6MM ACKLEY OR 243 ACKLEY

[Andy W]

Wildcat,

Good choice on the 6-284. I am currently building a 6BR, and have already recieved my lapua brass, it is impressive stuff! It will be nice to have no case prep/cull. I am putting a 1-12, 26"barrel on the BR, as I am building the gun as an ultra accurate varmint gun, and plan to shoot the same weight bullets from the BR, as I do with my 6mm Rem (68-87 grain). I went through the whole process of looking at the different ballistics of the 6mm screamers, and it would be cool to get the 87 vmax doing 3800 fps! Maybe out of a 6-06, or necking down a 270WSM to 6mm. Out of all of the bullets, I find the 6's the most exciting for what I like to do with them (gophers, coyotes at distance!) The 6-06 would be a good one, again because of the lapua brass, I just dont't think that it is as inherently accurate as the stubby cases. What kind of accuracy do you get out of your 6.5-284?

 

[TOM H]

Wildcat, Now your building a good 6mm for those 87gr bullets. I've got a tight neck 6.5x284 that is set up for the 142grSMK and my 6x284 is a tight neck also. I'm always on the hunt for a good 6mm varmit rifle so had a 6-250 build just got it last month now that the weather is alittle better I'll get out and see how it chronographs. Was looking for something between my 6br and 6mmrem and if velocity looks good may do a 6-250AI and that rifle would work out good alongside the 6mmAI. Well good luck and keep us all posted.

 

[wildcat]

My 6.5x284 is an awesome machine. Here are the specs;
1. BAT 8.5 Action
2. 6.5x284 290nk
3. Barrel-Hart 28", 1.050 at the muzzle, 1-8.5 twist, muzzle brake.
4. McMillan Tooley MBR
5. Jewell 2oz Trigger
6. Davidson Base w/20 MOA added
7. Kelby Rings
8. Nightforce 12x42x56mm NXS
9. Built by Dave Tooley
This rifle is very very accurate. My best three shot group at 100 yards is .083, and I have been averaging between .090 to .120 with 139grn Lupa Scenars. My velocities with this bullet are right at 2900fps. My rifle loves the 139grn Lupa Scenars and it seems to like that velocity. I can get them up to 3100 fps, but my accuracy is not as good. I have also tried 142MK and 140 A-MAX's, they don't give me the accuracy that the Lupa's provide.

Wildcat

 

[dakor]

Wildcat I do not really like to try talk people out of something but I would like to give you some advice. I have a 6-284 with a 27inch Hart with a 9twist. I know you want a 12 but go with the 9. The reason is you are really not going to give up any velocity maybe 50fps at the most with a 9 instead of a 12 and you can shoot just about any bullet you want in it. So if you decide you want to shoot bullets heavier then 90grs you can and some day you probably will. I have shot bullets from the 55gr B-tip all the way to the 105 Berger. Accuracy in any bullet weight has never been a problem. I shot 80gr Bergers at 3750fps with ease and for a long time a 85 Partition was my deer load and that was leaving the barrel at 3780fps. Since I started shooting longer shots I went to a Berger 95vld and was driving them around 3514fps then went to the 105VLD and I am shooting them at 3260fps. I could drive them faster but they shoot great and I will give up the extra 150fps for the way they shoot. I say this to you because my dad made the mistake of getting a 12 twist and would not listen to his son. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif Now he wishes he got a 9 because a 9 will shoot everything and a 12 will not. You also never want to build a rifle to shoot just that one bullet incase your rifle does not like the bullet you want to shoot.

 

[wildcat]

Dakor, thanks for the advice. I really only want to shoot the 75 grn through 87 grn pills. The reason is, I love to see my varmints explode. The Sierra MK and the Hornady A-MAX's do not make the varmints explode like the V-MAX and Nosler Ballistic Tips. My friend has a 6MM Ackley Improved, and he shoots a 87grn V-MAX at around 3400 fps. When he hits a squirrel, it blows up like you would not believe. I am going with the 6-284 because I am going to be able to get around 3600 fps to 3700 fps with the 87grn V-MAX. This combination is going to be expolsive and deadly out to 1000 yards. The other bullets just don't give the explosiveness I want. I know they are better ballistically, but if I need something for longer distances I will use my 6.5x284 with the 139grn Lupa pushed at 2900 fps and better yet if I need to really reach out there I can use my soon to be completed 338 Yogi (338 Lupa Magnum Improved) pushing a 300 Sierra MK at 3000 fps. If I decide to shoot heavier bullets, I will take your advice and go with the 1-9 or 1-10 twist barrel.
Once again, thanks Dakor. It is always good to hear about other suggestions, thats why I love this site, good people, good info and good advice.

