Seldom Ever
New member
Just bought a Ruger Mark II in this caliber,think I'm gonna like it,mostly as a deer rifle.Anybody got any favorite loads ? Most likely I'll be shooting 125 or 140 grain Nosler partitions....
6.5x55 Swede
- Thread starter Seldom Ever
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Gunner46
Well-known member
Never owned one, but reloaded for buddy, used it for mulies and 'lopes.
125gr Nosler, 44.5gr of IMR 4350, Fed brass, rem 9 1/2 primer. Clocked 'em around 2800fps. Sub MOA. I'd really like to see what some Ballistic Tips could do!?!
This is a NEAR MAX load, so work up to it, PLEEEEZZZZEEEEEEEE!!!!!
Congrats on the Ruger. Mine's a 7mm/08 and it's turned into my 'pick up & go' rifle.
Good Luck.
G46
<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-27-2004 15:20: Message edited by: Gunner46 ]</font>
125gr Nosler, 44.5gr of IMR 4350, Fed brass, rem 9 1/2 primer. Clocked 'em around 2800fps. Sub MOA. I'd really like to see what some Ballistic Tips could do!?!
This is a NEAR MAX load, so work up to it, PLEEEEZZZZEEEEEEEE!!!!!
Congrats on the Ruger. Mine's a 7mm/08 and it's turned into my 'pick up & go' rifle.
Good Luck.
G46
<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-27-2004 15:20: Message edited by: Gunner46 ]</font>
Seldom Ever
New member
Was hoping to get a 4350 load,since I have plenty of that already here.A whole lot of my buddies have had bad luck with ballistic tips,blowing up in the heavy brush here while deer hunting,I finally converted them to partition believers.I'm sure a core-lokt or trophy bonded would work just as well as a partition.
Gunner46
Well-known member
Don't give up on the BT's too soon.
Yes, in their Early days, the jacket was a tad on the soft side, and when pushed at the upper ranges of their volicity capabilities, did do what you would expect. They just blew up.
Nosler took fairly quick note of this problem and in the past few years, the jacket has been redesigned, thicken, & retapered. At Moderate speeds, they perform Extremely well !!
I/friends have used them in a:
308, 180's @ 2450fps
7mm/08, 150's @ 2750fps
7Mag, 150's @ 2960 fps
270, 140's @ 2800fps
30/06, 165's @ 2700 fps.
We all had excellent results. But, as you can see, these are not screamer loads, just very accurate, and plenty of speed for the round to get the job done.
I wouldn't use 'em for Elk, Moose, Bison, Grizzlies....but for 'Lopes, any deer, boar, most all black bear, caribou, etc. They have proven very effective for us.
And as far as brush goes, ANY bullet will deflect/ blow up when it hits brush.... don't blame the bullet. Tell your friends to to place their shots better.
G46
<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-27-2004 16:38: Message edited by: Gunner46 ]</font>
Yes, in their Early days, the jacket was a tad on the soft side, and when pushed at the upper ranges of their volicity capabilities, did do what you would expect. They just blew up.
Nosler took fairly quick note of this problem and in the past few years, the jacket has been redesigned, thicken, & retapered. At Moderate speeds, they perform Extremely well !!
I/friends have used them in a:
308, 180's @ 2450fps
7mm/08, 150's @ 2750fps
7Mag, 150's @ 2960 fps
270, 140's @ 2800fps
30/06, 165's @ 2700 fps.
We all had excellent results. But, as you can see, these are not screamer loads, just very accurate, and plenty of speed for the round to get the job done.
I wouldn't use 'em for Elk, Moose, Bison, Grizzlies....but for 'Lopes, any deer, boar, most all black bear, caribou, etc. They have proven very effective for us.
And as far as brush goes, ANY bullet will deflect/ blow up when it hits brush.... don't blame the bullet. Tell your friends to to place their shots better.
G46
<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-27-2004 16:38: Message edited by: Gunner46 ]</font>
Seldom Ever
New member
might try'em again,but they probably won't hold up in this brushy country.We hunt the thickets,overgrown clearcuts,etc.
Any bullet might blow up,but it takes a lot to make a partition blow up and separate.The problem with the ballistic tips is that they fragement in the brush,and the deer only gets hit with part of a bullet.
<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-27-2004 16:42: Message edited by: Seldom Ever ]</font>
Any bullet might blow up,but it takes a lot to make a partition blow up and separate.The problem with the ballistic tips is that they fragement in the brush,and the deer only gets hit with part of a bullet.
<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-27-2004 16:42: Message edited by: Seldom Ever ]</font>
Gunner46
Well-known member
I use 'em exclusivley here in Fla for deer and wild boar. Ya want brush!!!!!
