Load Specifications
Load data in caliber 6.5 x 57 R with .264 | 156gr | Norma ORYX bullet and 34 powders. The key underlying parameters are shown in the table above. The recommended powders for this cartridge and bullet combination are Hodgdon Retumbo, ReloadSwiss RS 76 and Winchester StaBALL HD.
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 3100 | <<locked>> | 90% | 42,757 psi | 89% | 2421 fps | 99.2% |
| ADI AR 2209 | <<locked>> | 86% | 42,366 psi | 89% | 2441 fps | 97% |
| ADI AR 2225ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 38,827 psi | 81% | 2457 fps | 98% |
| Alliant Reloder-16 | <<locked>> | 82% | 42,714 psi | 89% | 2461 fps | 100% |
| Alliant Reloder-19 | <<locked>> | 86% | 42,105 psi | 88% | 2438 fps | 97% |
| Alliant Reloder-22 | <<locked>> | 90% | 42,627 psi | 89% | 2490 fps | 97.3% |
| Alliant Reloder-23 | <<locked>> | 90% | 40,654 psi | 85% | 2441 fps | 100% |
| Alliant Reloder-25 | <<locked>> | 96% | 43,062 psi | 90% | 2530 fps | 99.8% |
| Alliant Reloder-26 | <<locked>> | 88% | 42,235 psi | 88% | 2539 fps | 99.9% |
| Bofors RP15 | <<locked>> | 92% | 42,047 psi | 88% | 2477 fps | 97% |
| Bofors RP30 | <<locked>> | 98% | 41,829 psi | 87% | 2507 fps | 96.4% |
| Bofors RP5 | <<locked>> | 90% | 42,627 psi | 89% | 2490 fps | 97.3% |
| Hodgdon H1000 | <<locked>> | 96% | 42,221 psi | 88% | 2467 fps | 96.4% |
| Hodgdon Hybrid 100V | <<locked>> | 84% | 42,960 psi | 90% | 2405 fps | 100% |
| Hodgdon Retumbo | <<locked>> | 96% | 42,105 psi | 88% | 2562 fps | 98% |
| Hodgdon TrailBossᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 36,767 psi | 77% | 1591 fps | 100% |
| IMR 4350 | <<locked>> | 82% | 43,018 psi | 90% | 2395 fps | 98.1% |
| IMR 4831 | <<locked>> | 82% | 42,409 psi | 89% | 2408 fps | 99.9% |
| Lovex S071 | <<locked>> | 94% | 41,394 psi | 86% | 2395 fps | 99% |
| Norma 204 | <<locked>> | 82% | 42,888 psi | 90% | 2431 fps | 97% |
| Norma MRP | <<locked>> | 88% | 41,829 psi | 87% | 2503 fps | 98.4% |
| Ramshot Hunter | <<locked>> | 82% | 42,496 psi | 89% | 2441 fps | 99.1% |
| Ramshot Magnum | <<locked>> | 94% | 41,843 psi | 87% | 2470 fps | 97.8% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 14ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 37,463 psi | 78% | 1627 fps | 100% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 70 | <<locked>> | 82% | 42,438 psi | 89% | 2490 fps | 99.8% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 76 | <<locked>> | 96% | 41,626 psi | 87% | 2552 fps | 98.7% |
| Rottweil R 905 | <<locked>> | 86% | 41,394 psi | 86% | 2425 fps | 97% |
| SNPE Vectan Tubal 8000 | <<locked>> | 86% | 41,031 psi | 86% | 2418 fps | 96.9% |
| Somchem S365 | <<locked>> | 84% | 43,091 psi | 90% | 2454 fps | 100% |
| Somchem S385 | <<locked>> | 86% | 42,032 psi | 88% | 2408 fps | 97.9% |
| Vihtavuori N165 | <<locked>> | 90% | 41,321 psi | 86% | 2388 fps | 97.4% |
| Vihtavuori N555 | <<locked>> | 88% | 42,960 psi | 90% | 2464 fps | 100% |
| Winchester StaBALL HD | <<locked>> | 94% | 42,047 psi | 88% | 2592 fps | 100% |
| Winchester Supreme 780 | <<locked>> | 88% | 41,147 psi | 86% | 2392 fps | 96.7% |
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 3100 | <<locked>> | 80% | 30,589 psi | 64% | 2172 fps | 96% |
| ADI AR 2209 | <<locked>> | 82% | 37,173 psi | 78% | 2336 fps | 95.4% |
| ADI AR 2225 | <<locked>> | 94% | 32,184 psi | 67% | 2297 fps | 95.1% |
| Alliant Reloder-16 | <<locked>> | 80% | 39,972 psi | 84% | 2411 fps | 99.8% |
