Just wondering why this cal never took off. I am about to try it out and the bullet selection is amazing and it is super easy to load.
Also wondering why no one loads for it.

It's a great round. There are a few places making commercial ammo, Les Baer offers 3 different Black Hills loads.

It's easy enough to roll your own though, it's not really finicky at all

I'm in the same boat here.  My 12.5" 6x45 just arrived from X Caliber.  I have a pile of 70 NBT's and SMK's to try out.  Also have 60 grain Sierra's, some Berger 80 & 88's, and might even try some Accubonds.  Unfortunately, I probably won't be able to do much load work up this year, so it'll probably be just the 70's for now.

I was originally going to go with a shorty 556, but with the improved efficiency of the 6mm version, I found I could get better ballistics with same weight bullets, or nearly identical ballistics with bullets weighing 15-20 grains more.

I have one with a 20" BHW barrel I built three or four years ago and haven't shot. We are gonna take it out this weekend. I have brass formed and will load it tomorrow. The Predator Masters forum has a thread with a shit ton of data. Ramshot has data for it too.

Jasonprox
let me know how your 12.5 works out. I have a 18 inch h bar.
I too am thinking of getting a shorty for this round as it might be better than the 5.56

It's a great caliber.  I have a 20".  Inherently accurate and easy to load with plenty of bullet and powder options.  I've been shooting everything from 55 to 90 grain.  I still haven't developed a go-to load because of the variety.  

I also wonder why it isn't more popular than it is.

it has me thinking......
business op here is possible.
wondering what the demand would be for people looking for completed uppers or completed rifles in this cal and people looking for ammo.
I know it is easy to load but not everyone has our time ha ha

I had to look all over to find a barrel.  I knew what I wanted, but there isn't much out there for selection.  I read a pile of reviews before I went with my decision.  Nothing against BHW, but I've read some poor reviews, and they were over $100 more than what I got.  I didn't want to dump a ton into this thing, plus, the reviews I read about X Caliber were very promising.  

Wish I had more time and $$$.  I'd like to order a huge lot in varies lengths and contours, along with dies.  You're right, a guy could make a few dollars!

Im really fighting the urge to convert my axis 223 into a 6x45 only cuz it shoots so well.

When i do get a new caliber, i think im gonna bite on this one. I love my 243 and a 6mm in a 223 sized package just sounds like a blast.

Ide do a switch barrel to go back and forth, but i prefer dedicated rifles.

Sorry to bring back an old post, but I think I can help shed some light on some of the questions.

First would be why this cartridge, and perhaps why not so popular.  The obvious answer to why less popular now would be the other choices out there for a mid bore.  Back in the day, when I had my barrel built back in the 2002 or so time frame, the 6.8 and 6.5's were just starting out.  I think there was so much "push" on these other cartridges to be the next best military cartridge, the 6 had to stand on its own merits.

I think the argument against, and for the 556 was that the heavy 556's were coming into their own, and when looking at the bullet weights for the 6, you can certainly see a lot of overlap between heavy 556 and light 6.  For a target shooter or maybe varmint hunter, pretty much a push, and no great reason to run the 6.

But, the big argument for the 6 was and is hunting, in states that have a .243 caliber restriction for big game rifles.  There are more than a few here out west that wanted to keep the .224 bore out of the "woods" for big critters.  The .243 Win has long been a favorite for medium sized game, younger shooters, etc., so not hard to see why that floor was chosen.

This was the reason I had my 6mm barrel built.  It is a dandy and legal medium size game round, that made the .243 caliber restriction here in NM and Colorado.

A couple of downsides to hunting with the 6 would be whether your state has magazine capacity restrictions.  I did have to neuter a couple of 556 mags for Colorado.  I think I may have a couple of 5 rounder Bushmaster mags in a pile somewhere.

The other issue on the magazine side is a bit more problematic.  The space front to back in a 556 mag means you are going to have OAL limitations that will put a lot of the heaver 6mm bullets out of contention. Back when I was working up loads, my cutoff seemed to be about the 85-90 grain bullet weight, depending upon the bullet nose profile.  There are assorted mags out in the market that will allow a few thou above the standard 556 oal, but I decided I did not want caliber specific mags, as I run a switch barrel MGI gun.  

The bullet I settled on is the Barnes 85 TSX.  I have not shot my barrel in years, but did take one antelope with the 85 TSX, and would not hesitate to do it again.

All in all, I think it is a very neat cartridge.  It does not distance itself that much from the heavy 556 to make it "shine", and the flood of 6.5 and 6.8's on the market now will certainly keep the 6 in a very specific niche.

Craig

I have had a 6mm TCU AR (like an Ackley Imp) for 6 years now.  I've shot Antelope, rabbits, coyote and Sage Rats with it.....wonderful caliber.  With my rate of twist I'm limited to 85gr or less, but that is not really a problem.  I'll be taking it deer hunting this coming Monday for Coastal Blacktail here in OR.  It is just a performer!

Bill in OR

I've not shot this rifle in a few years... maybe 6 or 7 actually IIRC.



Decided to try some new hand loads, new Winchester .223 brass necked up, Hornady 65gr. V-Max with 26.0grs. AA2230. I think that's good enough for coyote...

Nice shooting.


I haven't had mine out in a while. May have to remedy that this weekend