130s in the 47 are awesome. Only used varget with them through. 28" barrel 2930 fps, 26" 2890 fps
I need them to get 2850 to equal my 140 load. Anything over that would be gravy. My barrel is 28” if I remember correctly.
I'm about to do a gross seating depth test with the 130 AR Hybrids and H4350 myself (.020 - .060 in .010 increments) with my new 6.5x47L. Best of luck and keep us posted.
I think you’ll get that with ease. I’m running them at 2800 out of a 23”
Yep, it's over max, but you'll see most are going higher than Hodgdon's 40.5gr under a 130gr bullet. This is partially b/c they list the COAL at 2.700" while we are loading to 2.800" and beyond.
Guy I got my first x47 from was running 140’s at 2,900 and trashing primer pockets at 2 firings. I run them 2,750 and have no issues. The 2,950 and 3k is just hard for my little brain to wrap around. That’s basically PRC speed, isn’t it?
I'm at 4 or 5 loads on it. I bought 500pcs and haven't shot as much PRS since my daughter showed up, so I'm not cycling through the brass as fast as I used to.
I've seen others claim 10+ loads on SR Lapua, so we'll see if/when the primer pockets start to get loose.
To confirm, I'm talking about the 130gr Berger AR Hybrids, not 140gr projectiles.
Got that. Loaded my test ammo last night. 135 Atips and 130 OTM’s over 40.5 and 41.0 H4350, Lapua brass and BR4’s.
I’m on the 13th firing across all my 200 Lapua cases, and I’ve only had one case loosen so that it would not hold a primer. That case was probably one of the cases I used for initial pressure testing when I first got the rifle. Some of those were loaded pretty hot in an effort to get to know the limits of the cartridge.
I'm around the same and just did my second annealing. I've ran 2500rds or so through this rifle on this first batch of 200. The little case is just stupid efficient and strong. Bear in mind I've ran it way above book max for sometime but the oddity of the 6.5x47 is, it just doesn't seem bothered.
Anyone tried staball match? Burn rate is similar to varget. Now that I’ve moved and am gonna be in LA for four years due to residency. I’m thinking of ways to avoid dropping a ton of cash into a new reloading setup. Figured I’d bring the Dillion down use staball Match and just throw it. Range is 15 minutes from my place and pretty solid so i plan to start shooting more again
Don't think I've seen any 6.5x47L, 6.5C, or .260 posts using it yet.
StaBall seems to be in the perfect burn rate for the 6.5 short action cartridges, so I'm not sure Match is going to best it. Maybe with the super heavy projectiles? I honestly just don't know. Hodgdon's data shows them basically neck and neck with a 130gr bullet in the 47L, but who knows what real world results will show.
Go buy a pound and let us know
I’m thinking about getting 8. I just haven’t read anything good about staball 6.5 with the 6.5x47. With match having a burn rate extremely close to varget it should perform quite well with the 6.5x47. Least that’s my train of thought. I saw where George said that it would work with the BR and Dasher. Which are to extremely varget based cartridgesDon't think I've seen any 6.5x47L, 6.5C, or .260 posts using it yet. Go buy a pound and let us know
StaBall seems to be in the perfect burn rate for the 6.5 short action cartridges, so I'm not sure Match is going to best it. Maybe with the super heavy projectiles? I honestly just don't know.
I went back and added a bit to my post after looking at Hodgdon's data. I think it'll just be up to us reloaders to see if it performs. Similar to how StaBall data showed it to supposedly be a good 77gr .223 powder, but turned out to be a flop, I think it'll pretty quickly get figured out in the x47L as well.
I seem to recall reading on a forum when it first came out that it wasn’t ideal in the 47, so I held off on trying it. But I hope I’m wrong. Please share your results.
I mean according to hodgdons video George said it was ideal for 6Br and dasher but stepping up to the GT would warrant 6.5 staball. But given the burn rate I’m inclined to try match. Plus I’m trying to get my Dillon here and just load on it
Last edited:
Got out in the snow with my coarse seating depth tests today.
On a side note: I'm going to have to remember to not try this again with my Bushnell DMR II. I've never really noticed the CA before with my eyes during much more ideal conditions, but it REALLY stood out today against the snow and played hell with my ability to focus.
