Having a Terrible Time Deciding on a 6.5 Cartridge...

[Reload10]

Thanks for all the input, everyone!

I've decided on the 6.5x284 Norma. I seated a 140 Berger to 3.150" and it fed OK from the stagger feed magazine!

The reasons I decided on the x284:

-Lapua brass
-Researching the 'net, it looks like 3000 fps is achievable with Retumbo
-Lot's of load data
-Easy to get a Savage pre-fit in this chambering
-I prefer the shorter and fatter cartridges
-Already had a Forster bench rest die set

Since this will only be a hunting rifle, I think 100 Lapua brass cases will last me a lifetime of hunting.

Now my next question in this build, what barrel? I'm thinking heavily on a Shilen or trying a Black Hole Weaponry 3 groove.

 

[toddc]

Thanks for all the input, everyone!

I've decided on the 6.5x284 Norma. I seated a 140 Berger to 3.150" and it fed OK from the stagger feed magazine!

The reasons I decided on the x284:

-Lapua brass
-Researching the 'net, it looks like 3000 fps is achievable with Retumbo
-Lot's of load data
-Easy to get a Savage pre-fit in this chambering
-I prefer the shorter and fatter cartridges
-Already had a Forster bench rest die set

Since this will only be a hunting rifle, I think 100 Lapua brass cases will last me a lifetime of hunting.

Now my next question in this build, what barrel? I'm thinking heavily on a Shilen or trying a Black Hole Weaponry 3 groove.

Shilen or Criterion. Criterion has them in stock. The Shilen will take a bit probably. Also look at x-caliber and Apache. That caliber is also avail at EAB, most of which shoot fine.

 

[Mike 338]

Just get a 30/06 and solve the problem!!

Ha ha... this may be some pretty sage advice. I've never heard of anyone passing on a buck of a lifetime because it was to close. We all know where most shots tend to occur.

You know why nobody drives a hot rod to work? Because you gotta premix the gas among other things. I don't want a rifle that is tough to find components for. If Lapua makes brass for it, that's a big plus. If it's pretty much available anytime and not sold out for months on end, that's a plus too. Primers, powder and brass. Doesn't matter about the flavor of the week your chamber is if you can't make a cartridge. Here's a flash... most any of them will put a deer's feet in the air if you hit it hard. I love the 6.5x47. Feeds like a champ and you can get full use out of a long bullet in a short action. Problem is, those competitive shooters buy the brass up and a guy can't get it when he needs it though. That sucks. Small primer too. That's a love-hate thing. Hunting deer is like going to work. You don't want to be around high maintenance things or people. Well, maybe you do. Who am I to say? You got a piece of work in front of you and some basic tools to get it done.

The Swede is always a solid choice. Don't blow off those Norther Euro's. They've been dropping game like clockwork with that one. Lapua will probably always have plenty of that on hand and the large rifle primers are the most common. Feeds like a champ and is awesome for killing filthy fascist swine too.

What can I say about the '06? Who doesn't make brass for that? LR primers too. '06 variants get'er done. Stick a case and ruin a die though and the local fishing shack won't have a set of dies for you. Now your hunt'in with your nephew's 30-30.

As far as I'm concerned, get 'em all. Wring them all out and decide what you like. In the end, you'll figure out that it's you and the deer and not you and the gun. Chances are you'll have something real practical like... wait for it... a 30-06.

 

[toddc]

Ha ha... this may be some pretty sage advice. I've never heard of anyone passing on a buck of a lifetime because it was to close. We all know where most shots tend to occur.

You know why nobody drives a hot rod to work? Because you gotta premix the gas among other things. I don't want a rifle that is tough to find components for. If Lapua makes brass for it, that's a big plus. If it's pretty much available anytime and not sold out for months on end, that's a plus too. Primers, powder and brass. Doesn't matter about the flavor of the week your chamber is if you can't make a cartridge. Here's a flash... most any of them will put a deer's feet in the air if you hit it hard. I love the 6.5x47. Feeds like a champ and you can get full use out of a long bullet in a short action. Problem is, those competitive shooters buy the brass up and a guy can't get it when he needs it though. That sucks. Small primer too. That's a love-hate thing. Hunting deer is like going to work. You don't want to be around high maintenance things or people. Well, maybe you do. Who am I to say? You got a piece of work in front of you and some basic tools to get it done.

The Swede is always a solid choice. Don't blow off those Norther Euro's. They've been dropping game like clockwork with that one. Lapua will probably always have plenty of that on hand and the large rifle primers are the most common. Feeds like a champ and is awesome for killing filthy fascist swine too.

What can I say about the '06? Who doesn't make brass for that? LR primers too. '06 variants get'er done. Stick a case and ruin a die though and the local fishing shack won't have a set of dies for you. Now your hunt'in with your nephew's 30-30.

As far as I'm concerned, get 'em all. Wring them all out and decide what you like. In the end, you'll figure out that it's you and the deer and not you and the gun. Chances are you'll have something real practical like... wait for it... a 30-06.

