Hello Guys

After several months of looking (at various 243/6mm options) a 260 Rem deal came up that was too good to pass up (a blued Encore with 2-7 Leupy compact, all "as new").

Now I need to assemble some components. I don't shoot any other .264/6.5s (well I did years ago, had a nice Heym 6.5x55, oh why oh why did I sell it ?) so need to start from scratch - except powder, I have plenty of ADI AR2206H. Can I neck down 7mm08 brass without having to turn necks?

The reason for the 243 was the availability of good 100gn hunting projectiles, now I need to do the same in 6.5 mm, I want to use 100-115gn to keep recoil mild for my boys who will mostly use this rifle.

So - what are your recommendations for a 100-115gn 6.5 projectile for deer. I know about Nosler partitions, but am hopeful of using something a little less expensive if possible. I'll be looking at getting them out at close to 3000 fps muzzle velocity.

Cheers - Foster

I just loaded some 100 grain Ballistic Tips for my 6.5x284. I haven't shot them at anything but paper so far but they make little bitty groups. Sighted in 2" high at 100 yards I can put the first mildot on the 500 meter steel ram's shoulder and ring it everytime.

I'll try one out on an antelope at the end of September and let you know how they do.

You should not have to turn the necks of reformed 7mm-08. The reduction is too small to thicken the necks noticably.

Give some thought to the 120 to 130 grain range of bullets. Those are time proven and the recoil increase will be miniscule.

Been laying whitetails down with the 260 for about 4 years. A good stiff dose of Varget with 120gr Nosler Balistic Tips is what I use. The 100 grain Ballistic Tips kill but tend to be a little explosive due to the added velocity. The 120 penetrates much better. If you have a factory chamber, one pass with 7/08 brass works well.

Non premium Remington bulk 120's and Hornady 129's will do fine. Good performance and field accuracy. That is what I would shoot for the bulk of 6.5 shooting. Ballistic tips have been overpriced in my opinion, if not shooting for the smallest groups I can live with the accuracy the above bullets give me. I killed 3 deer with a 6.5x55 and 120 Corelokt and the all died in their tracks. Deadly.

I read one user here had great luck with 100 Hornady's.

I like 120 grain bullets in my 6.5 tcu. Lighter offerings tend to be varmint oriented and you can down load it some in the .260 to keep recoil mild and still be effective.

Gidday Foster,

I have been using a 260 for seven years now and I got it for my boys to use but fell in love with the round myself.

I think you would be a little disappointed if you were to use 100 grain bullets at 3000fps. You would get a lot of blowups on anything other than side on thru the rib shots. If you are going to limit yourself to those shots you may as well use a 222.

I would recommend the 100gr balistic tip in front of 40 gr of AR2209 which would give you about 2500fps out of a 20' barrel. It is very mildly mannered and works well on our deer out to about 200metres.

My personal favourite load is the speer 120gr hotcore in front of 46 gr AR2209. I haven't chrono'd it but it is a ripper on deer from most angles. I would guess that it would be around 2800fps. I have used 120gr balistic tips with this load to good effect also.

I form my cases from winchester and federal 308 brass. One pass through the FL die and you are away no problems and no trimming needed.

What rifle is your 260. There are a few about now but I want to turn an old Sako Forrester into one one day soon.

Happy Hunting

Hamish

Hello Hamish

Thanks for the "good oil", the hotcores sound like the answer, main thing is to aim to use something that one can obtain here without parting with and arm and a leg so to speak. Now I've more responsibilities and many demands on the pay packet premium bullets don't seem so important anymore, and the deer just don't seem to notice any difference either.

I'll get them started with a few boxes of 100gn on goats, and then subtly move them on to the 120's I think. The 223 seems to be doing its job in getting them used to the bigger noise and muzzle blast of a CF and with a few more goat trips to get the basics of selecting the best animal and placing ones shot with precision they should be good for deer by next roar I hope. As yet we haven't run accross any of the "bomb-up" idiots on our goat trips and they are getting quite acoustomed to coming home with a good game animal they can eat.

