6.5 for moose???

Every danged cartridge mentioned here will kill no differently than Others others IF you make s good hit
Lousy shot placement will also yield like results from all of them!

I've killed or seen Moose killed with all of the cartridges mentioned and my advice is to forget about all the ballistics crap, and get a rifle you like in a cartridge you like and have fun practising!
Cat
 
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One additional thing to add to the Southern Ontario caliber restriction, the actual regs:

2014 Regs said:
A person hunting small game may not carry or use a rifle
of greater calibre than a .275-calibre rifle, except a muzzle-
loading gun, in the geographic areas of Brant, Chatham-Kent,
Durham, Elgin, Essex, Haldimand, Halton, Hamilton, Huron,
Lambton, Middlesex, Niagara, Norfolk, Northumberland,
Oxford, Peel, Perth, Toronto, Waterloo, Wellington or York
Click to expand...
http://files.ontario.ca/environment-and-energy/fish-and-wildlife/239852.pdf

It basically covers everything south and east of the GTA.
 
Looking at the four you have listed. I have reservations about the 25-06 and 6.5x55 for different reasons.

I am a big fan of the 25-06. Great round for dual purpose predator and deer/elk. The 25-06 is all about speed, kills way out of proportion for size of projectile. IMO a great long range round ....think praire antelope and deer. If your shots are max 175 meters, it defeats the purpose of the round. It also typically shoots a max 120 gr projectile, with a ideal shot angle at close range...ok. Just not my choice on your list.

I dislike the 6.5x55 for a different reason. There are a lot of 100+ year old rifles, out there, some with weak actions. Therefore the factory ammo is lawyer friendly watered down 30-30 level limp noodle.... If you handload, different story. Nice also that one could load a deer round, and perhaps a 160 grain moose load.

From your list my choice would be 260 Rem. If you are buying new, could even go old school and get a 270 i think that qualifies under the Ontario rules. But the 260 would have the most horsepower without handloading, and the best choices and availability in factory ammo.
 
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All day long
 
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Yea my little 6.5x55 can't stop a 1000 lb
bull elk at 400 yards

I don't think it can stop a moose

lol

moose are way easier to stop
 
out of the calibers you listed I would choose the 25-06 or 6.5x55. Because you intend to use it on moose, the better choice is the 6.5x55, simply because you have the option to go to a heavier bullet. But the 25-06 still works on moose just fine with correct bullet selection and placement
 
Go with ven Swede!

Amazing cartridge; you plan on reloading anyways, so the factory 140 grain performance will easily work on most game efficiently anyways. Reload for more appropriate target selections with your initial zeroing/deer rounds, etc.

My main go-to hunting rifle is a stainless tikka t3 lite (and now "ultra lite" is available) rifle - and I love it with a simple leupold 3×9 scope with a, custom, German duplex no1. Point and click has never been smoother.
 
I have 5 Swedes thus my answer is biased. I handload so cranking it up isn't an issue. Get yourself a Tikka and Lupua Brass. I have a tired old Savage 111 in 30-06 that I will be converting to 6.5x55mm since I have dies and a boatload of brass. With a modern action I won't be worried about taxing the action and the plethora of stock options is nice.
 
I'm also a huge fan of the swede and currently own three. My first and last Elk were shot with the 6.5, the first with a 140g Partition and the last (last Fall) with a 130g Accubond. Excellent performance on both and I have absolutely no reservations using it for all my big game hunting. I haven't shot a moose with it yet but I can promise you I will. My "magnums" have pretty much been retired to my safe.

Pick a guilty bullet, develop an accurate load and don't give it a second thought. Light recoil and accurate, what's not to like.
 
The medium case capacity 6.5s represent the smallest cartridges that I consider appropriate for use as general purpose big game rounds; the 6.5s shine in the role of mice to moose cartridges. They're appropriate for use on all North American game with the exception of Woods Bison, only because minimum cartridge limitations are imposed in the Yukon. I would not feel the least bit unarmed with a 6.5 loaded with tough 160 gr bullets for bear protection, regardless of species, provided I was travelling alone.

The quarter bore guys tend to fuss when I say that general purpose big game cartridges start with the 6.5's, as there is such little difference in bullet diameter between the two. But the advantage the 6.5s have over the .257 is not the meager .007" difference in bullet diameter, but in the 6.5's broad selection of bullets. With game bullet weights up to 160 grs, the 6.5s overshadow the .25s by a considerable margin. Admittedly the introduction of lightweight premium .257" slugs reduces the disparity between the two a bit, but not enough to influence my point of view. It should be remembered that cartridge preference is almost always based on opinion rather than on hard fact.

Their moderate powder capacity allows 6.5 rifles to be a bit shorter and lighter without giving up critical performance. A small, short rifle chambered for a moderate 6.5 cartridge neither increases blast or recoil in any important way compared to when chambered in larger rifles, which cannot be said for larger cartridges. The mild blast and recoil from these rifles benefits field marksmanship, and results in a greater rate of success than simply choosing a cartridge based on energy figures from a ballistics table. For some reason 6.5 rifles tend to be far more accurate out of the box than some of their larger brothers, and are far more accurate than can be exploited under typical big game hunting conditions by the majority of hunters. Trajectory, when a slippery bullet is chosen, allows a competent field marksman to make quarter mile hits with his 6.5, without having to crank on his scope's elevation adjustment. If it wasn't for a 45 year love affair with the .30/06, the 6.5X55 might well be my darling, although the 6.5X55 is but one of many similar cartridges.

