Which 6.5? 6.5 Creedmoor, 260 Rem., 6.5x284 etc...

[Wedgy]

The 6.5x 284 seems to have more barrel life if you run the slower powders like Retumbo, H1000, 7828, etc.

I usually am not a Ruger fan(although I love their .22 rifles & pistols) but this is a nice rifle !
Ruger M77 MK II .264 Win Mag SS 1 of 1000 $1START : Bolt Action Rifles at GunBroker.com

 

[Greyfox]

I have shot the 6.5's for quite some time. All the cartridges discussed are good cartridges, but I settled on the 6.5-284 for my medium game hunting out to 1000 yards. Both my Cooper 520 and Savage LRH will send a 140 VLD at 3000FPS and produce 1000 yard groups you can cover with the your hand. I think the smaller cased rounds are good for 700 yard hunting, and target shooting. I can't see a difference in killing power on game between the 264WM and 6.5-284 out to 1000 yards. I believe the short barrel life issue with the 6.5-284 is overstated and no different than any caliber capable of cleanly taking game at 1000 yards, better than some.IMO.

 

[squeeeeze]

A question for you all. I know we all talk about barrel burners and short/long barrel life but can I get some estimates on barrel life for a few chambers in question?

Say the 6.5-284 avg. Barrel may last 500-700 shots, Creed 1500-2000, the .260 a bit less than the creed etc...

I know we say if you baby the barrel, waiting minutes between shots, slower burning powders, only use gun to build load and then hunt only barrel life can be prolonged. Just curious what kind of difference between chambers. I'm sure this 6.5 will be my favorite caliber and probably have my next build in a faster 6.5.

I have a buddy that has a 6.5-284 and loves it but seems terrified to bring it when we shoot and when he does rarely more than a few shots are fired. If I have a gun I don't want to be afraid to shoot it cuz it's a "barrel burner" guess he thinks he'll only get a couple hundred shots out of it or something... Idk.

Another buddy has a .264 win mag and he's not afraid to make it go boom lol. Just trying to wrap my head around it and what is fact vs. fiction

 

[Greyfox]

I think barrel life is largely dependent on several factors but for hunting and 20 round shooting sessions that have a warm, not hot to touch barrel, in my experience, the 6.5-284 should go 1000-1500 rounds. The 260 class cartridges should generally get an additional 1000 rounds. I would define accuracy loss as, sub .5 MOA to sub .75 MOA. I have had Weatherby's and a 270WSM that degraded at 500-700 rounds. I think the 6.5-284 unjustifiably earned it's reputation as a barrel burner from the competition crowd that shot long strings, hot, and high vollumes and were conditioned to using lower performance cartridges. Improved ballistic performance has a price.IMO.

 

[benchracer]

I think barrel life is largely dependent on several factors but for hunting and 20 round shooting sessions that have a warm, not hot to touch barrel, in my experience, the 6.5-284 should go 1000-1500 rounds...

...I have had Weatherby's and a 270WSM that degraded at 500-700 rounds. I think the 6.5-284 unjustifiably earned it's reputation as a barrel burner from the competition crowd that shot long strings, hot, and high vollumes and were conditioned to using lower performance cartridges. Improved ballistic performance has a price.IMO.

I believe this assessment to be spot on. Anyone who is considering a fast 6.5 should also take a careful look at the Melonite process. It appears this form of metal treatment can significantly extend barrel life. I plan to have that done to my next 6.5 barrel. I think it could REALLY be a godsend for the .26 Nosler.

I would add that, if you purchase a factory rifle chambered for a fast 6.5, the factory tube should especially be considered expendable. When you buy the rifle, put a good barrel on order and plan to have it installed and Melonited after you burn out the factory tube.

 

[No Fear in Accuracy]

I have 6.5x284 and it shoots extremely well at long range.

If you are planning to shoot around 200 times a year, then you don't have to worry about the barrel burner. Look at the advantages, 6.5x284 compared to 260 and 6.5 Creedmoor.

 

[squeeeeze]

Grey- those are around the estimates of barrel life I was thinking for the chamberings.

How do you like your savage lrh? I'm probably leaning most toward this one primarily since it already has a brake installed and adj. Cheekpiece, kinda cheesy brake and not what I want but a brake nonetheless. I'll want a brake on whatever I get whether some think it needs it or not because there is nothing like being able to spot your own shot, especially hunting and the less recoil the better! I just hate to pay a couple hundred to have a brake installed just to rebarrel which I'll probably do sooner than later.

I plan on shooting this more than a couple hundred times a year since I think it will be my primary goto gun once all said and done.

Bench- I'll look into the Melonite process, sounds interesting and for the barrel life extension that would be great.

Thanks for all the responses.

 

[Greyfox]

Grey- those are around the estimates of barrel life I was thinking for the chamberings.

