Need Help With 25/06

M

murphy

Guest
Is there an experienced 25/06 person who can throw me a lifeline as I am feeling a little desperate. Purchased an Interarms 25/06 yesterday, and today I tested it and found out that it has a 1 in 14 rifeling twist.:mad: One thing it won't do is shoot 120g Sierra boat tails as I tried some and they went through the paper sideways. Did the trick with the cleaning rod and sure enough the twist is 1 turn in 14. Does this mean that I am limited to 100g flat base bullets or are 115g flat bases likely to be ok? My idea of a 25/06 is to have a super varmint rifle with some big game capability, so I am not entirely heart broken by this discovery. Are there any redeeming features to having a 25 cal rifle with a 1 in 14" twist or were they just put on earth to annoy the hell out of me and make me buy bullets that don't work?:eek:
 
I would seriously question a finding of 1 in 14 on a 25-06. Ten inch
is normal for a factory offering and many would be better served with
a 9 1/2. It is common for the long bullets to shoot , not so good in a 10.
Checking twist with a cleaning rod is fine, but jags and brushes get
loose and give strange numbers at times. If you are certain your numbers
are correct, I would see the manufacturer.
 
25-06

My idea of a 25/06 is to have a super varmint rifle with some big game capability That is exactly what you have got with this 25-06. If we define "big game" as about deer size game. If this rifle has a 1:14 twist you can forget about trying heavier bullets than 100 gr. But that doesnt matter, a deer is just as dead having 100gr Sierra Gameking in the right spot as if it were 120 gr. I have a 25-08 Imp that has 1:14 barrel. It shoots 100 gr Sierra FLAT BASE bullet very well but the same in boat tail is all over the place. So far about 20 one shot kills on 300 lbs reindeers. So in short 25-06 1:14 twist is no disaster although it leans more on the varmint side than a 25-06 1:10 that can probably kill any non dangerous game in N-America. As a varmint round 75gr V-max @ about 4000 fps is well I think devestating is the correct term.
 
25-06

Murphy , you ask "Are there any redeeming features to having a 25 cal rifle with a 1 in 14" twist or were they just put on earth to annoy the hell out of me and make me buy bullets that don't work?"

Well the main purpose of a 1:14 twist is to annoy the hell out of you of course :D the redeeming factor with the 1:14 twist is that it might have exactly the opposite effect to make you buy bullets that dont work for varmint shooting. At 25-06 velocities 4000+ fps the 75 V-max will not always make it to the target shot from 10 twist. It can shred its jacket and disintergrate infligtht. That will not happen from a 1:14 twist. But do not plan on making a meal out of the remains of the poor creature on the receiving end.
 
i have a 25-06 tika in a lone wolf stock..the best i could do w/ 120 gr @ 100m was 21/2"..totally disaponited..i tried 87 gr hornady sp using 50 gr of imr 4350 & wlr primer...consistantly under a 1/2" @ 100m..this is a hunting rifle not a bench rifle..it took a lot more effort( different bullets..powders ) to make the 25-06 shoot than my 6mmbr or a 22-250
 
To Tome and others

Thanks for your help and support, First of all the rifle has been rebarreled as evident by the new serial # stamped on the reciever, and it certainly has a 14" twist as I have checked and rechecked. I have no intention of returning it as I am in love with the tiger striped walnut stock, and the trigger is an absolute joy. Tried some 75g Vmax in front of 55g of W760 and WLR primers and best I got was 1" for 3 shots, but it's early days and I have my own rifle range, so when the urge takes me I go and try something new. Seems that I might have a bit of a challenge here but when it starts shooting wallet groups your sure to hear about it. Reguards Murphy. :D
 
I'd be surprised if the barrel has a 14" twist. If you checked by pushing a patch through.....a jag or brush will unscrew itself when pushed through the bore. Check twist by pulling a tight brush from the muzzle.
 
To Ackerman

It's a 1 turn in 14 all right, Have checked and double checked. I use a lubricated 30 cal bronze brush and tighten it on to the rod with pliers. Push it through till it clears the muzzle and get it started back the other way then measure down from the rear of the scope with a carpenters square and mark the top of the cleaning rod with white out. Start withdrawing the cleaning rod till the spot is back on top and get a 14" rotation every time. If you have never known of a 1 in 14" twist 25/06 well join the club, because I never had either.:D
 
Murphy, I almost bought a 25 caliber rifle from Bob White last year but it had a 14 twist barreland I decided not to so I know they are out there. I have a 10 twist in both of my 25-06's and hunt deer with both. I like the 100 grain bullets and have used the Nosler Partition and the Sierra Gamekings with good results over the years. You might try the various 100 grain flat base bullets such as the partition and the Prohunter Sierra. Also, the combined Technology 85 grain bullet is supposed to be a game bullet but I have never shot them. I have been shooting 80 grain bullets in my 6ppc with a 14 twist with amazing accuracy so you will never know until you try a bullet. Good luck. Tom
 
To Tom.

