I am considering rebarreling my .270 deer rifle and going with a wildcat. I believe I am nearing the end of the .270's barrel life and it seems accuracy is degrading. I have 400 or so .270 casings and have been considering building a wildcat and using up the .270 brass. A couple that have caught my eye are the 6mm-06 and 6.5-06. I also am interested in the Ackley and Gibbs version of both. I want this rifle to be dual purpose, close range shots in the woods and shots out to 500 yards in nearby fields. I am a 6mm fan but I'm leaning more towards a 6.5 because it will be slower and less explosive and more predictable at close range, I believe. I am choosing between these two calibers because there are multiple high BC bullets available for both 6mm and 6.5mm, and the recoil will be manageable in a light rifle but still have sufficient energy and knock down. Give me some input and what you guys think. I also do not want to go crazy with the price, so I am leaning towards something that I can get dies for and not spend $150-200. Thanks! (6mm-06 pictured)
Dual Purpose Cartridge Ideas
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375fan
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6.5-06, great round. Simple to neck down your .270 brass. Lots of good 6.5 bullets to choose from.
benchracer
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If die cost is going to be your deciding factor, then 6.5-06 is probably your best choice.
The AI versions of the cartridges you mention have benefits other than velocity and are worthwhile, if you are willing to bear the cost of the dies.
Gibbs dies will cost even more and are known to be less well behaved cartridges. If you are even considering going the Gibbs route, you really should consider the Sherman family of cartridges (I am not sure if Rich has done a 6mm version or not, but his first one was a 6.5). The Sherman cartridges are equivalent to the Gibbs in performance, with a better case design. They will give you all of the performance to be had from a .473 case head, with better efficiency and barrel life than any of the other options you are considering.
The AI versions of the cartridges you mention have benefits other than velocity and are worthwhile, if you are willing to bear the cost of the dies.
Gibbs dies will cost even more and are known to be less well behaved cartridges. If you are even considering going the Gibbs route, you really should consider the Sherman family of cartridges (I am not sure if Rich has done a 6mm version or not, but his first one was a 6.5). The Sherman cartridges are equivalent to the Gibbs in performance, with a better case design. They will give you all of the performance to be had from a .473 case head, with better efficiency and barrel life than any of the other options you are considering.
How about .270 AI? Re-barrel with 1:8", load the 165 Matrix or 170 Berger and you're golden. In a pinch, you can always shoot factory .270 Win ammo.
I have a .270 AI with 30" barrel propelling the 175 Matrix at 2993 FPS (my current accuracy load).
I have a .270 AI with 30" barrel propelling the 175 Matrix at 2993 FPS (my current accuracy load).
Thanks all for all the input guys! I am leaning more towards the standard wildcats like the 6mm-06 and 6.5-06 but I love the case design and added benefits of the Ackley and Sherman rounds. I would love a Sherman but I don't have the extra funds for the Whidden dies. I have been trying to stick with dies from CH4D because of the affordability. A guy on another forum told me he used .243 dies for his 6mm-06 and just full length sized them in the .270 dies before he neck sized the brass down to 6mm. That worked for him but I am not sure if it's just better to get true 6mm-06 dies made if I go that route.
I have also considered the .270 AI but Matrix has discontinued their line of .277 bullets and I don't want to be left with just the 170gr Berger. It is a great bullet no doubt, but they are a little pricey for me and I tend to be a Hornady fan. I currently shoot the 140gr SSTs which are good bullets, but they just do not have the BC to equal the 6.5 bullets. Same goes for the new .27cal 145gr ELD-X.
A few others have talked about the .280 AI and I like the sounds of that because of the availability of dies, but I am more drawn towards the 6.5mm. The only thing holding me back from the 6mm is I am afraid it will be too fast and not allow sufficient penetration on deer at close range on quartering shots. I could have two different loads but I feel like that complicates things with like a 100gr soft point downloaded and a 105gr loaded to full potential for long shots. It is hard to have one load and bullet for all ranges, so I may end up having to go with two separate loads no matter what I choose.
Decisions, decisions....
I have also considered the .270 AI but Matrix has discontinued their line of .277 bullets and I don't want to be left with just the 170gr Berger. It is a great bullet no doubt, but they are a little pricey for me and I tend to be a Hornady fan. I currently shoot the 140gr SSTs which are good bullets, but they just do not have the BC to equal the 6.5 bullets. Same goes for the new .27cal 145gr ELD-X.
A few others have talked about the .280 AI and I like the sounds of that because of the availability of dies, but I am more drawn towards the 6.5mm. The only thing holding me back from the 6mm is I am afraid it will be too fast and not allow sufficient penetration on deer at close range on quartering shots. I could have two different loads but I feel like that complicates things with like a 100gr soft point downloaded and a 105gr loaded to full potential for long shots. It is hard to have one load and bullet for all ranges, so I may end up having to go with two separate loads no matter what I choose.
Decisions, decisions....
benchracer
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Looks like the dies from CH4D are pretty reasonably priced for two die sets, putting the Ackley dies within your stated price range.
For your stated purposes, and given that you want to use Hornady bullets, I would go with either the standard 6.5-06 or the AI version, go heavy on the bullets (the 147 ELD-X would seem to be the way to go), and a bit light on the throttle. That should enable you to use one load for everything.
Given your modest range requirements, you could even lean more toward controlled expansion bullets than toward high bc's and have no need to go light on the throttle. For example, a 140 Partition would easily do all that you need, near or far.
For your stated purposes, and given that you want to use Hornady bullets, I would go with either the standard 6.5-06 or the AI version, go heavy on the bullets (the 147 ELD-X would seem to be the way to go), and a bit light on the throttle. That should enable you to use one load for everything.
Given your modest range requirements, you could even lean more toward controlled expansion bullets than toward high bc's and have no need to go light on the throttle. For example, a 140 Partition would easily do all that you need, near or far.
This is what I was thinking. I believe the 147 ELD around 3000fps would be about perfect. I think it will be able to punch deep enough to reach the vitals and not just blow up within the first couple inches of flesh at close range. I have never had to take a hard quartering to shot, but that is a difficult shot for any bullet but the toughest to succeed at. I have thought of using a tougher bullet at all ranges but I am not sure yet. I have seen what the 147gr does at 150yds on a deer and it doesn't seem to over expand with the bullet placed behind the shoulder in the ribs.
Your comment from early has made me rethink my opinion and I researched the .270 AI a little more last night. If people are getting 3200fps from a 6.5-06 AI then that tells me the bigger bored .270 AI should be able to do the same. I have a few hundred 140gr SSTs left and these bullets at 3200fps are still behind the 6.5-06 but out to 500, where my max shots will be with this rifle, the real world difference will not be much. I wish there was more data on the .270 Ackley with the mid weight bullets. I think with RL26 and a 26" tube I will be in the 3150-3200fps range with a 140gr.
I was able to get near 3100 FPS with 175s but my groups opened up and too much pressure I can do without with H4831SC. I'll take accuracy over velocity anytime.
I've been hearing success stories with the RL-26 too; I have a couple of pounds of it but haven't had a chance to try them yet.
Any of your caliber/chambering choices would be great at your intended 500 yard range purpose.
Good luck!
MudRunner2005
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.25-06 AI, 6.5 Sherman, or .280 Sherman.
