Howa Mini 6 Dasher

[KyleR1985]

I got to thinking about how much I love the little mini I bought for my wife for Christmas. I was considering just buying a 6ARC for myself, and of course the tinkering bug got me. How much powder can I fit in that tiny little action? I don’t want a 22” barrel for most of the deer hunting I do. But I still want to be able to shoot, and maybe hunt, at longer distances. 6GT just a scooch too long, but would’ve been my preference. 6ARC would be neutered a little too much at 16” barrel length based on my gas gun. So I landed on 6 Dasher. Other than a short mag, looks like the most powder I can cram in the mini action under 2.4” oal with bullets optimally loaded.

It helped @Bert01 had a dasher reamer on hand.

It also helped stockys made me a good deal on a VG, and the barreled 6ARC action was on sale at Brownells.

We laid some prints out, and the dasher reamer would clean up nicely over the ARC chamber.

I can’t take any credit for the work, and technically I’m not the first person to do a BR based case in a mini - @hereinaz did a BRA I believe. My search on if anyone had done this before, led me to his threads.


Bert opened bolt face, reamed the chamber, and did some test shots at 22” and 18” before cut/thread at 16”.

I got it home and bedded the action into the stock, and mounted a SWFA 3x9 with some rings I had lying around.

I should get my first range session with it this weekend, and will pick up a DD Wolf hunter for it next week.


Goal was 2800fps with 95tmk in 16” barrel.

We hit 2813fps avg with 34gr of Varget in fire formed brass from a different gun same reamer.

105hpbt hit 2700fps 32.5gr Varget

87vmax hit 2965fps 35gr Varget


I’ve got to fireform some brass, then I’ll work up to pressure and try to get some good groups!

 

[hereinaz]

Rock on!

I love my 22 BR mini with a DD Wolf Hunter! I will get pics soon.

My 6 bra was awesome and I adopted it out to a new home when I went 22 BR. No particular reason except I wanted to, lol.

I had to reduce the firing pin and bush it. When firing full power BRA loads it “blanked” the primers. Like piercing but a different phenomena. It cost me $85 bucks and was done quickly by mail.

In the future, I will mostly just build off the new Superlite action for .308 sized cases.

BUT, it’s sweet with a tiny bolt throw!

 

[blkqi]

Looks great. How does the Dasher feed from the factory DBM?

 

[hereinaz]

My 6BRA and 22 BR feed great. Have to cut back the lips to release sooner and modify the ARC mag feed lips to sit up higher for the bolt to catch.

 

[KyleR1985]

Looks great. How does the Dasher feed from the factory DBM?

No issues on the 20 or so test rounds before I got the gun. With no modification.

I plan to find the weakness if it’s there. Like Hereinaz said, there are two ways to address them if they arise.

I have a hinged metal getting worked on as well. The mag only holds 4. I think we can fit three in an internal mag box, and eliminate that. Plus fit optimally loaded heavies. The mags are limited to 2.32” or so OAL. I can fit 2.45” or so in the Jefferson mag box for my .223, I’d expect the same for the dasher specific box.

 

[RockAndSage]

Now that is a cool build. Please keep us posted on your progress with everything.

 

[Tanner]

That’s pretty wicked. 105s at 2700 go a long ways.

 

[KyleR1985]

That’s pretty wicked. 105s at 2700 go a long ways.

I’m guessing I can have a lot more speed with Lever based on my experience with .223 then 6ARC. Just not sure if it will be accurate or necessary. Like you said, that’s pretty hot for a 16” barrel. Which was the point!

 

[KyleR1985]

Have gun bloke springs on the way for trigger.

I’d really like to reduce bolt lift with either lighter firing pin spring, cocking piece/ramp work, or both.

And need a proper set of rings.

I’m thinking it’s going to be a sweet little rig. And once I work out any of the kinks and shoot the hell out of this stock barre, I’ll spring for a quality blank

 

[Tanner]

Interested to see what sort of accuracy you see out to 500-700. I could see one of these in my future

 

[Bert01]

Rock on!

I love my 22 BR mini with a DD Wolf Hunter! I will get pics soon.

My 6 bra was awesome and I adopted it out to a new home when I went 22 BR. No particular reason except I wanted to, lol.

I had to reduce the firing pin and bush it. When firing full power BRA loads it “blanked” the primers. Like piercing but a different phenomena. It cost me $85 bucks and was done quickly by mail.

In the future, I will mostly just build off the new Superlite action for .308 sized cases.

BUT, it’s sweet with a tiny bolt throw!

Kyle and I talked about if we needed to bush the pin or not, I pushed it pretty hard with the 87’s to start with and the primers looked almost perfect. We hit 3,200 with a good dose of varget in a 22” barrel.

 

[Bert01]

That’s pretty wicked. 105s at 2700 go a long ways.

That wasn’t even pushing it very hard in the 16” barrel.

 

[Bert01]

Rock on!

I love my 22 BR mini with a DD Wolf Hunter! I will get pics soon.

My 6 bra was awesome and I adopted it out to a new home when I went 22 BR. No particular reason except I wanted to, lol.