I'll give ya a free tour of Green Swamp anytime ya want.
As I said, place yer shot. Patience works wonders.
<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-27-2004 16:48: Message edited by: Gunner46 ]</font>
As I said, place yer shot. Patience works wonders.
<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-27-2004 16:48: Message edited by: Gunner46 ]</font>
Seldom Ever
New member
I am a patient man,and I always place my shot.However,I have buddies who are a bit impatient:^).Anyhow,thanks for the tip.
wilecoyote76
New member
I have loaded quite a few different loads up but the one that has the performed the best is 140 grn. Hornady soft points. I am using IMR 4831 and load about in the middle since my rifle is an 1896 M96 Swedish Mauser. I didn't want to over do it on a rifle 108 years old! The newer rifles should be able to handle the hotter loads. If you get a chance to read the February 2004 issue of Shooting Times, there is a great article in there appropriately called "The 6.5 Swede - An Unlikely Tackdriver." The author had nothing bad and everything good to say about this cartridge. They had good luck with Reloader 19 and Reloader 22 powder which I will probably try when I start reloading for hunting season. I know they are loading for accuracy and were able to get well under 1" groups at 100 yards with open sights. Not bad I thought. Check it out if you get a chance - it is well worth it.
Wilecoyote76
Wilecoyote76
SE, Welcome to the fold.. With a little trial and error, you will probably find that this will be the most accurate rifle you own. Here are my favorites. You will notice that they are all a little, shall we say...EXTREME... These are all loaded for a Winchester Mod. 70 Featherweight. If you choose to try any of these, please work up to the max load very carefully. All of these loads are fired in Norma Brass, once fired, full lenght sized and trimmed .010 under max length.
100 gr. Ballistic Tip: 48.2 grains H380, CCI BR2 primer. (Works well for Yotes, Antelope and deer. It would work well for BIG crows or ravens but we don't shoot ravens in Arizona, only crows, regardless of thier impact on the antelope herd.)
120 grain Ballistic Tip: 50.0 grains, IMR 4350, CCI BR2 primer. This is my favorite deer load for this rifle.
140 grain Partition: 48.0 grains IMR 4831, WLR primer. This load works well for anything you shoot it at.
Good luck with the new rifle and let me know how you like it..
100 gr. Ballistic Tip: 48.2 grains H380, CCI BR2 primer. (Works well for Yotes, Antelope and deer. It would work well for BIG crows or ravens but we don't shoot ravens in Arizona, only crows, regardless of thier impact on the antelope herd.)
120 grain Ballistic Tip: 50.0 grains, IMR 4350, CCI BR2 primer. This is my favorite deer load for this rifle.
140 grain Partition: 48.0 grains IMR 4831, WLR primer. This load works well for anything you shoot it at.
Good luck with the new rifle and let me know how you like it..
Seldom Ever
New member
Thanks for the load info Dan,I'm looking forward to getting this thing ready for next deer season.A good friend of mine has a licensed gunsmithing buddy who will do work for him on the cheap.He took it to him for me to get the trigger worked.When I bought the thing it had an 8 pound trigger,at least.I'm getting it turned down to about 3.This guy uses a washer to stop travel somehow,plus a couple of other things he does to it.I wouldn't trust a new gun to just anybody,but my hunting buddy has been collecting guns for 30 years or better,and he's had several of his triggers worked by this fella,and they've been working for 20 years or better. I ordered a 3x9 Bushnell 3200 Elite for it.
Beats hell out of buying a Timney trigger and dropping it in,Saves me about 80$ and works fine.Anyhow,I'm really looking forward to using this cartridge.I love my 308 savage,but it weighs at least 10 pounds with the heavy barrel,so this 6.5 Swede will be a pleasure to carry next year.
<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-28-2004 06:54: Message edited by: Seldom Ever ]</font>
Beats hell out of buying a Timney trigger and dropping it in,Saves me about 80$ and works fine.Anyhow,I'm really looking forward to using this cartridge.I love my 308 savage,but it weighs at least 10 pounds with the heavy barrel,so this 6.5 Swede will be a pleasure to carry next year.
<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-28-2004 06:54: Message edited by: Seldom Ever ]</font>
kiwi hunta
New member
Mine likes Lapua factory ammo probably because of its long throat, but also loves this load.
45 gns 2209 behind a 129 horny flatbase I think winchester magnum primers.
Dan I have a lot of Du pont 4064 left over from loading a 25.303 Any loads of that you may know.
45 gns 2209 behind a 129 horny flatbase I think winchester magnum primers.
Dan I have a lot of Du pont 4064 left over from loading a 25.303 Any loads of that you may know.