I haven't had an 06 since the last century. That's because God makes Ultramags and Cheytacs. That being said, with the newer powders out now and the 200 Berger I wonder if it isn't time to revisit the old and venerable 06. I can't find brass for an Ultra and it would burn HALF the powder and I have thousands of 210 Federals. If you could run a 200 @ 2750 from an AI it would be pretty slick out to 1k.

 

[Lefty7mmstw]

I haven't had an 06 since the last century. That's because God makes Ultramags and Cheytacs. That being said, with the newer powders out now and the 200 Berger I wonder if it isn't time to revisit the old and venerable 06. I can't find brass for an Ultra and it would burn HALF the powder and I have thousands of 210 Federals. If you could run a 200 @ 2750 from an AI it would be pretty slick out to 1k.

I had not had a 30-06 for years either until 2 years ago when I found a steal of a deal on one at a lgs. It's the same rifle it always was, my friend. That said, it is fun as heck getting 150-200 grain 30 cal. up to speed without getting rocked by the rifle. I like my big rifles, but I'll keep my "little" '06 now that I've gotten her to shoot well...

As to the o.p., my brother just got out of his 6.5x284 and is hanging his hat on a 6.5 creed and a 26 nos. He has killed with both rifles and they do well. I'm not sure I ever need any 6.5, having both a 270 and a 25wssm.

 

[Mike 338]

I haven't had an 06 since the last century. That's because God makes Ultramags and Cheytacs. That being said, with the newer powders out now and the 200 Berger I wonder if it isn't time to revisit the old and venerable 06. I can't find brass for an Ultra and it would burn HALF the powder and I have thousands of 210 Federals. If you could run a 200 @ 2750 from an AI it would be pretty slick out to 1k.

Same here. The '06 was my first and until recently, I've ignored it. As a practical hunting rig though, everybody makes them, the effective range is double or triple what most are likely to encounter, good and consistently available components, and if it's shooting good, with a good range finder an ballistic solution, a fairly long hit in the right place is still a hit. A guy can soup them up but even in it's original configuration, it will still do almost everything asked of it when the need arises, without the need of a brake. One thing I find extremely aggravating is that, although there's a lot of the latest and greatest out there, nobody supports them. When was the last time 300 Win Mag brass was available for longer than a week?

Anyway, I think the OP made a good choice. The 6.5x284 is here to stay and components seem to be hanging around.

 

[Smokepoles]

I built a savage in that caliber with an xcaliber barrel chambered by them. Shoots consistently in the .2s when I can do my parts. I would definitely check them out if you don't mind the wait. Fair warning though- I now have two rifles in 6.5-284 and still want a 260...

 

[WildRose]

Same here. The '06 was my first and until recently, I've ignored it. As a practical hunting rig though, everybody makes them, the effective range is double or triple what most are likely to encounter, good and consistently available components, and if it's shooting good, with a good range finder an ballistic solution, a fairly long hit in the right place is still a hit. A guy can soup them up but even in it's original configuration, it will still do almost everything asked of it when the need arises, without the need of a brake. One thing I find extremely aggravating is that, although there's a lot of the latest and greatest out there, nobody supports them. When was the last time 300 Win Mag brass was available for longer than a week?

Anyway, I think the OP made a good choice. The 6.5x284 is here to stay and components seem to be hanging around.

I've never had trouble getting 300wm brass or factory ammo and one of the reasons I bought my first 300wm was the fact there has always been so much of both available for it.

As for the rest this is the Long Range Hunting forum so of course it's primarily frequented by people who shoot 2, 3, 4, 5x the range most hunters are shooting at.

 

[Mike 338]

I've never had trouble getting 300wm brass or factory ammo and one of the reasons I bought my first 300wm was the fact there has always been so much of both available for it.

As for the rest this is the Long Range Hunting forum so of course it's primarily frequented by people who shoot 2, 3, 4, 5x the range most hunters are shooting at.

Ha ha, I guess your right. I don't constantly look but intermittently when I've been checking, they've been out. I just checked Midway and it's in. I have several 300 WM's and belted magnum brass can be very hit and miss.

Not knocking LR rigs. I have a few although I don't stretch them out quite as far as some. Just say'in the classics can cover a lot of the ground that needs to be covered and from a practical perspective, they can make a lot of sense, much like a pickup truck makes a lot of sense.

 

[Greyfox]

Thanks for all the input, everyone!

I've decided on the 6.5x284 Norma. I seated a 140 Berger to 3.150" and it fed OK from the stagger feed magazine!

The reasons I decided on the x284:

-Lapua brass
-Researching the 'net, it looks like 3000 fps is achievable with Retumbo
-Lot's of load data
-Easy to get a Savage pre-fit in this chambering
-I prefer the shorter and fatter cartridges
-Already had a Forster bench rest die set

Since this will only be a hunting rifle, I think 100 Lapua brass cases will last me a lifetime of hunting.

Now my next question in this build, what barrel? I'm thinking heavily on a Shilen or trying a Black Hole Weaponry 3 groove.

Great choice! I'm going on 7 years with my 6.5x284 Cooper that has seen 700 rounds down the tube. Once I worked up my initial load I acquired 100 Lapua cases and enough components to last more then 1000 rounds. It is very consistent. I haven't even adjusted my zero for the last several years, and the Lapua brass looks and functions like its new. It still shoots .25MOA and in addition to numerous coyotes and PD's has seen over three dozen game animals shot from 200 to 1200 yards. It has been a superb hunting companion.

