Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Long Range Hunting Who shoots the 6X47mm Lapua? How does it compare to the .243 and 6mm?

Those who shoot the 6X47 Lapua, how do you like this round?

What would you tell someone to "promote" it over the conventional/popular .243 Win or 6mmRem?

I was told the 6X47 Lapua is extremely efficient and usually VEEEERY accurate!

Also that the cartridge rim is the 'universal' .473 diam. - so this johnny-come-lately would fit the same actions (with few if any mods) to actions for the .243 and 6mm.

Please share what you know. Thanks!

I shoot a few of them and have built alot of them for others. It will outperform a 243 with slightly less powder. It does run higher pressure though to accomplish this. Very very accurate, good brass, easy to load for. I am in the process of rebuilding one of my comp rifles now and it will be a 6x47 Lapua....it was previously a 6.5x47 Lapua. We run 105 bergers from 3150-3300 depending on barrel length...26" to 30" barrels. Its downfall to 243's is the brass price, and not being able to find loaded ammo if needed.

I'm just getting to know mine. It is my first custom build, and it has take a while to get used to it, and sort it out for what it is. I'd have to say that I'm still not "comfortable" with it. I had mine built to learn long range shooting, which I've never properly investigage before. Personally, I can't think of much that it can do compared to the 243 and 6mm remington. I think that if properly built, either of those two rounds can be very accurate also (assuming they've been built with the proper twist for the 105/115gr bullets). I suggest you spend a lot of time reading up on peoples opinions prior to jumping in with both feet.

One downside it the lack of data - I've had to compile anecdotal data from severals sources to get started, and more to find what my rifle seems to like. Nearly everyone says that h4350 and the 105s are it's bread and butter load (so far, mine seems to prefer 115's and RE17). Several postings that I've read is that the 6mm BR or 6BRX will beat it out to 600yds, then the wind becomes the deciding factor. I have seen references to it needing magnum primers for the small primers to provide consistent ignition, especially in cold weather. I've also heard that bushing your firing pin isn't a bad idea due to the pressures. This is again, anecdotal

Brass is expensive, I've found Brunos to be the cheapest source to date. I'm reforming in a Forster FL die. I've 100 pcs formed, and another 100 waiting. Another cartridge in the same performance area is the 6XC (David Tubb's brainchild), which if I read things right is basically a 22/250 necked up, with a 30 degree shoulder and longer neck. He's gotten Norma to produce brass, and I hear it can be reformed relatively easy from any 22/250 brass. It uses the large rifle primer. There is no other source for 6x47L brass other than Lapua. Not sure if you can reform 22/250 to 6x47 without some serious effort. Also, be aware there is also a 6x47 Swiss cartridge that is different (not interchangeable) with brass that is nearly impossible to get outside of Europe.

I hardly classify myself as an expert, most anyone with any trigger time behind a 6x47 rifle (or any benchrest/tactical experience) will have more experience than I, but I do read voraciously anything I see about this cartridge.

Kaiser Norton

I still love the .243, not sure what advantage the 6x47mm has over it, any more than I'm sure why we have the 6.5x47 with the .260 Rem, but it's nice to have the variety!

I second the motion..what a great bunch of calibers off the same parent case 243/260/7mm-08 and 308..sorta mirrors the good ole '06 case..don't know of any two non belted cases that have spawned so many good offspring.

I've always been interested in the 6x47 because of being a 6mm fan for years.Will I ever build one I seriously doubt it ..if there's any edge it would have to come in long range competition shooting.For hunting purposes I see no practical advantage over the 243's and 6mm's IMO....

I run 115 dtacs out of my 28 inch barreled 6x47 at the same velocity I run 115 dtacs out of a 25 inch 243AI. Both are right over 3150 fps using vv 560 in both. There is not really an advantage over the 243 Ai unless it is the toughness of the lapua brass and the lack of fire forming. I have blanked primers in 6x47 brass without ruining the cases. The necks of the 6x47 lapua brass needs annealing before the primer pockets get loose. Since I do not anneal my match brass I neck it down to 22x47. Now that is a great little round....think 220 swift with lapua brass.

Go here:

http://www.6mmbr.com/gunweek084.html

A 243 AI might help the 243 w/stretch, but a 6mm Rem might be the simplest way and great performer.

The 6mm/6.5x47 is a nice round as it is, I might try one if:

A) stamped out the box brass was made
B) bbl life was better than a 243

One must not overlook a 6mmBR, not as in a 'race' against other 6mms, but in balance the total of bbl life, accuracy, ballistics, etc. It's a great round and VERY simple to load, and load w/accuracy. It won't match the 47, but if I wanted that performance, I might just do a custom 243 or 243 AI, run Lapua brass, as I believe they are cheaper yet than the 47s.