The rifle is a Thompsom Center Encore single shot (take down as well, for the "armed tramping" trips that SWMBO and I like to do). I've got a scheme to fit it with a real stock instead of that club they use, and I'll end up with a rifle not unlike a european "stalking rifle".

Cheers - Foster

PS Hamish

You don't know of any secondhand dies do you, I hate paying for new ones, and I missed a set on Trademe last night ??

This is what I use in my 260,if you use it be sure and work up to it,IMR 4064-42 grs,sierra 120 bthp,fed 210 primers.Took a deer this past year at 442 yds with it.
47.5 or 48 grs of R-19 works well too with 120 gr bullets in the 260.

My 8 year old nephew has been shooting "his" .260 Ruger with the 120 Sierra soft point and 34 grains of IMR 4064, velocity is about 2500 ft/secs and recoil is a non issue! This load is an unbelievable killer, and accurate as you could ask. You don't need to push the .260 to get good results. If the range is going to be a bit longer, try alittle more 4064.

Tentman
If you are wanting to keep it cheap go with the 120 and 140 grain Remington Core lokts that you can buy from Midway, Natchez, Graf & Sons and others. My 6.5x55 is shooting the 140's into under .5" groups with 39 grains of IMR-4064 powder and my 12 year old boy loves shooting it.
I've heard similar results from people with a .260.
I've picked up used dies on E-bay, if you are patient you'll find them for $10 maybe less.
What are the boys going to be whacking with the .260?

I second ebay for the dies. I recently picked up two sets of 7mm SAUM dies for very reasonable money.

analog_peninsula

I would not use 100 gr. Ballistic Tips. I killed a buck using 100 grainers in a 25-06. The first hit was a vicious explosive wound that would have been instantly fatal with any bullet that penetrated. The buck went down knocked out by the blow. When approaching him he jumped up and tried to run off. It was a gruesome scene that I never want to see again.

Use a longer bullet. The 100 grain BT is purely a varmint vaporizer. If you are worried about recoil slow it down. I would not consider anything under 120 gr. 140 or more would be better from a terminal ballistics aspect. You will need to balance that against trajectory. Be realistic about how flat you really need to make it shoot. If you believe the boy can hit the vitals 90% of the time at 400 yards, that is fine, shoot the high-speed zappers. If on the other had you are not going past 300 yards, you can now shoot the loads that work better on the target. Light super fast bullets tend to give expolsive action. IF you slow it down to 2600 and below heavy light jacketed bullets come into their own. Those are great terminal performers. You get classic mushrooms and deep penetration or pass throughs. I personally, would be emphasizing hunting skills and the responsibility to make a clean kill. That spells shorter distances. Shorter distances would allow even 160 grain round nose bullets. For purely on target performance that one might be tough to beat. The 140s might be a better compromise though.

I have had great luck with the 120 BT in both the 260 and 6.5x55 at about 3000. I have used them successfully on blacktail, antelope and coyotes. Lou

Thanks for all the suggestions Guys

Here in New Zealand our main game animals are Red Deer, with Chamois available close at hand where I am. There are always plenty of goats to shoot as well, and boys often "cut their teeth" shooting these, in much the same way as I imagine those of you in the USA shoot varmints.

The thing with goats is that they are surprisingly tough, so to be killed humanely need good shot placement - just the skills boys need to have before they go on to larger game.

The suggestion to reduce velocity is a good one, that will also help them get a better feel for trajectory, I learn to shoot with a SMLE 303 and that taught trajectory quite quick. And as I recall E = MV^2 so that will rerduce the recoil quickly too.

As I'm in New Zealand buying dies on ebay is a bit difficult, most sellers won't post outside the US.

Cheers and thanks - Foster

I wouldn't recommend the 100grain Ballistic tip either....

