Re: help with calibre choice
I was going to build a 6.5/308 AI, but after much discussion on this board, I decided to go with the standard 260 Remington for the following reasons>
1. Forming brass for the wildcat is a pain in the butt.
2. The wildcat is harder on barrels.
3. Buying loaded ammo is far more difficult. Ordering good quality 260 ammo
isn't difficult at all.
4. The advantage of the 6.5/308AI is velocity. That additional velocity gets
me perhaps an additional 300 yards distance before the bullet goes
transonic.
As the standard 260 doesn't go transonic until 1500-1700 yards, I had to
consider how often I shoot 1800-2000 yards...(almost never, and when I
do, I can use a different rifle like my 300 win mag.
5. Most of my shooting (75%) is inside of 600 yards. There another 15%
done between 600-900. I have only about 8% more that goes out to
1200 yards, and in the past two years, I have only gone over 1200 yards
three times. So, there would be a great deal more work, and expense to
build a rifle with the capability that I rarely (if ever) use. The logistics of
that seemed to outweigh the "coolness" factor of more velocity that I just
won't use. Plus, my barrel will last probably 25-50% longer with less
pressure going through it.
So, I went with the 260 Remington. About a year after I built it, Lapua came out with brass for it, and that made my decision seem all the more rational. With the Lapua brass, I can safely generate more velocity if I want.
Currently, I get 140-142 grain bullets going 2875 fps with no pressure signs out of a 27 inch Obermeyer barrel. I have gone up to well over 2900 fps with no pressure signs, but the accuracy node is where I stayed. I figure that all the velocity in the world is useless if the setup isn't accurate. So I went with more accuracy rather than more velocity. So far, my decision has proven to be the correct one for me.
If someone made a 160 grain 6.5 mm bullet that wasn't shaped like a cigar, and had a decent BC, then I could see the wisdom of trying to launch the 160 grain bullet at 2950 fps. Zowie, if I could get a 160 grain 6.5mm bullet with a BC around .660-680 going 2950 fps, that would be damned impressive, and perhaps something I would strive to attain.
But, I went with currently available components and technology. So far, I picked right for my needs.