Rem 700 VLS, 6mm rem. reload info?

jesheba

August 02, 2004 04:36

I have had great success with my 22/250 and .222 rem reloads,using spherical powder(H380,H335). I reload in large volumes and find these powders meter accurately with few adjustments.I'm using moly Hornady ballistic tip bullets in 50 and 40 grains(large rifle mag primers).My primary purpose for these reloads is for prairie dog shoots. At the 100 yard range I have been able to get 5 shot 1/2" groups with an occasional flyer. The .222Rem is an old Sako and the 22-250 a Savage mounted in a choate stock,sharpshooter trigger.I have been very lucky with these calibers and I guess spoiled.
I recently purchased the Rem.VLS 6mm Rem,installed a rifle basix trigger and mounted it in a choate varmint stock.I of course went through a pain staking "break in" session as I have done with others(non-moly bullets). In my attempts to find a reload combo that matched my smaller calibers using MOLY 75 grain Hornady ballistic tips and MOLY Nosler 70 grain ballistic tips I have been falling short.Once again I have been using spherical type powders(H380,H414).With these powders I have tried a variety of variations in oal,charges etc..My only decent group came with an H380 NON-MOLY 70grain nosler combo.I am aware of the MOLY contoversy and expect a lecture on this.
All of my rifles sport 1st class glass and mounts.The rifles are themselves mounted in their stocks properly.Any advice would be much appreciated.In particular from anyone who has tamed the same set up.The dog shoots get pretty fast and furious and the moly has let me run fifty rounds before cleaning.In addition I've managed 4-5 thousand rounds before replacing barrels.
I expect some interesting comments! Oh Boy!

Randy Summers

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  nononsense

  August 02, 2004 09:12

  Randy,
  
  Given your set up, there can be a multitude of things that could need correction. It's not there are a lot of things wrong with what you're doing, it's that there is a lot of potential for things to be wrong individually or for several things to stack up to create a problem.
  
  1) Even though your stock uses a bedding block, most don't match the contour of the receiver exactly and without stress. So I would suggest having it bedded stress free. It won't look like much since it will only be a skin coating on the aluminum but it will take the stress out of mounting the receiver. Be sure that the screws are just tight, about 45 in/lbs. The bedding on the back of the recoil lug should be square and tight yet not touching on the left/right/front/bottom.
  
  2) High quality, expensive scopes can have problems even when they are new and fresh from the factory. Switch scopes and run some tests. If you are the least bit suspicious, send it back to the factory for testing. All of the top scope makers are good about this. It's built into the high prices.
  
  3a) Light bullets generally perform better in slower twist barrels. But light bullets in faster twists are usually not a problem. However, it could be part of the problem here. Lighter can mean shorter and when you select a bullet with a boattail, the amount of surface for contact with the rifling gets much smaller. Combine this with the 9-1/8" twist and accuracy can suffer. I have found that switching to a flatbase bullet can yield better results. It doesn't sound like a big enough correction but believe me it will make a difference. Using heavier bullet, as has been suggested, can work better due to more surface contact. Suggested bullets include any Berger FB up to the 80 gr., the 85 gr. VMAX and the 87 gr. Berger LD. All of the Bergers are available with Moly if you choose. I think that the VMAX's are as well but I'd have to check to be sure.
  
  3b) The other part that goes along with the lighter bullets is case capacity. Most of us shoot lighter bullets in cases with smaller capacities. A smaller case creates a better balance between the weight of the bullet, case volume and bore capacity. When we increase the case size without increasing the bullet weight we get an imbalance. Sometimes (really mostly) this requires more testing with other powders of different burning rates. Your 26" barrel is a boon for the combination that you are working with right now. The longer length gives more space for the powder to burn. A heavier bullet takes up more space in the case, leaving less capacity and creating a better balance.
  
  4) Powder selection can bring on it's own set of problems. I understand the reasoning behind your desire to use H-380 and H-414 but I don't think that they are appropriate to the cartridge and bullets that you are testing. The 6mm Remington is a long, skinny case and bullet/powder combinations can be tougher. With the lighter bullets and a 10" twist, I use V V N-150 and AA XMR-4350. They aren't ball powders but both are easy to meter though a powder measure and are well balanced for a full case and complete burning. I switch to V V N-550 with the 87 gr. VMAX but continue with the XMR-4350.
  
  5) Moly, no lecture since I won't use it any more. 'Nuf said. My varmint shooting is no different than anyone else. Fast and furious then hopefully a short calm to do some cleaning and cooling. I take several rifles and a couple of 22 LR handguns so that no one rifle gets abused. Varminting is the only situation that I use anything on my bullets or in my barrel and that's Fastex.
  
  6) Personally, I use the ladder method to begin testing a new rifle/cartridge/bullet combination. Only after arriving at a powder weight, do I change the seating depth or length. Only change one variable at a time. I know you know this, with your background. And don't forget, sometimes a barrel just plain won't shoot a particular combination. Pick something else to try.
  
  This is long and I apologize. Let us know how things are going.
  
  Best of luck!

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