| Alliant Reloder-19 | <<locked>> | 82% | 36,999 psi | 77% | 2333 fps | 95.4% |
| Alliant Reloder-22 | <<locked>> | 86% | 37,391 psi | 78% | 2385 fps | 95.8% |
| Alliant Reloder-23 | <<locked>> | 80% | 29,602 psi | 62% | 2201 fps | 98.9% |
| Alliant Reloder-25 | <<locked>> | 84% | 29,385 psi | 61% | 2211 fps | 95.9% |
| Alliant Reloder-26 | <<locked>> | 80% | 31,618 psi | 66% | 2310 fps | 97.8% |
| Bofors RP15 | <<locked>> | 88% | 36,912 psi | 77% | 2372 fps | 95.4% |
| Bofors RP30 | <<locked>> | 96% | 39,160 psi | 82% | 2454 fps | 95.5% |
| Bofors RP5 | <<locked>> | 86% | 37,391 psi | 78% | 2385 fps | 95.8% |
| Hodgdon H1000 | <<locked>> | 94% | 39,537 psi | 83% | 2411 fps | 95.5% |
| Hodgdon Hybrid 100V | <<locked>> | 80% | 37,507 psi | 78% | 2306 fps | 100% |
| Hodgdon Retumbo | 45.2 gr | 90% | 34,766 psi | 73% | 2388 fps | 95% |
| Hodgdon TrailBoss | <<locked>> | 80% | 27,688 psi | 58% | 1424 fps | 100% |
| IMR 4350 | <<locked>> | 80% | 40,350 psi | 84% | 2346 fps | 97.5% |
| IMR 4831 | <<locked>> | 80% | 39,711 psi | 83% | 2359 fps | 99.6% |
| Lovex S071 | <<locked>> | 84% | 30,168 psi | 63% | 2159 fps | 95.8% |
| Norma 204 | <<locked>> | 80% | 39,900 psi | 83% | 2375 fps | 96.2% |
| Norma MRP | <<locked>> | 80% | 31,923 psi | 67% | 2283 fps | 95% |
| Ramshot Hunter | <<locked>> | 80% | 39,595 psi | 83% | 2388 fps | 98.6% |
| Ramshot Magnum | <<locked>> | 88% | 33,997 psi | 71% | 2303 fps | 95.1% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 14 | <<locked>> | 80% | 28,108 psi | 59% | 1453 fps | 100% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 70 | <<locked>> | 80% | 39,494 psi | 83% | 2431 fps | 99.4% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 76 | 48.3 gr | 90% | 33,707 psi | 70% | 2365 fps | 95.8% |
| Rottweil R 905 | <<locked>> | 82% | 36,216 psi | 76% | 2316 fps | 95.4% |
| SNPE Vectan Tubal 8000 | <<locked>> | 82% | 35,882 psi | 75% | 2313 fps | 95.2% |
| Somchem S365 | <<locked>> | 80% | 37,536 psi | 78% | 2356 fps | 100% |
| Somchem S385 | <<locked>> | 80% | 34,606 psi | 72% | 2257 fps | 95.7% |
| Vihtavuori N165 | <<locked>> | 84% | 33,939 psi | 71% | 2238 fps | 95% |
| Vihtavuori N555 | <<locked>> | 80% | 33,098 psi | 69% | 2270 fps | 98.9% |
| Winchester StaBALL HD | 41.2 gr | 80% | 26,049 psi | 54% | 2195 fps | 98.7% |
| Winchester Supreme 780 | <<locked>> | 84% | 36,013 psi | 75% | 2287 fps | 95% |
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 34 powders for 6.5 x 57 R loaded with the .264 | 156gr | Norma ORYX. Winchester StaBALL HD delivers the highest muzzle velocity at 2,592 fps; across all powders the maximum-charge window runs from 1,591 fps to 2,592 fps. ADI AR 2225 gives the best case fill at 100 %, and 34 of the 34 powders fall inside the usable 80–100 % fill window.
Relative to the caliber's maximum pressure (330 MPa), the top charges use 77–90 %, leaving at least 10 % headroom. The 156.0 gr projectile in 0.264" calls for a 1:10.0 twist; slower twists will usually not stabilise this weight. ADI AR 2225, 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. Hodgdon Retumbo, ReloadSwiss RS 76, Winchester StaBALL HD rank at the top here: for 6.5 x 57 R with the .264 | 156gr | Norma ORYX they combine a high case fill with complete burn and sit in the upper velocity band. Always begin at the start load and work up in small increments while checking case and primer for pressure signs.