More for the 6.5X55

[Brick]

This time using NORMA 203-B. Bullets used were Sierra 100 gr "Varminter" Hollow Points and Sierra 120 gr. GameKing Spitzer Soft Points.

Absolutely gorgeous day! Light scattered clouds temps 50 degrees and rising. No wind. And I'm more mystified with my Chrono than ever before! The damn thing worked perfectly! NOT a single hiccup! In fact the only one committing errors was me! 2/10ths cloud, bright blue sky, I expected to have trouble with too much light, meaning I'd have to cant the sensors way to the oblique or use an opaque paper target to get readings. I even brought one of my handguns along to fire test shots to make sure of the set up.
No problems at all!

Another loading session with NORMA MRP and the same bullets and I can call this part complete! Just need one more day like today!

Please take the time to review the data and look at the photos. Note. Targets were set at 100 yards.

[Steeltrap]

What rifle?,,,Oh CZ 550 Am.
Tapered barrel? Varmint barrel? or Bull barrel?.....Oh, I looked it up, it's a tapered hunting barrel.
Did you measure your chamber's freebore? What was it?
How far from the lands are you seating your bullets?
What type of rest are you shooting from?
How long do you wait between shots? Do you let the barrel cool?
Have you checked to see of the barrel is not touching the wood from the action all the way to the end of the wood?
What dies are you using to reload?
Do you neck size only?
Do you trim all brass to the same length every time?

I shoot this caliber out to 1,000 yards. You should get one ragged hole shots at 100 yards with a 3 shot group from a hunting barrel.

[Brick]

I'll try to answer your questions pretty much in order.

Freebore? Don't know. I don't have the wherewithal to do a chamber casting
Optimally I'd like to seating the bullets about 010". But, I'm not sure I have the right "touch" with the Hornady measuring equipment I have yet. so I'm using the published COAL.
Type of rest? I use a homemade, weighted scissors jack with a small pad for the front. My hand or arm or sometimes an ordinary weight bag for the rear.
Wait between shots? Only long enough to record the shot value and review the data after a 10 shot string.
Free floating barrel? Haven't checked.
Dies? A Redding two die set.
Neck size only? - Yes the dies are set according to Redding instructions for neck-sizing.
Trim? No. As of yet the brass hasn't stretched enough to require the first trimming. Brass was factory new, unprimed. I did a quick inside/outside chamfer, and ran them over the primer uniformer. I clean primer pockets between reloads and tumble clean the brass. So far they're only on the 5th iteration of loading.

I have gotten several cloverleaf groups out of my test loads. In fact if you look at the target photo for the 120 gr. bullets, you can see very tight 3 shot groups among the 5 shots I've drawn the box around.

It is after all a hunting rifle and the bullets I'm using so far are hunting bullets. So I'm working to develop good hunting loads. And if you say that my practice is pretty crude you'd be correct. I could probably do much better using a Lead Sled and having the rifle floated, and bedded etc. but for now I'm happy.

So far with the powders I've tested the Norma stuff seems to produce the best results

[Delkal]

With a rifle you should always check the length to the throat. Most 6.5's have very long throats for heavy bullets and I doubt you can even seat a 100 grain bullet to get close to touching. It would be outside of the case.

I use a simple method to check the freebore, all you need are calipers and a dry erase marker. Full length size a case. Then with a dremel and cutoff wheel make 2 cuts in the neck and make sure there are no burrs on it. Then seat a bullet long, blacken it with a dry erase marker and insert it in the chamber. Carefully remove it and measure, thats your distance to the lands.

The reason you need a dry erase marker is that sometimes when you remove the case the bullet sticks to the lands and is pulled out some. With the bullet blackened you can see this then push it back and measure. You might need to play with the neck tension of the case by squeezing it together or loosening it. You don't want much resistance but if it is not enough the bullet will pull out when you extract the case.

[Brick]

Oh blast! Here I was fat and happy with my reloads and most of my results. Now I'm more confused than ever!

The easy stuff first. I used a simple piece of paper and slipped it between the barrel and forearm and all the way down the barrel to the rear of the chamber bulge. Only slight resistance. So I guess the barrel is pretty well free floating.

Then I decided I'd get my Hornady O.A.L. gauge out and try it again. So I went through the drill with 10 randomly chosen bullets in each 120 gr. and 140 gr weights averaged the results and found that for the 120 gr bullets (Sierra Spitzer Soft Point) an average oal of 2.901" touched the lands so if a .010" offset is desired 2.890" would be about right. Of course that just happens to be .110" SHORTER than my current load! The 140 gr. bullet (Sierra Spitzer Soft Point Boat Tail) averaged 2.920" or .130" shorter.
C.O.A.L. as published by Sierra is 3.000" and 3.050" respectively.

NUTS! Now what?

[Tmygun]

Did you make sure your action screws are snugged down good? I had to remember that when shooting my Finnish M39s. After shooting about 60 rds, the screws can become loose a bit (or a lot!). I never put loctite on the screws because the M39s I worked with liked their screws to be snugged down good and then backed off ever so slightly. For some reason, that worked for those rifles. With some rifles the screws have to be tight, but not too tight. What we don't do to get rifles to shoot!

[Tmygun]

BTW, you never mentioned what model your 6.5x55 rifle is. I used to shoot the original military 96s and 38s. Beautiful guns!

