6gt

That's good to hear, I have a ton of powder from american reloading and wanted to try some for PRS.

Does anyone have some data on 22" barrel with 115 DTACS? I've got a 22" with 170fb in the works and have 2000 dtacs so I'm curious which powders to try first.

Are slower Cooler powders still doable with a 22" and 115's?
 

I mean if someone at the range has a garmin or labradar, shoot a few and compare to your unit. There are defective products made. Every one I've been around has shot very close to known labradar velocity, like within 10fps or less. 37.3gr H4350 is a heavy charge, and if it's making the pressure it should be, you should be seeing flattened primer. Normal charges in my experience to have a 109 at 2850 should be around 36.2-36.6 depending on barrel length. My 28" tubes is 36.2 t 36.6 at 2910-2920.
Took the 6GT out today, shot 3 groups with H4350 and 3 groups with Varget @200 yards. I would have to look at my notes but the velocities do seem to be increasing, round count is now at 150. Varget at 33.5 gr performed well and outperformed H4350 w/ SD’s, group size,and extreme spread. Varget at 33.5 gr averaged just over 2800fps, need to look at what others have posted to see if that’s below average too? I pushed Varget up to 34 grains and even though the velocities didn’t quite average H4350 velocities, I began having heavy bolt lift and smearing in the case head…..not sure why that would be. I also rushed and shot two 5 shot groups at 500 yards, I like the consistency between the two powders, they performed essentially the same. I didn’t have any more of the Varget 33.5 so I had to use the 34.0 gr. Nobody else at the range had a chrono to cross reference but I don’t believe it’s the Garmin. Going to load up some more Varget and get Strelok set up.
 

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That's good to hear, I have a ton of powder from american reloading and wanted to try some for PRS.

Does anyone have some data on 22" barrel with 115 DTACS? I've got a 22" with 170fb in the works and have 2000 dtacs so I'm curious which powders to try first.

Are slower Cooler powders still doable with a 22" and 115's?

I dont shoot the 115 DTACs or 6GT but I did plug your requested data into Quickload and here are your top powders for your combo..

22" barrel
6GT
115 DTAC
Not going over 6GT SAMMI max chamber pressure of 61999psi

These powders in the below list are all giving you the optimal 90% or more case fill and 99-100% powder burn in your 22in barrel... Powders at the top of the list will give you the highest velocity. IMR4350 and H4350, IMR4451, RE16, Varget probably your best options. Working up loads with these powders Id start 10% below the charge weight listed and work up.


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Rl16 will net the most velocity per grain, however it's bulkier than H4350. I didn't realize you were running a 22" barrel. I'd say low 2800s is gonna be upper end of safe pressure, 34gr varget with 115 is warm.

Hopefully you have a 0.169fb chamber or that long bearing dtac is robbing capacity. If you're 120fb, I'd switch to a 109 Berger.
 
Does anyone have a suggested load data sheet for 115g DTacs?
Get it going 2820-2850 with H4350, seat it 15-20k off lands, it'll shoot. Has done just that in serval barrels for me. From a 26" is going 2820, 28" 2840, my 30" going 2880, accuracy never changed. All sub half moa at 400y. It's probably been one the easiest bullets to tune.
 
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A .120” freebore works fine, there’s just less room to jump more than 10-20 thou off the lands, so .170 makes things a little easier if you’re the type that likes to play around with seating depth or use a bigger jump from the start. After ~1000rds a .120 freebore will be ~.170 anyways. 😝
 
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So .020" is about the maximum jump I should be using with my chamber?

It depends… things to consider are: How long is your bullet? How much do you subscribe to the “rule” about keeping the bullet’s bearing surface above the case’s shoulder/neck junction versus treating that as a suggestion? I’ve pushed bullets deeper into the case to jump more and had good results, so in the end: if it shoots, it shoots.

It just has to fit in your magazine lol.
 
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I've got a .241 Sinclair mandrel, if I was choosing of go for .2405. I would think there would be some spring back so you'd probably be getting .002 interference fit.
I currently have the 21st century turning arbors for 6.5cm and 223. Debating sticking to that separate step or combining with the SAC. I’m not sure on the pull through mandrel yet
 
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I currently have the 21st century turning arbors for 6.5cm and 223. Debating sticking to that separate step or combining with the SAC. I’m not sure on the pull through mandrel yet
6BRA but I run the SAC die to size and the black 21st century mandrel in a separate step but I load on a Dillon so its not actually an extra step for me.
 
