Considering a 6PPC

[TxCigarMadCap]

I am possibly interested in building a 6PPC. As a newb to BR shooting what considerations do I need to be working through.

Actions, barrels, stocks?
Reloading - is this necking up a 220 Russian? What equipment do I need to make this happen?

Thanks in advance for any advice

 

[Frankr]

what reloading equipment do you have?
You could allways buy a decent used 6ppc bench rifle and with the money you saved over a new one you could put into the necessary reloading equipment and components.

 

[TxCigarMadCap]

what reloading equipment do you have?
You could allways buy a decent used 6ppc bench rifle and with the money you saved over a new one you could put into the necessary reloading equipment and components.

RCBS Rock Chucker Supreme, 10-10 scale, Forester original trimmer

 

[Frankr]

well if you want to shoot group BR you will or should have a set up to load at the range. most 6ppc's are tight neck chambers so you need a neck turner. so i will try to see if i can remember all the stuff you will need. You need a neck turner,with a expander iron to expand the necks to fit your turner mandrel. a portable press for sizing(Harrell). a arbor press for seating bullets,can also be used with a Wilson neck die. a powder measure a Harrell's powder measure or better(not many better). primer seating tool. after you fire form a few cases you can use a Wilson neck die and shoot a few cases three or four times and then send them cases to Harrell's to get a full length bushing die.. some neck die bushings depends on the neck dia of your chamber.. you can also use this stuff to load at your house , I find myself setting up on the kitchen table alot of times rather than going down stairs to my loading room. I like the Harrell's mag length loading press, that way you can seat bullet's with it if you want or if you want to load a 308 or a short cartridge you can.

 

[TxCigarMadCap]

well if you want to shoot group BR you will or should have a set up to load at the range. most 6ppc's are tight neck chambers so you need a neck turner. so i will try to see if i can remember all the stuff you will need. You need a neck turner,with a expander iron to expand the necks to fit your turner mandrel. a portable press for sizing(Harrell). a arbor press for seating bullets,can also be used with a Wilson neck die. a powder measure a Harrell's powder measure or better(not many better). primer seating tool. after you fire form a few cases you can use a Wilson neck die and shoot a few cases three or four times and then send them cases to Harrell's to get a full length bushing die.. some neck die bushings depends on the neck dia of your chamber.. you can also use this stuff to load at your house , I find myself setting up on the kitchen table alot of times rather than going down stairs to my loading room. I like the Harrell's mag length loading press, that way you can seat bullet's with it if you want or if you want to load a 308 or a short cartridge you can.

I appreciate all the information; however, I think that is a little later down the road. I should have structured my question a little better. Upon buying 220 Russian brass what is the process and equipment necessary to get to a final product. Specifically, what do you do the 220 brass to get it to a 6 PPC. I have reloaded for 20+ years for my hunting rifles so anything other than full length sizing and seating is a foreign language to me.

 

[GSPV]

http://www.6mmbr.com/6PPC.html

Another alternative is to start with either brass prepared by a brass service or with Norma brass.

 

[Jet]

TxCigarMadCap

Sounds like I'm a few months ahead of you. Im new to the 6PPC BR world and had the same questions you have and I still have a bunch more. Here is some advice from a novice who hasn't shot the 6PPC in a match yet (have shot larger calibers/longer distance matches for awhile). Will shoot in a match in a couple weeks and am looking forward to learning from the experience.

- Get a couple books. 1st is Tony Boyer's The Book of Rifle Accuracy. Read it twice (minimum). 2nd, The Benchrest Shooting Primer. Lots of very good articles in it.

- I bought a used 6mmPPC BR rifle/scope (262 neck). Previous owner didn't have a round count on the barrel but it has a quality action, trigger, scope and stock. It cost me about half price of new, it shoots well enough for me to learn on and grow in the sport. If I decide it's not for me, I should be able to sell it for close to what I paid for it.

