6.5 PRC and x47

[Guns&WhiteWater]

I’m trying to match as closely as possible the trajectory of my heavy 6.5x47 to a soon-to-be built compact 6.5 PRC (for a hunting rifle). What is the minimum barrel length for the PRC that will get a 140 class bullet to around 2750?

I’d like to match the the two, if possible, for simplicity.

 

[Chris1972]

I hate being the negative guy but I don’t think you can cut it down that far. I’m assuming you do not reload or it would be easy at any length.

I also do not understand why you would go to more expensive ammunition and ask for the same performance.

Your best bet is reloading. Cut the barrel to the desired length and tailor the load to the speed you want. Use the heaviest bullet that suits your needs so you can get some of the benefits of shooting a magnum.

If you're shooting far enough to worry about trajectory then you should take the time to learn that trajectory.

You’re putting a restrictor on your sports car so it drives like your suv.


Damn I’m negative this morning. I need more caffeine, good luck sir, pay no attention to me.

 

[nickw]

Can you explain why you would want to handicap yourself by running a 6.5 PRC with same bullet and velocity as your X47? Why not just build your hunting rifle in X47? The only reason to build a 6.5 PRC would be to take advantage of the case capacity to be able to push the bullet faster.

 

[Shoots 700's]

Matching the two doesn't make any sense

 

[diggler1833]

I understand the thought process of trying to make a compact rifle for hunting, especially if a suppressor is going to be added. I've never invested my money into short-barreled magnums, but to each their own

I have no experience with the PRC, but know that to give up ~200 FPS, you should still be able to run a barrel around 20 inches and be in the 2750+ ballpark easily (probably even go a bit shorter if you handload).

Here's a link to several guys and their velocities with 20" 6.5 PRCs:

20" 6.5 PRC Experience

I'm thinking about swapping out the 26" MTU on my 6.5 PRC for a 20" M24 contour. What are your thoughts? Any issues I should be aware of? I have a TBAC Ultra 7 that would have a permanent home on the rifle and I'd like to keep it a little more manageable than my current setup. I'm already...

www.snipershide.com

 

[b6graham]

how short do you want to be? those are anemic velocities for a 140 class. like pistol/sbr short, running an XLR Atom chassis type rifle

 

[lumberjack78]

My 18" 6.5 PRC shoots 147's at 2710 fps with RL-26 and 2675 with H4831. Hopefully that helps

 

[Dead Eye Dick]

I’m gonna go with the consensus.

 

[KnowNothing256]

Truly don't know why you people are giving this guy a hard time. Wanting a shorter hunting barrel is not a new concept, or even an unpopular one, and putting more powder in a case to try to regain some speed is also perfectly sensible. He didn't start from a premise of "How can I make an inefficient setup," he started from "How can I run a short barrel while maintaining a certain MV and bullet weight."

Which is why I own a 20" 6.5PRC carbon barrel, which will have a can on it. If you don't want that setup, that's fine, but plenty of people do.

 

[b6graham]

Truly don't know why you people are giving this guy a hard time. Wanting a shorter hunting barrel is not a new concept, or even an unpopular one, and putting more powder in a case to try to regain some speed is also perfectly sensible. He didn't start from a premise of "How can I make an inefficient setup," he started from "How can I run a short barrel while maintaining a certain MV and bullet weight."

Which is why I own a 20" 6.5PRC carbon barrel, which will have a can on it. If you don't want that setup, that's fine, but plenty of people do.

i don't read it as 'i want a short gun, how are the MVs from a short 6.5PRC' in which case there are several threads on the topic

i read it as 'i don't know dope/ballistic calculators and just want to know one set of dope'

going short on a 6.5PRC will still give performance, be it 2650 or 2900 with a 140. so why hamstring one of the least important factors for laziness and chose the barrel length you want based on the use case and then just develop a load from there / chrono factory ammo if that's the route

too many variables to just pick a length and hope the barrel likes that speed/bullet/powder combo when realistically the data will be what a couple tenths off at most in the effective range of the platform

 

[Guns&WhiteWater]

Thanks for the replies guys. To be clear, I do reload. And my goal is to build a more compact, lighter weight rifle to used for 1) walking around in these mountains with my tripod and shooting targets for fun and to practice for 2) hunting. My long barreled 18ish pound 6.5x47 has perfectly acceptable terminal ballistics for whitetail deer, black bear, and wild boar out to around 500 yards, which around here is a very long shot on game. But it’s a specialized, heavy and cumbersome beast. So I’m looking to build something in a more compact, lighter weight platform that will somewhat align with my comp rifles dope and wind holds that I've gotten used to. A shorter barrel is ideal.

So my question is, what barrel length in a 6.5 PRC do you guys recommended that would get a 140 grainier up to around 2750, give or take. (Or a 130 bullet up to 2850ish.) Anything more to me would be wasted, in both barrel length and speed. I was hoping someone here had some ideas from experience. Not concerned about muzzle blast, my Dominus will tame that .

Thanks

 

[Guns&WhiteWater]

My 18" 6.5 PRC shoots 147's at 2710 fps with RL-26 and 2675 with H4831. Hopefully that helps

That does help, thank you.

 

[Guns&WhiteWater]

I understand the thought process of trying to make a compact rifle for hunting, especially if a suppressor is going to be added. I've never invested my money into short-barreled magnums, but to each their own

I have no experience with the PRC, but know that to give up ~200 FPS, you should still be able to run a barrel around 20 inches and be in the 2750+ ballpark easily (probably even go a bit shorter if you handload).

Here's a link to several guys and their velocities with 20" 6.5 PRCs:

20" 6.5 PRC Experience

I'm thinking about swapping out the 26" MTU on my 6.5 PRC for a 20" M24 contour. What are your thoughts? Any issues I should be aware of? I have a TBAC Ultra 7 that would have a permanent home on the rifle and I'd like to keep it a little more manageable than my current setup. I'm already...

www.snipershide.com

Thank you

 

[Milf Dots]

OP, are you sure you're not asking about 6.5 Creedmoor and accidentally calling it 6.5 prc? What's confusing is your use of the words "get up to XYZ fps", which gives the impression you think the 6.5prc is slow and needs speeding up.

 

[Guns&WhiteWater]

OP, are you sure you're not asking about 6.5 Creedmoor and accidentally calling it 6.5 prc? What's confusing is your use of the words "get up to XYZ fps", which gives the impression you think the 6.5prc is slow and needs speeding up.

I’m asking about the PRC. I’m wondering how short of a barrel I can get away with and still achieve a specific velocity range, ideally one that would match my x47. I’ve also owned a 260, which was about the same velocity as my 6.5x47, I’m sure a CM is no different. They all make fine hunting cartridges, but I am not wanting to hike around with another 24+ inch barrel and a can in the wooded mountains here. Sorry if my question was not clear. Looking for a compact platform. I already own a 16” 308 but it’s setup for red dot distance shooting.

After reading the posts in the link @diggler1833 shared, it seems like 16-18” would be sufficient.

I’ve owned magnums before, I accept that a short barrel with them doesn’t make sense to some people. If you’ve ever tried hiking through rhododendron and mountain laurel thickets with a rifle you’ll understand.

 

[b6graham]

browse the reloading threads. subtract 20-30fps per inch of barrel. Berger 140 EH with box data of 3100fps should be 2750+ from a 16" barrel. and that's 35fps per inch loss. and i'd bet you find a decent amount of 20-22" barrels shooting 140s at 2900-3000 still

2750 should be very easily attainable in a short barrel 6.5PRC

 

[Edds]

Your answer was in post #2.

"Cut the barrel to the desired length and tailor the load to the speed you want."