Sellier and Bellot 140 gr. 6.5 Creedmoor

[Vodoun daVinci]

I have shot bit of S&B in various auto pistols and always found it to be pretty good bang for the $. Clean, accurate, consistent and a little less spendy than some others. Has anyone shot enough of their 140 gr. 6.5 CM ammo to form an opinion for use as range fodder?

Thanks in advance!

VooDoo

 

[JMcBurn]

It would have to shoot really well to make shooting it worthwhile with a barrel life of around 2500 rds.

 

[Vodoun daVinci]

Maybe it does. S&B has been pretty good ammo in the past for factory stuff and at the price it'd be worth it to zero and set up my new rifle. If it's as good as anything else I'd be willing to shoot 200 rounds of it.

I doubt I'll get better barrel life if I shoot ammo that cost 3X as much. Maybe, but I doubt it.

I'm not understanding the point of this post. Have you shot any S&B 6.5CM 140 grain? How did it shoot?

Thanks in advance!

VooDoo

 

[308pirate]

I think all he's saying is make sure your rifle really likes it before committing to a big buy.

When you have limited barrel life, you don't want to piss it away shooting shit ammo.

ETA I've never shot S&B rifle ammo but their large rifle primers are really really good

 

[Gooldylocks]

Looking on the S&B website, they list a G1 of .51 at a muzzle velocity of 2657. Some reviews I saw on Target Sports USA for it all said they were getting slower velocities than that with heavy bolt lift and flat primers. I would probably just buy one box and test it before committing to it for awhile. But $13 a box is definitely awesome if it works.

 

[buskin]

But $13 a box is definitely awesome if it works.​

x2

 

[Apnea]

Did OP end up trying this ammo?

 

[Greg Langelius *]

S&B, Mag-tech, and MEN are now a single entity. I would consider S&B to be the more accurate among them, but I wouldn't put it that near the top of the rankings. Expect more from FGMM and Hornady Match. It's interesting that Midway doesn't carry 6.5CM in any of the three brands from the Mag-tec group.

Greg

 

[Vodoun daVinci]

I have not yet shot any. I have not found it at a competitive price and I'm stuck shooting Hornady ELR 140 gr. Match until I get all my nuances sorted out. Just got a rear bag and modified my comb height and I'll try and bang some more real top end ammo until I'm confident.

Them I'm gonna woodshed my skills using some cheaper ammunition *or* I'll just spring for dies and start reloading the Hornady brass. I really wanna shoot some of the S&B 6.5 - maybe 100 rounds or so and see how it compares to the top end Hornady match stuff. I don't expect perfection but the S&B should be way less in price letting me work on my skills without breaking the bank.

At the alleged price point, it'll pay for a barrel after 2500 rounds in savings. We'll see.

VooDoo

 

[NewsShooter]

Hornady American Gunner with the HPBT shoots real well for the price. It was about 2750 out of a 26 in barrel, SD was 12 for 10 shots. Got it on sale around christmas in a 250 round box for about .55/round. Bought a bunch to use when I take friends shooting.

 

[wade2big]

S&B would be good and cheap to use in a 6.5 AR. I wouldn't shoot it in my bolt actions.

 

[Spblademaker]

Shot some S&B and American Gunner 6.5 CM today. The S&B is giving me pressure signs in my Savage 10/110 BA Stealth LH. Very Heavy bolt lift, flat primers. I had to really whack the handle on the last shot i took. Only ran 7 of the S&B. Brand new gun. Didn’t have any problems with the Hornady. Sucks because the S&B was shooting very well. No idea what to do with it.

 

[Wyzrd]

I bought (2) boxes of that S&B 6.5CM Ammo about a month ago at a local store. Shot 5 rds of it and as someone else stated above, sticky/heavy bolt lift, crappy accuracy, etc... it was a waste of $25 IMO. I’d stick to the Hornady American Gunner all day long!

 

[Spblademaker]

I’m thinking of pulling the 140s and dropping in 123s. See what happens.

 

[moosemeat]

The s&B shoots incredibly well through my shooting partners ar10. He won his first match with it (a 300 yard any any match) . I have personally shot that rifle ammo combo under .75 moa every time ive shot it. I was hoping it was just his rifle and that lot of ammo. Then he bought a case of it and it does the same thing.
I may have to give in to the 6.5 bug.

