Load Specifications
Load data in caliber 6 x 52 R Bretschneider with .243 | 85gr | Barnes XLC BT bullet and 35 powders. The key underlying parameters are shown in the table above. The recommended powders for this cartridge and bullet combination are IMR 3031, Alliant AR-Comp and Lovex D073.6.
Important Notice: DO NOT go below Minimum Charge or above Maximum Charge. Since we have no control over the equipment and components used, any responsibility and liability for the results achieved is rejected.
Only powders/loads that match the current filter criteria are displayed: max pressure of a load ≤ 90% of max. standardized pressure, fill rate ≥ 80% and propellant combustion ≥ 95%. Use the sliders above the tables to adjust these thresholds.
Charge: Powder weight in grains. Start with the minimum load and work up carefully.
FR (Fill Rate): Case fill as a percentage. Values above 100% mean compressed loads.
MaxP / %: Maximum chamber pressure in bar and as a percentage of the standardized maximum for this caliber.
V(0): Muzzle velocity in feet per second (fps) at the standardized barrel length.
z (Powder Burn): Estimated propellant combustion percentage at bullet exit.
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Max Load - Barrel Length: 23.62"
| Powder | Charge | FR | MaxP | % | V(0) | z |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accurate 2015 | <<locked>> | 88% | 43,004 psi | 90% | 2625 fps | 99.7% |
| Accurate 2460 | <<locked>> | 84% | 41,350 psi | 86% | 2612 fps | 97.4% |
| Accurate 2495 | <<locked>> | 94% | 41,742 psi | 87% | 2664 fps | 99.7% |
| Accurate 2520 | <<locked>> | 88% | 41,336 psi | 86% | 2654 fps | 97.1% |
| Accurate 4064 | <<locked>> | 96% | 41,640 psi | 87% | 2684 fps | 98.3% |
| ADI AR 2219 | <<locked>> | 82% | 42,322 psi | 88% | 2661 fps | 98.7% |
| Alliant AR-Comp | <<locked>> | 90% | 41,843 psi | 87% | 2694 fps | 100% |
| Alliant Reloder-10x | <<locked>> | 84% | 43,134 psi | 90% | 2641 fps | 100% |
| Baschieri & Pellagri 106 | <<locked>> | 82% | 42,743 psi | 89% | 2566 fps | 99.1% |
| Hodgdon Benchmark | <<locked>> | 86% | 41,640 psi | 87% | 2575 fps | 95.8% |
| Hodgdon BL-C2 | <<locked>> | 90% | 41,539 psi | 87% | 2677 fps | 95.9% |
| Hodgdon H322 | <<locked>> | 84% | 41,394 psi | 86% | 2641 fps | 98.6% |
| Hodgdon H335 | <<locked>> | 84% | 41,959 psi | 88% | 2657 fps | 97.8% |
| Hodgdon TrailBossᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 33,765 psi | 71% | 1706 fps | 100% |
| IMR 3031 | <<locked>> | 92% | 42,395 psi | 89% | 2723 fps | 99.4% |
| IMR 4198 | <<locked>> | 82% | 41,713 psi | 87% | 2579 fps | 100% |
| Lovex D073.5 | <<locked>> | 84% | 41,002 psi | 86% | 2605 fps | 96% |
| Lovex D073.6 | <<locked>> | 92% | 41,887 psi | 88% | 2677 fps | 97.2% |
| Norma 202 | <<locked>> | 92% | 43,018 psi | 90% | 2674 fps | 98.1% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 14ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 33,997 psi | 71% | 1749 fps | 100% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 40 | <<locked>> | 84% | 41,379 psi | 86% | 2618 fps | 96.6% |
| Rottweil R 901 | <<locked>> | 88% | 43,076 psi | 90% | 2631 fps | 97.8% |
| Shooters World Match Rifle | <<locked>> | 92% | 41,887 psi | 88% | 2677 fps | 97.2% |
| SNPE Vectan SP 10 | <<locked>> | 82% | 42,989 psi | 90% | 2667 fps | 97.9% |
| SNPE Vectan SP 3 | <<locked>> | 82% | 41,089 psi | 86% | 2602 fps | 99.1% |
| SNPE Vectan Tubal 3000 | <<locked>> | 90% | 43,250 psi | 90% | 2585 fps | 98% |
| SNPE Vectan Tubal 5000 | <<locked>> | 96% | 41,872 psi | 87% | 2579 fps | 98.6% |
| Somchem S335 | <<locked>> | 90% | 42,815 psi | 89% | 2598 fps | 98.6% |
| Vihtavuori N130 | <<locked>> | 84% | 41,278 psi | 86% | 2552 fps | 99.8% |
| Vihtavuori N133 | <<locked>> | 90% | 42,554 psi | 89% | 2592 fps | 99.6% |
| Vihtavuori N135 | <<locked>> | 94% | 41,539 psi | 87% | 2657 fps | 99.7% |
| Vihtavuori N140 | <<locked>> | 94% | 43,265 psi | 90% | 2654 fps | 98.4% |
| Vihtavuori N150ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 41,872 psi | 87% | 2635 fps | 95.8% |
| Vihtavuori N540 | <<locked>> | 94% | 42,061 psi | 88% | 2648 fps | 97.7% |
| Winchester 748 | <<locked>> | 90% | 42,192 psi | 88% | 2690 fps | 96.3% |
Recommended = one of the top powders for this cartridge and bullet combination.
