6.5x55mm for Plains Game?

[Johan van der Walt]

Also interested in the Eld-X at closer ranges. Thinking about loading the 162gr in my 7x64.

I generally only take engine room shots but at a closer range a headshot might work. I have not used the Berger long range bullets but I hear they create a lot of meat damage. Given that this was my first use of the ELD-X and it was a long shot I cannot really comment on short range

 

[Goose Cracker]

@Goose Cracker what is your load details on the 140 gr Swift A Frame? I just purchased a used, pristine safe queen of a CZ-550 FS in 6.5x55. I ordered some Hornady, Privi and Swift ammo from Midway and plan to head to the range either Friday or Saturday. I am planning to eventually hand load some Hornady SST and Swift A-Frames, both in 140 gr.

View attachment 332484

Apologies was in South GA hunting quail this weekend.

Exact same rifle I took to SA last year. Very cool rifle. Heavy but a joy to shoot.

My 140g A-Frame load is 44.5 grains of IMR 4831 loaded 0.0025" off the lands. Loaded up to 45.5 grains (2723fps) but accuracy, max spread, and std dev suffered. YMMV and be safe!!

 

[shark_za]

Plains game is a term that is used very lightly around here. It seems to be the name for anything that is not dangerous and covers both bush and open plains species.
The versatility of the 6.5x55 means I can load a 156gr Oryx bullet and take almost anything short of Eland comfortably or load a 125gr Partition and really reach out to plain game species like Black Wildebeest or Blesbuck. But I have the time to tinker and plan a few hunts a year.
The trick for the visiting hunter would be to work out one load in the mid bullet weight that can do both.
A good 140gr bonded or partitioned bullet at 2700fps will certainly be good for plains and bushveld. I have not personally seen a factory loaded round that does this well but reloading is the "way of the 6.5" right now.

 

[Frederik]

This is an old thread but so is the 6.5x55 calibre I have a old sporterized Carl Gustav M96 mauser that I bought for my son and added a silencer and with a 140gr soft nose at just over 2500fps it has taken an assorment of species the biggest being an large eland cow pictured here. Presice shot placement on a high double lung shot did the trick.

I probarbly walked over to her too quickly after she laid down and she picked up her head and I decided to rather end it quicker and applied a shot to the ear from the side.

But except the eland it has shot over 10 impala, warthog nyala, common reedbuck, blesbuck and springbuck.
The long bullet helps for penetration and even if the front part breaks off it still has a healthy piece of lead to go ahead.
Currently I'm working on a load to shoot it a bit faster for ranges of 200meters and more and also a load with 160gr RN Hornady Interlocks. I should be able to get 2400fps out of them perfect bushveld combination. With the 140gr and the shortened barrel I'm looking at getting close to 2650fps will hopefully see this weeknd if it works out.

Range on the eland cow was 180 meters she took the shot ran 20 meters or so circled and laid down. I gave her 2 more minutes but that was not enough and I finished her off. When butchering her the lungs were damaged to a large degree and plenty of blood inside the chest cavity.

I do not say the 6.5 is a eland calibre but it can be done it punches above its weight class.

 

[Shootist43]

Frederik, what length barrel is on the rifle you mentioned?

 

[Kev]

Almost any caliber will kill any animal, with the proper shot placement . Fine, we all agree on that.

However, in the field, for many reasons, we may not be able to take the "perfect shot". So why take the chance of wounding an animal with a smaller caliber, when you have a higher probability of a kill if you use a larger caliber ?

I just don t understand it .

My advice is to choose the largest caliber you feel comfortable with, and use premium bullets, a .300WM, or .338WM will do finely.

If you do not consider the shot to be "perfect" do not take it. There will always be another chance. A big calibre is no reason to risk a wounded animal.

 

[Kev]

This is one for the experts: Is the 6.5x55mm Swedish Mauser adequate for Plains Game (excluding eland and giraffe)? I realize of course that shot placement is paramount, and that elephants can be killed with a .22 if you get it right, I am more interested in hearing from someone who has tried the 6.5x55. Moose are taken regularly with it in Sweden, so it's no popgun, and mine has killed fallow and red deer as dead as you can wish for, but I keep hearing how tough African game are. To preempt the likely questions: I am comfortable shooting to 200m, 250m if pushed, and I use factory ammunition, 140gr Remington Core-Lokt. Any advice would be very welcome!

 

[Kev]

