6.5X300 Weatherby

62fuelie

Has anyone tried this round for long range target. If so, what are your thoughts on it? Barrel length, powder types, bullet weight (expect to use VLD's of some sort) and any other thoughts. Would be built on a Vanguard .300 Weatherby receiver.
Thanks,
Brian

Okie743

Someone, maybe WBY, might even be Nosler has such already. Read a article about it awhile back.

My thoughts: (based on experience with a 264 Win mag (6.5mm)
Barrel length needs to be 26 inch, slow burning powder types, around H1000 area, for hunting deer sized game needs a real good bullet like nosler solids or partition, 120-140 gr bullet. Using lesser grade bullets at High Velocities (HV) inside 100 yards on game animals results in bullet failure to penetrate the animal, bullets blow up, especially Hollow points or ballistic tips and animal runs off. (from experience) If you want to see crows and coyotes explode like watermelons shoot a Hollow point bullet out of a 264 mag.

I have a very accurate 264 win mag,(6.5MM) Remington 700, factory stainless steel barrel, 26 inch long, shoots one hole groups at 100 yards with reloads. I've killed game animals and varmits out to 550 yards. Animals act like hit by lightning. One of my favorite guns and I like all calibers. BUT read below.
I came by the gun dirt cheap. Guy was wanting to buy himself NEW a 7mm Mag and priced the gun to me with a Leupold scope installed. Price of both was less than price of the XIII scope.
Gun is low recoil, but a muzzle blast so loud that trees fall.
I only shoot 3 shot groups because barrel heats fast.
Some States have a minimum caliber regulation for Elk hunts at 270 caliber, so not legal for elk hunting.(in some states)

I've had guys see me shoot animals at long range with the 264 and say they are going to buy them one. I tell them NO, don't buy a 264 Mag. If you want a magnum get yourself a 300 mag with a 26 inch muzzle brake barrel and the 300 will do all and more easier, except for the muzzle blast. That way when someone asks what you are shooting you can act like a big dog and tell them you have a 300 MAGNUM.
If you just want to hunt and shoot long range accurately get yourself ONE gun, around 270 caliber AREA, bolt action, that you can tune and play with a non-magnum and just practice and learn how to use it well.

6.5 x 300 WBY for target shooting you ask. I would have to say NO, because better choices available even for target shooters and snipers.

If I see a old guy hunting that has just one gun, I suspect he can use it well and I listen instead of talk.

Hawk Carse

Okie can hunt with a .264 or you with a 6.5x300 for many seasons.
But barrel life will be short for target shooting, and there will be little ballistic advantage except at very long range, beyond 1000 yards.

charliemeyer007

No experience with H-1000, but I shot plenty of H-870 and what ever they put in the 50 BMG plus actual H-5010. For your proposed large over bore capacity cartridge I'd be looking on the slower end of the chart. I think the ball powders like H-870 are easier on the throat, not sure if it would make any real difference in this case.

I would spend some time with a external ballistic program to model expected performance of bullets at the higher velocity.

I really like 7mm bullets, would love to sabot them in like a 458 something.

Consider acquiring a dozen or so barrels along with the reamers for your project.

http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/2016/01/updated-hodgdon-and-imr-relative-burn-rate-chart/

Okie743

quote:Originally posted by charliemeyer007
No experience with H-1000, but I shot plenty of H-870 and what ever they put in the 50 BMG plus actual H-5010. For your proposed large over bore capacity cartridge I'd be looking on the slower end of the chart. I think the ball powders like H-870 are easier on the throat, not sure if it would make any real difference in this case.

I would spend some time with a external ballistic program to model expected performance of bullets at the higher velocity.

I really like 7mm bullets, would love to sabot them in like a 458 something.

Consider acquiring a dozen or so barrels along with the reamers for your project.

http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/2016/01/updated-hodgdon-and-imr-relative-burn-rate-chart/


Yep, H870 normally groups good and also H4831. My 264 is not critical of powder weight in all three of the powders H4831, 1000, H870 for excellent accuracy and if reloaded to max loads the brass won't last over about 3 reloads unless do some neck sizing only.
I've have some reloaded ammo storage issue of corrosion of the brass using H4831 powder and if he is going to use the 6.5 mag as a target gun shooting quite a few rounds of ammo you are correct that he probably needs to get about dozen spare barrels. (or try water cooling the barrels)My Gloss Blue stainless barrel really holds the heat takes a long time to cool down vs a standard barrel or vs a matte finish barrel. I've noticed that matte finish barrels cool a lot faster than gloss barrels if the bolt is left open and the gun sit upright so as air goes thru the barrel like a chimney
Them barrels do heat fast. I was lucky when I bought this gun, the previous owner knew about how the throat could be ruined from rapid fire sending several rounds down the bore and overheating shooting lots of ammo. I've really taken care to not send over 3 shots down the barrel, usually only two. It's a Remington Factory Stainless blued gloss barrel and sun reflects off of it like a mirror and has few freckles in the blue finish which is quite common on the factory blued stainless gloss barrels.
Remington made a few of the Stainless blued 264 barrel guns after they discovered the throat erosion taking place in their regular 264 mag barrels.(or so the rumor goes)

nononsense

62fuelie,

Years ago and days gone by, this was referred to as the:
6.5mm-300 WWH (Weatherby-Wright-Hoyer)
6.5mm-.300 Wright-Hoyer Weatherby Magnum
6.5mm-.300 Weatherby
6.5x.300 Strydom
6.5x.300 WHW

This was the King of the Hill for long range target shooting. But it was the lack of suitable powders and bullets which pushed it off the radar after far too little time at the top.

quote:Would be built on a Vanguard .300 Weatherby receiver.

