[Rev]

It's been my experience that the 6mm. Rem loves IMR 4350 with loads of 85-105 gr. bullets. My only experience with Barnes bullets was not so great.

My closest friend and hunting buddy had been using Barnes bullets in both his 257 Roberts AI and his 7 mm. Rem. Mag. with amazing success both in game performance and with good hunting accuracy as well. For that reason, I tried some 90 and 100 gr. Barnes at the range. The 90 gr. bullet shot reasonably well. Under an inch at 100 yds.

From my tree stand the following season, a good 8 pt. buck came racing in after a hot doe at about 150 yds. He stopped to pick up her scent again. That's when I let have it with that 90 gr. Barnes. He didn't even flinch but ran straight off in another direction. I thought I must have shot over him as I sight that gun in 2.7" at 100 yds. It might be 3.5 high at 150.

To my surprise he came back to the same spot sniffing the ground to pick up that doe's scent again. I aimed lower this time right at the heart area and squeezed one off again. This time, he fell like a rock, stone cold dead. I was happy, at least at first. The 90 gr. Barnes had just floored him.

When I examined the carcass after making sure he really was dead, no entrance wound could be found. I was looking at the chest area where I had aimed. I finally found the wound at the upper neck. I was just lucky that it hit the spine for that instant kill.

I thought my scope must have been bumped somehow and went to our little makeshift range that we have on that property. The first shot at the paper confirmed my belief that the scope was off. It hit a foot to the right and a foot high. I went to examine the target. The bullet hole was a perfect key hole. After several more shots all over the paper and several more key holes, it was obvious that my one in ten twist Hart match bbl. wasn't stabilizing that 90 gr. Barnes bullet. Why was it OK when I worked up the load and not now? Could be due to different temp. with less velocity in colder weather? I don't know, but I never tried the Barnes again and just stuck with what worked for me (95 gr. Nosler BT).

Sorry for this long narrative, but it was the only way I could relate my experience with the Barnes bullets in my 6mm. AI. BTW, that buck is on my wall, but I feel only due to luck. It could just as easily have been a gut shot and a lost terminally wounded fine buck.

Rev