6.5mm WSM Ammunition
6.5mm WSM is a wildcat rifle cartridge, formed from 270 WSM brass. I have had a custom precision rifle built using this cartridge. Its primary purpose will be as a target and tactical rifle, but I may take it hunting some day.
Rifle: Lou Andrews Custom
"Six-Five"
Bullets: Midsouth,
Grafs,
Midway
Brass: Grafs,
Midway
Interesting. It has just been pointed out to me that the 6.5mm WSM is nearly the same capacity as the 264 Winchester Magnum (about 2 grains less). The 264 also appears to have the same pressure rating as the 270 WSM. Hodgdon has told at least one 6.5mm WSM shooter to use starting loads for the 264. That gives me a lot of data to start with. Of course, my only existing load exceeds Hodgdon's data by at least one grain to achieve the same velocity. Still, it gives me something to play with for other weight bullets.
| 123 gr. Lapua Scenar | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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This is my target load. The bullet weight is constrained by the R2 reticle I will be using. I am also going to follow my gunsmith's advice about the bullet. Therefore, the bullet used for this load will be the 123 grain Lapua Scenar bullet.
My gunsmith will be supplying load data for this. The target velocity for this cartridge is 3300 fps, and the 123 gr. Scenar has a .547 ballistic coefficient. The height of the sight is 2.115" above the bore.
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| 140 gr. Nosler Partition |
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My gunsmith chides me for wanting to hunt with a hunting bullet, but I would really like to have complete through penetration. The 6.5mm caliber is known for deep penetrating bullets, and I want to take advantage of that by using a heavy bullet with high weight retention. So, I want to see what kind of accuracy I can get with the 140 gr. Partition. I have seen load data that suggests I can exceed 3300 fps with a 140 grain bullet. I will have to work it up slowly and watch for pressure signs. |
August 4, 2008
This was my first day at the range with my Six-Five. We were using 123 grain Lapua Scenar bullets, Hodgdon Retumbo powder, and Federal 210 primers. Our target velocity, to work with the reticle near sea level, is 3300 fps (± 20). This looks like it is going to be in the neighborhood of 70.5 grains of Retumbo, although that may change as the barrel gets broken in the rest of the way.
We are seating for an OAL of 2.994"
65.5 gr. = 3030 fps
67.5 gr. = 3140 fps
69.5 gr. = 3250 fps
70.7 gr. = 3320 fps
71.5 gr. = 3350 fps
Lou recommends that I test from 70.0 to 71.2 grains in 0.3 grain increments.
Next Steps
Right now, I can load up a few more rounds using my existing brass and fire them at the range. I can fire form the rest of the turned brass I have, and break in the barrel a little bit more. And I can let Tim try it.
I need to get together everything I need to load up my own ammunition. I need larger neck bushings for sizing down brass. I need a neck turner, which means I also need a micrometer. I need a primer pocket uniformer and a flash hole uniformer. I might also want to get a new sizing die, since mine got shortened needlessly.
Once I have that stuff together, I need to work on developing a load.
| 140 gr. Lapua Naturalis |
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The Lapua Naturalis is just a weird looking bullet. I would like to buy some of these and try them in my Six-Five. |
Forming Brass
Cases for the 6.5mm WSM are formed from 270 WSM brass, manufactured by Winchester.
.288 = Normal neck size bushing .289 = Alternate neck size bushing ... haven't tried .305 = Necking down new brass, first step .300 = Necking down new brass, second step .295 = Necking down new brass, third step