6x284 105gr Lapua on whitetails?

[eddybo]

I recently acquired another 6x284 which the wife promptly claimed as her new deer rifle. When I broke in the barrel I used a few 105 lapuas from an almost empty box of an old lot. The gun shot great so I worked up a load with these bullets from a fresh box. The thing shoots great and the wife is very proficient with it and I have lots of them as they used to be my favorite match bullet.

I am taking the wife on another hunt this year to let her get a better buck and would definitely let her take any shot within 1000 yards if I knew how this bullet performs.

Has anyone tried this bullet on thin skinned game before I start shooting phone books? I hate to reinvent the wheel if someone has used them and can give me an opinion. I have not chronographed the load but suspect that I am in the 3350 fps range according to quickload with 55.5gr of retumbo and a 26 inch barrel.

 

[liltank]

Lapua bullets don't open up. I shot through a DVD player and there was no expansion. Just food for thought. That was with a 155grn Scenar at about 2800 fps. Others have shot the 338 Scenar's and they did not expand in newspaper tests.

Tank

 

[eddybo]

Thanks for the reply and relaying that experience. I have heard the same as you for the 30 and 338s.
I head shot a rabbit at 300 yards with one of these bullets out of my 6x47 and it was total devastation, so I am wondering if the 6mms will open. I guess it is time to run around the office collecting old phone books. I know these bullets handle high velocity pretty well so suspect the jackets are pretty thick. Oh well whats a few phone books.
Anybody else try the 6mms before I start destroying the yellow pages?

 

[liltank]

I just wonder if they are built that way due to Geneva Convention law for war. You are not allowed to use bullets that expand. Maybe they are built to not expand in the sniper calibers. You may have to do a book test to see if this is correct.

Just a thought!

Tank

 

[Bravo 4]

My way of thinking is on par with liltank's. Match grade bullets are designed for better external ballistics and not terminal performance. That's why I (notice I said "I") wouldn't recommend the smaller caliber matchkings for anything other than varmints...or something I didn't really care to find after I put a hole through it. And since they aren't designed to "expand", that's why we get to use them in our precision rifles. The .338 SMK's are a different animal. With the A-Max I think we just got lucky and they expand very rapidly. The Bergers I don't know...looks like they may have been designed for both???

 

[Fiftydriver]

I personally do not care for the Lapua bullets for use on game. THey generally shoot great but do not perform consistantly on game.

As such, I would recommend the 107 gr SMK. As long as you target deer size game at ranges under around 600 yards, they work pretty darn well, outside of that they do not expand alot and you can get some pen hole pass throughs.

Remember however, even though this is a big 6mm, its still a 6mm, put a bullet through the vitals and you will punch a tag. Put a shot on the fringes and you will not on average get the target animal. Place the shots well, which is always the most important thing anyway but again, it is just a 6mm, nothing more or less.

 

[eddybo]

Well said Kirby, I too am a believer that placement trumps just about everything barring a bullet failure. As always I value your opinion very highly. I still may punch a few phone books at 800 just to satisfy my curiosity but am officially searching for another bullet. Thanks to all that confirmed my suspicions.

I can't think of a thing that would lessen my wife's thrill more than losing an animal. Right now she is more likely to kill a game animal than myself, but I have been doing this a long time and do it for my own reasons now which does not always depend on taking an animal. I do not want her to loose that thrill as it is something I really enjoy doing with her. I would be slightly more hesitant to search for another load if I were the shooter, but I enjoy working up loads for her guns. It gives her an excuse to join me in the shop and get some practice.

 

[Fiftydriver]

For hunting past 500 yards with a 6mm-284, you may also want to take a look at the 105 gr Berger and 105 gr A-max as they will open up better at the longer ranges. Only problem with these, generally, the 6-284 can drive them faster then they are designed to handle so it could be that they will not survive the launch speed unless you tone them back a bit.

The tipped A-max is a much more dramatic expander at long range but remember at closer ranges, dramatic expansion can turn into explosive expansion which is also not wanted.

Even though the big 6 will carry plenty of energy past 600 yards even for deer size game, I personally feel this is about its limits mainly because of bullet performance. the 107 gr is pretty good at closer ranges because of its heavier jacket and does well out to around 600 yards if you drive them to top velocities.

You are correct, loosing a deer could be extremely detrimental to your wifes desire to keep hunting!!!