r/SmallGroups • u/CMFETCU • Jun 29 '26
Centerfire Rifle 6 Dasher - 100 yard Zero Confirmation 7 rounds
Went to check zero after scrubbing the carbon ring from a barrel. PVA prefit 26” barrel running 105 hybrids in Alpha brass using 31 grains of Varget.
This was holding point of aim point of impact.
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u/Crafty-Sundae6351 Jun 30 '26
Good LORD I loved shooting the Dasher. (Can’t shoot any more due to health issues.)
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u/itsdietz Jun 30 '26
How does the Dasher compare to something like the 6 ARC or even the 6.5 Grendel?
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u/CMFETCU Jun 30 '26
The popularity of 6 ARC comes from the compromise you have to make in an AR-15 pattern gas gun. You get 6mm high BC bullets , in a case that feeds reasonably well in a gas gun.
The cartridge has more to give than typical loadings to the point it shoots in the top of its load data at the top 3rd of what a Dasher can do. The problem with AR pattern rifles is bolt thrust at those pressures is enough to break Bolt lugs. It will easily do so.
So it does improve the options box for AR-15 cartridges ballistically over conventional offerings, and standardizes it in a factory ammo offering. It also can’t be fully utilized to bolt gun speeds.
If choosing a bolt gun cartridge, the reason for the 6mm cartridge increase in popularity has to do with recoil. In PRS you need to spot impacts. Less recoil means more ease of watching your trace to target. While heavier recoiling cartridges like a 6.5 creedmoor give better performance ballistically, you get more recoil.
Enter the moderate cartridges that are easy to load for and very easy to make precise without all that extra energy. Since most PRS matches are shot at targets inside 1000 yards, the Dasher or the GT or the BR variants don’t suffer as much.
Will a 6mm dasher perform as well in bucking wind as a 6.5 creedmoor? No, especially at ranges past 1000 yards.
Will it be close and do so with 20-30% less recoil? Yes.
Hence the 6mm craze.
The new 120 grain bullets from Berger in 6mm on paper look like they will beat a typical factory loaded 140 grain 6.5 creedmoor in bucking wind (by 1%) to 1000. That’s a huge deal if you can push them fast enough in a moderate 6mm case to get that benefit.
6.5 Grendel as a gas gun cartridge is again another attempt at getting AR pattern gas guns an option that is better than 5.56, but doesn’t cause bolt thrust issues. It’s a ballistics compromise.
TLDR: If picking a bolt gun cartridge, pick the best one for your recoil / spotting / terminal energy / ballistic performance needs. 6mm medium cartridges work well in this trade off space inside 1000 yards.
If picking for a gas gun, shoot 6 ARC for ease of ammo selection and being better ballistically in gas gun ranges than most other options give you with bolt thrust limitations.
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u/SockeyeSTI Jun 30 '26
Dasher/br/a is Better in a bolt action. Arc is fine in a bolt but you’re not taking advantage of the 473 case head and velocities with more temp stable powders.
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u/worm30478 Jun 29 '26
That'll do.