Anyone use a 6.5X55 ?

[Erik7181]

I own a CZ 550FS in 6.5X55. Just used on hogs for now till I move north to Alaska.
Anyone else like them?

 

[Divernhunter]

I have a Tikka T3 Lite I enjoy hunting with.

 

[VonJager]

Several of us bought the lipseys exclusive Ruger African in 6.5x55 last year. Shoots straight on paper, Haven’t used it on game yet.

Debating using it or a 270 win on an axis buck in April

 

[perttime]

I don't have one - but lots of game gets taken with them in Scandinavia every year. Up to Moose. The European ones don't get QUITE as large as their American relatives.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

Rumor has it that @Shootist43 is fond the 6.5 Swede.

 

[Shootist43]

Rumor has it that Shootist43 is fond the 6.5 Swede.

Yes he is. Do you roll your own or buy factory ammo? What are you thinking about hunting with it? If you haven't already done so, check out the following https://www.ballisticstudies.com/Knowledgebase/6.5x55.html
I worked up a load following the experiences of the author and wound up with a load that produces 2775 FPS pushing a 140 Gr. Nosler Partition out of a 24 " barrel. Norma puts out a good load using their 156 Gr. Oryx bullet and Hornady offers their 140 Gr. SST at 2730 FPS. Anything else is IMHO junk by comparison. This caliber penetrates very well due to the bullets length. I love it for animals up to 400 lbs. with perfect broadside shots, preferably under 200 yds.

 

[nztimb]

Right in the same book as the 6.5x57 and with the 140gn bullet in the 2800fps region you will have one of the best compromise hunting rifle cartridges there is. The 6.5 bullet has weight/SD/velocity combined with almost zero recoil in a light and handy rifle package that is perfect for all medium / large game anywhere.

 

[leslie hetrick]

I have two CZ 550,s, top is a .375 H&H mag and the lower is a 6.5x55, nice rifles but a little heavy for my taste. I also have a rem 700 sps in .260 Remington that I also like and it has a 24" barrel and is lighter.

 

[Lancaster]

I have one in a Sako 85 and am a fan. I have never used it in Africa but is perfect for all the deer species we have in the UK. It is the standard military calibre in many of the Nordic countries so is used to effect on thousands of wild boar and elk (what they call moose) every year.

 

[sgt_zim]

I have a Tikka T3X Hunter in 6.5x55SE. I haven't shot anything but paper with it yet, though not for want of effort.

 

[njc110381]

The 6.5x55 is my favourite compromise calibre for shooting all the UK species of deer. Ours range from the muntjac (10kg+) to the red (-200kg+). In my experience it will knock over the small ones without ruining them but also hit hard enough to take down the larger ones. With 120-140gr bullets seems to be where it's happiest, but I have also used 95gr V-Max with great success on foxes.

They have a reasonable reputation for larger game too but I don't have any experience of that. They are also fairly mild mannered which is nice for those who don't appreciate heavy recoil!

 

[ActionBob]

Several of us bought the lipseys exclusive Ruger African in 6.5x55 last year. Shoots straight on paper, Haven’t used it on game yet.

Debating using it or a 270 win on an axis buck in April

Oh you have to use the Ruger African

 

[WAB]

No contest ActionBob, 6.5. Be one of the cool kids [emoji41]

 

[lwaters]

Bought a Savage Axis in 6.5 Creedmore. It is really accurate.

 

[Dwight Beagle]

My favorite rifle is my 550 American 6.5x55. I handload 130 grain Berger Hunting VLD’s. I couldn’t get 140 grain VLD’s to shoot accurately or that’s what I’d be using. The 130 grain VLD’s work just fine for anything in Texas.

 

[Nevada Mike]

I have an M96 Swedish Mauser in 6.5mm X 55. Owned it for over 50 years. It works pretty well, though there are people whose imaginations run wild when they discuss the ballistics of this caliber.

 

[Tra3]

My 7th grade son shoots a 6.5 creedmore. My family history is part Swedish, so that caliber seems like an Americanized version of my heritage...

They are pretty close balistically. The gun is a Kimber, shoots accurately and is very light. I “borrow” it regularly.

 

[ChrisG]

It is a fantastic rifle cartridge. It doesn't get the press that the 7x57 does in Africa, but I would say there is hardly a lick of difference between them in practical effect on game. I have a Ruger M77 MkII that I have done some work to. It shoots and looks great. I don't push my loads hard at all and it kills like a hammer on medium large game. Like less than 250-350 lbs. It will kill much larger animals, but don't expect them to crumple like they were just bludgeoned by a four ton pile driver. If you don't reload, most factory loads for the swede are anemic at best. They are slow and only really would have an effective range of 200-250 yards on animals (Not the range you can hit them at but the range at which the bullets readily expand).

If you really wanna see what the Swede will do, you need to reload it. It has more case capacity than either the 6.5 creedmoor or the .260, it is more heavily tapered so it feeds like its covered in Teflon and it's chambered in long action rifles so it can make use of its entire case capacity because so little of it is obstructed by the bullets impingement. Mine is probably the most accurate rifle I own... Its sort of boring shooting it at the range honestly. You know its going to put all the bullets exactly where you had the crosshairs and there is no sinus jarring concussion or headache inducing recoil... pretty boring really. Its a mathematicians rifle. Dry, boring, predictable and works every time. It really is one slick little cartridge and I will never part with mine. I guess with firearms, you don't want them to be too exciting or you end up missing fingers or with a detached retina...

 

[dmyers]

I traded a swedish mauser in 6.5x55 to an Inuit hunter for some art but not before I shot 5+ caribou with it. I'd hunt moose and elk with it with no hesitations - with a premium bullet. Sort of wish I kept the rifle now.

 

[Scrumbag]

Used one quite a bit and like it! Lot's of choice in loads, capable of longer range stuff