Frank's recent dive into 224 Valk and his post on shooting lighter calibers has the gears turning in my head. Has anyone recently made the jump from 6mm to a .22 of some flavor for PRS? Running some real basic JBM calculations for a 22 GT vs a 6BRA with just the bullets I have on hand, I'm getting less drop and a slight advantage in the wind. Is there something I am missing? I realize 6mm's are king of PRS but why aren't more people going this route?
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6mm vs .22 for PRS
- Thread starter Ubaderb
- Start date
I saw Frank’s numbers and thought “oh, that’s my 6mm Creed…” because it is almost an exact match for how my rifle performs with factory 108 ELD-M. My only thought is that the extra 20+ grains of weight being a 25% jump in mass and energy makes it easier to spot the 6s down range.
Frank‘s factory ammo would seem to uphold that the 6.8 SPC case is still magic for combustion… it’s the only case I’ve seen produce single digit SDs with factory ammo... and it’s done it with multiple brands for me over 10+ shot strings.
Frank‘s factory ammo would seem to uphold that the 6.8 SPC case is still magic for combustion… it’s the only case I’ve seen produce single digit SDs with factory ammo... and it’s done it with multiple brands for me over 10+ shot strings.
On the flip side wouldn’t that equal to 25% less recoil? I mean it’s not like these guns recoil much anyways but damn. I am also new to PRS with this being my first “season” competing. I have enough factory 6 Creed to burn this barrel up. I might not even be able to notice the differences. Also my local range is limited to right under 700. No real fear of slinging them way out there.
I know guys that use 22gt or 22br and they like them. With a 20+ Lb rifle, you aren’t seeing significant recoil difference between the two and get more barrel life generally out of the 6s. Less problems with bullets blowing up in 6s too. I think people are switching back now to 6.5s or running the 6s slower to make it easier to spot bullets in flight
That would be me all right. Moving both my 6.5’s down to 6’s or even one to a .224 just when everyone else is moving back up to 6.5’s.
Kind a reminds me of the best way to tell people how to make Big money in the cattle business. Buy when I am selling (the prices will be rock bottom) sell when I am buying (the prices will achieve stratospheric record High Prices).
IMO the 6’s don’t recoil any more than the Valk. I just had a bolt Valk made up. I am experimenting with some 90grn A-Tips some Sierra 90’s and some Berger 80.5. The issue I see for the Valk to be truely competitive in PRS is the speed vs bullet weight. I can drive the 80’s at 2950 and prob a bit more without much trouble. I have chrono data on the A-Tips at 2850, but the brass for that load will likely last two firings as it is pretty hot. I think in a bolt gun, the 90’s is where they shine. I had a special reamer made with added freebore to seat the heavies out of the case and take advantage of that added case capacity. In Frank’s post, if I remember correctly, he stated that the longer targets are a bit of a problem for seeing hits and activating any hit indicators. This may be the problem I run into with the 80’s. They will scream, like a yellow jacket, but light on the distant targets like butterflies. Not a good situation for any true competitors of the PRS game. Now, if you are like me, middle of the pack shooter on my best day, and really don’t give a shit about scores. Valk my be an option. I definitely believe it will give better barrel life than the 6’s.
An old adage in life is “ you never get something for nothing” this holds true in almost every aspect, yet we enthusiast in the shooting world keep trying.
I will be posting my loading and target results in the Rise of the Valk thread if anyone cares to follow.
An old adage in life is “ you never get something for nothing” this holds true in almost every aspect, yet we enthusiast in the shooting world keep trying.
I will be posting my loading and target results in the Rise of the Valk thread if anyone cares to follow.
Good shooters are good shooters and will win with just about anything.
Until I see top shooters playing around with .22's (and I have not yet) then its just noise.
Until I see top shooters playing around with .22's (and I have not yet) then its just noise.