While slightly more capable, the .264 Winchester and the new .26 Nosler require larger rifles, and longer barrels, to exploit their advantage. These cartridges have the ballistic advantage to be excellent choices for the long range marksman, they don't share the moderate 6.5's primary advantages of mild manners in a conveniently sized package.
 
I have a 6.5x284 Norma, and it the most accurate cartridge to date that I have owned, however; I'll reach for the 300 Weatherby for moose. If I was really not into firearms/hunting and only wanted one cartridge to cover most animals, well I can understand. But, it sure is nice to open the safe and pick the rifle/cartridge for the job.
 
270 Redding (270/308) fwiw. But your VERY BEST BET is 270W for a one gun hunter if also hunting in areas were the .275 rule applies. EVERY other calibre (sub .270 except maybe the .243 and .22 CF's) is a pain simply because commercial availability of ammunition is poor. EVERY Canadian Tire carries 270W as do virtually every hardware store that carries ammo. Probably the three easiest rounds to find in Ontario are 303 (and apparently it was BIG popularity of the .303 in S. Ontario that caused the .275 restriction to be introduced) the 30/06 and 270W then 243 etc ... why reject the 270W and make life miserable for yourself and swim upstream??

Factory 270W (and a .22LR and a 12g) handles everything in Ontario. Unless you want coyote pelts - in which case get a specialized calibre or reload the 270W

ALSO .270W (as covered over and over on this site) is perfectly legal for the counties with the .275 restriction -- dont be too cute and try to talk the MNR into changing this interpretation as it has been so since the beginning.


edit to add from the MNR Hunting Regulations:
"A person hunting small game may not carry or use a "rifle"
of greater calibre than a .275-calibre "rifle", except a muzzleloading gun, in the geographic areas of Brant, Chatham-Kent,
Durham, Elgin, Essex, Haldimand, Halton, Hamilton, Huron,Lambton, Middlesex, Niagara, Norfolk, Northumberland,
Oxford, Peel, Perth, Toronto, Waterloo, Wellington or York."

Since "calibre" can be the diameter between the lands OR the grooves ... the .270W-calibre rifle is NOT a greater calibre
than a .275-calibre rifle BECAUSE the bore diameter across the lands of a .270W RIFLE is .270!!!!!! THUS its name .270Winchester!

Eventually - if the self styled rifle experts continue to assert that the .270W is unacceptable because the projectile has a diameter of .277 - the MNR will probably throw up their hands in exasperation and declare "you win!" you silly buggers ... now the .270W is unacceptable as well!
 
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tommy88 said:
Oh really? Does anybody know if there is a mystical majical 270-08 in exhistance? Im tall, so short actions fit the bill better if its available.
Click to expand...

I had a 700 re barreled to .270 Redding last year. It is essentially the mystical beast you speak of, with the slight advantage of a 30 degree shoulder vs the 20 deg on a 7-08 or a 40 deg on a full blown Ackley. I am able to get the performance of a .270 WIN + or - a few fps across all bullet weights I have tried out so far. This deer season I hunted with a 130gr Accubond that shot 1 MOA at 3080 fps.

**I still have the reamer and gauges if anyone is interested**

As others mention, fantastic ballistics are attainable with other chamberings. None any better than the .270 WIN for your uses IMO when you consider the factory ammo availability and efficiency of the cartridge. I just like to be different and I am partial to the .277 bore so I thought I'd try to get that performance out of a standard short action with the same bore. So far so good!

If you like to burn more powder there is always the .270 WSM! I have one of those too, and it is a fantastic rifle, but it doesn't get out much anymore! In fact, as much as I love the rifle, I may be ready to move it out if you are interested. A-BOLT II, SS, Duratouch, Camo, w/ dies and lots of brass.
 
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nowarningshot said:
From your list my choice would be 260 Rem. If you are buying new, could even go old school and get a 270 i think that qualifies under the Ontario rules. But the 260 would have the most horsepower without handloading, and the best choices and availability in factory ammo.
Click to expand...

Absolutely not more than the .270 WIN w/or w/out handloading
 
Kevan said:
I don't have a mystical magical 270-08, but I have a damn fine shooting 270-08 built by a fine chap by the name of Bill Leeper.
Originally a 700 Ti in 260 Rem, Bill re-barreled it to 270-08 with a Shilen barrel and so far it is superbly accurate with any bullet weight from 110 gr. to 160 gr.
It weighs in @ 6 lb. 4oz. with Talley mounts and a lightweight Leupold glass.
Only one Deer to its credit so far, it is my go-to rifle these days...
Click to expand...

Sounds like a sweet rig Kevan!
 
The weaker 6.5 MS was good enough for Karamojo Bell.Will kill anything on the planet with the proper operator and bullet.Harold
 
This is a damn good thread! Thanks for all the info once again.

From the looks of things, it seems all of these rounds will do the trick just fine. 270 seems the easiest to work with and the top dog for power, although 260 and 6.5 swede seem also capable in a shorter action ( I plan on using either a tikka or a savage, havnt decided yet).

Would it be easy practical to neck down 308 brass into 260? Im complete bush league when it comes to loading, Ill be buying a kit when I buy the rifle.

the 270 reddington and 270-08 sound like the kings..... but then your start running into the downward spiral of complicated ballistics and hard to find reloading supplies.

I should also note that I plan on using a short barrel. 20in or optimally 18.5 if I can get away with it. I figure if the 308 guys can take it to 1k..... that should be more than enough for any coyote I will enounter.
 
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