Start Load - Barrel Length: 23.62"
| Powder | Charge | FR | MaxP | % | V(0) | z |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accurate 2015 | <<locked>> | 80% | 34,156 psi | 71% | 2444 fps | 98.3% |
| Accurate 2460 | <<locked>> | 80% | 36,332 psi | 76% | 2510 fps | 96.1% |
| Accurate 2495 | <<locked>> | 80% | 27,659 psi | 58% | 2343 fps | 96.6% |
| Accurate 2520 | <<locked>> | 84% | 36,201 psi | 76% | 2549 fps | 95.6% |
| Accurate 4064 | <<locked>> | 86% | 31,067 psi | 65% | 2448 fps | 95.1% |
| ADI AR 2219 | <<locked>> | 80% | 40,059 psi | 84% | 2618 fps | 98.3% |
| Alliant AR-Comp | 21.3 gr | 80% | 30,908 psi | 65% | 2454 fps | 99.5% |
| Alliant Reloder-10x | <<locked>> | 80% | 38,522 psi | 80% | 2552 fps | 99.7% |
| Baschieri & Pellagri 106 | <<locked>> | 80% | 40,161 psi | 84% | 2516 fps | 98.7% |
| Hodgdon Benchmark | <<locked>> | 84% | 39,552 psi | 83% | 2533 fps | 95.1% |
| Hodgdon BL-C2 | <<locked>> | 88% | 38,899 psi | 81% | 2625 fps | 95% |
| Hodgdon H322 | <<locked>> | 80% | 36,593 psi | 76% | 2543 fps | 97.5% |
| Hodgdon H335 | <<locked>> | 80% | 36,912 psi | 77% | 2549 fps | 96.5% |
| Hodgdon TrailBoss | <<locked>> | 80% | 25,005 psi | 52% | 1522 fps | 100% |
| IMR 3031 | 21.3 gr | 80% | 29,805 psi | 62% | 2428 fps | 96% |
| IMR 4198 | <<locked>> | 80% | 39,407 psi | 82% | 2533 fps | 100% |
| Lovex D073.5 | <<locked>> | 82% | 38,406 psi | 80% | 2552 fps | 95.2% |
| Lovex D073.6 | 24.4 gr | 86% | 34,650 psi | 72% | 2526 fps | 95% |
| Norma 202 | <<locked>> | 84% | 34,214 psi | 71% | 2487 fps | 95.7% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 14 | <<locked>> | 80% | 25,324 psi | 53% | 1565 fps | 100% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 40 | <<locked>> | 80% | 36,738 psi | 77% | 2520 fps | 95.2% |
| Rottweil R 901 | <<locked>> | 80% | 34,621 psi | 72% | 2444 fps | 95.4% |
| Shooters World Match Rifle | <<locked>> | 86% | 34,650 psi | 72% | 2526 fps | 95% |
| SNPE Vectan SP 10 | <<locked>> | 80% | 40,306 psi | 84% | 2612 fps | 97.3% |
| SNPE Vectan SP 3 | <<locked>> | 80% | 38,377 psi | 80% | 2546 fps | 98.6% |
| SNPE Vectan Tubal 3000 | <<locked>> | 82% | 34,635 psi | 72% | 2408 fps | 95.7% |
| SNPE Vectan Tubal 5000 | <<locked>> | 84% | 29,863 psi | 62% | 2313 fps | 95.1% |
| Somchem S335 | <<locked>> | 80% | 32,227 psi | 67% | 2372 fps | 95.9% |
| Vihtavuori N130 | <<locked>> | 80% | 36,593 psi | 76% | 2461 fps | 99.3% |
| Vihtavuori N133 | <<locked>> | 80% | 31,952 psi | 67% | 2369 fps | 97.6% |
| Vihtavuori N135 | <<locked>> | 80% | 27,499 psi | 57% | 2329 fps | 96.3% |
| Vihtavuori N140 | <<locked>> | 84% | 32,343 psi | 68% | 2421 fps | 95.3% |
| Vihtavuori N150 | <<locked>> | 98% | 39,639 psi | 83% | 2592 fps | 95.1% |
| Vihtavuori N540 | <<locked>> | 88% | 35,186 psi | 74% | 2503 fps | 95.8% |
| Winchester 748 | <<locked>> | 88% | 40,030 psi | 84% | 2648 fps | 95.6% |
Recommended = one of the top powders for this cartridge and bullet combination.
ᴾ possible press load - work up slowly to this load while watching for signs of excessive pressure.
This overview compares 72 powders for 6 x 52 R Bretschneider loaded with the .243 | 85gr | Barnes XLC BT. ReloadSwiss RS 52 delivers the highest muzzle velocity at 2,749 fps; across all powders the maximum-charge window runs from 1,706 fps to 2,749 fps. Alliant Reloder-17 gives the best case fill at 100 %, and 72 of the 72 powders fall inside the usable 80–100 % fill window.
Relative to the caliber's maximum pressure (330 MPa), the top charges use 71–90 %, leaving at least 10 % headroom. The 85.0 gr projectile in 0.243" calls for a 1:9.5 twist; slower twists will usually not stabilise this weight. Alliant Reloder-17, Hodgdon TrailBoss, ReloadSwiss RS 14 reach 100 % fill or more at maximum charge, so these are compressed loads: they need a long drop tube to seat cleanly and react sensitively to the case capacity of your own brass lot. IMR 3031, Alliant AR-Comp, Lovex D073.6 rank at the top here: for 6 x 52 R Bretschneider with the .243 | 85gr | Barnes XLC BT they combine a high case fill with complete burn and sit in the upper velocity band. As outliers, ADI AR 2206H, ADI AR 2208, ADI Benchmark 8208 burn incompletely and react more sensitively to barrel length and temperature. Always begin at the start load and work up in small increments while checking case and primer for pressure signs.