Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters 6.5 SAUM Hype

I give up.....you guys know way more about the cartridge than I do.

Others were building them, but GAP seems to have perfected the design with some tweaks here and there that make it all come together in a much better package. Others who built them early on seemed to report little nagging problems, but George figured out what makes it run best (throating, leade, chamber, dies, etc).

yup and I think they are awesome

yup and I think they are awesome

Its the internet , everyone knows more than everyone , and facts mean something other than the truth , its magic , better off just looking at T&A , at least youll feel good when you are done looking

Hey not so fast!


If Pat says the cartridge is good, that's good enough for me.No need to inquire further.

Yeah, but I don't think that George dude knows how to build rifles....

Chuckle....

If there is anyone here that knows rifles and how to hit things at long range under field conditions better than Pat, I wish someone would be kind enough to point them out to me.

Add me to the list of folks waiting for commercial brass to be available!

I never doubted George or Pat. I know they are both honest good to go guys. They also most likely forgot more then I know. So anytime they post I read and take notes.

So here is my parts list either on hand or already ordered:

Stiller Predator Action .308 bolt face
Bartlein SS 1-8t 6.5mm Rem Varmint contour
JEC Muzzle Brake
Seekins DBM Bottom Metal
Seekins Low Mounts 6/4
Bushnell LRHS 3-12X44 scope
McMillan HTG Stock GAP Camo

I don't understand why some people cannot grasp the pressure concept here. Yes 308 winchester is saami rated for 62K but who loads to that pressure? Hodgdon shows starting loads in the 42K range and max loads in the 58-59K range. There are a couple at 61K but these are fast powders being used and not optimum. I would guess also that factory ammo is loaded in this lower range also.

As far as brass - remington brass in my opinion is only average in quality. The Norma brass that I am using for my saum is stouter and because of this will hold less powder, but more than that it tells me that by comparing the two different makes of brass that the remington brass is just their ordinary run of the mill brass, and it was not designed as some super pressure holding vessel as is being suggested above. And then this all comes full circle back to the point that if there is nothing special with the brass and primer pockets are tight with 15 reloads then the pressures have to be lower. No remington brass has a long life with high pressure loads. I learned this in my 37 years of handloading.

Its all stupid simple and once somebody does post some pressure data on the saum I am sure someone will discredit them or their testing criteria or some other BS!!

I have one, do you???

All this "hype" got me back out to the range.......A bit frosty, but dead calm this morning.



I put 32 rounds on steel, then shot the last 18 at 200. Now I'll load this brass for the 19th time. Round count: 2288.

Black bears beware.........

Is that a 26" barrel?

24". Vias brake adds about an inch. Recoil feels about like a .243 of the same weight without a brake.

Excellent. I was hoping that 24" would be good to go. I will have a JEC brake on mine. I am looking forward to getting mine built.

That thing is a Laser.

I'm hoping my comp rifle shoots as good.....130 JLK's at 3300 should clip a few extra targets in the wind. That barrel will be 27".

rifleman700,

As noted in my earlier post, I absolutely trust everything Pat is saying, including the velocities he's getting from his 24" barrel, and the long brass life and barrel life.

The only thing I questioned was the claim from others that this is due to lower pressures, because of the 3100 fps with 140-grain bullets from 24" barrel. And so far nobody has provided any proof of the pressures, other than long brass life.

I've had very different experiences with my batch of 7mm SAUM than you say I should. I'm still using some of the same brass obtained when my 7mm SAUM was new, 11 years ago, and haven't had any problems, even when some of the loads tried exceeded listed handloads that are rated at 63,000+ psi.

I just looked up some pressure-tested data from Ramshot/Accurate for the .264 Winchester Magnum, using Accurate Magpro and Ramshot Magnum powders and various 140-grain bullets. Not a single load exceeds 3100 fps from a 24" barrel, and all the loads listed are 63,000+ psi.

Now, over the decades there have been many claims made about special cases that got more velocity than their powder capacity would indicate. These have been made about both wildcats and commercial cartridges, but every time the cartridges have been tested electronically, by either strain gauge or piezo, the pressures the magic loads have produced have all been a lot higher than the inventors claimed--even when no other indication of excessive pressure appeared. This is because most brass doesn't start to show any signs until around 70,000 psi, and some will go even higher.

I just measured the water capacity of fired 7mm SAUM and .264 Winchester cases filled to the mouth. The SAUM held 74.5 grains and the .264 87.4 grains. I'd like to know how the 6.5 SAUM gets the same sort of velocities as the .264 at even less pressure, when the SAUM holds only 85% as much powder.

If it does, it would be the first time in ballistic history something like that occurred. Which is why I am VERY interested in actual pressure data from the 6.5 SAUM.

Pat, do most comps you compete in not worry too much about the impact velocities on steel? I remember seeing some regs that had like a 3100fps muzzle velocity ceiling? I know I wouldn't want to be a piece of AR-500 in front of that...grin

130 JLKs at 3300 is just ridiculous. Almost unfair!

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