I've posted this on a couple forums (AccurateShooter and the Creedmoor forum). Looking for actual similar experience, and also opinions. Since this is well... the best forum ever... I wanted to see what some guys here might have found.
I went and shot my first thousand yard match yesterday(3x1000) with my 6.5 Creedmoor. I was using my typical 139 grain Lapua Scenar and it seemed like they were going transonic at 1000 yards. These are leaving my barrel at 2750 fps, and they should still be going 1450 fps at 1000 yards. Despite that they have that velocity I was still getting keyholing in the paper. I must be right on the edge of stabilization because only about one fourth of the bullets keyhole and I was still able to hold the 10 and 9 rings <span style="font-weight: bold">mostly</span>. I had some fliers and even had two bullets miss the 48"x48" target board completely. I thought something was wrong with my gun until my target puller got back to the line and told me that my bullets were making oblong holes in the paper. Then later in the day my second target puller also reported to me that I was getting keyholing.
I have an eight twist barrel and I'm running well above subsonic at the target so I'm kind of surprised that I'm seeing keyholing with this load. I think if I want to keep using this bullet I'm going to have to speed it up a little bit. Who else is running the 139 grain Lapua and have you shot it at 1000 yards? I'm only at 41 grains of H4350 so I think I can bring that up to 42 maybe 42 1/2 grains to get up to 4850fps and see if I can keep this bullet stabilized all the way to the target. I may have to limit my 41gr load to 800yds. It's a freaking hammer at 600yd.
About 500 rounds down the barrel, basically still new. This gun shoots in the .2s to .3s at 100yd, and shoots very well at 600yd as well depending on my wind skills that day. My last 3x600 match was a 577-18x and my best 20-shot string with it is a 197-10x. Nothing world class but not bad either. Barrel had 66 shots through it since it's last cleaning.
Needless to say I didn't win yesterday with a 517-8x. You get 2 bullets that don't hit the target, throw in some 7's & 8's, and you might as well pack up and go home.
I went and shot my first thousand yard match yesterday(3x1000) with my 6.5 Creedmoor. I was using my typical 139 grain Lapua Scenar and it seemed like they were going transonic at 1000 yards. These are leaving my barrel at 2750 fps, and they should still be going 1450 fps at 1000 yards. Despite that they have that velocity I was still getting keyholing in the paper. I must be right on the edge of stabilization because only about one fourth of the bullets keyhole and I was still able to hold the 10 and 9 rings <span style="font-weight: bold">mostly</span>. I had some fliers and even had two bullets miss the 48"x48" target board completely. I thought something was wrong with my gun until my target puller got back to the line and told me that my bullets were making oblong holes in the paper. Then later in the day my second target puller also reported to me that I was getting keyholing.
I have an eight twist barrel and I'm running well above subsonic at the target so I'm kind of surprised that I'm seeing keyholing with this load. I think if I want to keep using this bullet I'm going to have to speed it up a little bit. Who else is running the 139 grain Lapua and have you shot it at 1000 yards? I'm only at 41 grains of H4350 so I think I can bring that up to 42 maybe 42 1/2 grains to get up to 4850fps and see if I can keep this bullet stabilized all the way to the target. I may have to limit my 41gr load to 800yds. It's a freaking hammer at 600yd.
About 500 rounds down the barrel, basically still new. This gun shoots in the .2s to .3s at 100yd, and shoots very well at 600yd as well depending on my wind skills that day. My last 3x600 match was a 577-18x and my best 20-shot string with it is a 197-10x. Nothing world class but not bad either. Barrel had 66 shots through it since it's last cleaning.
Needless to say I didn't win yesterday with a 517-8x. You get 2 bullets that don't hit the target, throw in some 7's & 8's, and you might as well pack up and go home.
