New Ruger American 6mm Rem.

[mshootnit]

Just finished unboxing and setting up this new Ruger American limited in 6mm Remington. I was really happy to find that Ruger released a limited run in this chambering. A couple interesting things to note: There are apparently differences between mine and some other 6mm Rem . Americans. First, the magazine on some pictures I have seen is a special mag, fat on the bottom, but mine is a standard staggered 308 / 243 mag. Second the barrel is marked "6mm Rem" while other pics I have seen are marked simply "6mm". I really like this rifle. The stock is FDE honeycomb forend. When torqued down the barrel is free floated, however favoring the right side, so not perfectly centered. You can pinch it over whilst tightening it down and provide a temporary fix for that. The rifle comes with a plain black picatiny rail, not the "Ruger" marked hybrid rail found on other American Predators. The trigger is adjustable via a front screw. I lightened mine by backing out over half a turn. There is some creep, with a pseudo second stage followed by a good clean break. I may splurge for the Timney. The rings I chose are the Vortex Pro Series 1"aluminum rings, made in the USA. The rings are nice as they have the torque specifications right on the ring. The scope is a VX-3i 4.5-14X40mm duplex. I held this scoped combo in one hand and held my new 20" lightweight Del-Ton build (carry handle) in the other and weight was almost identical, the Ruger maybe a slight bit heavier for your reference, so very light weight.
I can't wait to get in some Berger 95 gr. Classic Hunter bullets, and get down to loading for this.

 

[Ks5shooter]

Great caliber and you cant go wrong with the Leupold VX3i

 

[Riomouse911]

Cool, glad to see the old 6mm Rem isn't completely dead.

Let us know how it shoots .

Stay safe.

 

[mshootnit]

more info on the Ruger American Predator 6mm Remington.
Using the Stoney Point OAL/ comparator gauge:
90 gr. Accubond = 3.463" to the lands on my comparator gauge.
100 gr. Sierra Game King 1560 = 3.453" to the lands measured with comparator gauge
This is right at 0.025" shorter throat than my Pac Nor 6mm.
However, maximum mag length on the comparator is 3.405" with COAL of approx 2.820" with the aforementioned 100gr. bullet. So the closest we will be getting to the lands with the 100 gr. is 0.048" as a repeating rifle with that bullet.
AND; 2.815" COAL might be better in terms of sure function out of the mag.
NOTE: for reference only. Use your own measurements for your own reloading projects.

 

[tbs]

My first varmint rifle was a 6mm Remington 788 left hand. Unfortunately it developed too much head space and i let it go. My load at the time was a case full of H4831 and the 80 grain Remington power-lock hollow point. I really miss that rifle and cartridge!

 

[jmr40]

I wasn't aware that they had ever offered the gun in that cartridge. At any rate the American's in any other cartridge have been pretty good. The only one I've ever shot that wasn't excellent was one of the Ranch versions in 5.56. And it wasn't bad.

The original magazines were 4 round rotary mags. Those were mostly good, but had enough issues that a lot of guys bought the magazines meant for 450 BM. They seemed to work just fine with any of the 308 size cartridges. I'm not exactly sure when Ruger changed but the newest versions all have 4 round staggered magazines now and they are a huge improvement over the original.

 

[mshootnit]

A couple years ago they did one in 25-06 also.

 

[rust collector]

It's good to see new guns chambered in 6mm Rem, even if it was a short run. That was my first centerfire, and it never disappointed me. It still has a lot to offer.

I wasn't aware that it would be available, so got a predator chambered for 6mm Creedmoor. No disappointment there either. I will always be a big 6mm fan, regardless of the case configuration.

 

[sparkyv]

Oh man, another to add to "The LIST".

I still have mine.

My first varmint rifle was a 6mm Remington 788 left hand. Unfortunately it developed too much head space and i let it go.

 

[22250Rem]

Cool, glad to see the old 6mm Rem isn't completely dead.

Let us know how it shoots .

Stay safe.

......... My sentiments exactly......... Nice to see some revival of that cartridge even if it's a limited run. A buddy has a circa 1958 Remington Mod. 722 in that chambering. Got it from another friend of mine who took a few deer with it in the years he had it. I've been reloading for him, have shot the rifle and I'm liking that cartridge a lot more now. It would be nice if that limited run of Ruger Americans sells out quickly and they re-introduce it.

 

[mshootnit]

I tried to do a decent range session, but the weather intervened. I believe a front came over because winds went from less than 10 to about 25 mph instantly. I couldn't shoot for groups because of this, also my neglect to bring my rifle rest (had to use a pack) and trying to get used to the ergos of the light straight rifle stock.
The rifle is showing promise with Winchester factory 100 gr. first two shots were one half inch apart at 100m. Third shot was about 1 " to the right. With a light rifle like this pulling a shot is easy to do. Also shot the Federal 100 gr. and Remington 100 gr. but as I stated, one could not get a real idea of accuracy today. In spite of the poor conditions, and my poor shooting, groups were about 1.5 moa.
Taking the Winchester out to 200 meters (220 yd) on a 3"X6" target produced three consecutive hits, even with the moderate/strong wind which was slightly crossways. Great performance!
The Remington 100 gr. recoils noticeably less than the other loadings which "buck" a little harder. Leads me to think the Rem. load is a little mild, however in several of my 6mm's it is the most accurate or close to the top and consistent with few if any flyers.
First Assessment: The rifle shot 3 types of factory ammo with very good consistency. A good rest and good technique are essential for shooting a light, straight rifle like this. This is a hunting rifle, not a target rifle, and it does provide very consistent and dependable performance at a very reasonable price.