Reply With QuoteNice looking carbine. It's nice to" break in" a new addition. That doe should be a great eater.
I've been intending for several weeks to get up to my son, Sam's place to thin the herd a little but with one thing and another we ran the clock down to the final weekend of the extended anterless-only season. We've had several days, including one earlier this week that were picture perfect Texas hunting weather - clear blue skies, upper 60s during the day dropping fast at dusk to 30 degrees overnight - but we had to settle on a clear, not too windy, 40 degree day. Aside from being a little chilly in the stand, it really couldn't have been better and that cold is much better for getting one on the ground and not having to worry about any deterioration while waiting for another to show up. :)
Since we planned on an evening-only hunt, I showed up about 2 in the afternoon, ready to hit the stand. I had decided to "break in" my 6.8 SPC Contender rig. I've only shot it at the range and was eager to see how the 110 grain V-Max Hornady factory ammo stacked up IRL, so to speak. I've got handloads with that bullet that shoot marginally more accurately but the factory stuff has been under an inch consistently and has better velocity for a no-brainer, no hold-over 200+ yard range. We got a few things sorted and finally headed toward the stand on foot a little after 3:00. The walk isn't far down a gravel road that winds through a wooded low-water crossing before skirting the open field where the feeder is. I knew that we'd have a look at the feeder from the end of the pasture before we got to the stand and as a matter of habit, I had a round chambered and ready to go. I've always appreciated and taken advantage of the Contender's ability to carry a loaded chamber safely and cock the hammer with no wasted motion while coming up for a shot. As soon as we cleared the crossing and approached the edge of the clearing, I saw that several deer were near the feeder milling about. Fortunately for us it seemed to be a group of all does so we didn't have to worry about being choosy as to which we could take a shot at.
We stopped short and eased back out of the sight line so I could get in position to get a clear shot. After conferring to make sure Sam wanted me to try to get one of these deer, I stepped up to a tree, got a solid rest and settled my crosshairs on the best-positioned doe. I haven't hunted with this rig and the Simmons Pro-Hunter 3-9X40 isn't as familiar to me as the scope on the rig I usually carry. I couldn't help but register that the simple plex reticle seemed to have a really heavy, fat crosshair and it crossed my mind that it might be a good project to look for a nicer scope. I didn't dwell on that thought for long, though as I found the spot just behind the shoulder that I wanted to hit. I touched off the round - plenty of range time with that gun has made the trigger pull very familiar - and saw the herd scatter and my target animal skitter and jump, making a short, ragged run before she dropped in a matter of 3 or 4 seconds. I didn't pace off the distance from the impact point to where she dropped but she just didn't go far at all.
In all the commotion, I saw that the several deer were still milling and confused and we could get another shot. I told Sam to take a shot. I wanted to be sure he got a chance to get a deer. Since we hadn't discussed it, he wasn't quite ready to shoot and had to fumble around a little to get his pack out of the way and chamber a round. By the time he got in position, the heard had disappeared into the trees. Since we still had hours before sunset, we could be pretty confident that we'd see something else before the day was out. We walked up to the road to the stand and got our stuff in place and went to check on the downed doe before we settled in the stand. It was clear from a glance at the wound that that the bullet did a good job. My shot was placed about as well as it could be, just missing the near shoulder but exiting just through the back edge of the off shoulder. Just from the placement and the clean exit, I knew what we'd find when we went to dress her out. That was a textbook heart-and-lung shot and she was dead as soon as she hit the ground.
