HEY Just wondering if there is someone out there that has tried a light bullet with their 6.5cal.and what kind of speed and acquires they have got. It is very will known the 6.5cal shoots a 139gr bullet and up very well. But what about the 70-110grer’s.
It depends on the twist of the barrel. Mil-surp barrels typically shoot the larger (longer) bullets better, while factory offering will shoot the smaller well. I shoot mil-surps and stick to the 140gr, mostly because that is what I hunt with, so why bother shooting anything else?
I understand that most factory 6.5x55's will do great on lighter bullets. Try them in your gun and see!!
Posts: 281 | Location: Utah | Registered: 24 April 2002
For 100 grainers, expect 3350 in a 22 inch barrel, and 3450 in a 26 inch barrel.. This holds true for the 260 Rem, the 6.5 x 55, and the 6.5 x 57. Based on my experience. I had such good success, I didn't go bigger on the cartridges than these three.
If you try the 85 grain Sierra, i find it is not as aerodynamic and therefore losses velocity quicker than the 100 grainers.
I have used a couple of boxes of the 90 grain Speer TNT and it get very honorable mention.
Normally liking Hornady, I have not had good luck with the 95 grain Vmax ( or is an AMax?) bullet of theirs at all. Accuracy sucked.
I have used light and medium-weight bullets in my 6.5x55 Sako 75 (1 in 8 twist). Unlike other here, the 95gr Vmax has worked well for me - certainly sub-moa and about 3150 FPS. The most accurate bullet I have used is the 123gr Lapua Scenar, which chronos about 2950. These are primarily intended for target use, but can be used on thin-skinned game. Even with a long throat, I have found it possible to get close to the lands with these long, sleek bullets. The loaded cartridges look fairly silly, but it can be done!
Patrick
Posts: 8 | Location: England | Registered: 27 December 2003
I have had great results with the 95 grain Hornady Vmax bullets in several 6.5's. This includes an 1-8 twist 6.5 Gibbs. I've never seen a problem with the currently available lighter bullets in the fast twist rifles. The only problem is reaching the lands in the deep throated rifles, but even with the jump, accuracy has been good. I haven't used them personally, but I've heard of good results using the 100 gr Nosler Partition on deer. I haven't tried any bullets lighter than 90 grains in several years, so I can't really comment on them. Try them out and let us know how you do! John
I've shot the 95 gr. V-Max & 100 gr. Ballistic Tip. I have not played much with the v-max, but the NBT was very accurate. The 107 gr. Sierra MatchKing is also very accurate, but gives awful terminal performance.
Well I started playing today and had some success. I started with the speer 90gr tnt hp and 44.5gr’s of imr4831 and moved up by half gr. The best group was .75 with two in a keyhole at 100yards. I am not sher what the speed was but I will crony it tomorrow if the sun comes out. As well as try some imr4350 and h380.
Since the 6.5's have the potential for very long range varmint shooting it's best to calculate the drift, drop and remaining velocities using each bullets ballistic coeficient.
As mentioned the hollow point varmint bullets are not as good as the new plastic tips in this respect.
I looked for the water capacity of a 6.5 Arch in my internal program and could not find it. So I don't really know what you have in terms of capacity.
Download "PointBlank" free at www.huntingnut.com and look up the ballistic coeficients in handbooks and at bullet co. sites. The 95 VMax is .365 as I recall.
Savage The arch imp is a 6.5-55 case that has been fire formed. The taper has been taken out and blown out to a 45degree shoulder. I have noticed that there is all but no info or reloading data on the arch imp.
Savage I thought about the v-max and the ballistic tip but decided to go with the tnt for something different I use the ballistic tip on my 7mm mag my 300 ultra and the 243min They work grate…
