Not .223 Rem or .308 Win. Probably not .270 either . . .

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The 6.5x55 would be my choice too, still have some Norma Olympic ammo (156gr RN) that I bought back in the 60s. Finn Aagard wrote a lot about the Swede back in the day, what it loses in energy, it makes up for in sectional density. Very sweet caliber to load for and shoot. :)
 
Looks like hunting rounds in 120, 126gr and target rounds in the shorter 140gs bullets are the norm for the 1/8.6" twist. CZ website doesn't list a twist rate for this rifle. Wonder if it has changed to 1/8 for the new models? Either way it is going to fill a gap between .243 and .308 very nicely. Thanks for the offer on reload advice. Will take you up on that when it gets here. Do you have a strong preference on dies or brass for the 6.5x55?
 
TEC;

I'm using Winchester brass, Sierra 140 Gamekings & CCI primers. The powder is Ramshot's Magnum at a charge weight that's worked up to - carefully. But, it's a sporter barreled hunting gun that consistently shoots .5's at a hundred. It has produced single better groups, but consistent .5's is something I'm not gonna mess with.

Ziess 3.5 - 10X mildot in Talley rings, a Rob Smith stock, checkering by Tom Stevens, blue by Dennis Erhardt and Turner Saddlery sling.

900F
 
CZ twist is 1:9. 120's will be the sweet spot. 140's will also work. Have also read where some have loaded so,e 100 grain loads for varmint work.

Lapua makes good brass. For target and practice work, Wolf Gold makes a good, cheap round. Their brass is good for reloading too.
 
Brass: I use PPU it is cheap and as good as any.
Powder: RL19 for 120-130gr and RL22 for 140gr
Dies: Lee is my preference, unlike some they know that the real 6.5x55 does not use a standard (.473") bolt face.
Bullets: 120gr Ballistic Tips (deer hunting) 129gr SST (my "one hole" target bullet) 140gr SGK, Deep Curl, and SST (Big stuff load) All those shoot great in mine, the 120gr Ballistic Tips do devastating damage to the vitals of all thin skinned game and should work just fine in your 1:9" twist, that would be my first pick.
 
Viking:
I read some sources that say 1/220 mm twist (or 1/8.6 inch twist) is the traditional metric twist rate for the 6.5x55SE CZ's, but not on an official CZ site. I don't suppose the difference between 8.6' and 9' twists will matter in any case. , I will measure it when it arrives.

My hog hunt for today got rained out. :( 3" of rain last night, and the roads on the bottom end of the farm where I was going to hunt will be impassible (sigh). The owner asked me to come another day, and I will. But my backordered Berger 168 gr VLD Hunters arrived today, so I will just do some loading instead. :D
 
Ja, Výška zbraně 210 mm (8,7 inch)

Having been rained out of my hog hunt by tropical storm Andrea which has turned the South Carolina "low country", or the traditional "swamp" (for those of you not indoctrinated to SC-speak) backroads into an impassable quagmire, I stayed home with the wife and grandchild today and did some work at the bench, young master AMC helping

YoungMasterAMC-1.jpg

Adjusted the single set trigger of the CZ-550 varmint by 1) removing it and 2) replacing it with a 2.5# Timney. In an act of derring-do gun smithery, I managed to do so without the need to curse or get on my knees to find any wayward springs or hinge pins during the installation. Having removed the action, and therefor the scope, to accomplish same, I broke out my not-oft-enuf used Weaver scope mounting kit, lapped the CZ rings, cleaned all the threads, and re-set the scope true and level with sparing amounts of blue loc-tite and a torque screwdriver. All of this involved not only use of gun smith tools, but also lubricants, solvents, abrasives, and adhesives. Not as much fun as killing hogs, but still not a bad way to spend a rainy day.

CZ550V380-1.jpg [/URL]

PS: Here is TEC's gun smithing tip of the day. Always use the un-lubricated condoms to cover the scope optics when working with chemicals.
 
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Only 2 mentions of the 270. One by the OP and another elsewhere.
I'm kinda thrown by geering on the 270 OP. It's raining 270 bullets and the caliber is an exceptional 200 yard cartridge. What's up?
 
Kachok said:
+1 on the 6.5x55 is my all time favorite without question, very flexible reloading much like the 30-06 but much more pleasant to shoot and a little more accurate in general. It is about the perfect level of power for deer hunting inside 400 yards though it's effective range can extend well beyond that. 7mm-08 is a fine choice too, but the reason I prefer my 6.5x55 is because even when component crunches hit I can use everything from W748 to H1000 without skipping a beat, and it matter little if I have to change from interlocks to hot cores or whatever the Swede shoots everything great, load development is simply picking one out of the book and dialing the scope in.
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I agree with this man 100%.

Add a 6.5x55 to the line up.
 
Mohave-Tec said:
Only 2 mentions of the 270. One by the OP and another elsewhere.
I'm kinda thrown by geering on the 270 OP. It's raining 270 bullets and the caliber is an exceptional 200 yard cartridge. What's up?
Click to expand...

Well, the 270 II a popular hunting round indeed, and widely available, yes, also true. The problem is that it is an over bored cartridge that will rather quickly burn out the throat of the rifles chamber if you use it for any sort of recreational target shooting and don't take care to let the barrel cool several minutes between shots. Since I typically spend many more weekends at the range than in the woods or fields hunting game (wish it weren't so sometimes), the 270 is too much bullet for me.