ETA- the above reports makes me think it may be just his rifle likes it. Now i dont feel like im missing something with the 6.5 and a magic ability to be accurate.

 

[Spblademaker]

Just an update. I pulled the 140 S&B bullets and pressed in 120 SMK. Tested them today. 5 shots on steel at 150. One big grey splash. So they’re accurate and safe in my Stealth.

 

[PAYDIRT]

Pressure problems in a buddy's rifle. Lots of reviews on the interweb saying the same. Not saying yours will but.... where there's smoke, .... I just can't see shooting junk ammo, a guy would be $ ahead to "play" with a 223.

 

[2c1fr]

I used it and I found out it is loaded on the hot side as in my savage 10 didn’t like it at all it didn’t want to extract and not accurate

 

[GBMaryland]

I picked up 400 round sof the stuff when it was about .40 each.

Through the SSG 3000 it seems to put bullets in the same hole. In that gun the spread is ~30fps.

The brass is very serious, and I need to work up a load for it.

In my Larue, the spread is the same, but the accuracy is notibly worse. Simply due to the crap job Larue did mating the upper and lower. Using a ground down accuwedge made a difference, and the take down pin on a larue 30cal OBR is not standard.

The Larue is a +2 gas system, so I havent seen any pressure issues.

 

[Vodoun daVinci]

I have been getting outstanding accuracy with Hornady 140 gr. ELD Match in my Savage 10 FCP-SR. I'm gonna buy a couple boxes of the S&B and see how it compares...not wanting to burn up a barrel shooting sub standard stuff but if I recover/reuse the brass it is worth every penny as long as it's not a dog.

Super thanks for the opinions and insight!

VooDoo

 

[PAYDIRT]

I used it and I found out it is loaded on the hot side as in my savage 10 didn’t like it at all it didn’t want to extract and not accurate

That's what I saw on a buddy's savage as well.

 

[Spblademaker]

Pulling the 140s and pressing in 120 SMKs @ 2.750 produces consistent 0.5 -0.75 groups in my gun. At least the ammo wasn’t a total waste.

 

[Nik H]

Just an update to this old thread

I tried this ammo for the first time due to the price of $11/box and mostly due to the stellar performance of the 250 grain 338 LM offering.

Rifle is an AI AT with a Robert Gradous chambered barrel. Rifle shoots American Gunner 140s, Hornady 140 ELDM, PRIME 130s and Berger 130/140 factory like a laser.

This S&B ammo was pretty poor out of this barrel. 5 shot 100 yard groups were 2.5 MOA. 3-5 rounds would be great and then 1-2 flyers would screw things up. Fired four 5 shot groups and all exhibited the problem. I then fired three consecutive 5 round groups using AG 140, Berger 140 and PRIME 130. Everyone of those groups measured 0.4 to 0.55 MOA.

The S&B also produced flat primers and had very sticky and heavy bolt lift as well

 

[jgmartin]

A friend and I have put many hundreds of rounds of S&B down our Ruger Precision and Tikka T3X Tac A1. Shoots unreasonably well out of both of them... easily as good as the Hornady 140 factory loads at 100yds or so. I’m sure that wouldn’t be the case further out, but for range fodder you can’t beat ‘em... at least in those two guns. Ymmv of course.

Side note: the Magtech equivalent shot like crap out of both... no clue why as they’re both very similar and made by the same company if I’m not mistaken :/

 

[smarcus]

My experience with the S&B 140 Boat Tail ammo out of my Cadex Gaurdian Lite 6.5CM, factory 24 inch barrel.

2765
2672
2704
2726
2688
2777
2704
2699
2726
2743

Easily produced sub MOA 5 shot groups (some .5 and none above .87) from 100 to 500 meters 60 degree, 10mph wind, 880 feet above sea level, low humidity. Shot 100 rounds with an Atlas Bipod, rear monopod, MK5 3.5-18 T3 and SIlencerco Omega. Hornady ELD Match 147 was a bit slower but the better BC made POI very close past 300 meters. That was all half moa or better if I did my part.

