Yet another "What cartridge?" thread

I love my .280AI for sure....with a 26" barrel. You may not get the best powder burn with the slower powders and heavier bullets with a 22" barrel for the .280AI. I think Barrelnut hit it with the .260 AI recommend.

I'd get a 7mm/08 ackley improved! With the tikka action oal isn't a problem .

7 short mag: 7SAUM, 7WSM, 7 Sherman short

Can these be done on the Tikka standard bolt face?

Given medium game to 800 I'd order them 7WSM, 280AI, 260AI. I'd prefer the 7mm bullet. All will lose efficiency with a shorter barrel, but not crippling.

PNWGator said:

7 short mag: 7SAUM, 7WSM, 7 Sherman short

Can these be done on the Tikka standard bolt face?

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The answer is no, OP has a standard bolt face so it a no go for the short magnums

280 AI if shooting somewhat long range, if not a 7mm-08 AI spunds good

hwy1strat said:

I know these threads are posted all the time. I am just looking for opinions and mostly for someone to sell me on what cartridge to go with.

Anyway, I just picked up a Tikka action(standard bolt face) to use for a build. I know exactly how I want to set it up, but I am not sure what caliber I should go with. I already have a 6.5 creedmoor, 30-06, and 300winmag hunting rifles. I plan on building this to be a shorter barrel (22"), medium sized game (mule deer and antelope), and I'd like it to be a nice blend between light weight but still comfortable to be shot out far (goal is to be effective on game out to 800yards). I have always wanted a 6.5x284, but now that I have my 6.5 creedmoor, I was thinking along the lines of a 270win or a 280AI.

I plan on doing a Manners MCS-T stock, a 22" carbon barrel, and a swarovski x5 scope. I plan on suppressing it too, which is why I want a shorter barrel.

What cartridge am I searching for??

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For something that is different and has some horsepower I'd look at the Sherman line of cartridges.

I would go with a 280 AI or 280 Sherman. If I was determined to go 6.5 I would do a PRC.

260 Terminator looks interesting.



.280AI would have more bullet options

Does the tikka long action magazine hinder the long vld style bullets for a 280ai? I've been curious of that for a while.

Highvoltage said:

Does the tikka long action magazine hinder the long vld style bullets for a 280ai? I've been curious of that for a while.

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The T3 action is intermediate in length and struggles with long action cartridges and VLD bullets.

A 300 Win Mag with 212gn ELD seated correctly won't feed properly through the bottom of the action as the cartridge is longer than the opening.

Another suggestion of the 7mm SAUM type cartridge. Yes the 308 size boltface will need to be opened up, but extractors are readily available from the OEM and they will clip in. Magazine boxes are readily available from the OEM for 270 and 300 WSM.

If leaving the standard boltface intact is essential, why not the 284 Winchester? Or get adventurous and neck up the new 6.5 Weatherby cartridge.

I just sat down to ask this very question! I have a T3 .243 donor rifle collecting dust already in a Manners T3. I am also going to run suppressed and don't want to mess with the standard bolt face or aftermarket bottom metal or mags. Looking to maximize effective range for deer/sheep size critters with a 20-22" carbon bbl. Preferred bullets are 168 LRX or 169 Hammer. Looks like a 1 in 7.5 or 8 twist? Also it would be nice to find factory ammo in a pinch and have quality brass available. So far my QL pondering says in a 280 AI I can launch that 168 with RL 26 right at 2900 fps, and at an elevation of 7000 ft that retains 1800 fps and 1200 ft lbs at 900 yds. I am not sure about the 6.5 PRC (which would require bolt face mods) but every other 6.5 with a standard bolt face and a 20" bbl, including the 6.5 RPM doesn't seem to match those numbers with a 3.34 COL. Anything out there I might be missing? Thanks to the OP for the original post and thread.

6mm ai. Launch 105s at a good clip. 6.5-06 280ai

screech said:

6mm ai. Launch 105s at a good clip. 6.5-06 280ai

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I ran the numbers at 7000 ft elevation for the 6.5 - 06 with the 127 LRX and a 20" bbl...

Max velocity ~3060 fps, max range ~700yds where velocity = 2010 fps and 1140 ft lbs of energy. I like it, but I don't think it gets quite as far out there as a 280 AI. The 6mm bullets are a little smaller than I like to hunt with, the reason to change out the .243 in the first place. Thanks for the suggestions!