6mm Musgrave
The 6mm Musgrave was the brain child of Ben Musgrave and introduced by Musgrave Rifles in 1969[1] [2]and can be described as a classic Africa cartridge. It is based on necking down the .303 British with the original intent of it being a Springbok calibre for hunting on open plains in South Africa's Karoo, Kalahari and Namakwaland. It is also well suited for other smaller antelope where longer shots have to be taken. Although not designed for bushveld conditions, the calibre can be downloaded to drive 100 grain bullets at 2500 feet per second and makes a very good cartridge for Impala and Reedbuck.
| 6mm Musgrave | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Rifle | |||||||||||||||||||
| Place of origin | South Africa | |||||||||||||||||||
| Production history | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Designer | Ben Musgrave | |||||||||||||||||||
| Designed | 1955 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Manufacturer | Musgrave Rifles | |||||||||||||||||||
| Specifications | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Parent case | .303 British | |||||||||||||||||||
| Case type | Rimmed, bottleneck | |||||||||||||||||||
| Bullet diameter | 0.243 (6mm) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Neck diameter | 0.338 in (8.6 mm) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Shoulder diameter | 0.401 in (10.2 mm) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Base diameter | 0.460 in (11.7 mm) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Rim diameter | 0.540 in (13.7 mm) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Rim thickness | .064 in (1.6 mm) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Case length | 2.222 in (56.4 mm) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Overall length | 3.075 in (78.1 mm) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Case capacity | 55.7 gr H2O (3.61 cm3) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Rifling twist | 1-10 inches | |||||||||||||||||||
| Primer type | Large rifle | |||||||||||||||||||
| Maximum pressure | 49,000 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Maximum CUP | 45,000 CUP | |||||||||||||||||||
| Ballistic performance | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Test barrel length: 24" | ||||||||||||||||||||
Like the .243 Winchester it has a fast rifle twist of 1-10 inches, however if 105 grain bullets are used it is recommended that a 1-9 or even faster twist is used to stabilise the bullets.
PMP (Pretoria Metal Pressings) is one of the very few ammunition manufacturers of 6mm Musgrave ammunition, but a lot of South African distributors have the ammunition in stock.
Dies for handloading are available from RCBS and Lee Precision.
Most manufactures of bullets (like Hornady, Nosler, Barnes, etc.) manufacture 6mm (.243") bullets that are suitable for this chambering.
See also
References
- "6mm MUSGRAVE | Cartridgecollector.net". www.cartridgecollector.net. Retrieved 2020-07-27.
- "R A Dynamic - Guns and Ammunition Distributor - 243- 6mm Musgrave". www.radynamic.co.za. Retrieved 2020-07-27.