6.5 Creedmoor for hunting

[MontanaGrant]

It’s as good as any other round. I got one just because a threaded barrel model was cheap and it was slow enough to suppress well.

A lot of the hate comes from the new knowitalls who think they invented long range shooting with it.

I’ve had good luck with what I’ve shot with mine. Most of the performance complaints I’ve seen have been ammo related, a lot of people using either a too tough or soft match bullet instead of a good hunting bullet.

 

[CBH Australia]

Well, it’s here to stay regardless of what some of us think.

I think it’s the hype and the incorrect bullets and the newcomers who put me off. You get a new shooter who believes all he was told and can’t put it into practice he may as well have a .243

if you have to calculate the drop and drift then it’s only a matter of a few clicks difference if you have the technology to range and the knowledge to calculate the difference.

 

[KuduKiller]

I have a Browning Hells Canyon that I have used on several trips as well as my son taking 11 different animals with it. I use Barnes TTSX and have taken animals from 50 yards to 400.

 

[Hogpatrol]

You'll be ok as long as you use Bergers.

 

[CZDiesel]

Do yourself a favor and buy a 260 REM, 6.5x55, 7x57, or 7mm-08! All better cartridges and the airport staff won’t respond to you as “Ma’am”

 

[Red Leg]

It does anything the 6.5x57, 6.5x54, and 6.5x55 have been doing for 100 years and almost anything that the 25-06 and .257 Weatherby have been doing for nearly that long. If you don't care for one of those, then it should be fine.

 

[CZDiesel]

It does anything the 6.5x57, 6.5x54, and 6.5x55 have been doing for 100 years and almost anything that the 25-06 and .257 Weatherby have been doing for nearly that long. If you don't care for one of those, then it should be fine.

It is absolutely not in the same league as a 25-06 or a 257 WBY you know that…

 

[Red Leg]

It is absolutely not in the same league as a 25-06 or a 257 WBY you know that…

I do. That is why I used the term "almost" - you should look it up - comes in handy with comparisons. It is also why I own and use a .257 Wby (R8) and not a Creedmoor. As I think about it, I also own a 6.5x57 and 6.5x55 rather than a Creedmoor.

 

[CZDiesel]

I do. That is why I used the term "almost" - you should look it up - comes in handy with comparisons. It is also why I own and use a .257 Wby (R8) and not a Creedmoor. As I think about it, I also own a 6.5x57 and 6.5x55 rather than a Creedmoor.

I know the term, I’ll leave it at that. But I do like your cartridge selection and that’s why I recommended them to the OP…
Friends still

 

[Andrew62]

A few years ago I took a 6.5 creedmor to South Africa, I took springbuck, lechwe, fallow deer, hartebeest, black wildebeest and a gemsbok. All of the animals I took were with Barnes 120 TTSX, gemsbok went maybe 25 yards.

 

[112Savage]

The beauty of the 6.5 creedmoor is that most rifles shoot almost all bullets well. It also shoots them at a good velocity. Sure there are many that send the same bullet faster, but at what cost?
143ELDX 42.1gr RL16 2735fps
160 45-46gr superformance sierra/hornady 2630fps
130 sierra HPBT or TGK 43.9gr RL16 2900fs
110 hammer varget 3150fps
143 ELDX superformance or RL26 2800+fps

There aren’t many cartridges that can do that as well with such modest powder charges.
All of these are appropriate charges from a 22” barrel
Generally 6.5x55 shows pressure or loses accuracy at slower fps. 260 only shows better in longer barrels. Same for 6.5 rem mag and 264 win mag. All based on experience. The 6.5 creedmoor is Goldilocks

 

[CZDiesel]

The beauty of the 6.5 creedmoor is that most rifles shoot almost all bullets well. It also shoots them at a good velocity. Sure there are many that send the same bullet faster, but at what cost?
143ELDX 42.1gr RL16 2735fps
160 45-46gr superformance sierra/hornady 2630fps
130 sierra HPBT or TGK 43.9gr RL16 2900fs
110 hammer varget 3150fps
143 ELDX superformance or RL26 2800+fps

There aren’t many cartridges that can do that as well with such modest powder charges.
All of these are appropriate charges from a 22” barrel
Generally 6.5x55 shows pressure or loses accuracy at slower fps. 260 only shows better in longer barrels. Same for 6.5 rem mag and 264 win mag. All based on experience. The 6.5 creedmoor is Goldilocks

At those velocities it’s not doing anything special though. It’s a fine deer cartridge at moderate ranges. Nothing wrong with that! But all the magic pixie dust so many wanted to poor on it is a joke imo
My 264WinMag will shoots those 140’s at 400 to 500 fps faster! Now I understand it’s a specialized tool, it’s a dedicated long range medium game rifle. But that what anyone would use a 264 for right? My biggest problem is which one do I leave for the hunt with? The 264 or the 7STW? These are true long range rifles!