Excuses out of the way, I have about 125 rounds down the pipe now on this particular rifle. I thoroughly cleaned it after shooting last, so I took the opportunity to see how much my cold bore shift is. Turns out that it is not much. Three shots (top left) of my last three remaining factory rounds fell into about a half inch group...which is what this rifle does with that ammo. I've shot a. 4, two .5s, and a .6 for (5) shot groups with that factory load during break-in.
First up on seating depth: 130gr Berger AR OTM Hybrids (that's a mouthful). Never tried this bullet before, and I've yet to screw with H4350 in this rifle. Nothing really stood out. I had a. 6, .7, .8, and .9...with one depth showing a little promise at .456". That is a .040 jump for this chamber.
*Yes, I know...three shot groups. The Hornady guys would be in agony if they saw this. I have managed to figure out what doesn't work pretty quickly with three shots, and save my components for charge weight testing and confirmation groups.
Next up was the 120gr Scenar-L. Factory loads are 2.615 (can't remember the CBTO at the moment), and I've thrown five-shot groups in the .4s during moderate wind with the bullets seated at a nominal 2.620. So I have a little experience with this bullet and powder already. Turns out 2.260 is the uber sweet spot, but 2.625 isn't shabby either. I'm probably just going to load 10 shots for confirmation at 2.265 and figure this load will last for a while as the throat erodes some. Velocity was 2780 with an SD of 6 when I shot that load before...not a screamer, but this is a range toy and not a comp rifle.
So at this point I have one load for confirmation testing. I may try the 130s next with Varget and see if anything improves.
Rifle is an FN SPR with 26" Brux, 1:8, M24, that was spun on by Matt Stewart.
Brass is virgin Lapua, primer is the CCI-BR4.
On a side note: I'm going to have to remember to not try this again with my Bushnell DMR II. I've never really noticed the CA before with my eyes during much more ideal conditions, but it REALLY stood out today against the snow and played hell with my ability to focus.
Excuses out of the way, I have about 125 rounds down the pipe now on this particular rifle. I thoroughly cleaned it after shooting last, so I took the opportunity to see how much my cold bore shift is. Turns out that it is not much. Three shots (top left) of my last three remaining factory rounds fell into about a half inch group...which is what this rifle does with that ammo. I've shot a. 4, two .5s, and a .6 for (5) shot groups with that factory load during break-in.
First up on seating depth: 130gr Berger AR OTM Hybrids (that's a mouthful). Never tried this bullet before, and I've yet to screw with H4350 in this rifle. Nothing really stood out. I had a. 6, .7, .8, and .9...with one depth showing a little promise at .456". That is a .040 jump for this chamber.
*Yes, I know...three shot groups. The Hornady guys would be in agony if they saw this. I have managed to figure out what doesn't work pretty quickly with three shots, and save my components for charge weight testing and confirmation groups.
Next up was the 120gr Scenar-L. Factory loads are 2.615 (can't remember the CBTO at the moment), and I've thrown five-shot groups in the .4s during moderate wind with the bullets seated at a nominal 2.620. So I have a little experience with this bullet and powder already. Turns out 2.260 is the uber sweet spot, but 2.625 isn't shabby either. I'm probably just going to load 10 shots for confirmation at 2.265 and figure this load will last for a while as the throat erodes some. Velocity was 2780 with an SD of 6 when I shot that load before...not a screamer, but this is a range toy and not a comp rifle.
So at this point I have one load for confirmation testing. I may try the 130s next with Varget and see if anything improves.
Rifle is an FN SPR with 26" Brux, 1:8, M24, that was spun on by Matt Stewart.
Brass is virgin Lapua, primer is the CCI-BR4.
Thanks.
I've prepped 20 more pieces of brass for those two 120gr Scenar-L results on load data, and will try again.
If anything still looks promising, I'll load up another five and test them at a bit more distance (300 yards).
Still not out of the woods yet.
Picked up 8lbs of match to try once I get the Dillon moved to LA. I think it's going to be a viable combo honestly.
