same powder for 223 and 6.5x55

C

crout

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anyone else using varget for BOTH of these calibers. just wondering if you got lucky and Varget is working well for you? i know varget will probably wear my barrel out a bit faster in my 6.5 than a slower buring powder but i like the potential velocity i can get from it and the fact it will work in a 223.

If there is another powder that can be used and you are using it?

I've come across...IMR 4007SC, IMR 4895, and H4895 as a couple.
 
I suppose you could use Varget to push light bullets in the swede. I use 4064 for 85 gr. bullets and that would work for .223 also. If you plan on shooting Heavier bullets where the swede shines then you you should go slower. Rl-22 is great for 140's .
 
With 120gr. to 160 gr. bullets my 6.5 X 55 has always liked slower powders - either IMR 4350 or IMR 4831. Benchmark which worked best in my .223 has loadings on the can for .308 so maybe it would work for you as in is similar to the 6.5.
 
I actually attempted to go the other way. At one time, I had both a 223, and a 30-06, and I wanted to use the same powder in both. The powder that I tried was ww760. It was very accurate in both rifles, but in the 223, I had to stuff in as much as I possibly could to get the case to just seal upon ignition, and with the 30-06, I had to be happy with velocities that where lower than they would have been with other powders.
Long story short, It was a compromise with both cartridges.
Mike
 
mike shickele said:
I actually attempted to go the other way. At one time, I had both a 223, and a 30-06, and I wanted to use the same powder in both. The powder that I tried was ww760. It was very accurate in both rifles, but in the 223, I had to stuff in as much as I possibly could to get the case to just seal upon ignition, and with the 30-06, I had to be happy with velocities that where lower than they would have been with other powders.
Long story short, It was a compromise with both cartridges.
Mike
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the good thing with varget is i wouldn't have to compromise. i'd actually be getting great velocties with both calibers and using less powder compared to slower buring powders(R-19, R-22, H4350etc.)
 
crout said:
the good thing with varget is i wouldn't have to compromise. i'd actually be getting great velocties with both calibers and using less powder compared to slower buring powders(R-19, R-22, H4350etc.)
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Alright, dangit! You actually made me sit down with the manuals and take a good hard look at your question, and quite frankly, after doing so, I think that you'll be quite alright. You may get 50 or so less shots out of a barrel with the faster powders, but that could be totally offset with simply waiting a little longer in between groups. BTW, IMO, both of those cartridges are good ones.
Mike
 
Pathfinder said:
I guess the question we should be asking you is what bullet weights do you plan on shooting ?
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doesn't seem to matter for varget;) but i will be using 75gr for 223 and 140gr for the 6.5. varget seems to do well for every bullet wieght in each caliber, granted I would be going a bit over max load in the 6.5 to reach my optimal velocity.
 
Let us know how you make out for velocity.

In Regards to the 140 gr. bullets I for one would be suprised if you can attain what the slower powders are getting (fps) with Sane pressures. If you already have the powder then you may as well try it.

Hogdon has a max of 36 grs (getting around 2550 fps) and I have another source working up to 38 grains . I would not go higher than 36 with a Swedish mauser.
 
Ganderite said:
I had a Savage target rifle in 6.5x55. Used about 48 gr of RL22 under the Sierra 142 for 2900 fps out of a 30" barrel. Varget would not even come close to that. Wrong powder. Much too fast.
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are you using a crony? or are you just guessing at the velocity? just wondering? your velocity seems a bit low for a 30" barrel.

but personally i won't use R-22 in my 6.5..much too slow for me... why not use R-19, or better yet H-4350.. use the same powder and get more velocity?? though the R-22 will make your barrel last longer.
 
crout said:
are you using a crony? or are you just guessing at the velocity? just wondering? your velocity seems a bit low for a 30" barrel.

but personally i won't use R-22 in my 6.5..much too slow for me... why not use R-19, or better yet H-4350.. use the same powder and get more velocity?? though the R-22 will make your barrel last longer.
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I think that's good performance for 6.5x55 even in a 30" barrel . You can get a longer barrel but you cant make it into a 264 Win mag.

Not only will RL-22 make your barrel last longer it will push 140's faster than the other powders you mentioned. I believe the swedes used MRP which is about the same burn rate as RL-22 (correct me if Im wrong).

I agree RL-22 wont work in your .223 . Sometimes if you want to use one powder for two cartridges you have to make sacrifices.
 
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I think that's good performance for 6.5x55 even in a 30" barrel . You can get a longer barrel but you cant make it into a 264 Win mag.

Pathfinder said:
Not only will RL-22 make your barrel last longer it will push 140's faster than the other powders you mentioned. I believe the swedes used MRP which is about the same burn rate as RL-22 (correct me if Im wrong).
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sorry, your wrong. if you compare 48gr of R-19 to 48gr of R-22 the r-19 will have a faster velocity.(about 100fps difference)

Pathfinder said:
I agree RL-22 wont work in your .223 . Sometimes if you want to use one powder for two cartridges you have to make sacrifices
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too true. in the end i will probably end up using h4350 for the 6.5x55. i have some so it will be used for sure. With a max load out of a 30" barrel it should easily reach 2950fps
also varget is very hard to find here. so my idea would have been good but futile.
 
crout said:
sorry, your wrong. if you compare 48gr of R-19 to 48gr of R-22 the r-19 will have a faster velocity.(about 100fps difference)
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It would be interesting to test. Did you actually try and chrony those loads or did that come from quick load or other calculation?

That would be a pretty hot load of R-19 . (1 grain over max) . The most RL-22 I can find in any data for 140 grain bullets is 49 grains.
 
Crout - 48 gr of Re 19 is two grains over max in my manual. Suggest you give consideration to the fact that at equal pressures, Re 22 wins over Re 19, for a typical 140 gr pill. I've verified this with a chrony, a few years ago.
 
Pathfinder said:
It would be interesting to test. Did you actually try and chrony those loads or did that come from quick load or other calculation?

That would be a pretty hot load of R-19 . (1 grain over max) . The most RL-22 I can find in any data for 140 grain bullets is 49 grains.
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these are someone elses loads that they cronnied. they went much higher with no problems.
and 1 gr over max load is not a hot load. loads shown in most books for the swede are "safe" loads due to the old m96 mausers. I have actually gone 3 gr over max load in my old swede with no problems. i worked up my load and watched for signs but no problem.
 
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