The good shooters then had a grasp on the game were running 65s 10 years ago. They saw the ballistics of the 6mm and saw oh look at that! They switched to 6cm. Then shooting 6cm they really refined their wind reading game and realized they can run 105s in a BR variant with a lot less powder at a 150 fps loss, oh dang a tenth ot two more wind. They became very good at the wind calling game with the dasher, bra, brx, br. A lot of top shooters are still here. Some are starting to gravitate back to a 65s ran slow, at like 2650 with with 147-156gr bullets. The insane high bc gives them less wind hold than a br variant, long barrel life, slow push recoil, ski boat vapor trails and when that bullet hits(or misses) you know exactly where it landed from big splash. But the guys that win, would likely win or be top five with about anything in their hands. I personally have have a 22gt, 90 atips at 3100, 6bra and 6gt, and a 25 creed for windy days or a match with a lot of targets at 800y and beyond.
The recoil trade off from 6mm to .224’s is just a huge diminished return.
There are a handful who like stuff like 22br, 22gt, 22dasher. And they will defend it. And rightfully so in some cases.
However, it’s just not enough recoil mitigation to justify the spotting loss. On paper when comparing energy, they can be close. But energy isn’t the sole driving variable for seeing things like trace and splash.
And there does seem to be a trend for running 6.5’s slow. Though the trend seems more to be having a second barrel or rifle, and using the 6.5 when they feel appropriate.
There are a handful who like stuff like 22br, 22gt, 22dasher. And they will defend it. And rightfully so in some cases.
However, it’s just not enough recoil mitigation to justify the spotting loss. On paper when comparing energy, they can be close. But energy isn’t the sole driving variable for seeing things like trace and splash.
And there does seem to be a trend for running 6.5’s slow. Though the trend seems more to be having a second barrel or rifle, and using the 6.5 when they feel appropriate.
Where is PracticalTactical to tell us that the .223 with 90 grainers is the best PRS round? LOL
I started with a 75 Amax at 2900. I heard hits not called. Went to a 6mm / 105 and could spot many of my misses. Spotting misses was my greatest teacher.
I haven't had a chance to run it yet, but the 22BR thread and honestly @Birddog6424's write-ups sold me on the 22BR as a solid choice for me for PRS-style comps.
- Similar ballistics to 6mm puts it on the table for me
- Less recoil is a nice-to-have but there are solid reasons to train with more recoil rather than less, so call that a wash
- Spotting trace seems to be pretty conditions/lighting dependent, and honestly it's not my best skill so not as big a driver for me rn
- I don't have easy access to regular 800-yd or farther matches, so I'm willing to accept risk of "lost" impacts at longer ranges at this point, and
- More than anything, it's significantly cheaper to shoot as long as I'm not trying to run Bergers. $0.26 per 88gr ELDM versus $0.42 per 108gr ELDM, so I figure I'll burn up a barrel on it and if I don't like it at that point I can either run it as a trainer or just abandon it altogether for some 6mm variant.
Not saying I'm the best judge of these things (absolutely not), but mostly the similar ballistics for lower price were what piqued my interest. Time will tell!
I have a 22gt on way to mess with. Might offer ammo for it if the demand is there.
And I don’t disagree with any of the points for a .224 cartridge.
I do think if the pros outweighed the cons or even broke even, we’d be seeing more of a trend rather than a handful of proponents.
But we’re also talking differences which are razor thin too.
I think that's certainly possible, but I wonder how many more are taking the approach mentioned earlier in this thread, of "Until I see lots of others doing it, I'll assume it's fake news." Plus, and I'm more guilty than most, we all have an attachment to decisions we've already made, and instinctively will tend to denigrate opposing viewpoints, so that might be a bit of a barrier to change as well.
To say nothing of having to retool for an entirely new cartridge, which isn't free.
PS: I'm still curious about your method(s) around case lube and bullet seating in that other thread, if you get a chance to weigh back in over there I'd love to hear your thoughts. Thanks!
I’ll take a look at the other thread.
Trends definitely move top down. And as much and many claim to not, a very large portion of the top shooters are in fact always trying things to see if there is an advantage.
Bullets like 95gr Atips and 88.5 Bergers have been out quite a while now. And thus far, no one at the top or near is moving that way.
