6mm ARC vs. 6mm BR comparison

[jLorenzo]

Looking at putting together on of lower powder capacity 6mms in an effort to possibly extend barrel life a touch and have a nice smooth/easy shooting gun.
Nothing serious just fun matches and general shooting.
How do the two stack up as far as velocities, powder capacity and brass availibilty?
Any input is welcome considering a 6.5x47 also but I worry about brass availability with all of these, I currently shoot .308 and 5.56.
Creemoor seems like the best choice availibilty wise, I would try stuff in the 130gr range initially if I were to go that route.

 

[BoilerUP]

6BR is the easy button...standard bolt face, top-quality brass, 30.0gr Varget under any 105-108gr match bullet to start.

 

[Cardboard Assassin]

6BR is the easy button...standard bolt face, top-quality brass, 30.0gr Varget under any 105-108gr match bullet to start.

What he said^^^^^

When I was considering building mine I asked a similar question to yours on here and was told 6BR was easy. They weren't joking.

If you use quality components and the recipe mentioned you pretty much cant fail. My favourite caliber by far.

My load development involved shooting 4 powder weights over the chronograph to verify pressures and pick a speed, then I guessed a seating depth from a test / report SAC had put together (around 75 thousandths seemed to be a safe bet). This combo got me 3 x sub 0.2 MOA groups last time out.

It doesn't get easier.

 

[NiteQwill]

Skip the ARC.

 

[acudaowner]

only ever shot someone else's 6br but I have to say I liked it a lot . wasn't as big a fan of his 4 oz trigger but all in all I want one someday don't know enough about the 6 arc to comment on it .

 

[ma smith]

The need for a new, uncommon bolt/ face/ assembly kills 6 arc in the real world for bolt guns.

 

[Lunchbox27]

I can’t speak for the ARC, but for the 6BR…. I have never had a easier caliber to load for. It’s almost boring. Lapua brass is easy to find, however the bullet (105 Hybrid) and powder (Varget/H4895) most run will be tough to find. I won’t even mention primers as that is just generic across the board with any caliber at this point.

The ARC was designed or a semi-auto to give shooters the ability to slap an upper on their AR15, purchase some factory ammo and shoot longer ranges. The 6BR was created for 300-600 yard Bench Rest.

If it were me, building a bolt gun, go 6BR/BRA. Semi, go 6 ARC.

 

[Lightning8]

There are 6ARC bolt guns out there. Availability of factory ammo may be a plus for the 6ARC. Using 26 to 28 inch barrels in bolt guns, 6ARC may be “easy” for those that do not reload or have primers. That said, I just got a 6BR for my new PRS rifle.

 

[Jmkjr87]

I'm a 6.5x47 lapua man myself. Blue collar reloading had 25 boxes of brass right now. If I was gonna go to a 6mm cartridge I would either do 6x47lapua because I already brass and all I need is a smaller neck bushing, or I would go all in on 6br

 

[thelaststraw]

In my mind, if 6BR would readily fit in a small frame AR there would be no reason for 6ARC. In the case of a bolt gun, I'm sure 6ARC would do great but 6BR has quite a few advantages in case/neck dimensions alone.

 

[anon]

Anyone care to share 6x45 experiences?

 

[cro789]

Also 6X47 has also interested me. I have the 6 ARC and getting great results of .250 groups when I do my part.

 

[CZ 527]

Ok from the perspective of one 6mm ARC lover. Those who are going to like or prefer the 6mm ARC will likely appreciate the 6mm ARC for its utility in either the AR 15 platform & or the mini action bolt action rifles. I fall into the latter category. Savage already offers a few more inexpensive options in 6mm ARC though defiantly not a mini action.

Howa will be offering 6mm ARC any day now & Im sorry to say CZ is dropping the CZ527 mini Mauser line that I really like for the 6mm ARC chambering. Should you have a CZ 527 or a Howa mini action in 7.62 x 39 or 6.5 Grendel, a barrel swap can have you switched over to 6mm ARC in a rather simple fashion.

Personally I was wanting the 6mm ARC as a deer hunting rifle in the CZ527 platform. Last fall was the first time I put the CZ527 in 6mm ARCto use deer hunting. Happy to report she did a very respectable job of turning out the lights on a large bodied 5 ish year old White tail buck at 254 yards with a high shoulder shot.

As far brass availability you have a number of options though virgin 6mm arc brass seems to be out of the picture for now. So we have factory ammo as a source for 6mm arc brass or; my personal favorite. Lapua 6..5 grendel is simply necked down & the shoulder is pushed back .03" in 1 step. Followed by trimming the OAL back to length & chamfering the case mouth & necks. Suppose neck turning may be optional.

We have a number of the 6.5 grendel cases that are also viable options for necking down to 6mm ARC with Starline being one of the more popular options due to price & availability.

The 308 bolt face simply was not an option for the CZ 527, so 6mm ARC was a very welcome option from my perspective.

 

[CZ 527]

Doesn't the 6mm ARC have a smidge more powder capacity over the 6mm BR?

 

[never_summer]

Doesn't the 6mm ARC have a smidge more powder capacity over the 6mm BR?

Negative, other way around

 

[wadebrown]

6mmBR is not the easy button it is the easiest button. I did a ladder test one time at 300 meters on an electronic target, the Norwegian ones that have verified accuracy. The powder loads for the test spanned 1.6 grains and I fired 24 shots and only two were more than 1 MOA out. The hardest thing about ladder testing for the 6 BR is deciding which load is the best because they are so good. I tried a test one time after that ladder test, I decided to eyeball the powder amount in the case. Just pouring powder in and checking it by eye. All of the eyeball'ed loads produced sub-MOA groups.

Long Story Short- 6BR is the easiest button.