I've been thinking about an extra barrel for my SSG-3000.

I already have 6.5x55 to feed two Swedish mausers, and really like that round compared to .308.

Never shot any of the other 6.5 variants.

Wondering your thoughts about how they compare to the 6.5x55...

My range is limited to ~400 yards, and I'm not competing, just shooting for fun - but if I'm in for another barrel, would like to know the options and trade offs.

Thanks

Will 6.5x55 fit in an SSG 3000? It is longer than .308 by almost half an inch.

I picked 6.5 Creedmoor over .260 Rem for two reasons.

1. It is a little easier to load long bullets to short action magazine lengths (they pushed the shoulder back).

2. Hornady's match ammo for 6.5 CM is very accurate and, for that level of match ammo, cheap (about $26-27 per box).

400 yards or less and just for fun?


Whichever had cheaper ammo.

Benchmark offers "drop in" SSG-3000 barrels. I assumed they all work with existing SSG-3000 magazines...

A SAMPLE OF COMPATIBLE CALIBERS

22-243 6 Creedmoor 6.5 Creedmoor
243 6x47 6.5x47
260 6 REM 6.5x55
308 6 SLR 7x57
6XC 7-08

Reload?

Huh. I couldn't find anything official, but I found someone on a discussion forum saying the magazine internal length is 3.45". If that's true, that's crazy long for a .308-only rifle and the 6.5x55 will fit easily. Most of the magnum cartridges would fit in that magazine.

I am also interested in the various 6.5 loadings. I have had a stroke of inspiration hit me to have a 6.5x55 Mauser built. At the same time that my local shop had a handful of Parker Hale mausers and Husqvarna come in, they also let me have first crack at an AMT, so the project got shelved for now.

Went though the same thought process when I was building a long range prairie dog gun. Of the three the Creedmoor offers a little bit more in load velocity but does not give up much to the .260 in pure performance. The .260 uses a .308 case so if you reload you can easily make .260 brass out of .243 and .308 brass which along with .260 brass is a lot cheaper and more available than Creedmoor brass. Bullets are a wash as they both use basically same bullets with a few exceptions. Commercial ammo for the .260 if you don't reload is a little higher and is not as available as the Creedmoor. Your decision will fall down to how you will use it and feed it. For the type of shooting you mentioned I don't think you can go wrong which one you go with.

Just following because I've also been thinking about getting an extra barrel for my SSG ... I don't have a 6.5x55 but did build a Creedmoor on a Sharps Bros. 308 Jack receiver.

quote:

Originally posted by feersum dreadnaught:
Benchmark offers "drop in" SSG-3000 barrels. I assumed they all work with existing SSG-3000 magazines...

A SAMPLE OF COMPATIBLE CALIBERS

22-243 6 Creedmoor 6.5 Creedmoor
243 6x47 6.5x47
260 6 REM 6.5x55
308 6 SLR 7x57
6XC 7-08

Take a look at the 6.5 x 47 Lapua and the 6mm variant as well. I have both in bolt guns, both have been consistently accurate. Both are easy to load for as well.

The 6.5 x 47 was DESIGNED from the ground up for accuracy.

FN in MT

quote:

Originally posted by maladat:
I couldn't find anything official, but I found someone on a discussion forum saying the magazine internal length is 3.45". If that's true, that's crazy long for a .308-only rifle and the 6.5x55 will fit easily.

I agree that SSG magazines look pretty long for a .308-sized cartridge. If this internal length is correct, it keeps the 6.5x55 in consideration.

From the OP's standpoint of already having other 6.5x55 rifles, staying with this round makes a lot of sense. No need to buy other types of ammo, or different dies/brass/bullets.

OP -- the "newer" 6.5 variants will shoot similarly to your 6.5x55. Maybe with the slightest touch more recoil, as they will generally be loaded a bit hotter than your Mauser ammo. At the minimum, all of the newer 6.5s will shoot as least as accurately as yours. Most likely they will shoot noticeably more accurately than your Mausers. If you're into precision competition, this could be very important. If you're just plinking away at home, it probably won't make any difference.

Google "6.5mm shootout" or "6.5mm caliber comparison" for information among the three chamberings. In steel/tactical matches, all three chamberings effectively work equally well. Whether or not you reload has an effect on which chamberings remain viable.

My .260 consistently ran about 50 fps faster than my 6.5 Creed does with Prime ammunition. Both had Krieger 26" barrels.

I would start by measuring your bolt face.

quote:

Originally posted by swage:
My .260 consistently ran about 50 fps faster than my 6.5 Creed does with Prime ammunition. Both had Krieger 26" barrels.

The 6.5 Creedmoor is a touch slower than .260 Rem because it has a bit less case capacity because they pushed the shoulder back a tad to make it easier to load long bullets to short action magazine lengths.

I believe 6.5x47 Lapua has the shoulder pushed back even more than the 6.5 Creedmoor.

To the average shooter the biggest benefit of 6.5 Creedmoor is good availability of inexpensive high quality match ammunition (Hornady's AMAX loads). The biggest benefit of the 6.5x47 Lapua is the availability of Lapua brass (which everyone seems to agree is the best available) for the reloader.

6.5 Creedmoor reloaders can now choose among brass from Hornady, Lapua, Norma, and Nosler.

6.5 Creedmoor factory match ammo options now include Hornady, Federal, Prime, Norma, Nosler, Winchester, and Atomic. Hornady's quality match ammo with Amax bullets has been replaced with their slightly better ELD-M bullets. It appears all the other factory options use HPBT bullets.

Wow, somehow I missed that Lapua had started making 6.5 CM brass. It looks like they've added a few new cartridges since the last time I looked.

The SSG3000 is based on, and uses essentially the same action as the SIG 200STR, popular as a target rifle in scandinavia. The 200 STR is most commonly chambered in 6.5x55, hence the long action and magazine length found on the SSG3000. It makes it pretty easy to chamber it for any cartridge with a similar head diameter to the .308.

We have 1 Howa, 1 SAKO and 3 Ruger 6.5x55's.

it has slightly greater powder capacity than the others and if strong actions are had, can produce performance similar to the old .256 Newton.

But that might be the trouble.

First, if you have 'hard-action' old Swede 6.5's, you might not want to mix ammo.

I'm kind of a stickler for silliness like that so I sold my Swede 6.5's and made the move to strong-action 6.5x55's exclusively. The caliber is really excellent. My son and I have killed elk and deer with the things, along with coyotes and ground squirrels. Couldn't be happier.

quote:

Originally posted by maladat:
Will 6.5x55 fit in an SSG 3000? It is longer than .308 by almost half an inch.

I picked 6.5 Creedmoor over .260 Rem for two reasons.

1. It is a little easier to load long bullets to short action magazine lengths (they pushed the shoulder back).

2. Hornady's match ammo for 6.5 CM is very accurate and, for that level of match ammo, cheap (about $26-27 per box).

https://www.midwayusa.com/prod...-eld-match-box-of-20

Another advantage to .260 is that you can rebarrel a rifle (in .308) to .260, using the original bolt.

quote:

Originally posted by DamageInc:
Another advantage to .260 is that you can rebarrel a rifle (in .308) to .260, using the original bolt.

It's my understanding that .260 Remington, 6.5 Creedmoor, and 6.5x47 Lapua all use the same bolt as 308. Same thing for a number of chamberings -- .243 Winchester, 6 Creedmoor, 6x47 Lapua, 7-08 Remington, plus a few others.

From this standpoint, none of the short-action 6.5s have an advantage or disadvantage over the others.