Hornady 6.5mm 123gr SST speed limit

[the Ranger]

anyone know what kind of speed these can handle? theres not many choices on the shelves in 6.5 right now but Midway has these in stock. Hornady does not give a speed range but says they are designed for the Grendel, wondering if they just blow-up if I try to shoot a deer with them loaded in .264Win mag (3,100-3,200+)?

[jb6.5]

I shot a couple deer with them out my creedmoor running 3000 fps. Killed both deer but acted like a varmint bullet. They was from 150-175 yards. Didn't exit but looked like they swallowed a grenade.

[the Ranger]

thanks for the info. they are on clearance at Midway and the price is tempting but I think I will need to avoid these.

[davemuzz]

Yeah. I have been doing some reading on the new Nosler 26 that reportedly pushes the 129gr.\130gr. bullets at 3400fps, and from the fellows who use a 6.5 cartridge that will launch a 6.5 bullet of that weight at that speed all seem to say it's better to use a bonded bullet or a partition bullet on deer. Or....like you have stated, if it's not a heavy constructed bullet, it will act like a ballistic tip....and things get pretty ugly pretty quick.

Dave

[jb6.5]

Yep, I like ib's in my creedmoor. They work great for me. I think the 1-8 twist makes it a little harder for some bullets to stay together.

[darkker]

Ranger,
"Speed limits" is a broad topic. As you mentioned, since it was designed for the Grendel; could get loose on game when pushed noticeably faster. Strictly speaking, true speed limits are when the bullet no longer operates as designed (too slow); or friction melts it. Upper sipped limits are typically around 5,000fps. What most people think are a speed limit (when bullets puff, or fragment in air) is really an RPM limit. Most of Hornady's modern bullets, have an RPM limit of about 290,000 RPM.
Your barrel smoothness will play a big role in the absolute number, of course.

[the Ranger]

well, my .264 could push this bullet possibly as high as 3,300fps, and I have spec'd the barrel with a 1:8.5" twist, gives an RPM just under 280,000. so I could probably shoot this bullet fine, but since I would be asking it to preform on medium game aswell... probably not the best choice.

[Werewolf]

Both my Hornady and Nosler manuals list an upper velocity limit for their bullets. Hornady and Nosler list the SST and the Ballistic Tip respectively with a limit of 3200 fps. Above that they lose integrity when they hit game. Their bonded offerings are listed as "unlimited".

[the Ranger]

thanks Werewolf, I did see that Nosler had a speed limit listed on the box for the BT's, so went looking on the Hornady site and could find nothing for the SST's. I'll probably end up loading the 130gr AB's as they are available locally, might order some of the 125gr Partitions to try also. I can get the 120gr BT's locally also, but I would be really pushing them at or over their limit in the .264.