Back in the stand, we did a little range-finding and determined that the shot was over 200 yards, probably as much as 225, something I hadn't even bothered to consider when I shot. As for the fat reticle, I decided to check the power setting on my scope and discovered it was all the way down to 3x. :D :D As I say, I hadn't hunted with this rig and just didn't go through my normal routine. Based on my time with it the range, I was able to trust the gun and the round and it all turned out just fine. It's probably the case that not thinking about any of it - scope setting, range, trajectory, trigger feel, etc - allowed me to just go on experience and instinct and get the job done. :)
We saw a few more deer that afternoon but in a position that made taking a shot a little more risky based on where the livestock were likely ranging so Sam didn't get a chance to get the second deer we wanted. When we hung my doe to gut it out, we found exactly what I expected...no lungs and half a heart. The bullet hit a rib on entrance and continued, apparently intact, to an exit between ribs and out through the off shoulder, leaving 1" hole. I suppose if that V-Max had hit solid bone in the shoulder, it might have broken up but I think it would still have scrambled enough of the vital mechanisms stop any animal in short order.
Nice looking carbine. It's nice to" break in" a new addition. That doe should be a great eater.
That's awesome...congrats! And thanks for the range report. Reading it made my feel like I was actually there.
Have had "6.8" on the brain since you and Sunny mentioned it in a thread a few months back. In a couple weeks I'll have one, but not the SPC. The .270x.225 AI should be interesting. Data is scarce, but I think I'll begin with AA2495 and the 120 grain Hornady SST and see where that takes me. I may even give the 95 grain TTSX a whirl. I'd love to try the lightweight Accubonds, but those haven't been in stock anywhere for ages. I have two bags of Nosler 140 BT grain factory seconds that I got on sale a while back and will use those for fireforming.
Congrats again on the doe!
Sunny's got the fun 6.8...That long rimmed wildcat barrel that I got rid of. It's between the SPC and the 225 case length...I think I remember trimming about .100 or .150 of 30-30 brass for it. It's got just enough capacity to make Varget and other slow powders a real option. In a way, I regret getting rid of it but with factory ammo options that will perform like this, I'm pretty okay with the SPC. :)Originally Posted by Bobby Tomek
Your 270x225 is going to be pretty amazing. When you get tired of it, you know where I am. :D
Nice, congrats! I just got a 6.8 SPC barrel a few weeks ago, not in time to work up a good load so it will have to wait until next season to get broken in.
It's better to shoot for the moon and hit the fencepost than to shoot for the fencepost and hit the ground!
You don't necessarily need to look further than that 110 V-Max...I was a little skeptical that it might be on the soft side but it plowed through. They've been extremely accurate with every powder I've tried. I've got some Factory 120 SSTs that look really promising, as well.
Congratulations! Fine looking carbine and a nice shot. I’ve had mixed results with the 6.8 SPC, but 2 of 3 end results have been satisfactory overall. I’m still scratching my head on number 3.
If I were hunting in South Texas where the deer are much bigger or if I were definitely out for a buck, I'd likely carry my 30-30 AI. That being said, at relatively close ranges, the 130 grain Hot Cor load I've been working on for the 6.8 might have pretty good traction in those situations, as well. All in all, very pleased. I've considered this a non-nonsense back up rig and it's obvious that it'll be up to the task whenever needed. :)
I'd love to hear some details if you don't mind.
I could not get any thing heavier than 120 to work in any of my 6.8s even the long, The Hornady 120 SST really shot the best and expanded well just dont shoot meat it will be pudding, Tried 110 TTSX marginal at best, I would of tried the Vmax then but we went to copper only, Trying to reduce my affliction I no longer have any .277, That 270-225 sure sounds tempting
I've only shot the 120s in the factory configuration and only a few rounds for chrony check. I didn't write down group size but I remember that it was more than acceptable and to a similar POI as the 110s. I could see that being a good bullet. Only copper bullets I've tried was the factory 100 gr CX loading and that was completely inaccurate in my barrel. Those 130s that I've been messing with (Hornady Interbond, not Hot-Cors...I misspoke in my earlier comment) show to be sub-half MOA with preferred charge of Varget. Only problem with those is getting decent velocity. :)
I did not try Varget, I settled on IMR and H 4198 not top velocity but my best accuracy, IMR produced a bit more velocity but H 4198 delivered .75 at 100 on a good day most days the jerk pulling the trigger could pull off 1.0 he was happy, The 120 SST and the 110 TTSX POI shift was less than 1.0 at 100, The 6.8 brought down several deer and my largest deer 171 hanging, still smile about that one.
