what caliber is a 6.5mm bullet in a 308 win case?

[gilmillan1]

hello,

I wanted a new gun to have fun with. I wanted a gun to hunt deer at less than 500 yards, and be able to shoot paper at longer distances. At first, i thought a 308 win would do the trick. However, the BCs of the 160-175 bullets simply sucks. That just did not convince me, and i do not like the idea of shooting the 200 grain bullets at 2500 fps. So then I thought, what about a 7mm-08. Well, the 160 grain bullet has great BCs, but then again, i would have to shoot them somewhat slow. Then i thought what about a 6.5mm bullet in 140 grain in a 308 win case. I think that would be a good compromise for me. I already have a 243 so, i think the above cartridge would be great for me. however, whats the name of it?

 

[bigngreen]

It's a 260 and a great round!

 

[Sully2]

It's a 260 and a great round!

Yup!!

 

[RT2506]

Get a 260 Rem cal with at least a 24" barrel with a one in 8" twist for the 140 gr bullets.

 

[Mikecr]

"what caliber is a 6.5mm bullet in a 308 win case?"
A 6.5mm bullet is 26 caliber,, the cartridge you're considering is a 260 Remington.

My opinion;
The 243 Win case presents overcapacity for 24cal, and yet under-capacity for every cal above it.
With this, the 260Rem is underpowered for the advantage in 26cal(~140gr bullets). And you've already noticed the 7-08 is lethargic, and of coarse the 308 is even worse.
The 260, like the 243, also represents very poor design with it's low shoulder angles and high body taper. It is for this reason there are so many improved versions of the case.

Bottom line, there are better cartridge designs in every caliber.
For instance, for deer to 500 & paper punching beyond, in 26cal, you'll do better with the 6.5x47Lapua and ~123-130gr bullets.
For more distant accuracy & power, in 26cal, the 260AI is an excellent design for ~140gr bullets.

Just my opinion

 

[Sully2]

For more power at distance...he could shoot a Win 264 Mag......but he didnt ask about that caliber either!!!

 

[Korhil78]

For what you are wanting, a 260 Rem will do everything you want with high BC bullets and low recoil.

 

[Mikecr]

For more power at distance...he could shoot a Win 264 Mag......but he didnt ask about that caliber either!!!

I gave my opinion based on his response so far to existing .473 casehead(06)cartridges. It seemed to me he was looking for better designs with better performance(overall).
As he researches this, I'm confident he'll come to the same conclusions.

 

[gilmillan1]

I am looking for a balanced rifle. I am not looking for a super rocket caliber. I am more into precise shooting rather than a super fast shooting gun. I am searching for that balance. I already have a 7 rem mag and a 300 win mag as well. So I don't need a magnum performance rifle. 140 grain bullet going at 2950-3000 would be ideal.

 

[ntg]

First this basic discussion was had; for your review: http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/f17/260-vs-7mm-08-a-115877/

Using a-max as the comparable the 7mm-08 edges out the 260 somewhere near 400 yards. That's when it starts to noticably buck the wind better. You want precision...well for me the wind is the greater challenge. I can know the drop of the 7mm, even if it's a little faster, but knowing what the wind is really doing to my bullet at say 600+ yards is hard to know. A 7-08 bucks the wind better. It gives me a better margin of error when it comes to dopping the wind.

There's really not that much difference between the two, however I'd give the slight nod to the 7-08. It's also easier to reload for as you can get 308 brass cheap and rarely have resizing issues.

Now if I was going to wish for a little more horse power I'd go 280AI or 284 win.

 

[7magcreedmoor]

You might also want to consider the 6.5 Creedmoor, especially if the rifle in question is a short action receiver. If you are wanting to run a VLD 140 grainer, the overall length can exceed the magazine box size when you seat close to the lands. Seating deeper ends up using up powder capacity in a 260 case and you lose velocity potential. The Creedmoor was engineered to address this problem. I rebarreled a ruger from 243 to 6.5 creed and have been very satisfied with it.

 

[gilmillan1]

What's the parent case of the Creedmoor?

 

[Mikecr]

Like a 243, the 6.5CM uses the 06 parent case.
It holds ~2.5gr less capacity than a 260, which still leads to use of lighter ~130gr bullets.
The 6.5CM is a good cartridge, but I would choose the 6.5x47L over it, because it holds a better capacity for lighter bullets, and can be run at higher pressures(due to small primer pocket).

You won't reach your goal stated, with any reliable accuracy, from 260 and below capacities.
"140 grain bullet going at 2950-3000 would be ideal" = 260AI (at least)

 

[WildRose]

The two calibers most ideal for your purposes are the .260 Rem and the 6.5-284.

Unless you go with the 26-28" bbl though you probably won't quite get to 3000fps with though.

I have a 260 AR with a 24" bull barrel that I shoot to 1000yds and beyond with amazing accuracy and have take two dear with it beyond 900yds shooting the 130gr Swift Sirocco II.

I also shot the .264wm in a 700cdl and love it but there is significantly more recoil, but then it's a package that weighs half what the LR AR does.

Next on the list is a 6.5-284 and I"ll have it in a couple of weeks if things go right.