I wouldn't waste any time building a target rifle on a Howa action. But if that's all you have...

All you should consider are the longer, heavier bullets and some of the slower, colder burning powders.

VVN-570
Norma N-217
Re-50
Hodgdon Retumbo
H-870 (if you can find any)
US869 (slightly compressed)

H-1000 is too fast for this cartridge and heavy bullets, skip it.

Use the best stainless steel cut-rifled barrels you want to afford. Bartlein or maybe Brux. Krieger if you can get a good one that is lapped properly. You can cut a chamber, which has some leade or free bore, which will help control a pressure excursion or simply use a bore rider reamer. If the barrel, chamber and action are concentric to each other you should have good accuracy.

Best.


ADDED:

I've built and shot Weatherby's new version of the old cartridge as well as the 26 Nosler and several other large capacity 6.5mm cases for both hunting rifles and long range target rifles.

There is currently a lack of good designs available which are heavy enough to use all the powder efficiently in these cases. The alternative is to use a longer barrel. For target shooting this is a simple solution but trying to carry and balance an extra long barrel while hunting, whether in rougher terrain or forests, is difficult at best.

I listed the best powder solutions above which have been proven to have the greatest balance and efficiency for the heavier, VLD Match and Hunting bullets. Given the volume of powder in these cases, a long term Match or Competition rifle will be out of the question. These cartridges will however make terrific long range hunting rifles with the capability of harvesting any animal in NA except for the largest bears.

There are several 6.5mm cartridges available for use in Match or Competition shooting besides the above. If this is of interest, post again or start a new thread.

Best.

336marlin

Years ago I acquired an original Hoyer rifle from an officer in the Pennsylvania 1000yd Club. It had been stored 15yr before he bought it and he and his wife only shot it 50 or so times on Fathers day events at 1050yd, 1450yd, & 1760yd targets. The cartridge was a co-development of a retired Army Colonel Paul Wright from New Mexico with Alex Hoyer doing the Gunsmithing from his shop in Mifflintown Pennsylvania in the early 60?s(WWH). Although there were few preferable powders to load it with then; X283, H870, H570; the powder settled upon was H870 because it was a ball powder and it was determined that the larger canister powders were too erosive to the chamber throat. This rifle came with a letter and a recommended load of 84gr of H870 a 142gr SMK (seated .050 off the lands) and the Fed 215 mag primer. This rifle shot the 120, 140, 142, & 155gr bullets equally well with powder adjusted accordingly. Case life from formed 300Wby?s was short mainly because of stretching primer pockets. It was determined that forming the H&H cases from Winchester was the better way to go since they had a thicker web at the base. Thinking surely there were more suitable powders, I contacted Layne Simpson who was just developing the STW line of cartridges based off the 8mm Rem Mag case and which he had necked one to 6.5 for a 6.5 STW (it didn?t make notariety like the 7mm STW); this case had a very similar capacity as the WWH; I eventually tried some IMR 7828 which produced good results also. After about 10 to 12 shots though groups started opening with whatever powder I used which I thought wasn?t just right. I found an article by Earl Etter of his testing of the WWH cartridge in Rifle Magazine No. 18 while keeping in conference with Col. Wright. They both were baffled by a phenomenon which prevented these guns from performing well, or ?flopping? as it was referred to, in the 20shot relays. After about 10 or so shots an accuracy destroying powder fouling occurred within 8 to 10 inches of the muzzle, there was very little metal fouling. This was no doubt what I was experiencing. After hearing of the intended commercialization of this cartridge I contacted Hodgdon to see if they had started research with any of the many newer powders that have been developed. She said they had but results wouldn?t be out for possibly another year. It is a common understanding that high velocity cartridges wear a barrel out fast and anyone shooting one of these would be na?ve to expect a barrel to last indefinitely. Extreme barrel wear was the talk when the 264 Win Mag came out also. That?s why they make reamers and replacement barrels. This cartridge still has a group of followers willing to replace barrels whenever needed. Hope this helps.

Hawk Carse

quote:After about 10 or so shots an accuracy destroying powder fouling occurred within 8 to 10 inches of the muzzle,

I recall from an old article that some loads would foul so badly that they could not be cleaned without damage to the barrel.

nononsense

quote:I recall from an old article that some loads would foul so badly that they could not be cleaned without damage to the barrel.


This is one of the great drawbacks to Ball or spherical powders. Each grain of ball powder is coated with a stabilizer, deterrent, flash suppressant and graphite. When ignited by the primer these coatings become some of the toughest fouling ever encountered. Now, in all reality, they may not have had the cleaners we have today because there is currently no fouling which can't be removed from a barrel without harming the barrel today.

Best.