6mm AI

[Lapua guy]

So a few quick questions on reloading. I hear it is best to start with 6mm Rem Winchester brass rather than Remington?

I also hear that many size down 7x57 Norma brass as well. How successful is this? I assume you start with a 6.5 die to start the sizing, and then finish with a 6 AI die?

Nick size? .274 chamber, right, so which 6 AI dies work the best? Custom route necessary?

Thanks in advance. I am pretty new to wildcat reloading. Excited, but a greenhorn.

 

[Trickymissfit]

So a few quick questions on reloading. I hear it is best to start with 6mm Rem Winchester brass rather than Remington?

I also hear that many size down 7x57 Lapua brass as well. How successful is this? I assume you start with a 6.5 die to start the sizing, and then finish with a 6 AI die?

Nick size? .274 chamber, right, so which 6 AI dies work the best? Custom route necessary?

Thanks in advance. I am pretty new to wildcat reloading. Excited, but a greenhorn.

about anykind of brass but Federal will do just fine. Federal seems to be harder, and the case walls are thicker. If the chamber is reamed correctly you can just shoot factory loads to fireform cases. Tobe exact you can simply load 6mm Remington case with a nice stiff load, and shoot. You will see some case shrinkage after fire forming (about .030") that will show up in the neck length. But with a nice long neck you'll still have plenty of neck to work with.

gary

 

[Lapua guy]

I know you can fireform. I just know others do it by sizing 7x57. Was just wondering which was better.

I heard Remington cases were terrible for fireforming though.

 

[Outlaw6.0]

i've been shooting the 6mmAI for 3 or 4 years now & all that I use is Remington brass. I have never lost a single piece of brass durning fire forming; I load a max load of 4064 with a long bullet jammed into the lands and let'er rip. Acceptable accuracy & the cases form very well.

 

[Lapua guy]

i've been shooting the 6mmAI for 3 or 4 years now & all that I use is Remington brass. I have never lost a single piece of brass durning fire forming; I load a max load of 4064 with a long bullet jammed into the lands and let'er rip. Acceptable accuracy & the cases form very well.

Great! Thanks!

What dies do you use?

 

[Trickymissfit]

Great! Thanks!

What dies do you use?

I know everybody has their own method for fire forming cases, and I certainly respect that. Myself, I like to set the head space up a little snug to where I can feel slightly more resistence when closing the bolt than normal (not a lot more but a little. This tells me the body of the case is solid. Then I try to seat somekind of a long cheap bullet out as far as I can go (hope it just touches the lands). I like a good dense load that generates a lot of chamber pressure (43.0 grains of AA4350 works well with a 105 grain bullet in the 6mm). If the first couple case show a slight banana in the body, increase the load another grain of powder. Still there, then try 4831 at a max load. I have fire formed with 115 grain bullets and 43 grains of AA 4350 as well

Redding sells dies, and you can also get them by special order from Forster for about the same money, but machined to fit your chamber. Just send them three once fored cases
gary

 

[ReachnOut]

I've heard the Remington brass comments many times over the past 12 years that I've been reloading for the 6AI and really don't know where it's coming from. Currently have 4 rifles in 6AI from a 7lb sporter to a 21lb p'dog bench gun and about 3k rounds, all Remington brass, that I've loaded. At least a couple of hundred are on reload 7 with no problems. I prep all my new brass as I would for my competition bench guns then fireform, turn the necks if needed, bump the shoulder .002 and load 'em up.

 

[Lapua guy]

All good gouge. Thanks.

Any recommendations of loading the 105 gr Bergers after fireforming is complete? Powders, Primers, etc. I have a lot of Winchester Magnum primers, but would be open to other options.

 

[Trickymissfit]

All good gouge. Thanks.

Any recommendations of loading the 105 gr Bergers after fireforming is complete? Powders, Primers, etc. I have a lot of Winchester Magnum primers, but would be open to other options.

45 grains of 2700
glt

 

[Outlaw6.0]

I know it's late but i'll answer your question anyway, I use the Redding 3-die set.

 

[Big Creek Regulator]

At the start of this thread you said some people neck down 7x57 lapua brass . Where do you find 7x57 lapua brass ? I want 500 rnds to start with!

 

[Lapua guy]

Sorry, I meant Norma. My mistake, and I know, there is a difference