My brothers Fix shoots the S&B about 1MOA out of the factory 16 inch and Proof 20 inch barrels off an Atlas Bipod, Omeg and S&B Polar 3-12 P4 . It also shoots about the same out of our 16 inch gas guns. We paid around .55cpr delivered to PA so we bought a few thousand for banging steel.

 

[Nik H]

I have another box left so I will try it again. As I said, the 250 grain 338 LM cartridge works super well in my AXMC

That is why I resurrected this thread. Wanted to see others' experience

 

[GBMaryland]

The one thing I do like is the brass is heavy duty… And after sorting the brass and reloading it they’re pretty damn accurate rounds

 

[Kamerad]

Using ammoseek.com, S&B is the most economical 6.5 CM by a wide margin.

 

[napt0wnc1ty99]

I picked up 200 rds when they popped up on Target Sports last week. Looking forward how they run...can’t beat it for the cost. Something to say though about getting what you pay for

 

[Nik H]

Using ammoseek.com, S&B is the most economical 6.5 CM by a wide margin.

This is why I tried it. Will try 2nd box to see if it is more consistent. Though not a fan of the sticky bolt either. Cases definitely had swipe marks on the case head

 

[Coffee_and_Pipes]

If your gun likes it, it’s a great way to get to shoot for less money. I kept trying boxes of their 139gr or 140gr in 6.5x55 Swedish over a number of years, but I could never get it to group in my gun.

 

[JMGlasgow]

My experience with the S&B 140 Boat Tail ammo out of my Cadex Gaurdian Lite 6.5CM, factory 24 inch barrel.

2765
2672
2704
2726
2688
2777
2704
2699
2726
2743

Easily produced sub MOA 5 shot groups (some .5 and none above .87) from 100 to 500 meters 60 degree, 10mph wind, 880 feet above sea level, low humidity. Shot 100 rounds with an Atlas Bipod, rear monopod, MK5 3.5-18 T3 and SIlencerco Omega. Hornady ELD Match 147 was a bit slower but the better BC made POI very close past 300 meters. That was all half moa or better if I did my part.

My brothers Fix shoots the S&B about 1MOA out of the factory 16 inch and Proof 20 inch barrels off an Atlas Bipod, Omeg and S&B Polar 3-12 P4 . It also shoots about the same out of our 16 inch gas guns. We paid around .55cpr delivered to PA so we bought a few thousand for banging steel.

100fps velocity spreads doesn't inspire confidence, and will have major effects on accuracy at long range.

For that reason the S&B ammo is a hard pass.

 

[Nik H]

100fps velocity spreads doesn't inspire confidence, and will have major effects on accuracy at long range.

For that reason the S&B ammo is a hard pass.

The heavy bolt lift is what makes it totally undesirable for me.

 

[smarcus]

The heavy bolt lift is what makes it totally undesirable for me.

I don't have an issue with bolt lift on my Cadex but my brother sometimes had to use a mallet to open his action on his Fix.

 

[YotaEer]

I’ve tried a few different factory loads with my 20” CTR and the S&B 140 grain soft points shoot as good or better than the rest so I’ve bought a bunch. Consistently .5-.75” groups. They also expand well on varmints. We shall see how they do on deer in the fall.

 

[jtackmann]

Bought a few boxes from Outdoorlimited for $12/box just to see how bad they were. Shot better than anticipated.

This was out of my AXMC with a Hawk Hill 26" 1:7.5 twist 6.5cm. Did not have any issues with bolt lift at all. Will be sticking with Hornady 140g as they seem to work best all around but I was very surprised by these results!

 

[Jimichanga]

I bought a shit ton of it for about .50/round. My thought is to use it to break in barrels before load development and for the brass.
Tens shots out of a 24" Proof prefit on AIAT: 2606 with an ES of 37 over Manetospeed. The groups were unremarkable but fine for barricade practice.
No pressure signs.

 

[BisSilent]

First 100 yard 5 shot group out of my 6.5 creedmoor Bregara HMR with S&B 140grn. Pulled the 5th round high but for inexpensive ammo it is pretty accurate!!
Note: first bolt gun waiting on my Razor shooting a $125 BSA scope

 

[Napalmcandy]

In my howa 1500 it shoots comparable to hornady black both are .8 moa not as good as the hornady match 140 eld (.5 moa) but not bad and for hitting steel really not bad for the cost.

