6. x 55inBenc est competition?

C

C01DEMP

Guest
Thanks, guys,

For a wealth
of information in responseto m yquestion about acuracy in long verus short action
Interestingly, at leas tone majorb ullet maker used the 6.5 x 55 SE ('6.5wedish Mauser') to check on accuarcy of lots of 6.5mm bullets.

Hence,to cut to the chase:

Does anyone knowof any data about Brench Rest performance of the 6.5 x 55 SE('6.5 wedish Mauser')?

Best Regards and thanks again to all,

Doc D
 
Are you talking about the chambering, or the rifle? In 1,000 yard benchrest, there was one guy, Greg Culpepper, who used a 6.5x5 Swedish Mauser military rifle in the Factory Class a few matches. I believe he won one or two. That would be the only time a "factory" 6.5x55 rifle would stand a chance.

There is short-range benchrest, contested at 100, 200 and 300 yards. The 6.5x55 chambering is not used for any of these. Then there is what I think of as "mid-range" benchrest, shot at 600 yards. It is usually lumped in with 1,000 yard benchrest though, because the equipment rules are the same. Probably anyone who shot the 6.5x55 at 600 yards would do so because they also shot it at 1,000 yards. Steve Shelp and Dave Tooley come to mind, though they shoot the AI version of the Swede.

And that leaves 1,000 yard benchrest, where the 6.x55 Ackley Improved is just as good as a 6.5x284. Not as popular, but just as good. All this with custom actions, barrels, etc, and a rifle put together as well as can be done.
 
Actually Charles, I started with surplus ammo for the first half of the season and it did well enough (about 12" groups) that I got some Lapua brass. The first load I tried from the VV book (VV 560) shot well enough that I won 4 out of 5 the second half for score. The gun shot about 8 1/2". That was the year that Wooten won all 10 Factory matches for group with his 308 40X. That's also when we were told it wasn't Factory Class any more, it was Novice Class from now on and we were out. More recently I loaned that rifle to Mike Lasley for the Catawba Valley 300 yd iron sight shot off they elbows clay bird match that DeSimone put on last National Hunting and Fishing Day. Mike won as he was the only guy to actually hit any birds and he did it with surplus ammo. 96 years old now and most unlovely (but not unloved), probably the best $90 I ever spent on a rifle. (Although I've got a K31 that still has the $99 price sticker on it like Minnie Perl's hat that shoots pretty well with surplus ammo although not as far).

Congrats on your fine performance at Butner recently.

Greg
 
With a '96 and later with a '38, I have been able to shoot groups that were around 3/4 inch, from the bench, with my best handloads, using the issue sights. It has been several years since I did this, and my eyes have changed, so I may not be able to do this any more. I guess that I will have to drag the '38 out of the safe, one of these days, and see. As the previous poster indicated, the only place that the 6.5x55 finds a place in benchrest competition is at 1,000 yards.
 
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