I had to reduce the firing pin and bush it. When firing full power BRA loads it “blanked” the primers. Like piercing but a different phenomena. It cost me $85 bucks and was done quickly by mail.

In the future, I will mostly just build off the new Superlite action for .308 sized cases.

BUT, it’s sweet with a tiny bolt throw!

 

[Bidwell]

I got to thinking about how much I love the little mini I bought for my wife for Christmas. I was considering just buying a 6ARC for myself, and of course the tinkering bug got me. How much powder can I fit in that tiny little action? I don’t want a 22” barrel for most of the deer hunting I do. But I still want to be able to shoot, and maybe hunt, at longer distances. 6GT just a scooch too long, but would’ve been my preference. 6ARC would be neutered a little too much at 16” barrel length based on my gas gun. So I landed on 6 Dasher. Other than a short mag, looks like the most powder I can cram in the mini action under 2.4” oal with bullets optimally loaded.

It helped @Bert01 had a dasher reamer on hand.

It also helped stockys made me a good deal on a VG, and the barreled 6ARC action was on sale at Brownells.

We laid some prints out, and the dasher reamer would clean up nicely over the ARC chamber.

I can’t take any credit for the work, and technically I’m not the first person to do a BR based case in a mini - @hereinaz did a BRA I believe. My search on if anyone had done this before, led me to his threads.


Bert opened bolt face, reamed the chamber, and did some test shots at 22” and 18” before cut/thread at 16”.

I got it home and bedded the action into the stock, and mounted a SWFA 3x9 with some rings I had lying around.

I should get my first range session with it this weekend, and will pick up a DD Wolf hunter for it next week.


Goal was 2800fps with 95tmk in 16” barrel.

We hit 2813fps avg with 34gr of Varget in fire formed brass from a different gun same reamer.

105hpbt hit 2700fps 32.5gr Varget

87vmax hit 2965fps 35gr Varget


I’ve got to fireform some brass, then I’ll work up to pressure and try to get some good groups!


View attachment 859630View attachment 859631View attachment 859632View attachment 859633

I have a superlite and was tempted to do the bedding myself but chickened out. Picking it up tomorrow. Neat seeing how you taped it up. I really wasn't sure how to approach bedding the lug well since it's also where the action screw is too. Thinking about picking up the wood stock from howa so I can practice. 150 bucks vs probably 500ish for the stockys carbon fiber. Any advice for technique and equipment?

Nice looking rifle! I'd like to get one of these mini actions some day.

 

[AZ_Hunter]

That’s cool.

 

[KyleR1985]

I have a superlite and was tempted to do the bedding myself but chickened out. Picking it up tomorrow. Neat seeing how you taped it up. I really wasn't sure how to approach bedding the lug well since it's also where the action screw is too. Thinking about picking up the wood stock from howa so I can practice. 150 bucks vs probably 500ish for the stockys carbon fiber. Any advice for technique and equipment?

Nice looking rifle! I'd like to get one of these mini actions some day.

Advice? Yeh - buy stockys little kit they sell to bed a rifle. Don’t be afraid to do it. Don’t listen to me I have no idea what I’m doing bedding rifles.

It’s not rocket science though. My decision to relieve bottom of recoil lug and bed under chamber is not technically the right way. But it made it much less labor intensive, and left a lot of margin for me to screw up.

Ask me for advice after I have new scope rings, fire formed brass, and 100 rounds down the pipe. Then we’ll know if I got it right.

 

[KyleR1985]

I have a superlite and was tempted to do the bedding myself but chickened out. Picking it up tomorrow. Neat seeing how you taped it up. I really wasn't sure how to approach bedding the lug well since it's also where the action screw is too. Thinking about picking up the wood stock from howa so I can practice. 150 bucks vs probably 500ish for the stockys carbon fiber. Any advice for technique and equipment?

Nice looking rifle! I'd like to get one of these mini actions some day.

Stockys has a sale for 400 for the VG. I bet they’d extend a discount on the blems too

 

[Bidwell]

Advice? Yeh - buy stockys little kit they sell to bed a rifle. Don’t be afraid to do it. Don’t listen to me I have no idea what I’m doing bedding rifles.

It’s not rocket science though. My decision to relieve bottom of recoil lug and bed under chamber is not technically the right way. But it made it much less labor intensive, and left a lot of margin for me to screw up.

Ask me for advice after I have new scope rings, fire formed brass, and 100 rounds down the pipe. Then we’ll know if I got it right.

Ha, fair enough. Hope it works out.

 

[General RE LEE]

Awesome rifle!

 

[KyleR1985]

108eldm, Peterson virgin brass, f205, 32g Varget 2.315” oal 2700fps average







95TMK, Peterson virgin brass, f205, 32gr Varget, 2.30” oal. 2750fps average. I think these will tighten up with more powder/pressure.



Shot 40 rounds or so, now I have fireformed brass. Another interesting thing - 33gr lever under the 108’s made a nice 3 shot group at 2650. I bet I can get 2-3gr more in there before I see pressure, and can probably have that bullet around 2750-2800. Will explore with formed brass.