The Nosler 100gr partition OTOH was specifically designed for the 260Rem and with 100gr projectiles the 260Rem is a ballistic twin to the 25-06.

The 260rem would probably be a good performer
with the lighter Barnes TSX bullets

And the 100grain partition was designed specifically for use on pronghorn/whitetail sized animals.


AllanD

Gidday Foster,

See if you can contact Oldun who posts here. He was selling a 260 a while ago and he may well still have dies.

The guys I know who have 260s don't let them go and are more likely to wear out the dies rather than sell them. How much did the set on trade me go for?

I will have a word to Richard Wilhelm on friday for you and get him to keep his eyes peeled.

How much do you want to pay? He may have a set of new ones still from when the dollar was high.
I got mine (RCBS) for $60 new.

Happy Hunting

Hamish

quote:

Originally posted by Allan DeGroot:
I wouldn't recommend the 100grain Ballistic tip either....

The Nosler 100gr partition OTOH was specifically designed for the 260Rem and with 100gr projectiles the 260Rem is a ballistic twin to the 25-06.

The 250rem would probably be a good performer
with the lighter Barnes TSX bullets

AllanD

AllanD

I picked one up a couple of months ago. A Rem 700 mountian. I wanted a nice light package that would work for deer caribou and so forth. It has been to my suprise, very accurate with four different loads. 125 Partitions with H-4831 are excellent but 2nd best. The 120 Barnes TSX with H-4350 has been amazing giving me some 3/8" groups on a good day and 3/4" when I am having a bad one. Thats much more than I expected for such a light rifle with a real skinny barrel.

It would seem to me so far this cartridge is not real fussy. I can only imagine that those 100 grain Part's would be just hell on wheels in the .260 for deer. Damn I thought I had enough bullets here to take care of my rifle's for a while, now you got me hankering to try them 100's. This season though I will stick with the 120 Tsx and if I am lucky and take some game I will provide a report on performance of this bullet.

Hmmm

Now theres a name from the past "Richard Wilhelm", I bought a set of conetrol mounts off him more than 25 years ago, and visited on him 12 months ago to find that he had hardly changed a bit in the interim !!

I see Magnum imports lists Hornady new for $60, so thats about the benchmark, I've also PMed Oldun to see about his. If Richard does have some I'd be interested if the price is right, although his idea of a "right price" and mine didn't exactly match when I last saw him.

Cheers - Foster

Well my 260 experiences gets SOME credit from a few guys who have been around here for a while...

Tentman, I don't know the equivalents of ADI's powder numbers to Hodgdons...as I live in the USA....

I use the 260 as my main deer hunting rifle...and have taken deer with all the major manufacturers 100 grain bullets...

Yeah, Ballistic tips are a little too explosive and the partition is a deep penetrator but works best on the really larger animals... smaller ones don't offer enough resistance once hit to allow the partition to open up to the max and do what it does best....

The best NON premium high price tag bullet for the 260, at least in the states in 100 grains is the Hornady SP....followed by the 100 grain HP Sierra....

With a load of 43.5 grains of IMR 4064, those loads chronograph at 3350fps out of the barrel of 22 inches in my 2 Rugers.. and 3450 fps out of the 26 inch barrel of my Rem 700 VLS...

When zeroed 3.5 inches high at 100 yds, I have taken deer at between 100 to 300 yds, with this load, with the scope ( a Leupold 3 x 9, with a target/dot reticle, ) set on 4x.... and recoil was low enough that I watched the deer drop in the scope sight, never loosing site picture because of recoil... there was that little!
at 300 yds and at 100 yds...

At 300 yds, I needed no adjustment or compensation.. the load was that flat shooting that I just aimed on hide....

I hunt larger game with my second Ruger in 260 with a 4 power Weaver scope on it... I typically shoot 129 or 140 grain bullets in this rifle....at about 2500 fps...

I have also used the Rem VLS when I have been sitting at a stationary position, with a load of 125 grain Partitions and a 4.5 x 14 scope on that one, and this has been while elk hunting over a large couple of fields...