My buddy just bought a Shilen pre-fit for his Savage. I will have to say that with this barrel, his rifle is one of the most accurate rigs I have seen. It has Benchrest grade accuracy consistently shooting groups that 300 yards that can be covered with a dime. I will be mounting one of these one my other 6.5x284's, a Savage LRH.

 

[Wachsmann]

I may have to go this route as well with the new barrel. I started trying to get retumbo tuned in this year and got some slightly less than acceptable results. I started thinking about the round count on my rifle also. I'm on my 3rd box of lapua brass and most were shot around 10 time each so I'm around 2200+ round down the pipe. The first 2 boxes was at a reduced velocity of 2840fps which gave me good accuracy but I've been tying to get the gun up in some speed and not kill the brass as bad. I been around the 2930ish to 2980ish range but its never dialed in. Also I rellized after looking over my notes that I was not at the correct length seating depth I had been at with the other rounds. Long story short is I may have shot out the barrel or have some/a lot of throat erosion. I going to give it a good cleaning and then try a ladder seating test at 57.5 grains and see how it goes. If it still never come in then another cleaning and try my other proven load. If that doesn't work then it may be time for a new barrel which I may pull mine off and send out to get it duplicated on the contour since I really don't know which one it is. Also would like to step it up to at least a 26 inch length. I spoke with savage and they could make this up but I think I would rather go with something closer to a match grade barrel. Also there are a few other 6.5 calibers I've been tossing around as well but it would require fire forming, new dies, new learning experience, etc, etc, etc...

 

[Greyfox]

I may have to go this route as well with the new barrel. I started trying to get retumbo tuned in this year and got some slightly less than acceptable results. I started thinking about the round count on my rifle also. I'm on my 3rd box of lapua brass and most were shot around 10 time each so I'm around 2200+ round down the pipe. The first 2 boxes was at a reduced velocity of 2840fps which gave me good accuracy but I've been tying to get the gun up in some speed and not kill the brass as bad. I been around the 2930ish to 2980ish range but its never dialed in. Also I rellized after looking over my notes that I was not at the correct length seating depth I had been at with the other rounds. Long story short is I may have shot out the barrel or have some/a lot of throat erosion. I going to give it a good cleaning and then try a ladder seating test at 57.5 grains and see how it goes. If it still never come in then another cleaning and try my other proven load. If that doesn't work then it may be time for a new barrel which I may pull mine off and send out to get it duplicated on the contour since I really don't know which one it is. Also would like to step it up to at least a 26 inch length. I spoke with savage and they could make this up but I think I would rather go with something closer to a match grade barrel. Also there are a few other 6.5 calibers I've been tossing around as well but it would require fire forming, new dies, new learning experience, etc, etc, etc...

2200 rounds through a 6.5x284 is pretty good! Most run under 1500 best case. I only get 2500 through my 308....but run it pretty hot in competition events.

 

[Wachsmann]

It might have been since the first 2000 was running slower. I stopped trying to get better accuracy when the gun/load/me was holding 1/2 to .7 MOA consistantly. It would most of the time hold the 1/2 MOA. I painted up some rocks at 1000 to 1030 and usually got hits on them when ever I went shooting. I've since then got a newer range finder and know the distance a little better that I was shooting. Farthest was 1031 and the other was right at 1022 to another 2 in the 1012 to 1020 range. The sig kilo works great. Once getting my wind hold correct I generally could put a string of 5 or 6 shots on them. I almost do this by my self so I have to spot the shot in my scope and its not always easy. I have a couple of other rock faces that are closer that I like to hammer as well. The practice paid off when I connected on a mule deer at 760 this year with my 300 ultra mag. Now I'm thinking if the barrel is shot out I might stay with the 6.5x284 or go to something that I can use the same mag and bolt but screw on something with a little more ease to get to the 3000fps or faster. I've been thinking about the 6.5 Sherman a lot. From what I think I recall the original builder stated the round count is at least the same as the 6.5x284 or higher due to the cartridge design. Its just the fire forming I really don't know about.

 

[Reload10]

Great choice! I'm going on 7 years with my 6.5x284 Cooper that has seen 700 rounds down the tube. Once I worked up my initial load I acquired 100 Lapua cases and enough components to last more then 1000 rounds. It is very consistent. I haven't even adjusted my zero for the last several years, and the Lapua brass looks and functions like its new. It still shoots .25MOA and in addition to numerous coyotes and PD's has seen over three dozen game animals shot from 200 to 1200 yards. It has been a superb hunting companion.

My buddy just bought a Shilen pre-fit for his Savage. I will have to say that with this barrel, his rifle is one of the most accurate rigs I have seen. It has Benchrest grade accuracy consistently shooting groups that 300 yards that can be covered with a dime. I will be mounting one of these one my other 6.5x284's, a Savage LRH.

That's great to hear! Which contour did he go with? I wish they had a 0.750" 26"...

Going to call Jim at NSS and get a barrel ordered this week