Tag Archives: firearm

CHOOSING A 6.5MM CARTRIDGE By Craig Boddington

The 6.5mm Creedmoor is a great cartridge…but it isn’t the only 6.5mm cartridge out there. We all know the 6.5mm Creedmoor is the hottest thing since sliced bread, right now, except the 223 Remington, our hottest-selling centerfire cartridge. And the greatest cartridge phenomenon I’ve seen in my career. The Creedmoor is different because its popularity isn’t based on marketing hype. Developed as a long-range target cartridge, its introduction was soft and its designer, Hornady, had limited expectations. The Creedmoor won matches right out of the starting gate, but it actually fizzled along for several years. Then, suddenly, it took off and, so far, hasn’t looked back. The 6.5mm Creedmoor is accurate, efficient, mild in recoil, and with its short case is able to utilize the long, aerodynamic bullets currently in fashion, from a short action. There are quite a few cartridges in the middle tier of “fast” 6.5mms. All of these will at least approach 3000 fps with a 140-grain bullet, and certainly with a 130-grain slug. Left to right: 6.5mm Remington Magnum, 6.5-.284 Norma, 6.5-06 (wildcat), .264 Winchester Magnum, 6.5mm SST (proprietary).

There are quite a few cartridges in the middle tier of “fast” 6.5mm’s. All of these will at least approach 3000 fps with a 140-grain bullet, and certainly with a 130-grain slug. Left to right: 6.5mm Remington Magnum, 6.5×284 Norma, 6.5-06 (wildcat), 264 Winchester Magnum, 6.5mm SST (proprietary).Suddenly the .26-caliber (bullet diameter .264-inch) is in. This, in itself, is odd because this bullet diameter is hardly new. Back in the 1890s, at the dawn of smokeless powder, a number of 6.5mm cartridges were developed for military use, primarily for European powers. Several became popular sporting cartridges, not only in Europe but also over here. Some, such as the 6.5×54 Mannlicher-Schoenauer and 6.5×55 Swedish Mauser, are ballistic equals to the 6.5mm Creedmoor…especially if modern propellants and bullets are used. Up through the 1930s America’s sporting press was full of references to early 6.5mms, but their use dwindled and almost faded away.

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204 RUGER: THE BEST VARMINT CARTRIDGE? By Craig Boddington

It was a perfect setup for prairie dogs; we had a big shade tree to our left, three of us in line on portable benches, with a big colony stretching away before us. Stephen Shen was on the left, Gordon Marsh in the middle, me on the right. Interestingly, all three of us were shooting the 204 Ruger cartridge: Stephen a Savage 116, while both Gordon and I were shooting Ruger No. Ones, his in blue/walnut and mine stainless/laminate.

Left to right: .17 Remington, .17 Remington Fireball, .17 Hornet,
The .17s run from very fast to “medium” and all are useful but, in common, the light .17-caliber bullets hold up poorly in wind. Left to right: .17 Remington, .17 Remington Fireball, .17 Hornet,

It wasn’t universal; Bill Green was off the right, popping away and having a ball with a semi-auto 17 HMR . This was Gordon and Bill’s annual prairie dog shoot out of Cheyenne, hunting with Craig Oceanak and Nick of Timberline Outfitters. It was my second shoot with them; for Stephen, CEO of Vector Optics, his first ever. We had other rifles, 223’s and 22-250’s. However, except for Bill, who clung to his 17 HMR and walked in some amazing shots, the 204’s did the majority of the work.  There are many excellent varmint cartridges, so it struck me as unusual that three among our foursome were shooting 204’s…but I think we made good choices.

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What is a Magazine?

A magazine is a device that feeds ammunition to a repeating firearm. They are either removable or built into the gun. They load the cartridges into the firearm by the action of the gun. Sometimes a removable magazine is called a clip, but this is wrong. A clip is a device that stages cartridges to be pushed into magazines. There are many different types of magazines but the most popular magazine for hand guns is called a box; either the double stack or the single stack. The “single” or “double” refers to how the rounds are “stacked” in the magazine. The difference between the two is illustrated by the pictures below:

Firearm Magazine
Double row box magazine” by Martin MeiseOwn work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
Firearm Magazine
Single row box magazine” by Martin MeiseOwn work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

In a box single stack magazine, the ammunition is stored in a column, one cartridge on top of another. A spring is in the bottom of the magazine to push the next round into the chamber of the barrel as the firearm is fired. The magazine is made of either metal or plastic and plastic ones are sometimes transparent so it is easier to see how many cartridges are in the magazine at any time. A removable box magazine is a mechanism that can be loaded or unloaded with cartridges while detached from the firearm. It is handy because you can carry several full magazines at once then just detach the empty one and replace it with a full one without having to stop and reload a fixed magazine. This definitely speeds up the process of reloading ammunition and is very useful in shooting competitions, hunting situations, self-defense, or target practice. Continue reading What is a Magazine?