Want a 6mm long range varminter that doesn't burn barrels.

[Con]

Seems to me in this day and age of laser range finders ... its accuracy that counts beyond all. Slower cartridges can be compensated for, wind can be fought with high BC projectiles.

A 6mmBR seems as good as any in ease to get going with exceptional accuracy and long barrel life.
Cheers...
Con

 

[mattri]

The 6BR is a great round, no doubt about it. It does however, lack velocity at longer ranges, especially with heavier bullets. Shooting targets at a comp and varmints in the field is similar, but just different enogh that I prefer a flatter round.

Thanks again to everyone who has posted, all of the replies were informative.

I'm 99% decided on a 6mm Rem, barrel life is at least as good, long neck and no forming. As everyone has said, everything is a trade off.

 

[bozo699]

Mattri,
Glad to see you have 99% made up your mind,....excellent choice, very good round.
Wayne.

 

[mattri]

LOL thanks, told my wife that I was just about settled- she doesn't look convinced. Currently working on another project, this one will be next.

 

[Dgd6mm]

Look at the 6MM Competition Match for flat shooting and extended barrel life. Most of us use H-1000 with 115 Dtac's or Bergers. Not hard to form brass lite jam and shoot.

 

[bozo699]

Look at the 6MM Competition Match for flat shooting and extended barrel life. Most of us use H-1000 with 115 Dtac's or Bergers. Not hard to form brass lite jam and shoot.

Donald,
That is a very interesting looking cartridge indeed, I have heard of it of course but never bothered checking it out much.

6mm Competition Match
By Kevin Drake
Accuracy is repeatability. In less than ideal weather conditions the advantage goes to the bullet with the best ballistics.
The .308 Winchester has been used with great efficiency, but there are a lot better options for civilian shooters to compete in tactical matches with.
I found the 6mm Competition Match cartridge while reading some Bench Rest forums. The cartridge was designed by Joe Hendricks for the High Power Match Rifle. The Match Rifle game is similar to tactical matches in that there are long range stages of fire and rapid fire strings of fire.
The 6mmCM is a wildcat off of a standard .243 case. The shoulder is blown forward to 31 degree’s to allow for larger case capacity and the body keeps its original taper. By keeping the same body taper this makes chambering and extraction a non issue with field conditions and long strings of fire.
The fire forming loads are quite accurate and I use them for practice. What I get in the end is a cartridge that is at the top of the food chain for accuracy and killing wind.
Usually, greater speed comes at the cost of shorter barrel life. By using the improved case I get a greater case capacity that allows me to use more powder to reach faster velocities. But here is where the advantage of the 6CM comes in to play. Using a slower burning powder like Hodgdon H1000 and a 28 inch barrel the slower burning powder will burn over the full length of the barrel instead of quickly at the throat area. This will allow for a more even burn thru the barrel and not destroy the throat of the barrel as fast as the standard .243 cartridge.
Shooting the slower burning powder will increase barrel life to roughly 4000 rounds or more. As for barrel life I am half way there already with no signs of accuracy fading and no problems to report. With the 6CM I can run 6mm bullets really fast. I can push 115 grain non-moly coated bullet over 3000 fps safely. This gives me 24 MOA to 1000 yards with a 100 yard zero compared to 39 MOA to 1000 yards for the .308 Winchester
The other benefit of this cartridge is that it easily fits in my Badger Ordinance magazines so rapid reloads are easy.

 

[HPMike800]

Given the criteria, I Think the 6CM or the 6SuperLR is the way to go. These have been in use in highpower for a while and have demonstrated much longer barrel life than a 243W. The 6CM holds the 243W neck /shoulder junction and blows the shoulder forward to make a 30deg case ( i think). The SLR holds the shoulder/case junction and the die rolls the shoulder into the neck for a 30 deg case.

The whole "turbulence point theory" for barrel life is a combination of neck length, shoulder angle and powder burn heat. The CM has more capacity for super slow H1000 powder, the SLR has more neck but has 243W capacity and so runs H4831.

 

[johnmyers]

I read a study done by I believe Barnes Bullets on the use of slow burning ball powder and bbl heat. The test found that ball powder heats the entire bbl instead of the throat like stick powder does. I am working on loads in a 6-284 using Ramshot Magnum and getting some very good groups with it. I know a person who has shot 1000yd competition using a 6-284 and ball powder and has gotten 3000 rounds out of each bbl. While testing loads I am finding the bbl heat is much lower using Magnum as it is with H4931, H1000, or Retumbo. I have a 1:8 twist bbl shooting heavy bullets. This is different than all the bad stories on bbl life on the 6-284.

 

[coyotehunter]

The 6 supler lr doesnt require fire forming. And you can either buy dies or use 6xc dies.