I am not an expert on African game. But after being a professional shooter for many years and then a serious recreational hunter after retiring from the b/s that swamped the culling profession, and being a long term user of the fantastic 6.5 x 55 in numerous rifles, I feel I might be able to give some input.
I have successfully taken every species of deer in Australia and have had the opportunity to be involved in the culling of feral animals such as camel, horse, bantang and buffalo.
All of these animals fell to single well placed shots from a 6.5 x 55 using either 156gn round nose soft points or the brilliant 143gn ELD-X from Hornady. In the initial stage of using the 6.5 I had to use the REM CL 140gn. But moved away from it when better projectiles found their way onto the shelves at gun-shops.
Of course I handload. My pet load for the 143gn ELD-X is 48gn of RE22 which pushes the pill out of the muzzle at a chrono speed of 2720fps with no obvious signs of excessive pressure.
In conjunction with this load I use a Burris Eliminator 3 scope with the laser ranger finder placing an illuminated aim point on the target at whatever distance it reads. This system is as close to perfect as I think we can get. It puts the projectile in exactly the spot where I want it.
The 143gn ELD-X is way too much bullet for the lighter skinned and framed animals, it penetrates to deeply before expanding. When I use the 6.5 on lighter game I use the brilliant Hornady 123gn SST. It was meant to be used in the 6.5 Grendel at 2,600/2,700fps but driven to 2,900fps out of the 6.5 x 55 it is devastating on the lighter game animals such as Fallow/Sika and the largest wild pigs.
Coming along to the wild dogs the 6.5 is a lot of cartridge. the 1:8 twist in my rifle does not particularly suit the really light projectiles of "varmint" class BUT there is one particular projectile that is well suited to the game and the twist. The 130gn Berger VLD Hunting projectile driven to 2,850fps literally explodes inside the chest cavity of wild dogs and wild pigs.
If you are going to hunt using factory ammo then you need to look for the ammo that works best in your particular rifle, with enough velocity to give a reasonably flat trajectory and provide enough expansion to expend all of it energy inside the animal.
That's one problem with the ELD-X - it does not stay inside any of the Aussie deer unless you wreck a lot of the forequarter with a shoulder shot. It works well though for rear end quartering shots reaching the vital chest cavity fully expanded.
Personally from what I have read on African game I think if you are going to go with a factory loading then you might be better looking at something with a bit more diameter and power. But whatever you do make sure you use the right projectile and put it in the right place.

 

[Doc Lightning]

I have a few Remington 700s from a 50 year old .222 Remington to an 8 year old .243 Winchester. I must admit that I had the .243 converted to a 6.5 creedmoor--absolutely wonderful rifle. A couple of years ago I took a 7mm-08 Remington to South Africa. No problem with kudu, gemsbok or impala.
Delightful, deadly caliber (140 gr Nosler accubon cartridge.) Remington 700s work fine for me.

In my old age (now 80) I have become a recoil wimp. Haven't shot my Rem 700 in 30-06 caliber in a couple of years. Took my 7-08 to Africa, as noted, and did just fine. Guide was a little
skeptical initially but was happy with shooting results. No complaints.

 

[Frederik]

Frederik, what length barrel is on the rifle you mentioned?

23" the original barrel was very long I think they came out with 28" barrels then. I bought the rifle second hand already converted.

 

[shark_za]

While its good for a bullet to expend energy in the body of the target I can bet you that most PH's would rather have a bullet that penetrates a little deeper than average. Sacrifice some expansion for penetration.
This is more reliable and following a double sided blood trail for 100m is much better than tracking a shoulder-less animal over many km and/or days.
I would always suggest a heavy for caliber bullet in a partition/bonded variety for any African hunting.

 

[Shootist43]

Frederik, you are close. the 1896 Swedish Mausers had 29" barrels. However in the late 1930(s) a number of the original barrels were cut to 24". At or about the same time Husqvarna began producing Swedes with 24" barrels. Most of my sporterized Swedes have 22" barrels but I like to use the 24" barreled ones for Africa, just to get a little more velocity. I just purchased a sporterized Husqvarna in excellent condition for $330. This rifle is still in transit to me but I'm expecting it to shoot sub MOA like all the others I have.

 

[Philip Glass]

This is one for the experts: Is the 6.5x55mm Swedish Mauser adequate for Plains Game (excluding eland and giraffe)? I realize of course that shot placement is paramount, and that elephants can be killed with a .22 if you get it right, I am more interested in hearing from someone who has tried the 6.5x55. Moose are taken regularly with it in Sweden, so it's no popgun, and mine has killed fallow and red deer as dead as you can wish for, but I keep hearing how tough African game are. To preempt the likely questions: I am comfortable shooting to 200m, 250m if pushed, and I use factory ammunition, 140gr Remington Core-Lokt. Any advice would be very welcome!

Nope

 

[Shootist43]

Philip Glass, your short answer is technically correct. Some countries require a minimum of 7 mm. The distances over which the OP said he was comfortable shooting at exceed those at which I'd be more than willing to use my Swede. I drew the line on which animals I was willing to take, below Kudu unless it was an absolutely perfect broadside shot on the animal of a lifetime at under 100 yds. But than again I handload and get significantly more velocity out of my ammo that what Remington Core-Lokt produces. I think there is a place for the Swede in Africa, but it cannot be used indiscriminately. On that point I hope we can agree.

 

[shark_za]

The distances over which the OP said he was comfortable shooting at exceed those at which I'd be more than willing to use my Swede.

I always find it funny when people bring range into the decision making process. I guess that 99% of all hunting takes place UNDER 250m and range can usually be ignored with most "point blank range" settings and loads at this distance.

In fact the 6.5 starts doing even better over range that many other calibers and the bigger the animal the bigger the vital area.

Nope

I must have killed all this game with inadequate loads all this time.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

Apologies was in South GA hunting quail this weekend.