Maybe I’m not being totally fair in my evaluation, but confidence is a large influence and I suppose 3 shots and 2 deer recovered is really not much of true test. All 3 were scenarios inside of wooded areas and all at a range of 35-40 yards, so very close, from an elevated stand.
First one was a bang-flop, 3/4 way up the body and in the crease behind the shoulder. Second one was shot in the same location, though ran out of sight into brush and at last light. I didn’t hear her go down, though she was recovered about 60 yards from impact. Not bad, but I expected another instant drop. I began an attempt of tracking from point of impact and didn’t see any blood until I actually made it to where I spotted her with a flashlight. I then tried tracking backwards at that time, though no blood still.
Number 3 was not recovered and no sign of a hit. At the shot she lunged forward, then stood still for a second or two before running down into a deep valley with the other doe that was with her. I waited 20 minutes before climbing down then as I slowly made my way to where she was initially standing, I was consciously watching to my right through the open woods in anticipation of seeing them possibly stalling a ways off. I hadn’t made it 20 yards on foot before seeing a tail flagging as a deer took off, approximately 200 yards away. Only seeing one tail when there had been 2 deer, gave me a little hope that mine had expired. Could be the second deer ran before I saw it. After inspecting for blood and not finding any, I followed ruffled leaves down to where I’d seen the tail and beyond another 50 yards, then combed high and low back to where she stood when I shot. No signs that I could find. The next day I sat the same stand and studied what should have been the flight of the bullet and noticed one thin, low hanging branch with a few twigs that could have been the culprit in deflecting the bullet. It had been a heavy overcast day and perhaps that is why I didn’t notice the branch through the scope.
Like I said earlier, confidence is a huge factor and so far I’m just not there yet even though I’ve recovered 2 deer and quite possibly simply missed the 3rd. I don’t know, it’s hard to explain how I feel about it. My little 14” Coyote Contender barrel is very accurate with factory 120 grain ammo and even though I have plenty of components to handload for it, I haven’t, due to having a few more boxes of the Hornady stuff still.
if memory serves, right after that barrel arrived i tried a couple of the lighter Barnes bullets, and accuracy was kind of mediocre. It did well with speer TNT's, but i'd not use those for deer. I don't recall having ever tried Varget in it, guess i should have...dont think i ever tested anything over 120gr either.
After you got that barrel i started missing working with that cartridge, always liked the mild recoil & performance...and still had dies & brass, which is enough reason to get another gun aint it? Ended up with another 6.8 last year, but not a single shot:
Haven't tried any monolithics in this one yet, but so far its done tolerably well with various stuff ranging from 90-110gr. I may eventually
try it again in a 'tender carbine. Also have not yet tried 120's...i guess i need to do that.
for a few years, a Rem 700 bolt gun in 6.8 was my main coyote calling gun & i stacked a few of 'em up with that , mostly with TNT's,
which was harsh on 'em. The new one in the pic above i'm calling my go-to gun for smacking pigs.
Varget isn't a listed powder and it's extremely difficult to get enough in the case to get good velocity and also full burn in that length barrel. That being said, the 130 Hornady SP and 29.5 to 30 grains of Varget make a great combination for accuracy. Velocity is adequate but not impressive - 2350 or maybe 2400 fps.
(I just checked loads listed for 130 grain bullets and none of them go over 2400, so I guess the Varget is holding its own)
I'm dang near exclusive with Contenders, but I have to say, if I found a nice little short action bolt gun in this chambering, I'd have think hard about getting it. :)
Remington made 2 variations of 700's in 6.8, one was a heavy barreled tactical that felt too clunky to me...the other one was better, it was a blued version of the 700 Light Varmint Stainless Fluted, & it carried well...that was the one i had.