I did try 22br with 88.5 Berger when they first released. I didn’t see a ton of recoil difference with a heavy 6mm rifle, but I could tell a difference in seeing what I was doing downrange with the 6mm being better for me.
Definitely seeing a resurgence in folks running heavy 6.5s. I even cracked my 6.5 this spring to see what all the fuss was about 
And there are more shooters moving to .224s. There were 3 people in my squad in Colorado in April running 22s. Lots of conversation that I didn't see a few years ago, more shooters giving them a try and liking the results.
I think there's a lot of evidence out there that spotting trace isn't velocity related. At least not in the <3200fps that is the PRS. I have a theory its recoil related, of which there is also a lot of evidence.
There's a lot of misconceptions that swirl around the higher performing 224s in PRS. I suspect we won't totally resolve them till more people give them a try and join the conversation with their experiences. From a physics point of view, energy on target is super close to most of the 6mms out there. Anecdotally, based on 3 years of PRS usage, they look the same to me. I dont see any more splash from my 6GT than I do my 224. But its not too hard to test if you happen to know someone with a BR/Dasher/GT chambered up in a 22. I know you can't tell them apart on a 12" plate at 700 yards. Or on a 18" plate at 800 yards. Alternating shots were identical with a 3030fps 88gr ELDM and a 2810 108gr ELDM. Itll be interesting to see if these gain traction in tje next couple of years.
From a ballistics standpoint, my 22 Dasher running the 95gr SMK at 3050fps is a hammer. With a .308 G7 BC, it performs like the 6 Creedmoor with 25% less powder and twice the barrel life. There's definitely some appeal there..
And there are more shooters moving to .224s. There were 3 people in my squad in Colorado in April running 22s. Lots of conversation that I didn't see a few years ago, more shooters giving them a try and liking the results.
I think there's a lot of evidence out there that spotting trace isn't velocity related. At least not in the <3200fps that is the PRS. I have a theory its recoil related, of which there is also a lot of evidence.
There's a lot of misconceptions that swirl around the higher performing 224s in PRS. I suspect we won't totally resolve them till more people give them a try and join the conversation with their experiences. From a physics point of view, energy on target is super close to most of the 6mms out there. Anecdotally, based on 3 years of PRS usage, they look the same to me. I dont see any more splash from my 6GT than I do my 224. But its not too hard to test if you happen to know someone with a BR/Dasher/GT chambered up in a 22. I know you can't tell them apart on a 12" plate at 700 yards. Or on a 18" plate at 800 yards. Alternating shots were identical with a 3030fps 88gr ELDM and a 2810 108gr ELDM. Itll be interesting to see if these gain traction in tje next couple of years.
From a ballistics standpoint, my 22 Dasher running the 95gr SMK at 3050fps is a hammer. With a .308 G7 BC, it performs like the 6 Creedmoor with 25% less powder and twice the barrel life. There's definitely some appeal there..
Definitely seeing a resurgence in folks running heavy 6.5s. I even cracked my 6.5 this spring to see what all the fuss was about
And there are more shooters moving to .224s. There were 3 people in my squad in Colorado in April running 22s. Lots of conversation that I didn't see a few years ago, more shooters giving them a try and liking the results.
I think there's a lot of evidence out there that spotting trace isn't velocity related. At least not in the <3200fps that is the PRS. I have a theory its recoil related, of which there is also a lot of evidence.
There's a lot of misconceptions that swirl around the higher performing 224s in PRS. I suspect we won't totally resolve them till more people give them a try and join the conversation with their experiences. From a physics point of view, energy on target is super close to most of the 6mms out there. Anecdotally, based on 3 years of PRS usage, they look the same to me. I dont see any more splash from my 6GT than I do my 224. But its not too hard to test if you happen to know someone with a BR/Dasher/GT chambered up in a 22. I know you can't tell them apart on a 12" plate at 700 yards. Or on a 18" plate at 800 yards. Alternating shots were identical with a 3030fps 88gr ELDM and a 2810 108gr ELDM. Itll be interesting to see if these gain traction in tje next couple of years.
