6.5x55 sweed

[FlyGuy]

Great to hear about these different loads. I am fortunate to have the original M96 Swedish Mauser 6.5x55 as well as the build M96 barreled action Shilen barrel 26"inch barrel..I want to see if these two different rifles , same caliber will shoot the same loads accurate ...

Some great experimenting lays ahead for me..thank you again for your sharing of knowledge in regards tot he 6.5x55 Swedish Mauser , it is much appreciated FlyGuy

Pleasure Gert.

The Swede is an excellent, versatile cartridge to experiment with.
Because of the long throat, you can test a wide variety of bullets and powders. Especially if those bullets are known to like a bit of jump. E.g. Nosler Accubond.

For a do it all hunting load, it's hard to beat the Nosler AB. Good BC, good terminal performance and great accuracy. To save some money, use the 140gr Nosler BT for load development, and then switch over to the 140gr AB for hunting. 95% of the time, the exact same load works for both, but the AB might require a slightly different seating depth.

As previously mentioned, experiment with VV N160 and N555 in the Swede's, and watch how your groups and velocity spreads tighten up.

 

[FlyGuy]

The exception to my rule of not pushing bullets particularly hard is for Norma Oryx because of the low BC.

This is the only reason I've never tried their 200gr bullet in my .300H&H.
Since Swift vanished locally, I've been struggling to find a decent 200gr replacement.

 

[Velo Dog]

Pictured below is my 6.5x55.
It is a simple but sadly now discontinued, CZ Model 550-FS.
It wears an also simple and sadly discontinued Leupold 3x scope, in Alaska Arms lever rings.

This caliber is one that Remington, Winchester and others should have pushed in their “youth model” rifles, instead of the .243 and similar extra light bullet with extra high velocity type of cartridges, for introducing children to N. American deer hunting.
With 140 grain spitzers, the Scandinavian cartridge shoots plenty flat enough for longish shots, with enough bullet weight and down range energy to break shoulder bones of larger deer species such as mule deer and caribou.
Also, it can use a 160 gr bullet for tougher animals such as boar and bear in thick cover.
Things the .243 cannot be relied upon to do.

Old Rifle Grump rant concluded.

 

[Gert Odendaal]

This

With a BC of .348, they decelerate in a hurry. If you can get to 2500 fps MV, 300 yards/275 M is absolutely as far as I'd go.

As I may have mentioned previously (I know I've mentioned it, just don't know about on this particular thread or not) - a lot of those older rifles were designed for long, heavy, RN bullets. They have lots of freebore/leade, meaning that the official SAAMI C.O.A.L. doesn't really apply for Spitzers with long, tapered ogives.

Get a .25" wood dowel, stick it down the bore on a closed bolt, inscribe a circle on the dowel at the crown. Then pull out the bolt, drop in your bullet of choice so it's seated on the lands, then stick the dowel back in until it just kisses the meplat, inscribe another circle, measure the diff between those 2 circles. Your OAL can be 2 or 3 hundredths shorter than that and you should be good to go. With the extra length, you can add a bit more powder and still not be near any pressure thresh holds.

The exception to my rule of not pushing bullets particularly hard is for Norma Oryx because of the low BC.

sgt zim, thank you again for this informative reply, it really is much appreciated for sure..it is great to see many members part take in the thread , ensuring a lot of informative feedback