Re: Most accurate 6.5 mm for hunting?

18 January 2004, 23:40

Regarding the "long throat" problem of the 6,5x57: after firing many thousands of rounds trough mine, I still get sub MOA accuracy with all bullet weights from 85 grains to 140 grains.

19 January 2004, 02:04

<JOHAN>

glichti

A 6,5X55 will be a good choice for your hunting. It's not the fastest round but it's very easy to load for and the range of quality components is hughe. I would not got for an improved case since, resale value of the gun will be low since it's no ammo avilable from the shelf.

If you want more performance get a 6,5-284 Norma, factory ammo and quality brass is avilable. I have tried a couple of taget rifles in the caliber and it's a very tempting cartridge

If you decide of a 6,5-284 get 24-26 inches of barrel and an action were you can seat the bullets out.

I have used the 6,5X55 for target shooting and it's very accurate. My rifle had a short throat and with 139 /140 grain bullets and the best powder were Norma MRP. My experince is that long throats requires more powder to get the velocity and barrels get washed out faster. The velocity is about the same. If you order a gun maker sure that the camber is cut for a suitable cartridge lenght to match the magazine lenght and OAL cartridge lenght.

/ JOHAN

19 January 2004, 03:35

Dr. Lou

I really like my 6.5x55. Very accurate and plesant to shoot. No problem getting 3000 with 120s and 2800+ with 140s. I like H4350 and RL19. I had a custom Accurate Arms Sako in 260 that was very accurate, but it was built on the AII action and I could not seat the 140s out where I wanted them so I sold it. You definitely can't go wrong with the Swede.

What's the difference in performance between the 6.5x55 and 6.5x57?
Lou

19 January 2004, 06:33

<JOHAN>

Quote:

What's the difference in performance between the 6.5x55 and 6.5x57?
Lou

The difference is not soo great that it's worth thinking of. -+0 or something like that

/ JOHAN

19 January 2004, 07:18

<9.3x62>

Quote:

I'm going to have a custom rifle built in 6.5mm/.264. I want something w/ more speed and range than 6.5-08 (.260 rem) and less recoil/muzzle blast than 6.5-06. Thinking of 6.5x55 Ack Imp, 6.5x.257 Roberts Ack Imp, or .260 rem Ack Imp. Leaning toward the 6.5x55AI. I want a very accurate long range cartridge w/ some oomph. Any suggestions/experiences?

I am big fan of anything 6.5mm. Which you should choose will be determined in no small part by the action length. If you want a SA, a 260 or 260 AI with a 23-24 barrel will give you 3000 fps with a 125 Nosler, which will handle anything up to large mulies at any sane range.

If a LA is in your future, I'd going with the 6.5x55 or the 6.5x57. BTW, the 6.5-257 IS NOT the same thing as the 6.5x57. A true 6.5x57 has a shallower shoulder that has been moved forward a bit, and will not chamber in a 6.5-257. Moreover, it is tricky to make true 6.5x57 cases out of Roberts brass as the forming round will not be able to headspace properly on the shoulder. However, it is a snap to make true 6.5x57 brass from 7x57 brass because a bit of the neck is left unsized, and so headspaced properly for the forming process. Plus, premium quality brass (such as Norma) is not available in the roberts, and then there is the +P or not +P concern...

In my opinion, and I've owned multiple 6.5x55s and 6.5x57s, I prefer the latter for the simple reason that it adapts to standard bolt face and because it is a tiny bit better fit in a LA. If you're having a rifle built, just send the barrel installer a few dummy rounds with bullets seated to your depth preference and have them cut the throat accordingly. A 129 Hornady to an OAL of 3.05-3.1" is a good choice. I had one of my 6.5x57s barreled by gander mountain (believe it or not); the smith there competes with one. It took 6 months, but he did a very good job and the rifle is very accurate. Action was a 700 LA; barrel was a 22.5" douglas XX featherweight with a 1-8 twist (though a 1-9 would work fine as well).

I've owned 6.5-06s and 6.5-284s, and I guess they seem, to me (based on my experiences with them), to be at the threshold of dimishing returns. I can get an honest and accurate 2800-2900 fps with the aforementioned 6.5x57 with every 140 gr bullet I've tried. That's plenty for anything at any range I'd ever consider hunting with a 6.5mm rifle.

Now, if you want some readily available factory ammo; the 6.5x55 is the better choice. This is also an efficient and accurate round out of a 22-23" barrel. I would not bother improving it; knowing your trajectory (via lots of practice with the loads you're actually going to hunt with) is way more important than a slightly flatter trajectory. For the vast majority of hunters the ability to place the bullet is the constraint, not the ballistics of their rifle. You will have to practice an awful lot before your shooting ability outpaces a well-loaded 6.5x55's ballistics; same goes for most all the rest of us too (me included). A slightly milder round will make practice easier and won't wear your expensive custom barrel as much in the process.

Anyway, good luck...

9.3