Lets start this one new..last year I got my 6mmbr put together...it has a one in ten twist..From my reading here I thought the 75gr or better the 87 gr V-max would be the bullet of choice for my groundhog shooting needs...200 to just under 600 yds..mostly 350 to 450 yds..[I use a laser range finder..] Anyway it shoots the 87gr bullet much better..so thats the loading I'm using 30.8 grs of Varget...No mistake this gun/load can shoot..Nothing the benchrest guys would be impressed by but I've never had a more accurate rifle..on good days it can stay under an inch at 300 meters..My only complaint is the real destructive/whoomp kind of hit on big chucks just aint there..I switched to the 80 gr berger varmint bullet..It hits very hard at 6mmbr velocity & I got one over 550 yds away with it..I don't want to write off the 87gr V-max bullet just yet..How fast are you guys pushing this bullet & am I being too picky about the terminal effect.??? I used a 22-250 all my life on varmints..that 55 gr bullet really dumps energy in a target.. That is my only point of reference in this matter..Past 300 yds the charm is off that little 22 bullet..it kills well enough but not like it can under 300 yds..Side by side, real world at 300 yds I prefer the 22-250 for terminal effect...Tell me I load my BR gun too light ...I should be using the 80 grain Berger bullet..Or am I missing it here???...I'll be the first to admit my experience with this gun is limited to two 5 day hunts ...maybe 35 groundhogs total...what say you learned gentlemen about this little gun & favorite groundhog loads..mike in ct...
The 87 grain V-max vs Groundhogs....
- Thread starter mikeinct
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Mike, using N-135 I took the 80gr Berger Varmint bullet up to 3250,Oehler measured), and I'd call that "practical maximum" in my 27" PacNor. With other powders you could probably go a little higher. Top choices for max velocity,acc. to QuickLoad) would be Win 748, BLC2, IMR3031, AA2520. QL suggests with the right seating depth and one of the medium burn rate ball powders you might get the Berger 80s past 3400 in a 28" tube.
Personally, I've not had great luck with th 87gr VMax. The Berger 80s, by contrast are super-accurate.
Personally, I've not had great luck with th 87gr VMax. The Berger 80s, by contrast are super-accurate.
mikeinct,
I'm having good results with the 87 gr. V-Maxes in a .243 A.I. 1:10 twist barrel with a healthy load of H4831 sc. I would estimate the velocity to be approx. 3500 ft/s. The groundhogs that I have zapped thus-far have had nary a tail twitch. The longest connect has been 250 yds. but longer shots will present themselves, as I'm hunting newly planted soybean. Last summer I used the 80 gr. Berger Varmint Matches with good success, but I'm having better terminal finality with the V-Maxes.
I'm having good results with the 87 gr. V-Maxes in a .243 A.I. 1:10 twist barrel with a healthy load of H4831 sc. I would estimate the velocity to be approx. 3500 ft/s. The groundhogs that I have zapped thus-far have had nary a tail twitch. The longest connect has been 250 yds. but longer shots will present themselves, as I'm hunting newly planted soybean. Last summer I used the 80 gr. Berger Varmint Matches with good success, but I'm having better terminal finality with the V-Maxes.
Out of my 6x284 I'm getting 3,630,Average of 7 shots) with a 87gr V-max. It needs 53.5grs of H4350 to do though.I've only shot coyotes with it and a few squirels,which I might add turn into a "Red Mist"
I have a 10 twist Krieger 6mmBR on a trued Remington action with full bedding, trigger, etc,etc. I'm currently shooting 87 gr V-max bullets on top of 33.4 gr of RL-15 and finally getting excellent results. I've tried over 150 different rounds to get here in different powder configurations and primer and seating depths. I actually built this gun with the 87 gr V-Max as the primary round,I have not tried the Berger yet but have some of those on the way) I also have a 9 twist .243 that I shoot with RL-22 and Mag Pro with the 87 gr with excellent results. I pretty much burnt up the .243 barrel finding the right combo. The load in the .243 will anchor a coyote as good as my 7mm08
without all the guts and grime thing. I have not cronographed the 6mmbr yet but I would estimate the speed at around 3200fps. On the crono with the Mag pro I was getting 3340 and some change with the most accurate load.
MM
without all the guts and grime thing. I have not cronographed the 6mmbr yet but I would estimate the speed at around 3200fps. On the crono with the Mag pro I was getting 3340 and some change with the most accurate load.