Can't give any success stories with that one, because the only target of opportunities, were cow elk and I didn't have a tag for them... but I had all the confidence in the world that the load would have taken down an elk...MV was at 2900 fps...

All of the loads are very accurate, but especially the 43.5 grains of IMR 4064 and the 100 grain bullets...

cheers and good luck...
seafire

Seafire

Thats great info, Hornady and Sierras are readily avaliable here, I'll get on their case. Thanks for reading the original question ie "non premium", I'm a great believer in learning to shoot by shooting LOTS of rounds, and its just counter intuitive to use a high priced projectile, or keep changing zeros etc to account for "using a different" projectile when hunting, not to mention the potential for mix-ups on the loading bench.

Cheers - Foster

Darn you guy,s !
Now I want a 260 or 6.5 swede. I think I would opt for the 120 grain bullet range but I use 100 grain 25,s and they are good.
I could get a CZ 550 in the swede easy enough.
If I did well enough selling my 30,06 featherweight, I should be able to grab a Kimber with out to much out of pocket. A ruger might be ok, but I would have more faith in a CZ.
well A cold shower is in order...tj3006

Seafire,

You know, years ago when I got hooked on a 6.5 kick I read LOTS of articles on 6.5's, mostly x55 Swedes, but there was one article that was titled something like "one good rifle, one load", and the author had been using the 125 Partition in a Swede and in the 6.5/06 if memory serves me right.

Bottom line, used that bullet with deadly effect on deer, elk, and everything else he pointed it at.

I wonder if the 129 SP is similar at modest speeds. I know I sailed one through a small deer in Tx years ago, and feel good about it's penetration, it seemed a little tougher perhaps than the 120's Rem. puts out.

I can imagine a fast 100gr on lung shots would be lightning on most deer. It should replicate a 25/06

Tentman,

Not sure I can add too much to what has already been said. I'm not aware of any big game bullets in 6.5mm that are above 100g and below 115g.......sure would like one though as I think a premium bullet in 110g would be a nice fit with the 260 Rem.

I like Seafire's suggestion of using the 100g Hornady......especially if you are going to download them to 3,000 fps or so. I've used the 100g Partition and it worked great.......20 yd shot at over 3,300 fps MV. Certainly didn't need that MV for that close of a shot but that's how it went down. That is a flat shooting load.

If you care to try a bullet a little heavier, try the flat base 120g Sierra Pro Hunter. Cheap, very accurate, and can easily be downloaded if you think it's appropriate. That bullet can do some real damage.

6 BR:

I Played around with the 120s first thing and then the 129s.. I also have loaded the 125 partitions.. and the various 140s....

Then after trying some of the 100 grainers, It makes the rifle close to what the 25/06 is with 100 grain bullets also....
It is surprising what the little bullets will do at high velocity...

since I hunt blacktail which are pretty much antelope sized, the 100grainers were just fine....

The 120s and the 129s would surely hit harder, but the 100 grainers hit plenty hard for deer and are all the more flat shooting.. it is a trade off, but a trade off I can live very easily with....

I wouldn't hesitate to hunt 200 plus pound Northern Whitetails with them... 15 yrs hunting Minnesota and Wisconsin 'up north'...I have downed a 'couple' of big ones......

One can't go wrong with either route, and I think that out of most places like Cabelas, Grafs, Midway et al... they charge the same price for the 100 grain SPs as they do for the 129s and the 140s from Hornady... so name your poison, they are all good...

I would have all the confidence in the world in the abilities of the 100 grainer to take Cow Elk, and Bull Elk with the 129s and definitely the 140s...

Just for the lack of recoil and the ability to be accurate and work perfectly, the 100 grainer at 3350 fps out of a 22 inch barrel, is an appealing package...

Believe it or not, the 100 grain partition is a little harder and actually doesn't work as well as the Hornady 100 gr SP on deer the size of our blacktail...

