Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles Confused about OACL of Nosler 6.5x55

Hello all, I recently got my first rifle in 6.5x55, and haven't even had a chance to shoot it yet. I'm not a reloader, but for the first time ever in my shooting hobby, I'm actually interested in calibers, and reading up on them. I'm hoping some of you can shed some light on something odd that I noticed.

I compared two cartridges that I have. The first is a Lapua 139 grain Scenar OTM and the second is a Nosler Trophy Grade 140 grain Accubond. The Lapua round looks like the stereotypical 6.5 Swede pictures that I see, with a nice, long heavy bullet. The Nosler Trophy Grade is actually a heavier bullet (by one grain), and the OACL is 3 millimeters shorter. My Hornady Superformance 140 grain SST is about 1mm longer than the Nosler, and 2mm shorter than the Lapua.

When I checked Nosler's own reloading data, on their website, they tested four 140 grain loads, all of which had an OACL of 3.025". Why would they make their Trophy Grade ammunition so much shorter than their test loads firing the same bullet? Heck, even the picture of a Nosler 6.5x55 with Accubond that they put on their website looks nothing like the ammo they ship out:
http://www.nosler.com/65x55-swedish-mauser

Again, I've never reloaded, but I would think that you'd want a longer OACL, so the bullet didn't have to jump so far before hitting the rifling. I've always thought of Nosler and Hornady as being good ammo, but if they are that much shorter than the Lapua, it's making me cautious.

Consistent accuracy in factory chambers. Require compromises. If you talked to the Nosler Ballistics guys. I Bet they would say, that bullet shot best at that length in their tests. So they set the crimping machine up to put the groove where it is.

Thanks Baltz, I appreciate it. I noticed that it had the groove there, it would sure look odd set out further. I didn't consider that the shorter OAL might e more accurate.