 

[HPMike800]

I read a study done by I believe Barnes Bullets on the use of slow burning ball powder and bbl heat. The test found that ball powder heats the entire bbl instead of the throat like stick powder does. I am working on loads in a 6-284 using Ramshot Magnum and getting some very good groups with it. I know a person who has shot 1000yd competition using a 6-284 and ball powder and has gotten 3000 rounds out of each bbl. While testing loads I am finding the bbl heat is much lower using Magnum as it is with H4931, H1000, or Retumbo. I have a 1:8 twist bbl shooting heavy bullets. This is different than all the bad stories on bbl life on the 6-284.

Any of these ball powders double based?

 

[mattri]

What's the performance difference between a 6mm Rem and a 6CM?

 

[Dgd6mm]

Do you mean the 6CM? If you do search on here and there is plenty of info. The 6CM has a 31 degree shoulder, and the lenght of the neck is between a .243 and a 6 SLR. This cartridge is accurate enough to shoot out to 1000 yards while F.F. with this I don't feel is a bad tradeoff, no big loss of barrel life. Redding makes the Die.

 

[johnmyers]

I read a study done by I believe Barnes Bullets on the use of slow burning ball powder and bbl heat. The test found that ball powder heats the entire bbl instead of the throat like stick powder does. I am working on loads in a 6-284 using Ramshot Magnum and getting some very good groups with it. I know a person who has shot 1000yd competition using a 6-284 and ball powder and has gotten 3000 rounds out of each bbl. While testing loads I am finding the bbl heat is much lower using Magnum as it is with H4931, H1000, or Retumbo. I have a 1:8 twist bbl shooting heavy bullets. This is different than all the bad stories on bbl life on the 6-284.

Any of these ball powders double based?

I don't know

 

[mattri]

Not saying that the 6CM isn't accurate by any means. But what is the performance gain over a regular 6 Rem? The 6 Rem is accurate as well, and the velocities are close, as are barrel life.

 

[Dgd6mm]

I don't believe the barrel life between the two is close. I'm pushing my 27 inch on the mild side at 3153 with a 115 DTAC's naked, 2800+ rounds and still as good as if it was at the beginning.

 

[mattri]

Wow, thats pretty impressive. Do you ever shoot lighter bullets out of it, do you know any who do?

 

[Dgd6mm]

I've shot 107 SMK's out of this barrel also. This one is a Krieger 7.5 twist. I F.F. with them out to 1000 yards while shooting an 8 inch steelplate match and did pretty good. I have a Lawton barrel that is 7.65 twist that shot 105 Amax's real well out to 850.

 

[Steve Blair]

I don't believe the barrel life between the two is close. I'm pushing my 27 inch on the mild side at 3153 with a 115 DTAC's naked, 2800+ rounds and still as good as if it was at the beginning.

I believe if you shot mild loads like that from a 6mm Remington, the barrel life would be comparable. The questions is: why would you? I get almost 200 fps more than that from 115 Berger molys in a 32" barrel and the load is within pressure limits. It shoots ¼ MOA or a little better at 300, the farthest I have shot to date. I anticipate barrel life in the 1200-1500 range.

Ballistics indicate that it should be competitive with anything except one of the big 7mm cartridges like .284 Shehane or 7mm RSAUM. At 21 lbs. 10 oz., recoil is negligible.

 

[Dgd6mm]

sleepygator, believing and doing are two different things. Mine is well documented already from other pretty well known shooters. The speed you are talking my rifle will do that also, with naked bullets. I have 3 6CM's 1 is a 30 inch. As far as group size at 300, I have a good handfull under .25 moa at that distance. I also shoot a 7RSAUM. My 6CM's will go 4000+ rounds. Well down in the cane fields in South Florida we had a place to get out and shoot over 1 mile, personally I never shot that far. My buddy that got me into longrange knew the owners and they put him in a backstop, and in return he did gun work for them. Now I live in N. Florida and don't shoot much over 1000 yards that often. There is alot of info on this cartridge, this is not blowing smoke, those that think it is- o-well.

 

[Steve Blair]

sleepygator, believing and doing are two different things. Mine is well documented already from other pretty well known shooters.

Well, I am on my fifth .244 and 6mm Remington since 1978, the first one being a used 722, my first centerfire. I have fried a barrel in about 800 rounds shooting crows and have one that is now just over 1600 rounds, looking good in the borescope and still shooting well. After shooting through eleven 6mm Remington barrels, I can make a reasonable prediction about what they will do. Regarding documentation; where is yours that a 6mm Rem will not provide extended barrel life with reduced loads? At what pressure was the 4000 round life achieved? What velocity? Firing rate? Where may I find the documentation to which you refer?

As for the irrelevant; I grew up in Florida and know the conditions there well. But, so what? I have done a fair bit of shooting at 1600 meters and beyond, but in seventeen countries, most a little south of Florida.

Finally, I apparently failed to make the point I was attempting and was not disagreeing with what you wrote. My point was to use the capability of a given cartridge or just use a smaller one. If barrel life and attendant expense is a big driver, don't shoot hot cartridges. There is no magic cartridge that will provide high performance and long barrel life simultaneously. The primary advantage of 6mm Remington is case capacity. The primary disadvantage is that it should be in a long action to take best advantage of long bullets. In any design study, there are always trades and there are no free lunches.