13.5 twist barrel but honestly, I don’t know I would see a difference between 13.5 and a 12 twist with my little experience. I can identify keyholes and just figured out if my groups are vertical that is because of the bullet speed. Still need to learn to read wind flags though and a bunch of other stuff most likely too. Just learned about bolt spring bind and that most likely cause for flyers. That was by accident too, LOL.
In Glenn Newick's book "The Ultimate in Rifle Accuracy",he emphasizes the importance of stabilizing the bullet as quickly as possible when it leaves the barrel as that is the time when the bullet is the most unstable.
During this instability time the bullet is the most affected by wind......same goes for these long,high B.C. bullets in the fast twist barrels. Most don't begin to stabilize 'til around 200yds or so. The slower twist barrels
offer quicker bullet stabilty.....that's why most Short Range BR shooter's use what they do. If you want SR BR precision,do what they do. They are the most precise shooters on this planet.
Savage Model 12 actions are good,but if you can afford a custom Kelby,etc,by all means do it. Trigger selection for Savage actions is poor.
Good luck and stay safe.
ArtinNC
Gold $$ Contributor
Let us know how it turns out. That’s impressive! I put my short range BR project on hold for a minute. I have a 8 twist barrel coming in a few weeks for a kelbly atlas. I have some Berger 90bt to try, but maybe I’ll get some smaller grain bullets as well and give it a go.
ArtinNC
Gold $$ Contributor
I started out to use Berger 90 gr . But was using the 65gr for brass forming , but the 65 gr shot so good that I am still using them . I don't think you can load the 65 gr hot in a 1:8 .
Iv s
Iv seen this target in real life, very impressive
urbanrifleman
Site $$ Sponsor
I have a 1-10 twist that shoots 55's one hole a hundred! Went with that twist to allow 80-90 grainers, it shoots those the same!
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.
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.