MM
mikeinct: I shoot both a Kreiger 8 twist and a Pacnor 8 twist, both 6mm BR. The bullet of choice for terminal effect on ground squirrels is the 75gr V-max. It just explodes! I have killed squirrels out to 530 yds with this bullet using 31.6grs of Varget or 32grs of N-135. However for pure accuracy the Berger 80gr varmint bullet is tops. I shoot this with 32grs of N-135 through my Kreiger 8 twist and RFD action. It is extremely accurate and gets the job done.
If you're looking for explosive terminal effect I would choose the 75gr V-max. If you're looking for super accuracy I would choose the 80gr Berger Varmint.
shcal.
If you're looking for explosive terminal effect I would choose the 75gr V-max. If you're looking for super accuracy I would choose the 80gr Berger Varmint.
shcal.
mikeinct,
I've read your original post again and have a few comments to add. Grounhog hunting is a challenging and unique type of hunting that requires several different rigs if one is going to pursue this type of hunting. For walk around hunting, where shots are going to be offhand from 50 to 100 +/- yards, I use three different rifles. One is a Savage 93 .17 HMR with Burris 3-9X scope. This combo. has worked well along treelines and field edges with headshots. Another rig that I use is a Win. 43 in .218 Bee with 4-12x Tasco used the same as the .17 HMR. Another walk around rig is an H&R Handi-Rifle that I had re-chambered to .222 Rem. Mag. Improved. This is used for walkarounds when I want more terminal effect. The .22-250 A.I. is used from 100 to 250 yards from a bipod with a 50 gr. Nosler B.T.. I've shot chucks out to 400 yards with this rig but generally use the .243 A.I. for anything beyond 250 yards. The .243 A.I. is shooting the 87 grn. Hornady V-Max with very good results. This barrel will be retired at the end of the summer and the new barrel with be shooting the 87 grn. V-Maxes as well and I expect even better performance as this chamber is a tight neck. So that is my battery of rifles that I use for hunting chucks. I hunt two adjacent counties in Pennsylvania; one allows centerfire and the other is rimfire only. The chucks are starting to come out routinely now from 6 p.m. on. Soybean fields are still low enough to nail them when they stand and most alfalfa has been cut once which affords good shooting as well. I have a 6BR with a 1 in 14 barrel that shoots 65 grn. Hornady V-Maxes very well. I have not used this rifle yet but I am going to start. My personal opinion is that the 87 grn. V-Max needs more powder to perform well on groundhogs than the 6BR is capable of. I realize that shooters are doing impressive shooting with the 6BR on paper but when it comes to dropping a big hog, I will limit my bullet weight to 68 or 70 grns. I have a friend who has a similar set up and is having great results with the 65 grn. V-Max and Varget.
Regards,
Chino69
I've read your original post again and have a few comments to add. Grounhog hunting is a challenging and unique type of hunting that requires several different rigs if one is going to pursue this type of hunting. For walk around hunting, where shots are going to be offhand from 50 to 100 +/- yards, I use three different rifles. One is a Savage 93 .17 HMR with Burris 3-9X scope. This combo. has worked well along treelines and field edges with headshots. Another rig that I use is a Win. 43 in .218 Bee with 4-12x Tasco used the same as the .17 HMR. Another walk around rig is an H&R Handi-Rifle that I had re-chambered to .222 Rem. Mag. Improved. This is used for walkarounds when I want more terminal effect. The .22-250 A.I. is used from 100 to 250 yards from a bipod with a 50 gr. Nosler B.T.. I've shot chucks out to 400 yards with this rig but generally use the .243 A.I. for anything beyond 250 yards. The .243 A.I. is shooting the 87 grn. Hornady V-Max with very good results. This barrel will be retired at the end of the summer and the new barrel with be shooting the 87 grn. V-Maxes as well and I expect even better performance as this chamber is a tight neck. So that is my battery of rifles that I use for hunting chucks. I hunt two adjacent counties in Pennsylvania; one allows centerfire and the other is rimfire only. The chucks are starting to come out routinely now from 6 p.m. on. Soybean fields are still low enough to nail them when they stand and most alfalfa has been cut once which affords good shooting as well. I have a 6BR with a 1 in 14 barrel that shoots 65 grn. Hornady V-Maxes very well. I have not used this rifle yet but I am going to start. My personal opinion is that the 87 grn. V-Max needs more powder to perform well on groundhogs than the 6BR is capable of. I realize that shooters are doing impressive shooting with the 6BR on paper but when it comes to dropping a big hog, I will limit my bullet weight to 68 or 70 grns. I have a friend who has a similar set up and is having great results with the 65 grn. V-Max and Varget.
