Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Best Powders for 6.5 PRC?

Hey JB. I know you have written on the 6.5 PRC when it first was released. If you had to write a list of the top 5 powders for that round using 130 - 147 grain bullets what would they be. I ask for 5 due to scarcity of powder up here in Canada. Thanks in advance.

I’m using R26,

Have on hand H1000. IMR 7977, Magpro and Magnum if I ever run out

R-26 or Retumbo, Both work great for me, Watch R-26 if it's real hot out, it spikes real fast. Rio7

The best powders for the 6.5PRC have been VERY hard to find lately.

H4831SC, H1000

Ramshot Magnum is working well for me.

Sorry not so answer you sooner--probably because I got caught up in the two "what ever happened to Jim...." threads.

I first handloaded the 6.5 PRC in 2018, for an article in the Hodgdon Annual Manual they'd assigned me. Ron Reiber was the head ballistician then (he's since retired) and sent me all the data they'd worked up, but noted in an e-mail that "IMR 8133 and Retumbo were stars in this critter." Which is exactly what my shooting showed. I ended up using Retumbo for my hunting handloads, as in my rifle (a custom Remington 700 by Charlie Sisk) it worked a little better than 8133.

Of course, unless you have some 8133 on hand, it's not available any more--at least for the time being. Haven't tried Magnum because I have a good supply of Retumbo--though probably eventually will, thanks in part due to what Lee Woiteshek reports. Have not tried Reloder 26 because after considerable experimentation with it in other rounds at different temperatures, I haven't found it to be the Wonder Powder many report.

I want to add that I've only used 124 grain Hammer Hunters in my loading. 61.0 grains gave me 3100 fps out of a 1/8 twist Cooper in the 6.5 PRC. In that gun, when I'm on my game it will shoot in the .2's for three shots. Using the same bullet in the 6.5 Creedmoor out of another Cooper with the same twist I get the 2870 fps with .2 groups, 3 shots, with 38 grains of Varget. Unfortunately, I was skunked this year and I am unable to report on the effectiveness of the Hammers.

H1k, rl26

I hear N565 is the bee’s knees for 143 eldx

I’m using Reloder 26 for 156 EOL.









P

Anyone using Magpro in a 6.5 PRC?

No, but according to Ramshot/Accurate powders data the velocities look good, almost identical to Magnum. You can find them on this website--https://ramshot.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/WesternPowdersHandloadingGuide8.0_WEB.pdf--or in Hodgdon's on-line data.

That said, some handloading hunters (including me) aren't as obsessed about squeezing every possible bit of muzzle velocity out of a cartridge anymore. Instead we're looking for consistent velocity (and accuracy) over a wide range of temperatures, especially if we hunt in places where temperature can vary widely. Just about any modern rifle powder will produce pretty much the same results in temperatures from the 20s to 80 Fahrenheit, but many do not.

Magpro is one that does not, both in my experience and that of the guy who was head of the ballistic lab at Western before Hodgdon bought the company.

I had unexplained flyers with Reloader 23. Thought it was something I was doing wrong, but someone on youtube using a different brand of rifle with the same twist had the same problems I had.

Reloader 26. Best groups and velocity in my Bergara

That’s been my experience with RL-26 and 270 WSM. I’ll get a decent group and then bam a crazy flyer. I gave up and went back to Magpro for it. I will be using it in other cartridges though.

Ive tried several different bullet brands and weights. Retumbo is and has been the most consistent performer for me. I'm now using it under 129 ABLR. Fantastic accuracy and a real performer on game.

What kind of velocity you getting with the 129s ?

I'm getting 3040 with the 139 Scenar and rl26