What does the 6mm-223 do that 223 doesn't?
Just curious!
Not to discredit the merits of the venerable 223rem that is a very accurate and appropriate round for many purposes
but the 6x45 provides a nice alternative to alleviate some the 223r. shortcomings.
Here some facts...
- When it comes to tactical and hunting applications the 6mm bullet selection starts where the .224 ends.
- Some 90gr bullets are comparable in length to tipical .224 69gr / 68gr match bullets.
- At 5.56 pressures the 6x45 can move a 90gr fmj bullet at 2750fps from a 20" barrel. That with a G1 coefficient of .4 puts a ballistic trajectory close to an M80 round
with more energy on target (and specially speed) at 100 to 600 yards than several other popular options like 7.62x39, Whisper/BO, 7.62x40, etc...
- The round is inherently accurate and hard to mess up. Many accurate loads. One can piss inside a case and still can produce MOA and below.
- It makes a carbine hunting legal in many places the .224 caliber is not allowed for hunting.
- As you can see it exposes similar ballistic path with typical match loads but the extra sectional density and added 20% to 30% of energy on target gives a substantial gain
in terminal performance.
- Bergers 87gr and 95gr VLDs provide amazing options for long range extending the transonic range close to 1000 yards.
- 105gr are avaialbe at VLD length loading from VLD magazines. These shoot flatter and further than popular 6.5 options like LBC and grendel and they are a great
value for training.
Your Input Variables
Ballistic Coefficient 0.4 Velocity (ft/s) 2750 Weight (grains) 90
Maximum Range (yds) 1000 Interval (yds) 100 Drag Function G1
Sight Height (inches) 1.5 Shooting Angle (degrees) 0 Zero Range (yds) 200
Wind Speed (mph) 10 Wind Angle (degrees) 90 Altitude (ft) 500
Pressure (hg) 29.53 Temperature (F) 59 Humidity (%) 0.78
Ballistics Results - 6x45 90gr fmj 20" AR
RANGE (YARDS) VELOCITY (FPS) ENERGY (FT.-LB.) TRAJECTORY (IN) COME UP IN MOA COME UP IN MILS WIND DRIFT (IN) WIND DRIFT IN MOA WIND DRIFT IN MILS
Muzzle 2750 1511 -1.5 0 0 0 0 0
100 2531 1280 2 -1.9 -0.6 0.9 0.8 0.2
200 2322 1077 0 0 0 3.4 1.6 0.5
300 2123 900 -8.4 2.7 0.8 8 2.6 0.7
400 1934 747 -24.6 5.9 1.7 14.9 3.6 1
500 1756 616 -50.1 9.6 2.8 24.4 4.7 1.4
600 1591 506 -87 13.8 4 36.8 5.9 1.7
700 1440 414 -137.6 18.8 5.5 52.5 7.2 2.1
800 1306 341 -205 24.5 7.1 71.8 8.6 2.5
900 1194 285 -292.8 31.1 9 95 10.1 2.9
1000 1105 244 -405.3 38.7 11.3 121.9 11.6 3.4
Anything larger than 77 or 80gr is not practical in a .223 case. It takes too much real state.
Your Input Variables
Ballistic Coefficient 0.35 Velocity (ft/s) 2900 Weight (grains) 68
Maximum Range (yds) 1000 Interval (yds) 100 Drag Function G1
Sight Height (inches) 1.5 Shooting Angle (degrees) 0 Zero Range (yds) 200
Wind Speed (mph) 10 Wind Angle (degrees) 90 Altitude (ft) 500
Pressure (hg) 29.53 Temperature (F) 59 Humidity (%) 0.78
Ballistics Results - 223 68gr hpbt 20" AR
RANGE (YARDS) VELOCITY (FPS) ENERGY (FT.-LB.) TRAJECTORY (IN) COME UP IN MOA COME UP IN MILS WIND DRIFT (IN) WIND DRIFT IN MOA WIND DRIFT IN MILS
Muzzle 2900 1270 -1.5 0 0 0 0 0
100 2642 1054 1.8 -1.7 -0.5 0.9 0.9 0.3
200 2398 868 0 0 0 3.7 1.8 0.5
300 2167 709 -7.8 2.5 0.7 8.6 2.8 0.8
400 1949 574 -23.1 5.5 1.6 16.1 3.9 1.1
500 1746 460 -47.5 9.1 2.6 26.6 5.1 1.5
600 1559 367 -83.4 13.3 3.9 40.4 6.4 1.9
700 1392 293 -133.7 18.2 5.3 58 7.9 2.3
800 1249 235 -202 24.1 7 79.9 9.5 2.8
900 1135 195 -292.6 31 9 106.2 11.3 3.3
1000 1051 167 -410.3 39.2 11.4 136.5 13 3.8
As you can see at any range it produces more energy and speed than fashionable 308 options.
Your Input Variables
Ballistic Coefficient 0.29 Velocity (ft/s) 2350 Weight (grains) 110
Maximum Range (yds) 1000 Interval (yds) 100 Drag Function G1
Sight Height (inches) 1.5 Shooting Angle (degrees) 0 Zero Range (yds) 200
Wind Speed (mph) 10 Wind Angle (degrees) 90 Altitude (ft) 500
Pressure (hg) 29.53 Temperature (F) 59 Humidity (%) 0.78
Ballistics Results - 300 whisper/blackout 110gr 16" AR
RANGE (YARDS) VELOCITY (FPS) ENERGY (FT.-LB.) TRAJECTORY (IN) COME UP IN MOA COME UP IN MILS WIND DRIFT (IN) WIND DRIFT IN MOA WIND DRIFT IN MILS
Muzzle 2350 1349 -1.5 0 0 0 0 0
100 2076 1052 3.3 -3.2 -0.9 1.5 1.4 0.4
200 1822 810 0 0 0 6.2 3 0.9
300 1590 618 -13.8 4.4 1.3 14.8 4.7 1.4
400 1387 470 -41.5 9.9 2.9 27.9 6.7 1.9
500 1218 363 -87.4 16.7 4.9 46.1 8.8 2.6
600 1094 292 -156.7 24.9 7.3 69.5 11.1 3.2
700 1008 248 -255 34.8 10.1 97.4 13.3 3.9
800 945 218 -387.6 46.3 13.5 129.2 15.4 4.5
900 894 195 -559 59.3 17.3 164.3 17.4 5.1
1000 850 177 -774.5 73.9 21.5 202.6 19.3 5.6
So in fact the 6x45 does many things better than the .223r.
One might even think that the 6x45 or something similar would make a great service round.
The chinese are already ahead of the game with the 5.8x42 but we can do better.