- Like you, I've been reloading for 20+ years. Reloading for the 6PPC and BR shooting isn't harder, just more steps envolved. Keeping in mind you are new to this, here is some equipment/tools you will need to supplement the reloading tools you already have.
-- Arbor Press
-- Wilson hand dies (seater, interchangeable bushing neck die, FL die)
-- K&M neck expander mandrel
-- K&M Neck Turining Tool
-- Tube Micrometer
-- I'm sure there are others but these will get you going

- Fireforming the brass isn't hard and there is a ton of info/advice already printed on within this forum. Tony Boyers book will answer just about any question you will have on this subject and others that will come up.

Good luck

Jet

 

[TxCigarMadCap]

TxCigarMadCap

Sounds like I'm a few months ahead of you. Im new to the 6PPC BR world and had the same questions you have and I still have a bunch more. Here is some advice from a novice who hasn't shot the 6PPC in a match yet (have shot larger calibers/longer distance matches for awhile). Will shoot in a match in a couple weeks nd am looking forward to learning from the experience.

- Get a couple books. 1st is Tony Boyer's The Book of Rifle Accuracy. Read it twice (minimum). 2nd, The Benchrest Shooting Primer. Lots of very good articles in it.

- I bought a used 6mmPPC BR rifle/scope (262 neck). Previous owner didn't have a round count on the barrel but it has a quality action, trigger, scope and stock. It cost me about half price of new, it shoots well enough for me to learn on and grow in the sport. If I decide it's not for me, I should be able to sell it for close to what I paid for it.

- Like you, I've been reloading for 20+ years. Reloading for the 6PPC and BR shooting isn't harder, just more steps envolved. Keeping in mind you are new to this, here is some equipment/tools you will need to supplement the reloading tools you already have.
-- Arbor Press
-- Wilson hand dies (seater, interchangeable bushing neck die, FL)
--

An arbor press? For on location loading? Or for loading in general? If in general, why?

I like the idea of finding a used gun to get acclimated. I have noticed from my searches on this site it seems that this caliber is not a no neck turn caliber.

I have Boyers book on the way.

Can you please explain the arbor press and Wilson hand loading dies suggestion?

 

[Frankr]

you will need the right reloading equipment to load the 6ppc to it's full pontenal. the arbor press is used to seat bullets using a straight line seater die can also be used for a Wilson neck die.. you will need a Wilson seater die and a neck die to get you started.. you can buy them used just check shooter's corner I'm sure bob has used Wilson dies.. do not try to load for a custom BR rife with regular die's..ie like hornady or rcbs.. you will never find out what the accuracy could be if you plan on loading with that type of equipment, I have been loading since i was 16 years old. now 47.. but i have only been into this accuracy loading stuff for around 12 years.. i know what you are thinking.I have done it and it will not work.. you will need the proper loading dies.. a matched FL bushing die from Harrell's is the best and easy way to go and use a Wilson seater die or a better custom hand made for your chamber seater die..it's the only way..do not waste your money on RCBS ect type dies. or years from now you will just have a pile of useless dies on your shelf.

shooters corner is also a good place to find a good used 6ppc and used arbor press,dies ect. everything you could need . I have bought several rifle's from bob and have had a few barrel's chambered by him. he wont steer you wrong.

 

[Jet]

FJIM covered it. Do a youtube search for reloading with an arbor press. There are a couple videos there that will show you the difference.

 

[TxCigarMadCap]

you will need the right reloading equipment to load the 6ppc to it's full pontenal. the arbor press is used to seat bullets using a straight line seater die can also be used for a Wilson neck die.. you will need a Wilson seater die and a neck die to get you started.. you can buy them used just check shooter's corner I'm sure bob has used Wilson dies.. do not try to load for a custom BR rife with regular die's..ie like hornady or rcbs.. you will never find out what the accuracy could be if you plan on loading with that type of equipment, I have been loading since i was 16 years old. now 47.. but i have only been into this accuracy loading stuff for around 12 years.. i know what you are thinking.I have done it and it will not work.. you will need the proper loading dies.. a matched FL bushing die from Harrell's is the best and easy way to go and use a Wilson seater die or a better custom hand made for your chamber seater die..it's the only way..do not waste your money on RCBS ect type dies. or years from now you will just have a pile of useless dies on your shelf.

shooters corner is also a good place to find a good used 6ppc and used arbor press,dies ect. everything you could need . I have bought several rifle's from bob and have had a few barrel's chambered by him. he wont steer you wrong.