Regards,
Chino69
Thanks chino....Thats what I've been suspecting...I'm pretty happy with the 6MMBR now that it is fed the 80 gr Berger MEF hp & the 75 gr V-max should do as well if I can get the long range accuracy to stay with the slightly heavier bullets..So far the 80 gr Berger is the best I've seen..that is stabilty & powerful terminal effect at extended ranges...longest shot was 568 yds...last trip...It was getting easy to score at just over 400 yds...thanks mike in ct
mike in ct,
The 80 grn. Berger MEF is an excellent bullet; accuracy and terminal effect combined. I'm considering another barrel for my 6BR which will probably be a 1 in 8 twist. I'm looking forward to trying the 80 grn. Bergers and 80 grn. Fowlers in a 1 in 12 twist .243 A.I. 3 groove Pac-Nor this winter. Right now in Pa. the hog hunting is in full swing and I'm not changing anything with any of my rigs. It has started to get warm and the hogs are out and feeding from 6 p.m. onward with plenty of opportunity for short and long range shots.
Regards,
Chino69
The 80 grn. Berger MEF is an excellent bullet; accuracy and terminal effect combined. I'm considering another barrel for my 6BR which will probably be a 1 in 8 twist. I'm looking forward to trying the 80 grn. Bergers and 80 grn. Fowlers in a 1 in 12 twist .243 A.I. 3 groove Pac-Nor this winter. Right now in Pa. the hog hunting is in full swing and I'm not changing anything with any of my rigs. It has started to get warm and the hogs are out and feeding from 6 p.m. onward with plenty of opportunity for short and long range shots.
Regards,
Chino69
gunamonth,
Very impressive target. Is that by any chance a Pac-Nor pre-fit barrel that you are shooting on your Savage? The reason I ask is that my .243 A.I. is a Savage single shot action with a Douglas 1 in 10 varmint countour. I've been toying around with the idea of a 6BR barrel to screw on it.
Regards,
Chino69
Very impressive target. Is that by any chance a Pac-Nor pre-fit barrel that you are shooting on your Savage? The reason I ask is that my .243 A.I. is a Savage single shot action with a Douglas 1 in 10 varmint countour. I've been toying around with the idea of a 6BR barrel to screw on it.
Regards,
Chino69
gunamonth,
I believe Pac-Nor now has a .271 reamer. The Remington 40X single shot that I have is a 6BR with a .265 neck and has absolutely impressed me with the inherent accuracy of the catridge. Had I known earlier how accurate this cartridge was I would have had one years ago. The beauty of the 6BR is the longevity of the barrel. People on this website are getting thousands of accurate varmint rounds out of the 6BR. My .243 A.I. bore looks like crocodile skin with over 1500 rounds. It is still shooting but I don't know for how much longer but it is not the accurate shooter the 6BR is.
Regards,
Chino69
I believe Pac-Nor now has a .271 reamer. The Remington 40X single shot that I have is a 6BR with a .265 neck and has absolutely impressed me with the inherent accuracy of the catridge. Had I known earlier how accurate this cartridge was I would have had one years ago. The beauty of the 6BR is the longevity of the barrel. People on this website are getting thousands of accurate varmint rounds out of the 6BR. My .243 A.I. bore looks like crocodile skin with over 1500 rounds. It is still shooting but I don't know for how much longer but it is not the accurate shooter the 6BR is.
Regards,
Chino69
yes he did & that stock is working out fine on that cobbled together from spare parts gun...I cant thank you guys enough for getting me motivated to build that 6MMBR ....Now I have accuracy fever...Every gun must get near the level that is possible with the 6MMbr or that iron is gone !!! mike
AckleymanII
Gold $$ Contributor
Mike, like some have said, I just don't think that you have enought ass behind that large 87g bullet. It would probably be a great target bullet, but for live varmints, it would probably just shoot a hole through them.
The 70g Blitz king, 75g V Max would be my first choices to try, third would be the 65g V Max.
