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A "third" caliber, but not to reload for...suggestions.

G

GentleBen

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Minuteman
Apr 19, 2011
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Baton Rouge, LA
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I shoot and reload for .223 and .308 but would like an in-between caliber (light recoil preferable but not imperative) that I would not have to invest more new reloading gear and learning curves into. In other words, a caliber that I would be able to buy affordable and available factory ammo for -- times like this not considered, nothing is cheap or available.

I've looked at .243 and .260 a bit. I am of the opinion that 6mmPPC, 6mmBR, 6.5mm and 7mm are best suited for hand-loading.

Anything realistic that I am missing out there (I already have a pair of 22lr). Shooting is mostly for sport, target and not particularly real long range. Not a hunter, but do like to shoot varmint.

Would most probably buy Tikka T3, Savage, Rem or whatever you all might suggest that I am overlooking. Would like to keep it at a target price of $800 or less. Good glass I have coming out my wazoo.

Kind of just not sure. Ideas?
 
260 is also a handloaders caliber. There is no good factory ammo for it (only some watered down hunting grade crap).

No idea on 243 in terms of factory ammo.

Though I'm not sure why you don't want to reload for a new caliber, the accuracy of reloads is SOOOO much better then factory stuff.
 
Its 243 then.

Good for varmint with available ammo. Wide choice like the 308.

I also have 223 and 308 so I think you already have the two best calibre's to avoid reloading. If it was me I would save the money and buy some 308 110gr ammo, you are fortunate in that you can get cheap stuff of go to Hornaday TAP. Recoil goes with weight (crudely) so that should be in 243 recoil range. It will not have as good a BC, but if you are not shooting way out there it will not make any difference. 125gr is also a possibility.

So this only leaves a weight gap between say 62gr and 110gr. If that is imperative you will need to 243.

In fact I think I will go get some 110gr, Thanks for reminding me
 
"affordable and available factory ammo" lol


Maybe get away from a rifle and get a cheap model 870 and shoot some clays

Bulk shot shells are still pretty cheap and available.
I found target loads for $50 a case .

just something to think about
 
It's not in between a .223 or .308 which I agree are the best calibers to have if you don't reload, but a quality.22 long rifle would be in my list of "must have" calibers. I really don't see the need for anything in between what you have, the gaps I see are more over and under Under being short range, quiet and cheap aka .22LR and over being out past 1,000 which a .243 or .260 could do but I don't know what kind of quality ammo selection you would have since you don't reload. I would suggest a 30-06 or .300 WM if you wanted off the shelf match ammo in a different caliber than you all ready have. I don't get why you would limit yourself to factory ammo though when you have stated you are already set up to load .223 and .308. All you really need is a set of dies and then components. Dies are relatively cheap, especially when your alternative is buying factory ammo. If you insist on cheap factory ammo you could look at 7.62x54R, which is going to overlap your .308, but you could get a nifty Mosin Nagant that would be relatively inexpensive and fun to shoot. I bought dies and brass for my sons Mosin Nagant and found while I could definitely load more accurate ammo, it is difficult to reload it cheaper than I can buy it. What are you wanting to do now that you can't do with your .223 or .308?
 
I would check out the 6.5 Creedmoor. Its very factory ammo friendly. Even in this environment you can still find it. Don't have to reload it either! That brass sells like beer at bar!
 
I would go 22-250 in that window, but as stated above I don't see the point in filling that gap. Unless your .223 is an auto and in that case you might want to consider just a bolt action .223.
 
I'll second the 6.5 Creedmoor. So many good choices the 22-250 and the 243 both do a good job as well. You sure you only want one???????
 
If you do choose a 6 or 6.5 mm, your 308 will get really lonely! If you really don't want to reload for this rifle, I would suggest the Creed, as Hornady does a great job of making their factory ammo.
 
If you already reload, why would you not want to for this caliber? Reloading for .243 or .260/6.5 Creed is no different than .223 or .308. H4350 is used in both .243 and .260 with great results, get some brass and dies enjoy. Look up 2-3 loads that everyone uses, load 5 rounds of each and see which your rifle prefers. Done. I don't think there is much match/target ammo out the .243. Hornady does make good 6.5 Creed which would be the cheapest option in factory ammo for any caliber you are looking at.
 
Thanks for all the great ideas. If I choose an "in between" caliber it will probably be the 6.5 Creedmoor -- if I can find the right one; or a moderately priced .243.

I'm pretty much dedicated to researching and reloading for precision .223 and .308 -- so it takes up a lot of my time and my stocks of brass, bullets, powder and primers which are considerable and will weather this latest drought (but it's going to be a dry one). So it is really just my choice that I want a different caliber to occasionally shoot and not bother with the reloading.

I do really like the suggestion of reloading my .308s for lighter weight bullets, 110 to 125. I guess it's kind of like shooting 35gr and 40gr in the .223.

What would be a good brand buy in 6.5 Creedmoor? Barrel length and twist?
 
I've been a little crazy with the ershaw posts lately but after my cousin got his I wish I could go back a few years and start over. Its a nice lookin rifle and you can customize it a little. I'm not gonna say its a one holer but it shoots very well.
 
Focusing on your "factory ammo" request, there is no ammo to be found locally for .308 or .223, but for some reason there is still a ton of .270 on the shelves both at Academy and Walmart. Don't know if it's just a local coincidence, but it's they way it is here....
 
What's one more caliber to reload? Dies and a few components?


Anyway I'd go 6.5 CM. Good factory ammo and lots of reloading info if you end up going that way.
 
Since you do not want to reload for this third caliber then I think 243 is your only real option. I fits your reqs for being in between 223 and 308, its light recoil, and most importantly, there is a lot of ammo available for it.. even during these short supply panic periods we run into every few years. I would think 6.5 CM would be difficult to find.. I never see it on shelves except for Cabelas. You would have to order all your ammo online.. which is fine but requires planning.

Some other possibilities:
270 (although the recoil is not much less then your 308)
257 Roberts (kinda rare now)
25-06
6mm rem (kinda rare now)

Some down sides to the 243:
A bit of a barrel burner
Since you already have a 308.. you'll have to pay extra attention so you don't accidentally load a 243 into your 308 ;)



As someone who loads for a number of different calibers (223, 260, 30-06, 7.62x54r, 8mm Mauser... and Im sure something Im forgetting) I can appreciate the desire to not add to your reloading workload. Thats what my 10/22 is for.. except now you can't find that either :(

I've been thinking about picking up another rimfire.. maybe 17hmr to fullfill that "break from reloading" caliber :)
 
Last edited:
I went ahead and ordered a 6.5 Creedmoor -- actually I had my gunsmith redirect my custom .308 build to a 6.5 Creedmoor build so that I could justify loading for another caliber.

I will just scale back on my .308 reloading and sell a lot of my stockpiled .308 brass and bullets.
 
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