Thanks for the info. I wasn't considering using run of the mill equipment like you said. That's why I'm asking all these questions. I know regular RCBS dies and the like aren't meant for this type of shooting. I'm just trying to understand the why. I'm a process control guy so the why is very important for my to understand the bigger picture.

What is your recommendation for a custom chamber seater die?

Which arbor press do you recommend?

This is great information.

 

[Frankr]

you know when i was getting started say 12 years ago it was a 1/4 moa to sub 1/4 moa rifle in group BR.
now days it takes a 1/8 moa to a sub 1/8 moa rifle to be competitive...
now dont be discourraged TXcigarmadcap when you shoot your first true five shot .150 group you will be hooked.

so you can see you can not get by with poor reloading equipment.. Oh you might load on some regular die's and shoot .450's with an occasional .250 thrown in there. But i dont think you will shoot sub .200's ..

 

[rmist]

Ditto on all the above post. When I started in the PPC BR game I bought a used rifle with a Panda action. It was a great little gun...after a bit of practice and a couple of matches I had saved up some $$ for a new barrel. That will be when you really see that PPC work to potential !! Sid Goodling did all my barrels for me. My second year won the rookie of the year !! I had never shoot comps before...just a lot of chuck shooting. Good luck with your build or used rifle.

Nobody mentioned tools for the bench...Your going to need a good front rest and a rear bag, a timer is a real handy item for the novice. Lets see how much time you have to finish your group. Cheap at radio shack or kitchen stores. A portable press will be nice later on...easier than arbor press to size brass once you get a custom made die. A lot of expensive ones out there. I used a RCBS reloader special press and a c-clamp...works great. I did cut the arm in 1/2 tho.You don't need a lot of force to neck size. You will still need the arbor for seating !!
Again good luck !
Dave

 

[Frankr]

any arbor press will work. I would buy a used one in a mininute..you cant really hurt em.
i would buy a wilson seater die with a micrometer top . so you can adjust seating depth easy.
i would buy a wilson neck die.. after you know what neck dia your chamber is you can buy a few neck bushings.
I would use the neck die to load and shoot the case's a few times then send the fired cases to harrell's to get a matched FL bushing die. and with that all you need to load at the range is a powder measure,a harrell's measure or better.. a portable press for FL sizeing and a primer tool and you are loading and shooting at the range. you can just neck size with a wilson die. you may shoot 4 to 5 times before you need to FL size ,depends on your chamber and how hot your load is you may have to FL size every fireing.

 

[GSPV]

Most folks I know don't use a neck die at all, only a FL die and a seater. I use an arbor press for my seaters, but you do not have to go that route.

If you want to step into this easy, here are some ideas:

1. Buy a used LV/Sporter PPC. Get some fired brass.
2. Mount up a Weaver T-36
3. Send the fired brass to Harrell's to get them to set you up with a FL die.
4. Get a Wilson or custom seater.
5. Suggest starting with brass from P1ZombieKiller, Ron Hoehn, or other experienced brass service.
6. Suggest starting with H322, Berger 68 FB and 205M primer.
7. Follow advice in Tony's book on where to start with your seating. Push with about 28 grains of 322.
8. Be very careful about length trimming. I got lazy, let some get long and messed up almost a whole batch and had patterns like a shotgun.

 

[TxCigarMadCap]

any arbor press will work. I would buy a used one in a mininute..you cant really hurt em.
i would buy a wilson seater die with a micrometer top . so you can adjust seating depth easy.
i would buy a wilson neck die.. after you know what neck dia your chamber is you can buy a few neck bushings.
I would use the neck die to load and shoot the case's a few times then send the fired cases to harrell's to get a matched FL bushing die. and with that all you need to load at the range is a powder measure,a harrell's measure or better.. a portable press for FL sizeing and a primer tool and you are loading and shooting at the range. you can just neck size with a wilson die. you may shoot 4 to 5 times before you need to FL size ,depends on your chamber and how hot your load is you may have to FL size every fireing.

Thanks for the specific advice...it is much appreciated!