[Delkal]

Oh blast!
Then I decided I'd get my Hornady O.A.L. gauge out and try it again. So I went through the drill with 10 randomly chosen bullets in each 120 gr. and 140 gr weights averaged the results and found that for the 120 gr bullets (Sierra Spitzer Soft Point) an average oal of 2.901" touched the lands so if a .010" offset is desired 2.890" would be about right. Of course that just happens to be .110" SHORTER than my current load! The 140 gr. bullet (Sierra Spitzer Soft Point Boat Tail) averaged 2.920" or .130" shorter.
C.O.A.L. as published by Sierra is 3.000" and 3.050" respectively.

NUTS! Now what?

COAL's in reloading manuals have little use for a rifle cartridge. It is just a recommendation that will fit in ALL rifles and magazines.

If you don't want to try the way I described to find the bullet seating length at least try this. Take one of the loaded cartilages you made and blacken the bullet with a dry erase marker. Then chamber and remove it. If you see the rifling made marks in the bullet it is too long.

Not sure how the Horniday OAL gauge works but if you don't see any marks on the bullet.......reread the instructions.

[Steeltrap]

Freebore? Don't know. I don't have the wherewithal to do a chamber casting"Freebore" is the total available space...or the longest you could seat your bullet out when you close your bolt, and the bullet would be touching the lands. As Delkal said, with 100gr bullets it's unlikely you could seat them that long before the bullet would come out of the case. With 130gr and 140gr bullets you could likely get the measurement.

Optimally I'd like to seating the bullets about 010". But, I'm not sure I have the right "touch" with the Hornady measuring equipment I have yet. so I'm using the published COAL.I have this "habit" or "thing" where I always start seating my bullets at .080 (eighty-thousands) from the lands. It usually works well, but if I don't get nice tight groups I will then go ten-thousands closer in three shot increments.

Type of rest? I use a homemade, weighted scissors jack with a small pad for the front. My hand or arm or sometimes an ordinary weight bag for the rear.Ok. A sand bag for both front and rear would be better. Don't use one of those lead sled's. Keep your rest separate and always keep your rifle stock on the rest. Never the barrel. (I'm not saying you don't know this....I'm just spitting out info.)

Wait between shots? Only long enough to record the shot value and review the data after a 10 shot string.Ok. You may want to wait after a 3 shot string as a light contour barrel will tend to "open up" when it gets hot.

Free floating barrel? Haven't checked.Ok. Check when you get a chance.

Dies? A Redding two die set.Ok....Good Stuff!!

Neck size only? - Yes the dies are set according to Redding instructions for neck-sizing.Ok. Full size when it gets hard to chamber.

Trim? No. As of yet the brass hasn't stretched enough to require the first trimming. Brass was factory new, unprimed. I did a quick inside/outside chamfer, and ran them over the primer uniformer. I clean primer pockets between reloads and tumble clean the brass. So far they're only on the 5th iteration of loading.You trim all of your brass to the same length. This is key as the brass will then have all the same tension on the bullets.

I have gotten several cloverleaf groups out of my test loads. In fact if you look at the target photo for the 120 gr. bullets, you can see very tight 3 shot groups among the 5 shots I've drawn the box around.Yeah, I looked at that but I wasn't sure what the shots were "outside" of your groups you had circled.

It is after all a hunting rifle and the bullets I'm using so far are hunting bullets. So I'm working to develop good hunting loads. And if you say that my practice is pretty crude you'd be correct. I could probably do much better using a Lead Sled and having the rifle floated, and bedded etc. but for now I'm happy.I don't think it's "crude"....I would just try the suggestions I have mentioned. Trim your brass, use sandbags for both front and rear.

So far with the powders I've tested the Norma stuff seems to produce the best results

Norma brass is good quality. I use to use it....but then I switched to Lapua brass only because it was easier to obtain. Don't mix Lapua and Norma a they don't have the same water content.

Oh blast! Here I was fat and happy with my reloads and most of my results. Now I'm more confused than ever!

The easy stuff first. I used a simple piece of paper and slipped it between the barrel and forearm and all the way down the barrel to the rear of the chamber bulge. Only slight resistance. So I guess the barrel is pretty well free floating.

Then I decided I'd get my Hornady O.A.L. gauge out and try it again. So I went through the drill with 10 randomly chosen bullets in each 120 gr. and 140 gr weights averaged the results and found that for the 120 gr bullets (Sierra Spitzer Soft Point) an average oal of 2.901" touched the lands so if a .010" offset is desired 2.890" would be about right. Of course that just happens to be .110" SHORTER than my current load! The 140 gr. bullet (Sierra Spitzer Soft Point Boat Tail) averaged 2.920" or .130" shorter.
C.O.A.L. as published by Sierra is 3.000" and 3.050" respectively.Don't jump out of the cellar window just yet. Remember that the Ogive on each weight bullet will be different. So, if you measure the chamber with a 100gr, then a 130gr, your going to get two different numbers. If you measure the chamber with 5 different 100gr bullets, you may get 3 different numbers, but they will only be at most, 2-thousands apart....if that.

NUTS! Now what?Look, if your hunting, then what you have is just fine. Go hunt!! If your looking to kill cockroaches at 200 yards, then you have more work to do. But I'll say stop and go kill a deer!! Good luck.

[Brick]

Well Steeltrap thanks for the replies. I tried to account for the bullet to bullet manufacturing variations by picking 10 random bullets measuring them as a set and using the average.

Delkal I tried with a black permanent marker on one of my dummy cartridges (I always make a dummy keep as an exemplar for any particular bullet) got what appears to be a "scratch" about .1" shorter than I had seated. That pretty much fits with what I found using the OAL gauge. Oh well more experimentation.

But meanwhile I spotted a young 6 pointer browsing along my driveway yesterday. Maybe the experimenting will wait!