I DO think a 6mm Creedmoor, if Hornady did a 6 version, would be a very good performer.

Before the 47, many wildcatters just did a 6/250 or 6/250AI, as the 22 and 6.5 versions. Brass quality I am not sure about, but I think Norma mfg. 22/250, and perhaps Lapua even does. They run similar capacities. Now guys are also doing various versions of the 6BR, which AI'd so about 150 or more OVER the parent case, yet throttle down to 2950 w/105-108s for best accuracy.

StubbleDuck, what is your intended us of the gun?

StubbleDuck

Frankly...I can't say enough good things about my Jon Beanland built 6.5x47Lapua! Get the idea I love it?? You're right! This is built on a Rem 700 action and it shoots extremely well all the way back to 1300 yards! I've shot some 5 round groups back at 1300 yds. that I could cover with the back of my fist! Was checking hunting zeros today and confirming zeros that were set two months back and they're right on!! I have a 26" Krieger 1-8.5 ROT barrel and it shoots the Sierra 123 SMK and the Berger 130 bullets both to the same POI using 38.5 grs. Varget! Don't know the MV and don't really care as I only pay attention to what shows up on the face of the target! I've got a 4" square piece of AR400 plate on a rod and from 700 yards using either of the aforementioned bullets it's NO CONTEST at making that plate rotate every shot!! No fire-forming required using Lapua brass; just load and go shoot! Most accurate rifle/cartridge combo I've ever owned over 60 years of shooting competition and hunting and I wouldn't trade this jewel for a blue-nosed mule!!

You do not know the velocity and your making hits on targets at 1300? What did you do just make your own drop chart from actual drops?

EddyBo

After establishing a foundation zero from 200 yards I walked it right on back to 1300 using experience based on 60 years of shooting long range!

Pretty simple really!

OP, read this? http://www.6mmhot.com/

Eddy, funny Rich at Sierra told me yesterday he is running a 6x47 and 22x47, latter 80/3600 and 1" on a good day at 600 yds, 2" any day, NOT bad. 3200/107 in the 6. No info given on Bbl length. For me I want no more than 24 on a hunting rifle for how I hunt so speeds may drop a little.

107's at 3200 isn't that hard in the 6x47 with a 26" barrel. Chrono'd my 26" barrel version the other day with Berger 105's and it was 3190. We really aren't pushing this one. Could go up another grain or so.

My 6 x 47 Lapua is a 7 1/2" bat with a Bartlien barrel (83/4 to 8 gain) in a Mcmillian Tooley MBR stock smithed by Sid Goodling. Finished 2nd in light gun in the Williamsport World Open (to Jon Ammerman shooting a 6XC) and won the Pa State 1000 yard championships at Reade on October 2nd. Rifle consistently shoots into 6" at 1000 yards with decent conditions. Moderate load of 4350, Wolf SRM primers and 105 VLD's in a hard jam running about 3075 fps or so. Advantages over a .243 or 6MM are very slight but (IMHO) are there, none the less, to include excellent brass, long neck and a small primer.

Gotcha you walked it in, I have had to do the same with subsonic rounds. I cannot make a balistic program work with subs worth a darn. I am more into making first round hits at unknoown distances using a LRF and a ballistic program. To do it my way knowing your velocity is very important.

22 cal 40 grainers at 4300 are pretty cool too. There is a pretty large velocity drop stepping up to the 90s in 22 cal, but not so much stepping up to the 115s in 6mm. His experiance with the 22x47 and 6mmx 47 are very similar to my own. My hunting is always geared to long range so the longer barrels do not scare me any.

Like to hear more on your hunting experiences, with either/both rounds if you want. 22 40gr, how are they holding up I am wondering, IF you are using a fast twist bbl? Seems Steve Timm used a 22/250 AI long ago for some high speed 40s on Prairie Dogs. I would imagine after a certain range a 'heavy' would take over.

BC wins at long range, no denying that fact....but splat factor works for the 40 gr bullets at short range. I have made hits on PDs out to about 800 using the 40 gr bullets in a 14T barrel, but really like the 90s out of my 7.5 twist barrel better for long range. I killed a PD at 1400 yards with the 90 berger but it was not the one I was aiming at, does that still count? (old BR rifle I converted to a switch barrel gun with a 14T and a 7.5T barrel)
I killed a couple of pigs and a deer or two with the 22x47 using tsxs out of an 8T barrel all were pass throughs and there was sufficient damage. (Stiller predator in a robertson composits stock)
I have not hunted with the 6x47 but it is so similar to the 243 that hunting with it would not add any information.

Thanks. Recall Butch over in Tx sending me photos of a guy who shoots alot and uses the 6x47 on deer and hogs, cannot recall bullets used but he had ALOT of game down w/it. Seems he was using 107-115s. Maybe Butch will chime in.