From a ballistics standpoint, my 22 Dasher running the 95gr SMK at 3050fps is a hammer. With a .308 G7 BC, it performs like the 6 Creedmoor with 25% less powder and twice the barrel life. There's definitely some appeal there..
Yea, I’m definitely not convinced on the whole “it’s moving slower so there’s more time to see the trace” theories.
It’s possible. But it’s on ragged edge of how fast our eyes can process information.
So I had a 28" 6mm ARC barrel that I got scared of shooting in matches because it had like 4300 rounds on it, so I turned it around and cut it to 16.5" and chambered the old muzzle end. Use it as a practice barrel. The loss in velocity (2750 down to like 2500) made it easier to spot trace.
Also, I tried making a 28" 6.5 Grendel shoot 147-153's.... I was looking for more splash, actually, and at 2400-2550 fps it was retarded easy to spot trace. For those curious, the Creedmoor is a better plan. Can't quite get enough powder in the Grendel case. 6.5 GT or 6.5x47 might be a good deal, for this, too. You will (statistically) miss more targets at long range unless your ES/SD is really really good, but the wind drift was identical to my 2700-2800fps 6mm loads, and you obviously get 150ish grain 6.5mm splash... Give and take-- for sure not as good for UKD targets or if ranges aren't exactly correct.
I think anyone who really weighs the evidence will come to that conclusion. Time of flight difference is super miniscule.
We started moving to smaller, slower moving 6mms in PRS, and almost concurrently, moved to heavier rifles. Shot Show in 2018 showed nearly every chassis builder rolling out weight kits, and barrels had been getting thicker and heavier for years. Recoil was reduced to practically nothing at the same time, and I humbly believe a lot of folks that were suddenly spotting trace erroneously attached it to reduced velocities.
I think the most obvious piece of evidence is the fact that if your behind the shooter spotting, you see trace on fast rounds. I see trace all the time at multitudes of ranges on my buddies 22GT going 3130fps. So its not too fast to see. The only difference is the spotter has no recoil, and the shooter does.
There might be something to getting a round down around 2500fps.
I’m skeptical that going from 29-2950 on a 6mm to 2775-2800 though.
Getting down in the 2500 area *might* be crossing a threshold.
And there’s other factors. With say a 6mm solid copper bullet, it looks like a freight train flying through the air with trace and going 3400fps.
I’m sure there’s a combination of things for different bullets and such that make for a better time seeing things. I.E. X bullet traveling at Y speed, with Z recoil/reticle movement.
I always make that argument when people talk about “conditions” for trace.
If I stand directly behind someone with my binos or spotter, I see trace almost 100% of the time.
My logic may be off here as things aren’t always what they seem. But I reason if I can see it all day everyday like that, then the trace is there to be seen by the shooter as well. It’s a matter of figuring out how.
Are you me? Every point you made is close to how I feel. But I must admit I both just dipping my toes into the PRS and reloading. With little to no wind in the SE and a limit of 650 yards for my local matches, I don’t think it would hurt to try it out.
Go for it; at those ranges, just the savings per trigger pull is worth it in my mind.
Can I shoot 6.5 creed division this weekend? I really need my first trophyDefinitely seeing a resurgence in folks running heavy 6.5s. I even cracked my 6.5 this spring to see what all the fuss was about
And there are more shooters moving to .224s. There were 3 people in my squad in Colorado in April running 22s. Lots of conversation that I didn't see a few years ago, more shooters giving them a try and liking the results.
I think there's a lot of evidence out there that spotting trace isn't velocity related. At least not in the <3200fps that is the PRS. I have a theory its recoil related, of which there is also a lot of evidence.
There's a lot of misconceptions that swirl around the higher performing 224s in PRS. I suspect we won't totally resolve them till more people give them a try and join the conversation with their experiences. From a physics point of view, energy on target is super close to most of the 6mms out there. Anecdotally, based on 3 years of PRS usage, they look the same to me. I dont see any more splash from my 6GT than I do my 224. But its not too hard to test if you happen to know someone with a BR/Dasher/GT chambered up in a 22. I know you can't tell them apart on a 12" plate at 700 yards. Or on a 18" plate at 800 yards. Alternating shots were identical with a 3030fps 88gr ELDM and a 2810 108gr ELDM. Itll be interesting to see if these gain traction in tje next couple of years.