I have a horded stash of 250 of the European Partitions that Nosler made for the Euro market, under another Manufacturers name on contract... it is a 105 grain SMP partition...

NOW I'd take that little bullet after a Bull Elk any day... I hope the opportunity gives me the chance some day in the near future...

It penetrated some wood I tested it into like it was a chain saw! out penetrated a 270 max load with 130 grainers and an 06 with max load 165 grainers... not only out penetrated but also caused more peripheral damage along the penetration channel...

Got these via the Nosler seconds store... another guy I know locally that use to be on the forum bought about 500 of them...he is hording them just like I am!

Cheers
seafire



Tentman.. Glad to help, Best of luck to you and your son....I think you will find the 260 the best balanced game cartridge out there!

cheers
seafire

You might have read this, but there was a Gun Digest or similar read re: 6.5x55 and some informal test using a couple of different rifles and bullets.

It did seem visiable that the faster twist rifle did more damage.

I DO suspect that some or a lot of the killing power may be correlated with twist rate. A physics person may prove me wrong, but many varmint shooters use faster twist (not only for longer/heavier bullets) but claim that the spin adds to the kill effect/and or bullet performance.

It IS interesting how the 6.5's tend to perform BETTER than paper ballistics (having 7.5-9 twist, 8 being common) would indicate, vs. say the 10's that are often used in many ctgs.

If you do the math, the rotational velocity is much higher, and my theory, and opinion, we all have them you know----is that it helps down game.

I think a fast twist using long/heavy bullets help keep the bullet nose forward, and perhaps much has to do simply with S.D. of 6.5's.

Any rate, they seem to kill often much better than smaller rounds, and as well or better than larger 7mm's and 30's based on reports you read about.

Nothing magic, just that there is something going on with the combo of S.D., high b.c. (good downrange ballistics), shootability-low recoil, fast twist, etc.

I know I shot 3 deer with 6.5 Swede with 120's at 2800 and not much more, and it was like a bomb hit them. If I knew it would always be like that I would never need/want another round!

Not that they are the end all round to use, but they do a bang up job in many situations. I am beginning to question having my 708's and putting up with the extra 10-20% recoil and for what I have not figured out!

I might could live with 2 rifles based on the 308 case for what I do in my type of hunting.

260/6.5x55 and a 338F/358W for a larger bore. I know I could enjoy shooting at the range more with them and without worrying about developing a flinch vs a much louder and harder kicking magnum.

If hunting really large game and/or 400+ yd shots, then I would really consider going to the next level.

Funny when I owned a Sako 243 Forester, I 'mocked' up a 260 Rem and then had Pac-Nor build me a 6.5/308 just 6 months prior to the release/intro of the 260. It was in PO Ackley years ago but unnoticed. Actually in disguise as a 6.5x55 in a longer action since 1894 or so right? I made one mistake, sold that Sako and built on a Rem 700.

That Sako would have been a NICE action for that round. The OAL in the mag is .10-.15 longer than a Rem and there is nothing wrong with that either for heavier bullets.

Seafire:

One more thing, It amazes me that the European mfg have used twist most often in the 7.5-8.5 range for most 6.5's, often 8.

Come here and Rem used a 9 for the 260, and Howa does as well, so did Browning i.e. Low Wall and Abolt, both discontinued, (Browning even uses 10 in the 7/08-which I am disagree)

Point is, with the PLETHORA of experience with 6.5's, why in today's market-HECK even Kimber uses a 9 twist and cannot/will not give me a reason why.

SO, I do applaude Ruger, Sako, Tikka, for using a better twist. My model 7's I owned would not shoot a 140, factory, or bumped up reloads. I like the option.

Perhaps if these companies would ask opinions and do surveys from people in the know here on AR, they would 'get it right' the first time the intro a new product and see success more often.