I currently have the 21st century turning arbors for 6.5cm and 223. Debating sticking to that separate step or combining with the SAC. I’m not sure on the pull through mandrel yet

I've been running a SAC 6BR die for a long time. Mark sent me one to test when they were first being released. It's a nice die, works great.

I don't use the pull thru mandrel that goes in it, just a bushing to squeeze my neck down 0.004 under loaded... I then use a 21st Century turning mandrel to open neck back up 0.002 for a final 0.002 neck tension

I also load on a 550c and depending on the die I run a Mighty Armory decapping die in stage 1 and size in 3 and mandrel in the last station.

But for a lot of cartridges I run a LE Wilson SS FL Bushing sizing die, I use the decapping pin that's already in that die and size and decap all in 1 step in station 1.

So to answer your question, no it doesn't matter if you decap when sizing or use a dedicated decapping die

I have recently picked up a few different 21st Century black mandrels in sizes above and below my existing TiN turning mandrel for 223, 6mm, 6.5 and 308

Playing with different bushings squeezing the neck down and these 3 different mandrel for each caliber you can set your neck tension anywhere from 0.001 to 0.004 and anything in between.
 
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I currently have the 21st century turning arbors for 6.5cm and 223. Debating sticking to that separate step or combining with the SAC. I’m not sure on the pull through mandrel yet

I think you don't get the full effect of using a mandrel step unless you do it in a separate step after the case has been sized. If a die could size a case the same exact way a standard FL die does and open up the necks in the same exact way using a mandrel die does, every single case would get stuck... there's no such thing as free lunch, SAC's die is just a different expander-ball design (and it's really only a "mandrel" in name only).

(Plus, FWIW, if you want to really get into the weeds, I've found there is a slight benefit to FL sizing and then waiting until after you've dry-tumbled all your lube off before you do the mandrel step. The cases get knocked around more than most know when getting tumbled, so the mandrel fixes the damage from tumbling and the leftover dust from the tumbling media provides a little lubrication for one's mandrel.)
 
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So .020" is about the maximum jump I should be using with my chamber?
I first started with DTACS a few years ago. The barrel I started them on had 1200rds on it. .120 freebore, my load ended up at .040 off which put me slightly below the neck shoulder junction. Ran them at 2775 in a 7 twist. Had impacts out to 1300 in matches. There’s no need to push them hard as they perform well at the lower velocities.
 
Anyone shooting 105s in a 20 or 22 in barrel? Curious on velocity. I want to run a short barrel 6 that'll do okay on velocity that burns less powder than my 6cm.
I shot some Hornady 109 ELDM and Berger 109 Hybrid from a 20" Carbon Six barrel last weekend. Over 34 grains of Varget, they were running 2897 and 2899 respectively.
 
I shot some Hornady 109 ELDM and Berger 109 Hybrid from a 20" Carbon Six barrel last weekend. Over 34 grains of Varget, they were running 2897 and 2899 respectively.
That's some solid velocity for a 20in! I told my smith to finish the lt palma at 21", should be around 3.2# or so. This will be the side piece truck slut laying in wait for unknowing vermin around the farm.
 
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What is everyone running for varget on a lower node for 105-108 grain? I find for the higher 2950ish fps anything past 34 gr is pushing it a bit. 32-33 range seems it but I haven’t gotten it definitively pinned down yet. I want to try and hit a 2800-2850 node for practice and maybe matches.
 
What is everyone running for varget on a lower node for 105-108 grain? I find for the higher 2950ish fps anything past 34 gr is pushing it a bit. 32-33 range seems it but I haven’t gotten it definitively pinned down yet. I want to try and hit a 2800-2850 node for practice and maybe matches.
With 33 grains you should be close to that, I’m at 34 grains of varget with Berger 108’s out of a 26” barrel with mv of 2920
 
I second what @LR1845 said, 600y benchrest/f class is dominated by 6br variants. I really like the 6bra with lapua brass.
Ya, I third what 406 and LR1845 are saying. I am currently running a 6GT and it has been great, learned a lot with it, I have shot some really good groups with it. However I am currently in the process of building a Dasher. They are just better suited for going down the road you are on.
But back to your original question between 6GT and 6 creed, my vote is 6GT, has been easy to load, components are becoming more and more available everyday. 32.6 of varget and a 105 Berg Hyb was an easy button for me in the low category of 2850ish.
 