From a ballistics standpoint, my 22 Dasher running the 95gr SMK at 3050fps is a hammer. With a .308 G7 BC, it performs like the 6 Creedmoor with 25% less powder and twice the barrel life. There's definitely some appeal there..
. You can call it 2022 Tactical.I will pull the 6GT barrel off tonight.
The problem with a 22 caliber, is when you get out past 800-900 there are a lot of missed calls on hits and misses.
Let's do it! I still got time to get a trophy made!!Can I shoot 6.5 creed division this weekend? I really need my first trophy
I will pull the 6GT barrel off tonight.
That's a huge misconception. Or poor spotting.
I've seen one "possible" missed call in 3 years. Well over 10,000 rounds in PRS style shooting. I had one impact that I thought might have hit at the hanger hook. I didn't feel strongly enough about it to dispute it.
I see just as many hits and misses with my 22BR or Dasher as I do with my 6GT. The 22s carry just as much energy. They hit the plate just as hard as the 6mms. I see long range impacts with 6mms at every match that are hard to see. That's why the PRS wants hit indicators on everything 800 plus. 6mms inspired that rule, not 22s.
6mm Dasher vs 22 Dasher
At 1000 yards.
90gr Atip at 3080fps = 640ftlbs of energy
110gr Atip at 2850fps = 611ftlbs of energy
At 1400 yards.
90gr Atip at 3080fps = 339ftlbs of energy
110gr Atip at 2850fps = 339ftlbs of energy
The 6mm goes sub at 1430yds, the 224 goes sub at 1700 yards. At that distance they are 248 and 244ftlbs of energy respectively. Pretty lock step..
I can absolutely say @ 700yds my 22br with 88.5 was harder to see impacts on a full size ipsc than 6mm.
Energy isn’t the only factor.
There are factors that change energy on target, but physics is physics.
I'm not familiar with the 88.5gr Berger, but velocity comes into play. I generally ran 88gr ELDMs around 2990fps in my 22BR. Slower than my 22 Dasher. I ran 85.5gr Hybrids at 3040fps.
In my Dasher comparison above, using apples to apples Atips vs Atips comparison, the 22Dasher hits harder at 1000 yards. Mimic those impacts with a ballpeen hammer on a plate using 640ftlbs of energy for the 22 and 611ftlbs of energy for the 6mm and the 640ftlbs will hit harder. It's measurable energy striking the plate.
On average, there's only about 20grs of difference between comparable bullets. Light 85s to 105s, medium 90s to 110s, heavy 95s to 115s. And only .020" diameter. Not much going on with a larger bullet. Comparing my light 85.5s to my heavy 115gr DTACS out of my GT, I would completely agree with you Feniks. At that distance I could see a shooter picking up a little more splash coming off the plate. Plus some energy differences between the light .224s and the heavier 6mms.
All else being equal, energy on target is a linear mathematical equation. Higher energy equals harder impact. I can only speculate based on what you've observed that perhaps a little extra material may create some added visibility. I'm running the heavy 95gr SMKs going forward, so it'll be interesting to see how they look on target.
Is it really that simple though?
A 100 mph fastball has approximately the same kinetic energy as a subsonic 40gr 22LR.
The fastball has 8 times the momentum.
Easy to see how greater momentum (power factor) can produce a more readily detectable impact for same KE value, depending on the target.
Momentum. That is the big factor in hitting targets.
perhaps our most expensive failure was a custom XP100 in .300 Whisper/blackout. Spent a fortune on the handgun and the builder did a beautiful job in constructing and finishing. It is a beautiful firearm. And it was a total failure as an IHMSA firearm. Problem was never could get the round to shoot subsonic rounds with an extreme spread of less than 100 FPS. Tried jsut about every bullet/powder/primer/brass combination. No joy. When your velocity is right at 1000FPS, a spread between 950 and 1050 is going to hurt when shooting targets 200 meters away.