Tentman

The 129 Gr Hornady setting over some RL22 will get you very near to where you want to be. The InterLockâ„¢ would be a little less explosive than the SST.

quote:

Originally posted by seafire/B17G: I have a horded stash of 250 of the European Partitions that Nosler made for the Euro market, under another Manufacturers name on contract... it is a 105 grain SMP partition...

NOW I'd take that little bullet after a Bull Elk any day... I hope the opportunity gives me the chance some day in the near future...

It penetrated some wood I tested it into like it was a chain saw! out penetrated a 270 max load with 130 grainers and an 06 with max load 165 grainers... not only out penetrated but also caused more peripheral damage along the penetration channel...

Got these via the Nosler seconds store... another guy I know locally that use to be on the forum bought about 500 of them...he is hording them just like I am!

Cheers
seafire

Seafire, how long ago was the 105g SMP Partition available? Any chance the second store would still have them or do you know the name of the mfg that sells them?

Gidday Foster,

I have been to check out the prices with Richard and he tells me that it is best you grab those dies at $60 as his are $79.95 with a price rise on the way.

The price increase is a result of world steel prices which are going through the roof because China is buying it all.

There is another set on trademe at the moment. The guy selling them has advertised a Kimber montana 260 with the dies and has a starting price of $1900. He is pushing shit up hill with a very sharp stick as I saw a montana in 308 in Ballingers today for $1850 new. He obviously won't sell it so you maybe able to give him an offer for just the dies.

Happy Hunting

Hamish

Now I gotta pitch in, and I'll admit I have not verified the actual twist of the barrels of my .260 Remingtons, BUT, I have a "standard" half stock M7 carbine that won't shoot 140 grain bullets worth beans, but it loves 120-125 grain slugs, then I have another M7 (MS) the custom shop Mannlicher version, that shoots plain old 140 grain core-lokts best of all, so go figure. And whatever the case, both cartridge/bullet mixtures put down deer like crazy. For my money, the .260 Remington is The "go too" deer cartridge on the market. It has more than enough punch, yet it downs deer with minimal meat damage, with none of the oh my God effects seen from the .270 or other high velocity rounds.

6.5 BR,

the faster twist does increase the bullet's rpms by quite a bit... I think that not only helps them to fly flatter, but also is more damaging due the drilling effect....Like on my Savage 12 in 223, I shot some 55 grain SPSX's out of it at 3300 fps and didn't think about the 1 in 9 twist... It was vaporizing the bullets about 12 to 15 inches out of the barrel.. I called Hornady and their tech told me that the bullet was designed for a max of 180,000 rpms ( which it would have been under that out of a standard 1 in 12 twist )and what I was shooting was at out of a 1 in 9 twist was about 275,000 rpms!

Well, thinking of a 100 grain SP or HP leaving the muzzle at 3350 fps with a one in 8 twist of the Ruger....that bullet has to be turning over 300,000 rpms...no wonder 6.5 bullets with high sectional density will penetrate like no tomorrow!

As far as American manufacturers producing barrels with one in 9 twists instead... one in 9 was what was used by the early 6.5 magnums in the USA.. the 6.5 Rem and the 264 Win....I am sure they went with a one in 9 because the higher velocity and the present bullet construction then, would have made the bullets come apart with a one in 8 twist...


Wanna talk about a driller.. I have a Rem 6mm on a long action, that I shoot 75 grain HP Hornady's at 3650 fps or more.... I have hit a few praire dogs with that combo, and there is definitely red mist in the air...the rifle has a one in 7 twist....

bet the number of rpms that baby is turning is phenominal!

Seafire:

OH MY GOD! Got to be kidding, 75's 3650 with 7 twist! RED MIST!!!

I know my 6BR-70 TNT 3400+ 8 twist, milk jugs nearly vaporize, no Prairie Dogs here/yet

Yeah, I realize with 264 mag-to keep pressure down, fps up, and fouling/jacket stripping, AND since its forward speed is more than a 9 will do, and a 6.5 would be similar-but in long barrels where they can do more than say Sweded/260 speeds in the short 600's.

