6.5-06 or 6.5-08?

[roysclockgun]

I am ready to re-barrel a single shot rifle and am considering a 6.5bore. Which of the 6.5bores is the most flexible, in terms of handloading and practical hunting use? I do not need to make this rifle a heavy hitter, as I use 7mmRemMag and 30-06, when considering something like elk hunting. I just want to build this one into a unique deer rifle that will be fun to shoot ant the range. Are older 6.5mm cartridges to be considered? By that, I mean .264WinMag and the Swede 6.5x55?

 

[Greyfox]

The 260 Rem (6.5mm-08) is a good choice. My Ruger MK II shoots 95 gr, 120-125 gr, and the 140 gr bullets really well. The case is very efficiant and takes less powder to get top velocities. Recoil is very light and fun to shoot. I have killed deer with Nosler,Hornady, and Speer bullets. The 125 Partition would be my first choice in bullets. From what I have seen with the AccuBond in 270 cal and 7mm cal, the AccuBond will be my go to bullet as soon as Nosler makes them this summer.

The 6.5x55mm have very long throates. They work best with heavy weight bullets. The 6.5x55 also uses more powder for the same velocites as the 260 Rem. Other than this,they are basicaly the same. Both are excellent choices.

 

[roysclockgun]

Greyfox wrote: "The 260 Rem (6.5mm-0 is a good choice...."

I was not certain that 260Rem and 6.5-08 were one and the same. Also, I hear a lot about the 6.5-284. If the .284 is based on a .308Win case, what can be the difference between that one and the .260Rem? When hand loading for .260Rem, can .308Win cases be passed once through the full length .260Rem case sizer and then "Trim-to length", or is there an intermediate step? The reason that I ask, is because I have a ton of once fired .308Win cases.

 

[Greyfox]

The 260 Rem is Jim Carmichel's 6.5 Panther Cartridge. He took a 308 Win case and necked down to 6.5 cal. Remington made it a commercial cartridge and called it the 260 rem. The 308 Win case is 2.015" long. The 260 Rem was made 2.035" long. If you neck down the 308 do it in steps. First neck it to 7mm(.284) in a 7mm08 die. Then go to 6.5(.264) in a 260Rem die. Make sure you do not push the shoulder back all the way untill the 260 die. The neck will shorter than the 260 case. Be very cautious of the neck brass thickness. If brass is too thick in the neck the bullet will not have enough clearence to release . Pressures will be very high and that is not good. Otherwise it should work.

The 6.5-284 is a compleatly different cartridge case than the 308 Win. It is based on the 284 Win case. It is a much bigger case. It is comparable to the 280 Rem. The 6.5-284 is a Norma cartridge and the make cases for it.

Both would be excellent cartridges and Nosler list them in there current loading manual.Page 183 for the 260 Rem. Page 189 for the 6.5-284.

Good luck Greyfox

 

[LoneStar]

For all practical purposes, the 6.5-08 and the .260 are the same cartridge. A-Square first applied to SAAMI for the 6.5-08 cartridge, then Remington somehow got the .260 name on it first.

The .284 is in no way related to the .308. It is a large diameter, rebated rim cartridge designed in 1963 to offer increased performance in short actions. It was the precursor to the current WSM idea, but it is not the same as they are either. It is a "bastard" case with no parent.....

I've owned two .260s and consider them to be far more practical than the .264 Magnum or the 6.5-06. It has all the power most hunters need, and has won plenty of long range target championships. And as described above you can make cases from all the .308 brass you have on hand... :wink:

 

[Luns4d]

1st of all, I think the 6.5mm is great in any configuration, so I don't think you can make a bad choice.

I Shoot a 260 at game and the 6.5-284 at paper. The 260 will kill little bitty stuff on up to elk effectively with minimal recoil. Factory loads exist (not a great selection) and brass is plentiful. The 260 gets the nod more often than any other gun in my safe.

If you're looking for something unique the 6.5-284 may be the answer. It has just about the same ballistics as the 6.5-06 and you can buy brass from Hornady, Norma and Lapua. I don't know of any factory loads though. This round is supposed to fit in a short action rifle, but if you use pointy bullets and want them close to the lands, I think its "iffy".

My boss shoots a 6.5-06 and loves it. It's the most trouble from a forming brass perspective I think, and it will require a longer action.

All three of these cartridges are used in competition all the way out to 1,000 yards very effectively so you can get all the accuracy you want from any of them.

Good luck

 

[roysclockgun]

Lonestar wrote: "For all practical purposes, the 6.5-08 and the .260 are the same cartridge....."

Since the re-barrel is for a single shot rifle, currently chambered in 30-06, the overall length of the cartridge is not important and for that reason, I initially thought of 6.5x55 or 6.5-06.
On another rifle that I had, I had pulled Swede 6.5x55 fmj and inserted Noslers for hunting. The hunting bullets shot very well, after I re-weighed the military load and seated the hunting bullets .005 inches off the lands. Sadly, the Swede ammo, while non-corrosive, is Berdan primed, so the the brass was one shot only. I sold the 6.5x55 chambered rifle, but was a convert to the .264 bullet. I have a little itme to think about which cartridge to go with. I have tons of once fired 30-06 and 7.62x51NATO cases to neck down if need be. The only reason that I am still considering 6.5-06, is for versatility, but then I have other rifles in more powerful chamberings and all I really what to do is flail away at the range and maybe shoot deer with the re-chambered rifle.

 

[fredj338]

To me, the single shot gives you the advantage of not having to worry about magazine length, so a short cart. makes little sense. I would go w/ the 6.5-06.

 

[remingtonman_25_06]

If I was going to be doing it, I would do the 6.5-06 AI. You will get almost .264 WM velocity levels w/out the powder consumption. I want to eventually turn my 25-06 into a 6.5-06 AI when my factory barrel shoots out. The 6.5-06 AI has some pretty impressive ballistics out to 1000 yards for a 140g bullet at 3000fps or so. I would use mine for a yote/deer/target cartridge out to 1000 yards. The 6.5-08 would be a little more limited in range. Pretty much it boils down to how far you want to shoot.

 

[Peakebrook]

If you look at the results of some of the 1000 yard match shoots, you will see 6.5-284 and 6.5-300 WSM often in the placements.

 

[Taos]

I have used a 6.5-.284 here in the west for the last several years with great results. My son has used a .260 with almost the same results. I highly reccomend either of these rounds for general hunting. The .260 will to attain the velocity of the other but seems to have just as good effect on the game end. We have used them fo everything from rockchucks to elk with fine results.

 

[Greyfox]

Taos . What bullet or bullets did you use for Elk in your 6.5 cal rifles? Would you use Noslers new 6.5 cal AccuBond that is suppose to be out this summer? What is the maximum distance you would shoot at Elk? I have a 260 Rem that would love to harvest some Elk meat.
Greyfox

 

[Taos]

My son hit a bull this pat year at about 300 yds in the hip pocket from the rear. The 125 Gr. Partition shattered the pelvis at the joint on the rigt side . Bull got up and requireed a finisher at about 10 feet. We could not have asked much more of this bullet.

I really want to try the AccuBond on elk next year. We also had very good performance with Barnes TSX in the 6.5's. Through both shoulders of the last cow we shot with it at about 200 yds. The maximum distance for using the 6.5 on elk for me would be a matter of how the elk is presenting itsalf for the shot.