My rebarrel to a 6.5-06 is getting close to completion (hopefully within the next month or two). I'm not going too extravagant. Staying at a 26" length.
What is your favorite bullet for this cartridge, shooting game and also paper?
I'm planning on trying out the eldx 143gr for hunting first but the LRAB 129gr or a Berger looks promising also.
My friend is getting a 6.5/284 built. They may me done at about the same time. I'm looking forward to some friendly long range competing with him.
I just getting ready to start testing the 147 ELDM in one of my 6.5/06. I believe that you will be pretty pleased with a 26" barrel. Its a good compromise for an all around rifle. I make my brass from weight sorted 270 Winchester brass. Sorting is critical as I have brass that ranges from 176g to as heavy as 199g. I use 180g - 182g brass as that is the most prevalent sorted into 1g lots.
I was using federal gold medal match primers in all of my 6.5/06, but since those have been inobtainium for quite a while my newest 6.5/06 uses CCI BR-4 primers.
I currently use Berger 140 hybrids in two of my 6.5/06 and would NOT consider changing as they work very well and I have enough components on hand to finish those barrels off.
I tested 500 of the 143 ELDX in another 6.5/06 rifle around 2980fps and a from a 264 win mag at up to just past 3,300 and found the 143 ELDX to need some sorting to shoot better than 1MOA and SD in the twenties in the rifles I tested in. However, with some sorting I could get .4MOA and high single digit SD reliably. I found that accuracy started tailing off noticeably after about 70 to 80 rounds and I needed to remove copper fouling in both rifles. Then they were good to go for another 80ish rounds. That particular 6.5/06 barrel is approaching 1,000 rounds down the pipe and is what I have used for preliminary load development for all of my 6.5/06 as they all were cut with the same reamer.
The advertised BC of the ELDX tracked very closely for me out to 1k yards in both of those rifles. Expansion also tested to be consistent, predictable and reliable into wet newspaper media out to 800 yards. I suspect as long as the impact velocity is more than 1500fps the ELDX won't let you down.
I use H4831sc in one rifle, Norma 217 in one rifle and have tried H-1000, Norma URP, R-25, 7828SC and Ramshot Magnum among others over the years in my guinea pig rifle. Several guys like RETUMBO and I've been following some forum reports on the new R-26.
It's hard to go wrong with a well made 6.5/06 shooting slick 140 class bullets around 3,000fps. Everything elk and smaller inside of 1,000 yards is on the menu. If you keep it cool and clean you should have no problem getting 1,500 rounds out of it.
