6.5 sherman q&a

elkaholic

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 4, 2008
Messages
10,548
Location
hauser, id.
I have been getting a lot of questions concerning the 6.5 Sherman lately so I thought it might be worthwhile to run a new thread with some updates.
I developed this cartridge several years ago when I had toasted the barrel on my 6.5 A.I. I really liked this chambering and killed a lot of game with it including some 25 bull elk. I originally was going to build a 6.5 Gibbs which is known for sizzling velocities but I didn't like the very short neck. Since I was dealing with a wildcat anyway, I set out to improve on the A.I. I used the 270W as the parent case to take advantage of the extra .046" length over an '06. I then blew all but .010" taper out of the case body, moved the 40 degree shoulder forward, and still maintained a .300" neck, which is plenty for a .264. The resulting case holds approx. 75grains of H20, is easy to form, and has good case life. It is ballistically identical to the Gibbs but is a much better design. I have also found barrel life to be very good. With the 40 degree shoulder and longish neck, the flame point is contained better within the cartridge neck rather than into the throat, which is where barrels go south first! I now have close to 1700 rounds through this barrel and accuracy is STILL sub 1/2 moa. Velocity is outstanding out of a 26" barrel with 140's topping out at 3200' and 160's, a potent 3050'. Recoil is very manageable, and it is easy to stay on target. This is one of the flattest shooting cartridges around and outperforms factory 264 mag loads with about 7 grains less powder.
I have reamers in .293", neck which requires turning necks for uniformity and clearance, and a "no turn" .297" neck which is becoming very popular. I have a deal with Whidden gunwerks for making custom dies with a shorter turn around than other custom die makers. They are quality bushing dies with micrometer seaters or, I can also get standard non-bushing dies.
They will soon be stocked and available for around $200. The cost from Whidden is normally in the $260 range.
Brass is now available from Norma for the 270 parent. This is proving to be a strong and consistent brass. 280 and 280 A.I. brass can also be used with equal effectiveness. I hope this answers most of the questions that I have been receiving lately. If not, feel free to ask any others that you may have.
I would also invite some of you Sherman owners to post any pet loads, success stories, or ???.........Rich
 
Is your rifle chambered for the .293? What brass do you use? And are you saying that the Norma brass is available in .270 or 6.5 Sherman?
 
Is your rifle chambered for the .293? What brass do you use? And are you saying that the Norma brass is available in .270 or 6.5 Sherman?

I use the .293 because I like to turn the necks for consistency. Norma brass is available for the 270, and is easy to fire form.
 
Rich, what I want to know is when you're gonna sell me a .297 reamer so I can have my smith build me barrels from now on. :D

In all seriousness, you might be able to talk Norma or Lapua into making a batch of 6.5 Sherman headstamped and formed brass... That would be awesome.

I can't wait till I get my truck and Mustang sold so I can build mine.
 
How does one go about getting a barrel chambered for the Sherman? Do you have reamers available for sale, do you rent yours out, or............?

I'm wanting to build something fairly soon, I'm not sure which direction I'm going to go but I'm most definitely interested. Do you happen to know if it will feed in a 7 rem mag action without a lot of feed rail tweaking?

Thanks, JH
 
How does one go about getting a barrel chambered for the Sherman? Do you have reamers available for sale, do you rent yours out, or............?

I'm wanting to build something fairly soon, I'm not sure which direction I'm going to go but I'm most definitely interested. Do you happen to know if it will feed in a 7 rem mag action without a lot of feed rail tweaking?

Thanks, JH

I have reamers for rent and there are some good smiths on the forum or I could recommend one. The 7 Mag would definitely have room, but I'm not sure about the oversize width of the 7 mag working? Maybe someone else has some experience with that....rich
 
I have reamers for rent and there are some good smiths on the forum or I could recommend one. The 7 Mag would definitely have room, but I'm not sure about the oversize width of the 7 mag working? Maybe someone else has some experience with that....rich
If his rifle is a Rem 700, to make his 7mm RM action work, he will need to change out the internal magazine box for a Standard (.270/.30-06) mag box, and the magnum follower for a Standard (.270/.30-06) follower. And he will also need to buy a PTG standard bolt body with a Standard (.308/.30-06) bolt face. Or he could find someone that might be interested in swapping bolt-bodies with him, on here.

His cheapest and best bet would be to go to Academy, Dick's, or Wally World, and buy a $499 Rem 700 SPS .270 or .30-06 and snatch the stock and barrel off, have the action trued, and go from there. That's what I'd do. Plus, he can keep his 7mm RM and have a 6.5 Sherman, since they both have different capabilities.
 
No, it's a Savage, stagger feed, blind mag. I believe it's an old police model, anyway it has a 24" varmint contour barrel with two sling swivels on the front.

I bought it with the idea in mind of building a 300 WM at some point and may do that yet, or I may sell it, I don't know.

What ever I build with it I can keep or change the bolt face, but it is definitely getting restocked.

JH
 
No, it's a Savage, stagger feed, blind mag. I believe it's an old police model, anyway it has a 24" varmint contour barrel with two sling swivels on the front.

I bought it with the idea in mind of building a 300 WM at some point and may do that yet, or I may sell it, I don't know.

What ever I build with it I can keep or change the bolt face, but it is definitely getting restocked.

JH

I don't have any savages, but from what I hear, they are easier than the Remington because of the easy change bolt face. They also have a longer mag box which is a plus with the long bullets, at least comparing the short action. I forgot to mention the bolt face opening for the remmy, but mud covered that.Better build a Sherman:D ....... Rich
 
Rich

Thanks for taking the time to talk with me last week. I am getting ready to send my action off. I am going thru with a 6.5 Sherman.

Thanks again

Jay
 
How many times can a reamer be used before it needs to be either sharpened or replaced? And what is fee to rent one? I may have asked in the past but don't remember answer.

how much is a new reamer? can I buy one?
 
Top