 

[Kamerad]

S&B 140 FMJ, from my buddys custom Savage. He stopped at one round.

From my Tikka Tac A1, no pressure signs at all, and managed a sub .5 three shot group.

 

[wcoats]

I've shot some Magtech 140 FMJ 6.5 Creedmoor(Same parent company as S&B) in by Rem 700 and my gas gun and it shoots great in both. The velocity is a little on the slow side(2,670 in my 24") and the BC is a little low but the SD is low and it shoots very accurately. Only gotten a chance to try it out to 600 yards but it worked great for that just taking into account the velocity and BC.

 

[smokey24_24]

I have a couple hundred pieces of S&B Brass that I want to reload. Has anyone worked up a load with it? I currently have H4350 and Hornady 143 gr ELD-X. I don't have any primers yet as I'm BRAND new to reloading...any suggestions on primers? Thanks!

 

[Napalmcandy]

It seems like the guys running it in savages are having pressure issues. In my Howa I have had no issues at all but I also have a savage 110 in 6.5 I have not ran S&B thru it yet and doubt I will given the trend that seems to be emerging. Anyone not running a savage having pressure signs?

 

[GBMaryland]

I shot it in a Tikka T3X A1, an SSG 3000 / Benchmark 6.5CM, and a Laure +2 AR10 upper without any signs of sticking bolts or pressure.

The brass didn't even look chewed up after going through the OBR.

 

[Mike Casselton]

I've been using it for about 8 months without any problems.
Just know that the primers are crimped in and you'll need to clean that up or you'll have a hell of a time getting primers to seat

 

[smokey24_24]

I've been using it for about 8 months without any problems.
Just know that the primers are crimped in and you'll need to clean that up or you'll have a hell of a time getting primers to seat

Sorry for the newbie question here, but to clean it up...are you referring to the primer pocket cleaner? Or is dealing with a crimp something different?

 

[drew_235]

I've been using it for about 8 months without any problems.
Just know that the primers are crimped in and you'll need to clean that up or you'll have a hell of a time getting primers to seat

I have been shooting this out of my Tikka Varmint and it has been fantastic, so at $.52/round it was hard to pass up. The spectrum of experiences with this ammo has me scratching my head. I must have gotten a good batch.

 

[drew_235]

Sorry for the newbie question here, but to clean it up...are you referring to the primer pocket cleaner? Or is dealing with a crimp something different?

I had the same question and found another thread in the reloading forum on this very topic that I just revived.

 

[GBMaryland]

Sorry for the newbie question here, but to clean it up...are you referring to the primer pocket cleaner? Or is dealing with a crimp something different?

A lot of foreign brass and brass in general will have crimping on the primer to keep it from vibrating loose in semi automatic or automatic weapons fire.

when you decap them, remove the primer from them, That crimp will still be in the way enough to prevent you from inserting a new primer when you go to reload the brass.

Companies like Dillon sell swaging tools that allow you to reform the primer pocket so that you can insert new primers easily and without issues. You can also go the old-school way where are you use a deburring tool in the primer pocket to cut the edge just enough so you can insert a new primer.

 

[rustyinbend]

Saw this old thread ... so I'm clearly late to the party. Bought the S&B 6.5-CM 140 ammo for the first time last week, and shot it yesterday for the first time. It was impressive. Savings was great ... at about 40% cheaper than what I usually shoot (Hornady ELD Match 147), so that was solid value. Also about 25% cheaper than the other stuff I shoot (Hornady American Gunner 140). Test rifle is my Tikka T3x TAC A1, and since I'm a civilized human ... I shoot everything suppressed.

Labradar said the S&B was 2636 fps ... Hornady's are 2681 and 2648 respectively. S&B's had a spread of 45 fps over 50 rounds, and standard deviation was 14.0 ... surprisingly, both of those measure statistically better than the Hornady comparisons.

Results on all three were sub-MOA at 100 yards, and ringing steel easily at 500, with Kestrel ballistics recommendations spot-on.

I've officially found a new range ammo for my three 6.5 Creedmoor rifles ... next time out I'll stretch beyond 1,000 (different range) and see how it keeps up.