Thanks for your advice, Nosler partitions sound like they might be a good bullet. We have red deer here in Southeast Queensland and I shot a big doe that went 8' from the tip of it's nose to the tip of it's tail. On the question of rifeling twists, I once owned a Sako 6ppc with a one in 14 twist. It shot 85g sierra flat base at 2900fps and gave a very consistent 1 1/2" accuracy which was plenty for hunting, so you are right. Sometimes unlikely combinations can work, it's a bit of a pain though when we spend our hard earned money and they don't. What I will do is hang around arms fairs and buy a few part packets of unlikely candidates for very little cash and try them out. :D
 
For .25 Cal bullets, assuming a FB bullet of 1.00" long, 3000 FPS MV, and standard , sea-level conditions, a 1:12" twist imparts a gyroscopic stability factor (Sg) of 1.5: a 13" twist would deliver Sg of about 1.3; and a 14" twist is a wreck waiting to happen: Sg = 1.1. :eek::D

To identify what has the best chance of working well via your barrel, stick to FB bullets, and look for the shortest bullet, which is closest to the weight you desire. With a 1:14" twist, 25 caliber barrel, attaining Sg of 1.4, or, >, will require FB bullets no longer than 0.92". For a particular bullet, the greatest probability of precision will fall between the Sg range of 1.4 and 1.9 . As a rule, for a given weight, a secant ogive (as are most Hornady offerings), FB bullet will be shorter than its tangent ogive counter-part. Good shootin'! RG
 
As quick as every .25/06 bore has shot out for me, it would not be a consideration, they are a perennial candidate for a re barrel. :mad:
 
I have a 25/06 AI with a 14 twist and it shoot great with a 100 grain bullet. I have never found the need to shoot a heaver bullet in my rifle. I think that the slower heaver bullet would defeat the purpose that I got the rifle for anyway.

Concho Bill
 
I am going to agree with Randy (RG) on the numbers. I shoot a lot of 25 caliber. You may be able to get the 100 grain Sierra to shoot well at times but if you go out on a cold day and it doesn't seem to want to shoot then you know why.

I currently have a 1/12 twist Bartlien and as an example of how picky a barrel can get when shooting on the edge, it will shoot the 110 grain Folwer during warm conditions but it won't shoot the 110 grain BIB. The Fowler is only about .040 shorter than the BIB.

So if you are going to shoot bullets that are more than 85 grains just give them a test in colder conditions. Particularly Boattail and Monolithic solids which can be longer than traditional FB bullets.
 
hecksf said:
I am going to agree with Randy (RG) on the numbers. I shoot a lot of 25 caliber. You may be able to get the 100 grain Sierra to shoot well at times but if you go out on a cold day and it doesn't seem to want to shoot then you know why.

I currently have a 1/12 twist Bartlien and as an example of how picky a barrel can get when shooting on the edge, it will shoot the 110 grain Folwer during warm conditions but it won't shoot the 110 grain BIB. The Fowler is only about .040 shorter than the BIB.
So if you are going to shoot bullets that are more than 85 grains just give them a test in colder conditions. Particularly Boattail and Monolithic solids which can be longer than traditional FB bullets.
Click to expand...

Ted is correct - for .25 Cal. FB bullets of the SAME weight, adding/subtracting 0.040" in length will alter the twist requirement by 0.5". Conversley, two bullets of differing weights, but of equal length, require the SAME twist (RPM). And, length being equal, adding a BT will require another 0.5" faster twist. Once initial Sg drops much below 1.3, strange things can begin to happen - poor performance in colder conditions being common! :eek: RG
 
To Bob and Al.

First I need to explain how Austraialian gun laws operate, not the whole lot or you would need a schrink after you read it, but here goes. Rifles that originally carry no serial # for registeration purposes such as air rifles or rifles that carry the serial # on the barrel and get rebarreled, require one. So what the weapons licencing branch ask us to do is create our own and stamp it on the rifle. One recomendation is two initials of your name and for a first rifle the #1, next un numberd rifle becomes #2 and so on. This particular rifle is rather crudely stamped 000A1, such numbers are quite common and perfectly legal around here.:cool:
 
murphy said:
First I need to explain how Austraialian gun laws operate, not the whole lot or you would need a schrink after you read it, but here goes. Rifles that originally carry no serial # for registeration purposes such as air rifles or rifles that carry the serial # on the barrel and get rebarreled, require one. So what the weapons licencing branch ask us to do is create our own and stamp it on the rifle. One recomendation is two initials of your name and for a first rifle the #1, next un numberd rifle becomes #2 and so on. This particular rifle is rather crudely stamped 000A1, such numbers are quite common and perfectly legal around here.:cool:
Click to expand...

Thanks Murphy :)

al
 
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