Boiler room matters. - dan
https://www.chuckhawks.com/case_capacity_matters.html
https://www.chuckhawks.com/case_capacity_matters.html
Some interesting 6.5 data from Chuck Hawks
- Thread starter dan belisle
- Start date
Agree. At one point I had 3 of them. Now down to one. It is a great cartridge. I have had, or currently have, numerous 6.5's, from a 6.5 TCU to a 6.5 STW. The Swede is a great balance. - dan
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Wonder, how old is the Hawks article? No hornady 6.5 creedmore load.
The creedmore is designed for long, slick bc target bullets. Which matters not at all until 500 yards. As a hunter, I don't shoot that far. The Creedmoors big advantage to me is the spawning of new cartridges and bullets. Without the creedmore would we have the excellent new bullets in 6.5, 6, 25, 30? Soon every cartridge will have long, slick, high bc bullets as they get creedmore'd or prc'd.
The creedmore is designed for long, slick bc target bullets. Which matters not at all until 500 yards. As a hunter, I don't shoot that far. The Creedmoors big advantage to me is the spawning of new cartridges and bullets. Without the creedmore would we have the excellent new bullets in 6.5, 6, 25, 30? Soon every cartridge will have long, slick, high bc bullets as they get creedmore'd or prc'd.
Confirmation of a fact long understood by knowledgeable shooters. Unfortunately, not yet realized by many uneducated, new shooters who believe that the newest cartridges must be the "best" cartridges.
On my 4th 6.5x55 now; finally having a left handed Sako M85 Hunter. Very accurate and beautiful rifle! First 3 rounds went less than 1/2" @ 100 yards w/ factory ammo. My second favourite cartridge overall, and the one with which I have the most experience shooting and loading for over the past 28 years (obtained my first 6.5x55 in 1994). Always a joy to shoot and hunt with the ol' Swede!
Not to discredit the other cartridges, as I do/have own/owned some: a semi-custom X-Bolt in 6.5 CM and thoroughly enjoy it, and have owned a Sako 85 VLS in 260 that was a joy to shoot, but has since left the stable as it was not left handed. Did own a LH Savage in 6.5x284, but while it shot well, I just didn't care for the rifle, and sold it. Have acquired another LH X-Bolt to build a 6.5 PRC on and am looking forward to getting acquainted with this cartridge too! Each is appreciated for what it is, on its own merits.
Just a fan of the 6.5s and have been for quite some time.
On my 4th 6.5x55 now; finally having a left handed Sako M85 Hunter. Very accurate and beautiful rifle! First 3 rounds went less than 1/2" @ 100 yards w/ factory ammo. My second favourite cartridge overall, and the one with which I have the most experience shooting and loading for over the past 28 years (obtained my first 6.5x55 in 1994). Always a joy to shoot and hunt with the ol' Swede!
Not to discredit the other cartridges, as I do/have own/owned some: a semi-custom X-Bolt in 6.5 CM and thoroughly enjoy it, and have owned a Sako 85 VLS in 260 that was a joy to shoot, but has since left the stable as it was not left handed. Did own a LH Savage in 6.5x284, but while it shot well, I just didn't care for the rifle, and sold it. Have acquired another LH X-Bolt to build a 6.5 PRC on and am looking forward to getting acquainted with this cartridge too! Each is appreciated for what it is, on its own merits.
Just a fan of the 6.5s and have been for quite some time.
The cm has less case capacity. As mentioned in the article, all
else being equal, bigger boiler room makes for the fastest cartridge. - dan
The 260 is one of my favourites. I’ve had great luck with 120gr loads. Easy to make brass from 243 win or just buy lapua. The 6.5x55 is good too but doesn’t fit a Remington short action. Never owned a Creedmoor, maybe one day.
I have a 260 vls, nice shooting rifle. - dan
I like the VLS, I don’t think I’ve seen one in 260. Was it a custom barreled job?
I have a 40x in 260. It makes a nice target rig. But for hunting this lightweight stainless 700 is a gooder.
No, it was a factory option for a while. Have a few of them (vls's I mean, not 260's). They fit me well and shoot well. I like 40x's as well, have those in 6x47, 22-250, 222 Rem Mag and 308/7.62x51. I have had maybe a dozen go through my hands over the years, should have hung on to them all. They all shoot better than me, but as you say, are quite heavy. That 260 in your pic looks like a great hunting rifle. - dan
30-40 yrs ago about all there was over here, were the 6.5x55 and the 264Win Mag, the selection of bullets wasn't there to be had anywhere near the way it is now, folk were playing with 6mm, 7mm, 30cal and 338 back then. 6.5CM did do wonders for bullet selection, along with the various other version 6.5's certainly improved the powder selections as well. It also opened the market over here for the Euro cartridges & guns that have been around forever, just not popular over here with the magnum and short fat magnum craze over the last number of decades.
The Swede always did have long sleek bullets; be mindful that a 140 gr in a 6.5 is a long bullet; I was loading with Sierra 120 gr HPBT for ground hog back in the '70s; they are long also. Still load with them today: https://www.sierrabullets.com/product/6-5-mm-264-caliber-120-gr-hpbt-matchking/
The CM is really just a shorter, lower capacity 260 with a fast twist barrel. And while there are certainly more long bullets, heavy for calibre bullets aren't really a new thing. Look how well the original 160 gr worked in the 6.5 MS. - dan
I like the 6.5 caliber, but the vast majority of my 6.5 cartridges have been chammbered in single shot rifles, falling block, Martini, or long action single shot bolt actions, so the short action-long action agrument/advantage was never a considerition to me.
I have hunted with stuff like the 6.5X54Mannlicher, and competed with customs like the 6.5WSM
I just like the 6.5 caliber, regardless of the case that it is attached to! LOL
Cat
I have hunted with stuff like the 6.5X54Mannlicher, and competed with customs like the 6.5WSM
I just like the 6.5 caliber, regardless of the case that it is attached to! LOL
Cat
So true Dan, and that 160 was out at a lazy MV of 2160 fps. I shot several muleys with mine, and some were decent sized deer.
Never recovered one of those 160 grain bullet. [Dominion ammunition (Canada's C.I.L.)] Dave.
Agree, I still have a few of those 160's left. Out of the slow little 6.5 MS they would plough easily through the biggest northern moose we ever shot. I have read they used them on elephants too, though only brain shots. - dan
This kinda feels like a chicken-or-the-egg sort of thing. 6.5s, in particular the 6.5-284 was a highly regarded cartridge for match shooting for some time before the Creedmoor showed up on the scene. 6.5x47 lapua and 6.5 grendel were already on the market too. So did the CM drive bullet design or was it piggybacking on a market already being developed thanks to the other options?
Surely the CM helped, but how much credit does it really deserve for the wide variety of 6.5 bullets?...
Surely the CM helped, but how much credit does it really deserve for the wide variety of 6.5 bullets?...
I agree, and think it piggybacked on the former. Add in a lot of press, and we have the new miracle child. Doesn't mean it doesn't work well, it does. - dan
And then theres's the 6.5 x 55 AI alias SUPER SWEDE ! Very KOOL ! 
RJ
RJ