But momentum. Subsonic 220 grain Matchkings carry momentum that would make an elephant cringe when hit. Those 65 pound steel rams went down like they were hit with a sledge hammer swung by Jack Reacher. That would be when we hit them. Trace, forget trace, you could watch those big bullets flying downrange. It was impressive.
Sadly not as impressive as a .221 Fireball shooting 80 grain Bergers, hitting all 40 targets, even if the rams fell ever so slowly.
And that is the point, a point, that weighs on me. Do, I want to go down in caliber or stay at 6.5’s shooting bullets with enough momentum that it makes seeing hits on target quite easy. I have not made the choice yet, but it weighs.
The particulate splash is bigger, too. 6.5's, 7's, and .30's not only hit with more authority, they have more splash indicator. Big white/grey plumes of lead.
Copper solids, for example can hit with absurd energy/momentum and make you question yourself if you're not used to it. "Did that hit?!" extremely anemic looking impacts (on steel-- in game Barnes/GMX/CX bullets tear shit up). I don't think you'll get away from more lead hitting the plate giving a bigger signature.
I want .22 to work out but I personally think 6mm's are on the line. Everything says that .22 should be better-- flatter, similar wind performance, less recoil, etc... But the splash/impact thing is a real consideration and it's bad enough I've not pulled the trigger on .22 cal yet.
Copper solids, for example can hit with absurd energy/momentum and make you question yourself if you're not used to it. "Did that hit?!" extremely anemic looking impacts (on steel-- in game Barnes/GMX/CX bullets tear shit up). I don't think you'll get away from more lead hitting the plate giving a bigger signature.
I want .22 to work out but I personally think 6mm's are on the line. Everything says that .22 should be better-- flatter, similar wind performance, less recoil, etc... But the splash/impact thing is a real consideration and it's bad enough I've not pulled the trigger on .22 cal yet.
Having run .224 cal in matches for the last 2 years I'd say avoid them like the plague. They're horrible and make it so much harder to compete. Please just avoid buying heavy .224 cal bullets and 7 twist .224 barrels. I'll continue to dispose of these useless components.
Probably best to clear out those Bartlein 7.7 twist barrels too, before they're worthless. I run a "We Buy Ugly Barrels" business, let me know if anyone needs me to take on off their hands.
And you pay cash and shipping? If so, pm me the address and forward, say $100.00 and I’ll have a beaut on the way.
I shot my Valk last weekend at a match here in Colorado. Honestly I think that if I wasn't in a "dessert" then misses would have been harder to spot. But I hung with everyone else shooting their 6's and 6.5's. It didn't move the target much but the spotters didn't seem to care. Why build a trainer with cheap ammo, good barrel life when that can be your comp gun??
I think a lot of mid-pack shooters would benefit from shooting more and splitting hairs refining skills then they would splitting hairs chasing gear.
I'm still new to the comp side of things so take what I say with a grain of salt.
I think a lot of mid-pack shooters would benefit from shooting more and splitting hairs refining skills then they would splitting hairs chasing gear.
I'm still new to the comp side of things so take what I say with a grain of salt.
I agree. You are on the right track. When I shot a 243AI in matches it was a noticeably easier to see splash with 115 DTACs going 3050 fps than with 105s going 3170 fps. Also, when I noticed this, I was a brand new shooter and had no idea one should show up better than the other. There was no bias one way or the other, as I was completely ignorant.
Just built a 22 BR (88 ELDMs at 3005) and first time past 100 was a one day match last weekend. It didn't hold me back...it shoots very similar to my 6 BRA (105s 2805). And I love my BRA.
I also love being able to buy 88 ELDMs in 3500 bulk packs almost whenever I want and at $0.24 a bullet. Cant say I have been doing much of that with the 105 Hyb....