This cartridge is my go to for when I’m feeling down on my reloading. If I’m struggling with a particular cartridge, I just throw any old powder and bullet combo together and go shoot my $500 Savage left port single shot POS with its cheap ass Arken scope and all is right with the world. anyways, here are a bunch of results from a few outings recently. All is Lapua brass and a BR4. Everything else is on the cards. This rifle, both the 130VLD’s and 123SMK’s are touching at 2.195. The 130’s love 2.18 and the 123’s like to be at 2.15. Tomorrow I am going to test the difference between neck sizing and full length sizing with a .002 bump. The 123’s will be my test mule.
I guess I've screwed with the 120gr Scenar-L, and VV N150 to where I'm as good as it is going to get for my skill level (at short range). I'm still needing to verify this at distance before I count on it enough to load up and go.
Only five-shot groups today too...I wussed out of 10- rounders in favor of additional testing .002" depth and .1gr powder adjustments just to see what kind of window of decent accuracy I had.
Looks like 2.110 - 2.114 CBTO at around 36.0gr +/- .1 is going to keep me in the .4s. That gives me some wiggle room without having to constantly tinker with stuff.
By the time I had dropped to 2.008 - 2.009 CBTO, groups opened up another quarter inch even though ES and SD got stupid low (like 6 and 2)...definitely can't go below 2.110.
I managed to "throw" one shot high a couple times too. One I called before I even saw the impact (it is still minimal), the other felt good, but ended up opening the group a tenth or so. I counted both in the measurements anyway. I was getting excited on the right target until that 5th shot got me.
Wind was a very nice 2-4 full value, so no real guess work needed.
It's a nice, easy load that - if it holds at distance - will be great for informal recreational plinking.
Only five-shot groups today too...I wussed out of 10- rounders in favor of additional testing .002" depth and .1gr powder adjustments just to see what kind of window of decent accuracy I had.
Looks like 2.110 - 2.114 CBTO at around 36.0gr +/- .1 is going to keep me in the .4s. That gives me some wiggle room without having to constantly tinker with stuff.
By the time I had dropped to 2.008 - 2.009 CBTO, groups opened up another quarter inch even though ES and SD got stupid low (like 6 and 2)...definitely can't go below 2.110.
I managed to "throw" one shot high a couple times too. One I called before I even saw the impact (it is still minimal), the other felt good, but ended up opening the group a tenth or so. I counted both in the measurements anyway. I was getting excited on the right target until that 5th shot got me.
Wind was a very nice 2-4 full value, so no real guess work needed.
It's a nice, easy load that - if it holds at distance - will be great for informal recreational plinking.
I'm all for load development, the 47 is probably the easiest cartridge I've loaded for along with the 223. But I don't understand this ^ seating depth testing or the groups that are being posted. I've had 4 6.5x47 barrel all shot 1/2 moa or slightly better with realities no load work,
130 hybrids
140 hybrids
130 jlks
All lights out
I don't get it
130 hybrids
140 hybrids
130 jlks
All lights out
I don't get it
LOL, you are quite literally in a sub-forum where people share load data. Yes, dudes like me are long-winded and apparently incapable of the midas touch that you seem to suffer from. My two x47 rifles are just as capable of throwing a 3/4 - 1 MOA group as they are a 1/3 - 1/2 MOA one.
There are plenty of new people into reloading that are looking for their next cartridge, and - to me - it makes sense to share how I got to shooting groups from "meh" to "cool".
Don't like it? Scroll on.
There are plenty of new people into reloading that are looking for their next cartridge, and - to me - it makes sense to share how I got to shooting groups from "meh" to "cool".
Don't like it? Scroll on.
I just don't understand the test of seating depth every 2 thou. So say u did find where it shoot good at a certain depth but 2 thou. One way or the other it didn't, then you have t o do a seating depth test every 100 rounds.
I know the Hornady guys would crap because the group sample sizes aren't large enough, but try 3-5 shot groups of your favorite load with your seating depth...then do it at .003 intervals in each direction a few times (just .003, .006, and .009). It'll really open your eyes.
I watched Jack Neary on a podcast (a benchrest HOF dude). He said .002 differences are significant. Then I watched Keith Glasscock, and John Masek demonstrate their results in .003 intervals. They look for .006 windows like guys look at ladder tests.
I can't put it any other way than to note that their results were significant. I know Keith doesn't settle on a load unless he can put 20 rounds into 2" or less at 600...so maybe that would help settle the large sample size crowd.