Exact same rifle I took to SA last year. Very cool rifle. Heavy but a joy to shoot.

My 140g A-Frame load is 44.5 grains of IMR 4831 loaded 0.0025" off the lands. Loaded up to 45.5 grains (2723fps) but accuracy, max spread, and std dev suffered. YMMV and be safe!!

I took my new to me CZ-550 FS to the range this past weekend and had 3 different types of factory ammo to test.

139 gr Prvi (factory ammo) Avg fps was 2465.
140 gr Swift A-Frames (factory ammo). Avg fps was 2340 fps.
140 gr Hornady SST Superformance(factory ammo). Avg fps was 2685.

I am quite pleased the grouping and also the velocity from the 20.5 inch barrel. The A-Frames group under an inch at 100 yards and the Prvi and Hornady a bit over an inch.

 

[cagkt3]

I always find it funny when people bring range into the decision making process. I guess that 99% of all hunting takes place UNDER 250m and range can usually be ignored with most "point blank range" settings and loads at this distance.

In fact the 6.5 starts doing even better over range that many other calibers and the bigger the animal the bigger the vital area.

I believe many would argue range only matters as a function of energy, or rather that the 2 should be looked at together. The 6.5 certainly has it's place in certain scenarios, but while it may be accurate out past 200+ meters, that doesn't guarantee it will still be an effective hunting caliber at those distances. Would I shoot a zebra (or kudu, or similar sized PG) at 100 yds perfectly broadside - sure. Would I shoot that same animal at 200 yds, quartering hard towards me? No. Too much risk of the bullet deflecting off of, or simply not having enough terminal energy to punch through, a large shoulder and still reach the vitals.

The 6.5s certainly have their place, but I don't think I would say it could take everything up to eland/giraffe (the OP's hypothetical scenario) out to 250m.

 

[Shootist43]

Dittos on what cagkt3 said. I used to think that my 6.5 x 55 could be used to kill just about any animal. We have all read about the Moose that are taken annually with that caliber. With handloads the 6.5 x 55 can get within spitting distance of a 7 x 57 and they were used to kill elephants. I fully believe that the 6.5 x 55 because of the long for caliber bullet punches way beyond its weight class. It was Nathan Foster's treatise on the Swedish Mauser that brought me back to reality. I think that anyone that has contributed to or read this thread would benefit from reading them. https://www.ballisticstudies.com/Knowledgebase/6.5x55.html

The 6.5 x 55 Swedish Mauser both the rifle and the caliber has been my go to rifle since 1996. IMHO not respecting its limitations does a great disservice to one of the greatest rifle and caliber combinations ever invented!!

 

[Philip Glass]

I always find it funny when people bring range into the decision making process. I guess that 99% of all hunting takes place UNDER 250m and range can usually be ignored with most "point blank range" settings and loads at this distance.

In fact the 6.5 starts doing even better over range that many other calibers and the bigger the animal the bigger the vital area.


I must have killed all this game with inadequate loads all this time.

Sorry but I only speak from experience not from a judgmental standpoint. I believe the 6.5 Creedmore is the most practical and actually a devastating load for Whitetail deer in Texas. However Texas deer want to die when you shoot them, African animals want to live when you shoot them. This is the undeniable truth that must be pointed out. When we talk about calibers for Africa I can bring up my first safari where my partner wounded all kinds of stuff with his .270 and I can also bring up my last safari where my friend, who is an accomplished shooter and much better than me, wounded all kinds of stuff with his 6.5 Creedmore.
You guys always want to get defensive about calibers. Let's be truthful. Most PG could be and has been killed with a .22 but is that what you would recommend to a guy who has saved for many years and dreamed of Africa? I am not going to send "that guy" to Africa on his first PG hunt under gunned. I don't care what caliber you use just don't tell everyone on AH that the 6.5 Creedmore is the ideal PG caliber because it is not.
Regards,
Philip

 

[Goose Cracker]

I agree with Philip that the 6.5s aren't "ideal" plains game cartridges, in the sense that "plains game" covers a wide variety of animals from the tiny ten to eland. And I love my 6.5s. Have three different rifles in 6.5x55 and a 6.5 CM.

As mentioned, my 6.5x55 was very effective on smaller plains game like kilppy, impala, and bushbuck. All pass-throughs, all one shot kills, and all dead within 50 yards. For these smaller antelope I think the various 6.5s with 140 grain or heavier premium projectiles *is* ideal.

"Ideal" for animals like wildebeest, kudu, zebra, nyala, and waterbuck strikes me as a 30 caliber or larger based on my two safaris/22 days in the field focused exclusively on plains game. Not a lot of experience, but enough to make some initial observations. Could you kill these larger animals with a 6.5? Absolutely. But there are better choices IMHO for these larger plains game animals. I think the 35 Whelen with 225 grain TBBCs I used on my eland was adequate, but a 375 would have been better - and that's what I'll use on my next hunt for eland.

My experience with deer in GA, FL, WI, and Saskatchewan are not consistent with the "want to die" statement about Texas deer. They all reacted similarly to smaller plains game and were decidedly in the "want to live" camp. I have not hunted deer in Texas.