Look at the calipers the military uses and those competitive BR shooters use. Here's why, I think:

http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/2011/04/overbore-cartridges-a-working-definition/

The 6.5x47 Lapua was on my list, but those are mostly custom rifles. The CZ rifles I own have been fantastically accurate out of the box and fun to shoot in general. So in a medium volume cartridge, ~ 6.5 cal, there was an obvious logical choice, IMO. That certainly isn't meant to be a snub on the 270 or those who like the cartridge. The 6.5x55 just fits my purpose better. It should be a capable hunter and a good recreational center fire.


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Still waiting

No word yet on expected delivery date, but that hasn't stopped me. I have a new Weaver Classic V-Series, 6-24X42mm AO, ballistic-X reticle. Pretty good quality Japanese glass at a reasonable price. Hornady Custom full-length 2-die set, w/ shell holder, and will also be looking for a neck/shoulder bump die. I have 100 new Lapua 6.5x55 brass ordered, arrives in 2 days, and 50 Nosler 140 gr ballistic tips in hand. Plan also to lay in some 120 grainers when I get back to the LGS next.

In the meantime, my son-in-law has built me a poodle gun from his spare parts. He's going to swap the carry handle for a flat top and mount a red dot for me to. At least I can plink away with it in the meantime while waiting for the new CZ. :)

2013-07-2095202729.jpg

Never owned an AR before. Hear they're fun.
 
Midway has 6.5 Creedmoor brass, dies and bullets in stock. Gets my vote. Ruger and Savage both currently chamber rifles in it.
 
Well, one of the fundamentals of good shooting, I always thought, was to focus on the front sight. I think that might be more challenging than usual with your new rifle.
 
TEC;

If those Nosler 140's don't shoot for you, I'll suggest the Sierra 140's, part #1730. I've also got a box of Lapua brass knockin' around here, but with the Winchester cases producing the accuracy they are, I'm very leery about messin' with success.

I'm using the Redding competition die set with the micrometer bullet seating die. That set is indeed more expensive, but man am I getting the results to justify it.

900F
 
I'd second the lever gun recommendation. A 30/30 or perhaps a 44 or 357.
Both will take deer within 100 yards, easy to reload, and ruger makes bolt guns for each
 
Unless I am mistaken, 6.5 Creedmore is different from 6.5x55 SE and won't shoot in a rifle chambered 6.5x55 Swedish Mauser, irrespective of Midway's in stock items.

Haven't heard anything bad about Lapua brass, so what the heck -- having ordered up 100 in 308 and 100 in 223, I just added another 100 of the Lapua in 6.5x55 and done with it. I will keep the Lapua segregated and see how it does.

I will no doubt be looking for some better dies, starting with a neck sizing/bump die (Forster?) and will no doubt pick up some additional 6.5x55 SE brass along the way. But for now, I will make due with the Hornady dies to size and expand the necks initially, and the seating die w/ calipers until after the rifle arrives and all the Lapua has been fire formed. I plan to do the fire forming concurrently with a very careful break in of the new barrel, after an initial thorough cleaning.

Wanted to have at least 50 rounds of something ready and on my shelf, since I know I will want to mount the scope and get started soonest, when the new addition arrives. Will read up some more and figure out my starting loads. I do have an untouched 1-pound "can" of Reloader 19 that might be worth a try starting around 40 grains for the 140 Noslers.

Anticipation . . .
 
260 Rem (aka 6.5-08 A-Square) and 6.5 Creedmore are two great cartridges based on the .308 case and 6.5mm bullets that give a similar trajectory to the .300 Win Mag. The Creedmore is currently loaded by two companies, the .260 by only one. The Creedmore requires special brass, while the .260 brass can always be necked up from .243 brass which is plentiful and has market staying power (or necked down from 308).

Both have great performance in the 140 gr and below bullet range (a shorter higher pressure 6.5x55 equivalent). At 160 grains the 6.5x55 pulls ahead in both cases. The 260 has slightly more power capacity. The Creedmore has slightly less taper and a 30 deg shoulder vs 20 deg. It seems to be a bit more efficient doing the same with less powder. If you are using it in an automatic like the AR-10 with long bullets, you need to pick a relative short ogive for the longer 260 vs the shorter Creedmore case.

Mike
 
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TEC;

In my experience with another caliber, be very careful with that RL19. I loaded with it for years, hundreds of rounds downrange with excellent accuracy and single-digit S/D's. Then, different powder lot & KABOOM! I didn't get hurt & the gun was inspected by the manufacturer's warranty gunsmith & pronounced to be undamaged, but the pressure excursion was estimated to be well in excess of 80,000 psi! PM on way.

900F
 
I do reload, and I have both a 6.5x55 Swede and a 7mmWSM. I have about given up on .30 cal. and (of course) .223/5.56 bullets. But throughout the past few months, I have been able to continue loading and shooting both the Swede and the 7mm. When brass got scarce, I could still find new 6.5x55 Norma brass online (Midway).

Brass is perpetually scarce for my .257 Roberts, to the extent that the last I bought was 7x57 Mauser, which I necked down for the Roberts.
 
6.5x55 has been mentioned. I still see 257 Roberts and 7x57. Locally they've been available while more popular rounds disappear.
 
I do reload, and I have both a 6.5x55 Swede and a 7mmWSM. I have about given up on .30 cal. and (of course) .223/5.56 bullets. But throughout the past few months, I have been able to continue loading and shooting both the Swede and the 7mm. When brass got scarce, I could still find new 6.5x55 Norma brass online (Midway).
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In .30 cal, I found a source of 160-grain LeveRevolution bullets -- designed for the .30-30, but they seem to work well in .308 in my Savage Model 99 and in my .30-40 Krag.
 
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