I read a guy who used a 6.5 600 on Alaskan game, deadly and flat, lots of seals etc 270 trajectory, with 120 core lokt

On the post above, Remington if anyone remembers had a recall on the original model 7's because they Ugggghhhh, Said they goofed and put the wrong twist in some. I assume that some got out the door in 8 twist like the 6.5x55 classic's had......either rate, the dealer/wholesalers pulled ones they could and they got a 9 barrel.

Both my 7's had 9 twist, would NOT shoot a factory or reload with 140s, not that it is needed, but I like the option to use it.

Also re: 129 sp vs sst, I won't pay the premium price nor think I am gaining much by having the SST over the old SP. The SP is a good bullet as is, in many regards, BC/SD/ and construction.

On the reply about 260 being a 'go to deer round', I suspect as good as the 7/08 is with 140s, if Remington loaded some cheap 120 Corelokts, that bullet, esp. I know in a fast twist will give 'bang-flops' and perhaps more often than the 708.

7mm's usually have a 9 twist, and that 8 twist 6.5 might edge it out.

I remember Don Zutz commented in a handloading book MANY years ago, his buddy shooting 6.5x55 Swede in a fast twist '96 or '94 mauser had the same or more destruction on deer than a 130/270 combo.

I believe he was using 129's or 125's not sure, either rate, he attributed the radial damage directly correlated to the higher rpm, 7.5 vs 10 twist. His theory, heard both sides but my gut says there is something to it. Field reports also seem to substantiate it.

125-grain Nosler Partition Jacket! Good for MOST of the world's 6.5mm game........

My bad, the Sako website has 9 twist, don't see the new Tikka's in 6.5's? They did make a 6.5 Swede I am almost positive, and I thought some 260's, perhaps not. I thought previously I had seen them using a 8.6, pehaps they round up.

Chris at Pac-Nor said a few years ago, an unnamed european mfg wanted some 8.5 or 8.6 twist barrels for R&D. May have been Sako/Tikka.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by seafire/B17G:
Yeah, Ballistic tips are a little too explosive and the partition is a deep penetrator but works best on the really larger animals... smaller ones don't offer enough resistance once hit to allow the partition to open up to the max and do what it does best....

The best NON premium high price tag bullet for the 260, at least in the states in 100 grains is the Hornady SP....followed by the 100 grain HP Sierra....
QUOTE]

Seafire, I read this thread last week and I didn't catch the significance of the 100 gr Sierra HP that you like. It's in Sierras "Varminter" line. Could you expand on how this HP varmint bullet performs on blacktail? By your comments I'm guessing that it's expansion and penetration falls between the Partition and Ballistic Tip like the Hornady Spire Point does.

Great info on this thread BTW. Just as I was ready to settle for a 7mm/08 with 120 gr Ballistic Tips for a lightweight deer gun you guys remind me about my first choice, the 260. Too bad Savage doesn't offer it anymore.

quote:

Originally posted by El Deguello:
125-grain Nosler Partition Jacket! Good for MOST of the world's 6.5mm game........

Here is a pic of the exit wound on the off shoulder of a black bear I took yesterday morning with a 260 Rem at about 100 yards. This is 2 bullets hitting the opposite shoulder roughly an inch apart. I was thinking the 260 might be on the light side for bigger stuff but once again the Partition bullets worked as they were supposed to. I have been using them for a long time ans they have never let me down and I have only ever recovered one from quite a few animals taken with them. The bear only made it 10 feet before going down, hard to get better than that.

SO I take it you launched a 125 gr about 2900 or so? What gun, twist out of curiosity?

It seems a 129 SP would perform similar but perhaps someone with more experience could elaborate. Nothing against the partition, I do believe it is supposedly more accurate for some than the 140 partition in 6.5mm.

Is a 'premium' needed at these speeds? I just wonder what penetration might compare say 125 vs 129 sp. I may have to look for that old gun digest or whatever that I have that article. It may have that comparison.