22x47 Lapua vs. 6x47 Lapua plus a little data

[Fireball]

This post is for Al and smackumdown and anyone else playing with the new 6.5x47mm Lapua case.

I recently had a good friend of mine rechamber a Tikka M595 .22-250 to .22x47 Lapua. I lost about .300" of the factory barrel. I wanted to see how the cartridge compared to the .22-250 and to the 6x47 Lapua. My friend did a super job. The headspace was dead on and the new crown was perfect.

I used my old 6mmBR body die for the first stage in case forming. This took the 6.5mm neck down to .274" effortlessly. I then used a .271" bushing in my old 6mmBR type-S die to get them down to .270". Next I used my new Forster 6x47 Lapua FL sizer with no button to get them down to .267" with a perfect neck/shoulder junction. I then used a couple more .22 sized bushings in the type-S die to get my final neck diameter. These steps allowed me to make some beautiful 22x47 Lapua cases. (BTW for my 6x47 Lapua I just left the button in the Forster die and was done. That Forster die is very well made and perfectly dimensioned for the Lapua brass. The die was quite inexpensive as well at Graf's. I highly recommend this die to all who have either a 6x47 or 22x47 Lapua.)

I use CCI 450 primers for both the 22x47 and 6x47 Lapua. I learned early on that Varget seems to be a natural for both the 22x47 and the 6x47 when shooting the lighter varmint bullets. I also tried N540 but it exhibitted wide velocity swings at the upper ends. So far I have been having great success with Varget and see no need to try other powders at this point. Keep in mind I am shooting light bullets in both the 22-47 and 6x47. For heavier bullets you may want to use a slower powder.

22x47 Lapua data:

The sweet spot for the Tikka so far has been 39 gr. of Varget and a 55 gr. Nosler BT. This gives me 3760 fps out of a 22" barrel. No pressure signs at all.

6x47 Lapua data:

The 6x47 Lapua is the clear choice for the varminter between the two in my opinion. Just like the 22BR vs. the 6mmBR, the 6mm version wins hands down ballistically.

I could easily get 4000 fps using Varget with a 55 gr. Nosler BT out of a 27" barrel. The sweet spot in my rifle is 41.7 gr. of Varget with the 55 gr. BT going at 3900 fps. I had several 300 yard 3-shot groups in the 0.900" range. The largest 300 yard group was 1.4". With a 200 yard zero it drops less then 4 inches at 300 with plenty of energy left for the next few hundred yards ( I wish our local range was longer than 300). I also tried the 70s as well and could easily get 3700 fps with them and great accuracy as well. Recoil was noticibly higher however.

If it isn't too late you guys may want to do a 6x47 with a short throat and shoot the 55s or 58s rather than go with the 22x47. I have tried both and the 6x47 is the clear winner I believe. Just be sure to use the right reamer. My gunsmith used a zero freebore, 2 degree lead, .273" no neck turn on my 6x47 and it is absolutely perfect.

The re-chambered Tikka project was still fun to do as it wasn't any money out of my pocket, using the factory barrel and with my friend doing the work. It allowed us to experiment with both the 22x47 and 6x47 side by side for varminting purposes. The 22x47 Lapua is clearly a much better cartridge than the .22-250. It is more accurate and handles high pressures better. It feeds just as good as the .22-250 ever did also.

But the 6x47 is the one I have fallen in love with. It behaves just like a 6-250AI, perhaps even better. Here is a photo of the 6x47.

Oh, and if you're wondering why my rest looks backwards, any of you that shoot AR-15s know what a pain that third leg can be when it is in the normal 6 o'clock position.

[smackumdown]

thanks fireball loads of good info (as usual)

im just considering my options so it is great to hear from somebody with experiance
i was considering the 22 br for foxs but this has realy got me interested
6x47 seems like a more likely choice as the 22x47 has a huge amount of necking down for not much gain if any
and for a beginner like me i need to keep things simple to start with
if i build this it will be my first center fire rifle do you think this is a good idea or should i go with something factory to start with
thanks for the advice again

smackumdown

[Fireball]

Now that would be a story to tell your grandchildren. My very first centerfire was a 6x47 Lapua wildcat. That just has oodles of class dripping from it. Go for it. It is a very safe cartridge to work with. Lots of guardbanding in the design of the case. I just kept dumping in more powder and never once did I get any pressure signs whatsoever. A strong case, a tough CCI 450 small primer, and a very strong Panda action. Who knows how much farther I could have went. I could still lift the bolt with my pinky. A great case design.

BTW, the first rifle I ever bought was an Anschutz 54. My first hangun a P210.......

[smackumdown]

thanks again
most of my friends think im pretty obsesed at 17 ,think what ill be like when iv got grand children(if ever )
shame handguns are banned in england so much fun
iv got 77/17 vmbbz 17hmr and 22lr 10/22 volquartson carbon barrel jobby so far
smackumdown

[457ciSBC]

Over a year ago I started a 6x47 Swiss Match project and stopped. Well back in Feb. an overseas shooter sent me 100 new RUAG 6x47SM cases and some preproduction Lapua 6.5x47 brass. He was shooting the 6x47SM and told me it was easy to form 6x47SM cases from the new Lapua case.

Not wanting to use my rare as hen's teeth RUAG cases I simply took the Lapua brass and ran it into my 6BR body die and then into my RCBS 6x47SM FL die(changed to PPC decapping pin when production brass arrived), which bumps the shoulder back .036 nicely and sizes perfectly. I loaded up 15 cases the other day with a 58 gr VM and 35 grains of Varget as a starting load. My reamer has a .271 neck and .080 freebore which works with 65-107 gr bullets. My goal is to shoot the 75 gr VM on varmints and 80-95 gr bullets at paper, it should be a great companion to my 1-14" twist 6BR groundhog gun. I'm hoping that I can shoot about 37-38 grains of R15 under the 75 gr VM.

Mike

[Fireball]

Mike, I'm using 39.5 gr. of Varget with the 70s if that helps at all. This gives me 3700 fps with both the 70 BT and 70 BK. My barrel is also a 1-14", a 3-groove Lilja.

[Dave Moore]

similar only different. I'm doing a 6x47 but with a 40 degree shoulder, what Dave Kiff refers to as a 6 long dasher. It will be a Bat SV with a 1-8 twist Krieger. I'm going to shoot 105 gr. Bib's. I know it's not a small caliber but it should make for a very long range Rat Smacker. Hopefully it should be done in the next month or 2.


Dave

[Fireball]

Dave, please post here when you get it all together. I would love to hear about your results.

[AlbertaAl]

I'd also like to hear how it performs for accuracy at long range.
You shouldnt have to worry about stopping to shoot on windy days.

Anything related to LAPUA catches my eye.

I switched by barrel from 20BR to 243Ackley just today with pet load being 90Lapua Scenar over 48.0 RL19 @ 3500 fps
Coyotes are in the open fields over the 400 yard mark and need to be hit with something larger then 40grainers

[Dave Moore]

I am hooked on building a very long range rifle. I originally was going to build a 6-250 AI but when this new 6.5x47 brass came out it was a no brainer. For anything out to 500 yards the 17LN or the 20 PPC will fill the bill. It was when Rem and Ray and I were shooting at the Prairie dogs and Jackrabbit in Wyoming last year at some very long distances with Ray's 17 LN that ruined me. I was getting real close but just coudn't hit them with the 17 LN. Anyways the bullets that are available for the 6mm and their high BC will make it easier to hit something a little or a lot further out. I still love the small calibers and have some good ones but this is the first project for 07. Next may be a Vartarg improved.


Dave