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What is everyone running for varget on a lower node for 105-108 grain? I find for the higher 2950ish fps anything past 34 gr is pushing it a bit. 32-33 range seems it but I haven’t gotten it definitively pinned down yet. I want to try and hit a 2800-2850 node for practice and maybe matches.

The 32-33gn range is probably it for 2800-2850fps (depending on whether you've got a faster or slower barrel). I've run a shitload of Shooters World Precision Rifle (basically slightly slower Varget) in the GT, and 32gn nets me ~2760fps, 33gn nets me 2805fps with a 106 A-Tip.

FWIW and sort of related, I no longer believe case-fill is as big of a deal as some make it out to be in order to get low SDs, but I do sort of believe there is something magical about using the faster burning Varget-like powders (SWPR, N140, N150, etc).

Ever since I got an Ingenuity Precision trickler and all my ammo has been loaded with charges always within +/- a single kernel of each other, when using SWPR or Varget, everything shoots, and I haven't seen an SD over 20 shots that wasn't in the single digits in ~2+ years now.

I even started experimenting with my 6CM barrels and have been running a load that hammers that just about any old fudd would tell you is completely wrong: a heavier 112gn MB with only 36gn of SWPR in 6CM, the cases are maybe 3/4 full and sound like salt and pepper shakers when I shake them... straight-up hammers, and my SDs average ~7 over 20 shots.
 
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The 32-33gn range is probably it for 2800-2850fps (depending on whether you've got a faster or slower barrel). I've run a shitload of Shooters World Precision Rifle (basically slightly slower Varget) in the GT, and 32gn nets me ~2760fps, 33gn nets me 2805fps with a 106 A-Tip.

FWIW and sort of related, I no longer believe case-fill is as big of a deal as some make it out to be in order to get low SDs, but I do sort of believe there is something magical about using the faster burning Varget-like powders (SWPR, N140, N150, etc).

Ever since I got an Ingenuity Precision trickler and all my ammo has been loaded with charges always within +/- a single kernel of each other, when using SWPR or Varget, everything shoots, and I haven't seen an SD over 20 shots that wasn't in the single digits in ~2+ years now.

I even started experimenting with my 6CM barrels and have been running a load that hammers that just about any old fudd would tell you is completely wrong: a heavier 112gn MB with only 36gn of SWPR in 6CM, the cases are maybe 3/4 full and sound like salt and pepper shakers when I shake them... straight-up hammers, and my SDs average ~7 over 20 shots.
I’m in the boat also. I shoot my 6.5cm at 40.5g of h4350 ant 2700 ish and seat them long with a COAL of 2.90. Hammers and I sounds like a salt shaker also with sd’s in the 6-8 range always.

When I get my gt up and running I’ll do the same with that catridge. 2750-2800
 
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What is everyone running for varget on a lower node for 105-108 grain? I find for the higher 2950ish fps anything past 34 gr is pushing it a bit. 32-33 range seems it but I haven’t gotten it definitively pinned down yet. I want to try and hit a 2800-2850 node for practice and maybe matches.
Depending on the characteristics of the barrel I've run 31.5 - 32.5 which has put me in the 2830 range from 26" barrels using 108 and 109 bergers and 110 A-tips.
 
Was shooting H4350 at 37.6g with 108 Bergers. Wanting to try some Varget so ended up settling on 34.5g with the 108’s. Varget showed me better consistency on target and over the Garmin.
 

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H4350 and some of the others in that burn range are no slouches... but I'm drinking the Kool-Aid on using the faster Varget-alike powders in the 6GT. Less powder means less recoil (easier to spot splash/impacts) and the faster powders just make things easy.

This is 33gn Shooters World Precision Rifle under a 106gn A-Tip, average 100 group is ~.3" (hammers out to 1250 yards too):

Screenshot 2024-11-17 at 9.08.11 AM.jpeg
 
Just had a 1-10t Muller spun up for a varmit rig. Showing promising results with the 80g Berger FBV and Varget. Have 30rds down it so far just testing. Metering like shit right now but just fire forming.
 

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