Wildcat

 

[dakor]

Wildcat it sounds like you know what you want and thats a good thing in life. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif You should have no trouble getting the speed you want out of the 87 v-max and it does have a good bc of .400. There was a article on 6mmbr about a guy shooting out to 800 yards with his 6mm AI and that 87 V-max and it sounded like he was having pretty good luck with it. For that weight of bullet you are going to shoot you will want to shoot either R-19, IMR-4350, IMR-4831, and H-4831. You could try R-22 as well but I found the medium burn rate powders work better with bullets 90gr or less in the 6-284. My dad is using R-19 in his with a 80gr Berger and he is getting 3680fps out of a 24inch K&P barrel. Not bad at all and it shoots very well to boot. Well good luck with your 6-284 it is a fun round and really smacks varmits and deer hard.

 

[Aussie]

Wildcat ,
I've tried all sorts of things in an attempt to get the 87gn V Max to shoot less than 1/2 MOA in my .243 AI with 9 inch twist . Gave up after using up 2 boxes .
Must say they are seriously explosive on varmints but in my rifle not nearly as accurate as some projectiles . Have had similar comments from others on various forums . Most of those who were getting acceptable results seemed to be driving them under 3300 FPS .
88 and 90gn Bergers may be worth a look too . Good luck .

 

[wildcat]

Thanks for the info Dakor. I will try the powder you have suggested. I use VV-N165 in my 6.5x284, I would like to use Vihtivori in my 6-284. Do you know of anyone using Vihtivori powder in this caliber. I have heard good things about R-19 and R-22, so I will diffently try those. I will also use Norma Brass, it's great stuff. I use Norma brass for my 220 Swift aswell. I use Lupa Brass for my 223, 6.5x284 and 338 Lupa Magnum Improved. I've learned throughout the years that quality brass is the way to go. I know it's more expensive, but it pays off in the long run. Thanks for the info, and if you have any load suggestions let me know.

Wildcat

 

[wildcat]

Bush, yes those 87grn V-MAX's are explosive on varmints. I shoot the 50grn V-MAX out of my 223 at around 3200 FPS and they due some serious damage on varmints. The Ballistic Tips seem to be just as explosive, but I still give the edge to the V-MAX bullets when it comes to the red mist factor. I have heard that the 87grn V-MAX has a BC of .400, is this true. My friend uses the 87grn V-MAX out of his 6mm Ackley Improved and that thing is deadly accurate. Are the 88 and 90grn Bergers the MEF type for varmints, or are they the tagret type (VLD). I have heard good things about Berger bullets, but I have never used them. What is the BC for the 88grn and 90grn Bergers.

Wildcat

 

[Aussie]

Wildcat ,
Yes the BC of the 87 V Max is quoted as .400 .
The Berger 90 gn is their boattail design with a BC of .410 from memory . The 88gn is what they call a low drag . Has a flat base and a BC around .360 I think . Check their website .
IMHO Bergers are a step up in terms of accuracy from the Noslers and Hornadys .Pretty explosive too . The bullets above are not MEF . Those have lower BC's .
Basically Berger have the following designations -Match , Maximum Expansion Factor , Low Drag , Length Tolerant and Very Low Drag . All are supposed to be match grade .
The 80gn match is the most accurate 6mm bullet I have tried .

 

[Andy W]

With every load that I have tried in my 6MM Remington, the sierra 70 grain match was always more accurate than the 75 grain vmax and the 87 grain Vmax. When I would get a load that would show promise with the Hornaday bullets I would shoot it out to 550 yards, and the Sierra 70 grain would still have superior accuracy at that distance. I have not tried the bergers, but I hear nothing but good reviews.

 

[uncleB]

the 88gr Berger comes in two forms an LD with a B.C.of .395 or a MEF with a B.C. of .341 the 90grain is a boat tail with a B.C. of .410 Berger suggests all 3 bullets use a 1-10" twist. I have shot the 90's out of a 1-12" 6Ackley and on a nice warm day with no humidity they shoot very well at long range,drop the temp. 10 degrees and add a few clouds and they keyhole at 100yds and dont go much farther. Berger also makes a 95gr VLD with a B.C. of .524 that is very explosive on varmints but it needs a 1-9"
UB

 

[wildcat]

Bush, thanks for the info regarding the bullet information. I can't wait to shoot the 87grn V-MAX at squirrels. I have also made a change to my barrel, I was originally going with a 28" barrel, but I changed it to be 30" in length. This should help out with some more velocity. Once again, thanks for the info.

Wildcat

 

[wildcat]

UcleB, I will also try the 88grn MEF out aswell. I will also try the 80grn Ballsitic Tip. I have had really good luck with ballistic tips in the past. Has anybody used the 80grn Nosler Ballistic tip and does anybody know thw BC of this bullet.

Wildcat