wachtelhund
Junior Member
Daily driver, restored 27 year old Suzuki Samurai
Posts: 11
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Post by wachtelhund on Feb 2, 2015 17:40:17 GMT -8
Hello new member here. Just registered, but should have done so earlier. I ordered a BHW AR barrel in 6.5X6.8 on January 2nd. Had I registered earlier, I would have waited on ordering my barrel to get the Shot Show discount. Anyways, who has been shooting the 6.5 SPC. I guess that it what it is call. I ordered dies from CH4D and they came labeled 6.5 SPC. I have all the components to assemble my new AR, just waiting on the barrel. SSA 6.8 brass and a Vortex Diamondback HP scope arrived last week. Three ASC 6.8 magazines came today. So need some load data for 6.5 100 and 123 grain bullets. I reload for numerous calibers and have a well stocked reloading supply, but no IMR-8208 powder which seems to be what has been used mostly for the 6.5 SPC published data.
Rifle calibers that I currently load: .219 Zipper, .223 Rem, .25-20 Win, .25 Rem, .243 Win, 250 Savage AI, .260 Rem AI, 6.5X57 Mauser, 6.5X57 Rimmed, .308 Win, .30-06 Spr, .330 Dakota, .45 Long Colt
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Post by GLSHOOTER on Feb 2, 2015 19:40:43 GMT -8
Welcome to the board. You'll find about anything you need here.
First off lets clear up the name. CH4D calls the dies 6.5 SPC. Dave there makes great dies. He has prints on all our variants. The real name is 6.5X6.8. He also makes a 6X6.8 SPC that is our 6X6.8. We don't tack SPC on our cartridges.
Load data for this one is easy. Grab your book and look ip 6.5 Grendel. The top loads are a good starting point then move up. Case capacity is virtually identical but this one runs at higher pressure.
We have been shooting Federal brass lately and have a couple documented improvements in accuracy in the variants when we switched from SSA and Hornady. Loading sanely the case life is good. The crimped primers are a one time inconvenience.
Let us know how it goes. Pictures are mandatory.
Greg
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wachtelhund
Junior Member
Daily driver, restored 27 year old Suzuki Samurai
Posts: 11
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Post by wachtelhund on Feb 3, 2015 1:37:01 GMT -8
Hi Greg, I have read all your posts on the 6.5X6.8 since I stumbled onto it, about a month ago. I had just read about it and the next day I was at my gunsmith's shop and overheard him talking to another customer on the phone. He was going to order him an AR lower. When done I told him to order two and called to order my BHW barrel the next day. I'm intrigued with odd ball calibers, but you've got to come up with another name for the cartridge, 6.5X6.8 does not exactly roll off one's tongue. I've owned and have a number of wildcat calibers. The ones that became popular all had or have easy or catchy names.
I've been studying the various 6.5 Grendel load data and know it is a starting point. My concern is arriving at safe pressure limits. My thinking is 57K psi is about the safe maximum for an AR-15 platform. The 6.5X6.8 has .1 grain more HO2 capacity than the 6.5 Grendel but most published Grendel load data has a maximum of about 46,000 to maybe 50,000 psi. With .1 grain more HO2 capacity, how and when does one know when they have arrived at the greater 55,000 to 57,000 psi limits. In this case, there is not enough Grendel data. I assume BHW is the owner of the 6.5X6.8 caliber, if so BHW is the SAMMI manager for the 6.5X6.8 and should publish maximum psi limits.
Please don't take my response wrong as I'm accustomed to testing the waters and have developed loads with powders where there was no load data. I load RL-7 in .45LC for a pump rifle, no published load data. CFE 223 is a favorite powder of mine, I use it to load .223 Rem for five rifles. I also use it in .25-20 Win and .25 Rem, both 100 year old pump rifles; plus 250 Savage AI and 6.5X57 Mauser, again no published CFE load data for these calibers.
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Post by GLSHOOTER on Feb 3, 2015 6:29:24 GMT -8
We invisoned a whole faimly of cartidges and didn't want any issues of misunderstanding. Calling them, Varminter, Super Pooper,Western or even SPC could not really make it clear. Reference also DTI, PDK WOA and plain old AR taccked onthe end of a number. An odd one is, for instance, a 6.5X68 out there. Notice no decimal? That is an old German round. A glaring ctachy name can cause confusion as the one the 30 calber neck up on the 6.5 Grendel ahs spawned. There are around ten names for them out there with only a slight variatiin if any from case to case. A quick list that I can tink of is, 30 Walker, 30 AMU, 30 Grendel, 30 Arrow, 30AR and the 30 ARX. As for catching on check with Redding about why they are selling out their bushing dies in 6.8 and CH4D selling out of their stock they built up after they got their prints.
The cartidge family is open source and not proprietary like many of the 6.8 varants. Anyone can order the reamer but it won't perform in line with a Black Hole barrel thanks to our riflig. There is no SAAMI issue on these. There never will be AFAIK. It's a wildcat and how it is loaded is up to the loader. We are no more responsible for it than PO Ackley was in his AI cases. We have tested for pressure on these and stop at 56,500 as our MAX. This gives us a cushion for the odd blip on the screen. The load sold by TA is a result of field pressure evaluation. We have never advocted exceeding parent case presures.
You won't find Grendel data up above the 50,000 level as it is a SAAMI'd case. That is something that luckily for most doesn't exist to stress the platform. The LBC variants we build on the 6.5 case are also pressure tested and so far they have performed very well. That might be something you look at down the line also.
With your experince level this one will be as easy as a turtle falling off a log. I'm looking forward to your reports.
Greg
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wachtelhund
Junior Member
Daily driver, restored 27 year old Suzuki Samurai
Posts: 11
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Post by wachtelhund on Feb 3, 2015 11:55:38 GMT -8
Greg, As new member, this is only a suggestion. Why not call your family of cartridges XXBH or BHW, or in this case 6.5BHW. They are your family of cartridges.
However, I learned something I this discussion. The max psi for the 6.5X6.8 is 56,000. Good to know. I had not read this in any post on the 6.5X6.8 page. TA? Never occurred to me to look for commercial ammo for the 6.5BHW . I haven't purchased commercial ammo in decades. Been reloading for 53 years, started at 12 years old reloading .38 Special in the back of a gun shop for the local PD. Good discussion thank you.
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Post by GLSHOOTER on Feb 3, 2015 12:05:19 GMT -8
TA is Tactical Ammunition. A partner company to BHW.
There is no commercial ammunition for the 6.5X6.8. I referred to the 6X6.8. We have always stated we were loading to 6.8 pressures. Just like all LBC cartridges are loaded to Grendel pressures.
Greg
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