BL for me: Its pretty much a wash, no huge advantages/disadvantages for the "average guy", I like to have different caliber guns because I can, and I hate surfing the web constantly like a buzzard for components.
ZY
I also love being able to buy 88 ELDMs in 3500 bulk packs almost whenever I want and at $0.24 a bullet. Cant say I have been doing much of that with the 105 Hyb....
BL for me: Its pretty much a wash, no huge advantages/disadvantages for the "average guy", I like to have different caliber guns because I can, and I hate surfing the web constantly like a buzzard for components.
ZY
What is average or expected barrel life out of a 22 br or 22 dasher?
The same as the 6mms.
Between 2500 to 3k on average, depending on how you run them. My shooting partner got 3100 rounds out of his 22GT at 3130fps with 90gr Atips for matches and 88s for practice.
You want to see crazy? Run the ballistics on that round using .308 for a G7.
It does work that way going from 6.5 CM to 6 CM
An overbore comparison is only typically good when comparing cartridges of the same bore diameter.
When you are comparing different bore sizes, it’s not always so straightforward.
A 6br has an overbore ratio of 8.30
A 22br has an overbore ratio of 9.79
Compare that to a 6.5 and 6cm:
6.5: 9.81
6mm: 11.53
A .243win is 12.00
So, as you can see, in the 6.5 to 6mm example there’s quite a leap.
The 6mm to .22 is far less of a leap.
It’s also not good to compare across bore sizes because these ratios don’t take things such pressure and temperature into account.
A 6.5cm gets around 2500 rounds and is close to the same overbore ratio as a 22br. And people get about the same amount of rounds. Yes, I just compared it across bore sizes, as in this particular instance, it’s similar.
But when make larger leaps in case volume, the temperatures can vary greatly.
Just shot my 22BR in its first match today. Took a few stages to iron out the dope, after that, no complaints. The cartridge was not holding me back. Hits were consistent out to 1000 and 1135yds. 29gr Varget, 88 ELDMs at 2960fps. SD of 5.6 across 20 rounds. Trace and splash were as easy to see as the 6Dasher and 6BRA. Drift was slightly better than the 6BRA data. Recoil was mild, easy to watch trace and spot hits when I did my part.
I’ve made my decision, I have 10k 88ELDMs and 3 barrels in hand. This will be my primary caliber for the next year or two.
I’ve made my decision, I have 10k 88ELDMs and 3 barrels in hand. This will be my primary caliber for the next year or two.
When I was trying to decide on what to build I listened to some podcasts from some pro PRS shooters and this seemed to be a consistent theme.
Some also mentioned that they were moving away from the hot rod 6MMs as they were eroding the throat so much over the course of a match that they started to see accuracy drop off. Ive never pushed the upper limit of a caliber but it kinda makes sense to me.
Moving slower to see trace is definitely a consistent theme. As I mentioned earlier, I truly believe it a consistent misconception. Velocity averages were dropping in the PRS at the same time that rifle weights were increasing and recoil was reducing. Maybe its a little bit of both. But controlling recoil allows me to see trace shooting a .224. I see it as often as I see it in my 6GT.
You see trace on every round, fast or slow, when you're on glass behind the shooter and have no recoil.
Blowing up bullets is a reality if the rifle isn't set up properly. Try to run 3100 something with a 6.5" or 7" twist barrel and it's possible that you may have jacket issues. I've never had issues with anything under 3100fps with any twist, or anything under 3200fps with a 7.5" twist. The 7.5" will stabilize anything in the .224 from the 95gr SMK on down. I played with barrel twists extensively a couple years back in the 22 Creedmoor for PRS matches. It was a really good learning experience. I discovered it's extremely unlikely you'll ever shed a jacket on anything 300,000 RPMs or less. Even 310,000 is a very safe number.
Are people really switching to 6.5s for their main PRS gun? Or is it just NRL hunter or field matches? I can't see where there would be any advantage to running a 6.5 over a 6 dasher for 1200 and in for PRS positional.
I know people that have or have a 6.5 for certain matches. 6.5 beats dasher in wind drift especially with 153.5s
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