How do you like your savage lrh? I'm probably leaning most toward this one primarily since it already has a brake installed and adj. Cheekpiece, kinda cheesy brake and not what I want but a brake nonetheless. I'll want a brake on whatever I get whether some think it needs it or not because there is nothing like being able to spot your own shot, especially hunting and the less recoil the better! I just hate to pay a couple hundred to have a brake installed just to rebarrel which I'll probably do sooner than later.

I plan on shooting this more than a couple hundred times a year since I think it will be my primary goto gun once all said and done.

Bench- I'll look into the Melonite process, sounds interesting and for the barrel life extension that would be great.

Thanks for all the responses.

I have been shooting a Cooper 520 in 6.5-284 for several years. A few years ago I won a Savage at an egg shoot and got the Savage LRH in 6.5-284. I figured I could have it as a back up rifle. What a pleasnt surprise! It shoots exceptionally well with the same loads I use in my Cooper. The only thing I did to it was relieve the forearm pressure point with sandpaper to float the barrel. The trigger is perfect. I brought it to the range today to play around and shot this 200 yard group. It will keep 5 shots in 1 1/2" at 500 yards(if I get a good nights sleep). If they all shoot like mine, it's one of the best bargains out there!

 

[squeeeeze]

Very fine shooting, especially for that factory rifle! I've been very happy with most factory savage rifles. Glad to hear yours' is so accurate as well!

 

[WildRose]

A question for you all. I know we all talk about barrel burners and short/long barrel life but can I get some estimates on barrel life for a few chambers in question?

Say the 6.5-284 avg. Barrel may last 500-700 shots, Creed 1500-2000, the .260 a bit less than the creed etc...

I know we say if you baby the barrel, waiting minutes between shots, slower burning powders, only use gun to build load and then hunt only barrel life can be prolonged. Just curious what kind of difference between chambers. I'm sure this 6.5 will be my favorite caliber and probably have my next build in a faster 6.5.

I have a buddy that has a 6.5-284 and loves it but seems terrified to bring it when we shoot and when he does rarely more than a few shots are fired. If I have a gun I don't want to be afraid to shoot it cuz it's a "barrel burner" guess he thinks he'll only get a couple hundred shots out of it or something... Idk.

Another buddy has a .264 win mag and he's not afraid to make it go boom lol. Just trying to wrap my head around it and what is fact vs. fiction

You can burn the barrel out of anything if you get it hot and keep shooting.

If you apply common sense the odds are pretty slim that you will ever shoot out a 6.5 Creedmore or 260 Rem especially if you start with a quality stainless barrel. If you want to extend barrel life beyond that get it melonited after you break it in.

 

[squeeeeze]

You can burn the barrel out of anything if you get it hot and keep shooting.

If you apply common sense the odds are pretty slim that you will ever shoot out a 6.5 Creedmore or 260 Rem especially if you start with a quality stainless barrel. If you want to extend barrel life beyond that get it melonited after you break it in.

We only shoot strings of 3-5 shots and take our time. Wait 5-10 minutes and if barrel is more than warm to the touch then we'll wait longer to cool, so I guess we have nothing to worry about.

I'll have to read more on meloniting. So I guess have barrel chambered, cut, threaded for brake and 100% installed and finished. Do a proper break in and then send off to get melonited? Then reinstall and have fun?

 

[benchracer]

We only shoot strings of 3-5 shots and take our time. Wait 5-10 minutes and if barrel is more than warm to the touch then we'll wait longer to cool, so I guess we have nothing to worry about.

I'll have to read more on meloniting. So I guess have barrel chambered, cut, threaded for brake and 100% installed and finished. Do a proper break in and then send off to get melonited? Then reinstall and have fun?

Yes. You have it right. Contact a member of this forum that goes by the screen name shortgrass. He is a gunsmith who has experience with the process and can answer your questions. There are others, as well, but he is the first that came to mind...

 

[BrentM]

6.5-284 barrel burner. So Yes it is. How long will it last, each person may be different. My stock savage 24" SS barrel has 1700ish round through it. The last time we took it out I set up a load for my brother it shot .5 MOA. 140 berger vld, lapau brass, .100 off the lands, 56.5 retumbo, federal 210m primer. It chronoed and dropped 2900 FPS average. I can get 2970 out of this barrel with 57.5 retumbo but the bolt is sticky so I backed it down.

I took the barrel to my smith who said the throat was getting bad and we need to rechamber the barrel to get more life out of it. If I set it back .010-.015 it will likely go another 300-500. Let's say 400. 2100 rounds with a 1x set back. To me that is not bad unless you shoot 500 rounds a month. I put about 4000 rounds down range last year to get comfortable with LR shooting. It was an expensive training year but well worth it.