I think that with either of these bullets, you would get a very effective killing factor. You would have to try them under field circumstances to see how they perform considering both the bullet drop/wind drift for the ranges that you are shooting.
The 80g MEF would be one of my last choices. Mike, I made 6mm bullets for a number of years for shooting competition. Later on, I used the bullets for p. dogs, chucks, yotes, what ever needed killing. I played around with all sorts of boat tails and hollow points of every size. Those big MEF's are for 350 yards and under because they cause the bullet to loose velocity very fast causing excessive bullet drop and wind drift. When you do connect, they do a massive job. On windy days, the MEF's shoot all over the place when you are trying to hit at 400 and beyond. I had HP so big that a ground squirrel would just simply disappear when shot out of a 6BR. I had 65g 6mm HP that would blow up on the surface of a coyote. These large MEF HP's would whistle on the way to the target. If you are shooting past 350 yards, I would avoid the MEF's unless you are shooting them out of a 243 AI at screaming velocities.
Good luck and look forward to hearing of your successes!
The 70g Blitz king, 75g V Max would be my first choices to try, third would be the 65g V Max.
I think that with either of these bullets, you would get a very effective killing factor. You would have to try them under field circumstances to see how they perform considering both the bullet drop/wind drift for the ranges that you are shooting.
The 80g MEF would be one of my last choices. Mike, I made 6mm bullets for a number of years for shooting competition. Later on, I used the bullets for p. dogs, chucks, yotes, what ever needed killing. I played around with all sorts of boat tails and hollow points of every size. Those big MEF's are for 350 yards and under because they cause the bullet to loose velocity very fast causing excessive bullet drop and wind drift. When you do connect, they do a massive job. On windy days, the MEF's shoot all over the place when you are trying to hit at 400 and beyond. I had HP so big that a ground squirrel would just simply disappear when shot out of a 6BR. I had 65g 6mm HP that would blow up on the surface of a coyote. These large MEF HP's would whistle on the way to the target. If you are shooting past 350 yards, I would avoid the MEF's unless you are shooting them out of a 243 AI at screaming velocities.
Good luck and look forward to hearing of your successes!
AckleymanII
Gold $$ Contributor
Thansks for the feedback, "real life" experiences. Most people have better luck with the 75g V Max over the 87 in as far as blow'en up a chuck. The ballistics on the 87 are surely impressive. Most of the draggers are probably due to low gut shots, which is going to leade to a "dragger" with any bullet.
What twist are you shooing in your 6 BR with the 87g V Max?
What twist are you shooing in your 6 BR with the 87g V Max?
keithcandler,
Nothing beats 'real life in the field' experience. I personally use the 87 grn. V-Max in a 1:10 .243 A.I. with a healthy dose of H4831sc moving at about 3500 ft/s. Groundhogs don't stand a chance. I like that bullet because of the ballistic coefficient of .400 and it's very good accuracy. I don't feel that a 6mmBR has enough ass to shoot that bullet and allow it to perform as designed. I have a 6mmBR with a 1:14 twist and don't go over 68 grns. for live varmints. I know there are people that shoot heavier bullets in the 6mmBR but I actually use mine to hunt and a humane dispatch of a varmint is part of my hunting ethics as I hate to wound animals. I've had good luck with the 80 grn. Berger MEF's in my .243 A.I. 1:10 pushing them at over 3600 ft/s but the 87 grn. V-Max has replaced them as the results are better and they are cheaper.
Regards,
Chino69
Nothing beats 'real life in the field' experience. I personally use the 87 grn. V-Max in a 1:10 .243 A.I. with a healthy dose of H4831sc moving at about 3500 ft/s. Groundhogs don't stand a chance. I like that bullet because of the ballistic coefficient of .400 and it's very good accuracy. I don't feel that a 6mmBR has enough ass to shoot that bullet and allow it to perform as designed. I have a 6mmBR with a 1:14 twist and don't go over 68 grns. for live varmints. I know there are people that shoot heavier bullets in the 6mmBR but I actually use mine to hunt and a humane dispatch of a varmint is part of my hunting ethics as I hate to wound animals. I've had good luck with the 80 grn. Berger MEF's in my .243 A.I. 1:10 pushing them at over 3600 ft/s but the 87 grn. V-Max has replaced them as the results are better and they are cheaper.
Regards,
Chino69
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