.300 Dakota
Well-Known Member
25" Ace barrel with 7.5 twist. My throat will have .130" of free bore. Enough without being too much (IMHO). The purpose is for whitetail deer hunting. Period. If I get a wild hair and decide to carry it boar hunting out of curiosity, I've got some 100gr Norma Oryxs that will handle that job nicely at short range. I have about every hunting bullet between 90 and 100 grains plus heavier bullets including 103gr ELD-Xs, 105gr VLD Hunters, 115gr VLD Hunters, and what I wanted to focus on most, 108gr Elite Hunters. I'm at sea level in a warm climate. 750 - 800yds is about all I'll be able to squeeze out of this cartridge with the currently available hunting bullets and still meet the 1000 ft-lb minimum for deer killing energy. I likely won't need over 400 - 600 yards of that.
I've loaded for the .240 Wby and 6mm/7mm SAUM wildcat previously. Back then, I didn't have 8133, N565, N568, N570, RL 26, Magnum, or StaBall HD. RL 25, 7828SSC, N560, H1000, and MagPro were used. I didn't have the ELD-X, Hammers, or 108 Elites, either. 105gr VLD Hunters in the 1:8 SAUM, and 100gr ProHunters in the 1:10 .240 was what I did. Not a huge amount of velocity gain in the SAUM compared to the .240 considering the difference in the charges given the same 100gr bullet side by side. Maybe 100ft/s or so. Both had 24" barrels.
I have a bit of 6.5 PRC brass, though I don't know what brand off the top. I would prefer Lapua (I think) due to the amount of necking down. 20 thousandths isn't huge, but it's more than a tiny bit.
Do you think running a 6.5 PRC bushing die with appropriate sized bushing for 6mm by way of .257 (2 steps - or more) would do well? It would need to size all the way down to the neck and not leave a bump. I could try Hornady Universal Neck Sizer, as I have both .25 cal and .24 cal. The hope is to not impart runout by bending the neck to one side. Maybe ADG brass being a little "tougher" might be better for this application? I was just thinking that Lapua is nice and straight and easy to form from new cases. Do I need a $400 SAC sizing die? (Like REALLY??)
If I want to focus mainly on 108 Elite Hunters, do you think RL 26, Magnum, and N565 would be good places to start for good velocity from the 25" 7.5 twist barrel? Or should I go slower? Magnum works GREAT for the parent case 6.5 PRC with 120 - 140gr bullets. Would that mean I may need to look at a powder a smidge slower like Retumbo, RL33, or N568? I reserve N570 for the last ditch effort due to barrel burn rate. Not sure how much better 568 really is. Oh, I also have LRT that will be in that wheelhouse. (I'm purposely dancing around H1000, which might do well.) Temp stability is important, but not as important as it would be away from the coastline. Humidity is always above 60% here except on VERY rare occasions. It's hot now. It will be hot during gun season (some of the time anyway). There may not be 20 degrees of difference between a "cool" day now and a "warm" day then. Though it is possible for 50 - 60 degree differnces - but I have other rigs I could carry loaded much differently on those days.
Anyone have any experience with this round? If it matters, the gun is on a Tikka action, so cartridge OAL isn't an issue.
I've loaded for the .240 Wby and 6mm/7mm SAUM wildcat previously. Back then, I didn't have 8133, N565, N568, N570, RL 26, Magnum, or StaBall HD. RL 25, 7828SSC, N560, H1000, and MagPro were used. I didn't have the ELD-X, Hammers, or 108 Elites, either. 105gr VLD Hunters in the 1:8 SAUM, and 100gr ProHunters in the 1:10 .240 was what I did. Not a huge amount of velocity gain in the SAUM compared to the .240 considering the difference in the charges given the same 100gr bullet side by side. Maybe 100ft/s or so. Both had 24" barrels.
I have a bit of 6.5 PRC brass, though I don't know what brand off the top. I would prefer Lapua (I think) due to the amount of necking down. 20 thousandths isn't huge, but it's more than a tiny bit.
Do you think running a 6.5 PRC bushing die with appropriate sized bushing for 6mm by way of .257 (2 steps - or more) would do well? It would need to size all the way down to the neck and not leave a bump. I could try Hornady Universal Neck Sizer, as I have both .25 cal and .24 cal. The hope is to not impart runout by bending the neck to one side. Maybe ADG brass being a little "tougher" might be better for this application? I was just thinking that Lapua is nice and straight and easy to form from new cases. Do I need a $400 SAC sizing die? (Like REALLY??)
If I want to focus mainly on 108 Elite Hunters, do you think RL 26, Magnum, and N565 would be good places to start for good velocity from the 25" 7.5 twist barrel? Or should I go slower? Magnum works GREAT for the parent case 6.5 PRC with 120 - 140gr bullets. Would that mean I may need to look at a powder a smidge slower like Retumbo, RL33, or N568? I reserve N570 for the last ditch effort due to barrel burn rate. Not sure how much better 568 really is. Oh, I also have LRT that will be in that wheelhouse. (I'm purposely dancing around H1000, which might do well.) Temp stability is important, but not as important as it would be away from the coastline. Humidity is always above 60% here except on VERY rare occasions. It's hot now. It will be hot during gun season (some of the time anyway). There may not be 20 degrees of difference between a "cool" day now and a "warm" day then. Though it is possible for 50 - 60 degree differnces - but I have other rigs I could carry loaded much differently on those days.
Anyone have any experience with this round? If it matters, the gun is on a Tikka action, so cartridge OAL isn't an issue.