Ruger also made a short barreled 77 carbine in 6.8. But, both the Remmy & the Ruger never caught on much when they were made, and now collectors drive prices on oddball stuff through the roof & they are priced way up.
I have a box of those that I plan to try having had good results with them in my .277 Wolverine on deer and hogs. I also plan to try the 90 grain Speer Gold Dot as I have a pile of those too. The Gold Dot has worked well for me on deer but has been a little so-so on hogs, sometimes requiring multiple shots. In fairness, when I was shooting pigs with the Gold Dot a lot of times I was taking running shots after the first shot at a sounder. I also have a box of Barnes 85 grain MPG bullets but probably will restrict their use to paper.
It's better to shoot for the moon and hit the fencepost than to shoot for the fencepost and hit the ground!
Thanks for posting. Building a 6.8spc Contender pistol is next on my list.
Just because of the name I wanted a 277 Wolverine I wanted MGM to mark 277 Wolverine's still stuck back in the day Red Dawn. I wish there were more .277 flat base bullets I think that would improve the 6.8 a lot, maybe I would try one again
I really love the Wolverine Sunny, I have 3 of them! My Wolverines are all AR15 platform guns but I have a secret desire for a rimmed version using .357 Max or .360 DW brass. I went so far as to mock up a dummy round but that's where I stopped. One of these days if I live long enough!
It's better to shoot for the moon and hit the fencepost than to shoot for the fencepost and hit the ground!
I did a 20" wolverine (AR) , and have liked it quite a lot. Mine is a MDWS barrel, 1-11" twist i recall that right...sighted with 90's, it was getting a bit over 2650fps with shooters world blackout, and 100's were running about 2600.
If MGM was still agreeable with doing tapered contour barrels i'd have them build a 21" stainless 'tender, but they wont do tapers any more last time i inquired.
I can see the appeal of a rimmed version in a tender...now you got me thinkin...
I ran a .357 Max case all the way in to the Wolverine full length sizer and ended up with a nice looking case, neck length was a little longer than the Wolverine. I didn't bother to trim the case but just seated a bullet and it sat on my loading bench for a few years
I didn't realize they would no longer cut a tapered barrel. A simple program change in a CNC lather takes literally seconds to accomplish and the difference in run (cycle) times would be minor. A quick look at the website shows they dropped the Barbed Wire fluting option also, I always thought that looked cool. They don't have an option for the 11 twist either.
It's better to shoot for the moon and hit the fencepost than to shoot for the fencepost and hit the ground!
BobT Show me the rimmed round please... maybe you shouldn't, The MGM thing started happing after the new owners NO MORE CUSTOM chambersI ran a .357 Max case all the way in to the Wolverine full length sizer and ended up with a nice looking case, neck length was a little longer than the Wolverine. I didn't bother to trim the case but just seated a bullet and it sat on my loading bench for a few years
I didn't realize they would no longer cut a tapered barrel. A simple program change in a CNC lather takes literally seconds to accomplish and the difference in run (cycle) times would be minor. A quick look at the website shows they dropped the Barbed Wire fluting option also, I always thought that looked cool. They don't have an option for the 11 twist either.is where it started I buy only straight un foo foo barrels any way, There not hard rock candy there for shootin not for lookin
No more custom chambers from MGM? I didn't realize that. So with Van Horn retiring, SSK selling out to new owners and MGM making these changes, that leaves Bullberry Legacy as the only true custom TC barrel maker out there.
Sad times indeed! I may talk to JGS about a rimmed Wolverine reamer, I'll have to call it something else though, the WLV is proprietary as far as I know. If I take the reamer plunge then I guess I'll have to talk to Troy also. It makes a guy feel old when his toys are declared obsolete!
It's better to shoot for the moon and hit the fencepost than to shoot for the fencepost and hit the ground!
Posting Permissions
Bookmarks