I was happy to find a .004 - .005 window...and yes, that last .002 on the low end nearly doubled my group sizes. I went from consecutive .3, .4, .4 to two .7s. I was frustrated enough on the last group that I only fired four rounds. That POI shift is pretty gross too.
(Not being sarcastic) I know it doesn't fit into your discipline, but I bet that you could find a real hammer load if you're already 1/2 MOA or better with almost zero development. My first x47 is like that with the 123gr Scenar and Varget.
But yeah, if you get a good load on the long side, you should be able to shoot quite a few rounds before you erode enough away that you have to mess with seating depth again to maintain that exact level of accuracy. If 'acceptable' accuracy is good enough, you might not have to touch the load for a long time. The 120 Scenar and N150 hasn't shot worse than a .9 for me. I just wanted to see how good I could get it in this barrel.
I nerd out on testing this stuff to a fault...it's probably why I ramble so much in these posts.
And I don't blame anyone for scrolling past.
Finally got my testing done. I ended up at 41.5 H4350. That gave me just shy of 2880 for the 130 Hybrid. Groups decent too. I’ll check velocity again when I get the barrel to 200 rds, it finished today at 100.
I ran up to 42.0 with H4350 with the 130 VLD’s without too much pressure, but settled on 41.0 grains for lowest spreads and best accuracy.
I also tested up to 42.0. Primers edges were still rounded and bolt lift was easy. Velocity consistency was better at 41.5 and it was over 2850, which was my goal.
Yes, see picture.
I picked up two new boxes cheap and broke in a new barrel with them and was pleasantly surprised - I took 150 rounds in a new barrel and new brass with 39.0 grains of H4350 and COAL of 2.810 out to the range last week. This setup got me about 2700 fps with SD of 10 and some really small groups. ( New Lapua brass was 4/1000 under the same brass once fired from the test. Brux 8T @ 26 inches.)
I had several very small 5 shot groups and overall .8 mil dispersion from the 45 shot in 9 separate consecutive groups at at 100 yards. Once I was DOPEed, I was able to hit 1 moa plates at 500 yards in a heavy crosswind 19 out of 20 times. I also did build and breaks on a .4 mil plate at 450 yards and had good elevation every shot.
I don’t have my exact DOPE in front of me as I type this, so no BC calculated, but my hold was around 5.9 at 790 yards with the zero shown in the picture attached.
I shot some good loads from classic hunters 135 and A-Tips 135 at the end on paper to validate them and the Barnes shot better for me.
I have two new barrels coming and will repeat this with ATIPS 135s, Berger 144s and the Barnes 145s. And will run a test out as far as I can once I get a calm day.
Attachments
Barnes 145 elevation was 6.1 at 800 yard at 2666 fps in new brass. AB custom curve was right on. Just a tad higher than Berger 144s at same MV.
At 100 yard Berger groups were a single ragged hole with Barnes having a larger but uniform group with a flier every 15th round. On the 800 yard .5 mil plate Barnes were all over the plate with one high and one off plate with Bergers clustered together and no misses.
At 100 yard Berger groups were a single ragged hole with Barnes having a larger but uniform group with a flier every 15th round. On the 800 yard .5 mil plate Barnes were all over the plate with one high and one off plate with Bergers clustered together and no misses.
19" 6.5x47, 135 berger, 37.7 grains varget, cci450, 2.70 oal with .170 freebore. 2.5" group at 700 yards today. Shoots well in all 3 of our 6.5x47.
That’s awesome. I’m considering a shorter barreled x47 for suppressed hunting. What velocity are you getting with the 130 class bullets?
That 19" rig is doing 2700 fps with that load. Have a bunch of 130 vld but waiting till I run out of 135 classics at this point to try them. Varget seems to be very nice with this load.
At my 5200 feet elevation, it is still doing 1877 fps at 700. And I tend to hunt bears at 9000 ft elevation so even better up there.
At my 5200 feet elevation, it is still doing 1877 fps at 700. And I tend to hunt bears at 9000 ft elevation so even better up there.
I was getting 2700 with 130gr eld m with my 18” 6.5x47. It’s an efficient little cartridge
