Recommend 6.5mm bullets for LR elk

[gillettehunter]

Good discussion. I have a 6.5-06 being built and have been looking at bullets for long range hunting. I may use it for elk, but thats not the primary use. I know the Berger's have a high BC. Have not been impressed w/ their performance in in the past. The Swift Scirocco in the 130 gr has a BC of .570. Has some good reviews. Anyone here actually used it at long range? Thanks Bruce

[elkaholic]

Alan...The Nosler partition will expand at lower velocity than the Berger but also loses velocity faster. The partition is also a better bullet (IMO) at higher velocity. The A-Max is a better bullet than either if you are pushing the limit to around 800 yards. Again, this is for the 6.5 and again, IMO!
The Swift scirocco was a very good bullet in the tests that I did but I didn't use it because it would not shoot in my rifle. Some rifles it will, but not as often as some other bullets. For me, what it would boil down to is, how far am I going to shoot and make up your mind before the elk shows up. Sometimes you can sight in with your longest range bullet and have a heavier constructed bullet that will hit close at 400 or under. This is somewhat of a hassle but it depends on what kind of hunting you do. For the last 30 years, I have either sat up in a tree about 90', or more recently, in a "benchrest style ground blind" so I have a lot of time to watch and decide. To be honest, I don't use the 6.5 too much for elk anymore as most of my shots exceed 600 yards and I have a good 30 that I make bullets for that will expand down to <1300'. I know that you would like me to state a max range, but I think that is for each person to decide based on the best info he has. I hope this helps.......Rich