 

[Red Leg]

I know the term, I’ll leave it at that. But I do like your cartridge selection and that’s why I recommended them to the OP…
Friends still

Sorry. I was being a jerk. Been an eventful few days with somewhat needy visitors. You and I are in full agreement. The Creedmoor replicates a number of century-old classics and isn't quite up to truly long range more modern alternatives. Nothing wrong with it - I just don't get why it is perceived to be special. Marketing is a powerful thing.

 

[CZDiesel]

Sorry. I was being a jerk. Been an eventful few days with somewhat needy visitors. You and I are in full agreement. The Creedmoor replicates a number of century-old classics and isn't quite up to truly long range more modern alternatives. Nothing wrong with it - I just don't get why it is perceived to be special. Marketing is a powerful thing.

Hang in there! You know the saying about visitors and fish lol

 

[Red Leg]

Hang in there! You know the saying about visitors and fish lol

They exceeded the three-day rule by two.

 

[OxfordTheCat]

Nothing wrong with it - I just don't get why it is perceived to be special. Marketing is a powerful thing.

In my opinion, also gets a huge boost from the Honda Civic syndrome:

Young people that don't know any better, or any different, rate them extremely highly because it's their first car, and they love it. But they also have no real frame of reference.

6.5 mememore gets a similar boost by being introduced in tandem with blossoming social media and internet presence, and that combined with the marketing, has produced a generation of young people that got a first rifle in a ~$500 rifle-and-scope combo from Bass Pro or Cabelas in 6.5, and they have latched onto it as a wonder cartridge.

 

[Angelo_orygun]

I took my Bergara in 6.5 to Africa, worked well on a Blue Wildebeest at 225 yards, would have no issues using it again. Just to stir the pot, I’ll also add that it performed better than an -06 on a Black Wildebeest during my first trip, thanks to a better placed shot.

Impala stand no chance at 120 yards. Nor do whitetail at 90 yards on this side of the pond…

 

[Tradmark]

My son killed an eland with his. Also several large cow elk. Killed them all w barnes lrx or terminal ascent. Killed them decisively. Must pick the right bullet and most 6.5 creed hunting criticism are really bullet and not cartridge problems

 

[RedTag]

The 6.5 Creedmoor is very well supported with factory ammunition. There are many great cartridges (probably most of them) that only get so-so performance with factory ammo, falling short of their potential in both velocity and accuracy. The 6.5 CM is a great choice for those who want a small bore rifle for hunting game under 400 pounds inside 400 yards and plan to only shoot factory ammo. That being said I don’t like how so many people are trying to shoot elk with it at 600 yards, totally inappropriate.

 

[Mauser78]

Will work great imo.

Reasonable distance isn’t a guess. Just look on any ballistic calculator with your projectile and MV and stay within range of the minimum upset velocity of your bullet.

With what you have proposed 5-600 yards.

That said, make sure you have practiced rigorously at shooting that distance in field conditions. I wasn’t offered a shot over about 200 yards while in South Africa. My guess is any game you want to take can be taken much shorter than your maximum shooting range.

I am local, so we hunt a bit different than what you would find in Africa.

A normal driven springbuck hunt over here is 8-10 guns in the field, we hunt for meat, not trophy’s. The are is flat with zero scrub above knee hight, you have a hunting chair, and if the animals are in your area you must shoot to keep them moving. Otherwise nobody gets any anamals.
Not my favourite type of hunting, but its the only way in that area, and it is a specialised type of hunting with chairs, rifles for long range shots, high power scopes ext. i would put it in the same league as your varmit shooting. So shots can be close, or it can be 400-500 yards.
Its more like live target shooting and “hunting” in the traditional sense. Also you are only in the field one, maybe 2 days, and 50-80 animals is shot in that time, so it is something different, but the only way for a verry big part of the country. I come from limpopo and live in Cape town now, so this is the “normal” type of hunting for us here otherwise you need to travel 700-1200 miles.