6.5 Creedmor- the Holy Grail?

[can1010]

this is what happens when people believe all the hype on the internet and the local gun shop and people put themselves and cartridge in a position they have no business being in.
can the creed kill elk? YES
is the creed an elk killer? NO

 

[26Reload]

I hunt elk in Oregon, So, our experiences are about the same. All I am saying is I have two 6.5 Creedmoors and there is no way I would take one elk hunting.

Exactly where most of my elk have come from.....roosevelts to Rockies...none are immune from a correctly placed arrow or bullet...hell even a 22 will kill an elk....

 

[Idaho Lefty]

140g 6.5 cal bullets with a muzzle vel of 2700 fps shooting elk past 300y is bad juju.

Well said,.. even the .270 Win w/ 130-150 grain Bullets at 2,900-3,000 FPS, is BETTER than, the 6.5 needmore loads !
BUT HEY,.. I'm gonna stay out of, this argument,.. LOL !

 

[26Reload]

"6.5 needmore"

That's awesome............

 

[bigngreen]

I'll shoot an elk at 300 without even hesitating, going back to the Berger's though after a year with Hornady product in my daughter Creedmore, saw 6 elk wacked with 140 Berger's at 300-500 yards and all one shot behind the shoulder, a few wobbly steps and over they go. Loosing elk consistently is an operator issue period!!

 

[fariswm]

I wasn't there and don't know what happened but I would be willing to bet if they were all shooting something similar to a 300 win mag with 180 plus grain bullets (or bigger) that at least some of the elk would have been recovered. It is hunting and it's very rare for the perfect weather- perfect shooting position and you are not shooting paper. I think the point the OP is making is they messed up by choosing to light of caliber. I have shot lots of elk and yes a creed will get the job done but with all the factors involved in hunting it is more ideal to have gun that will get the job done if the shot ends up drawing a lot of bone or off the x a little bit. It is not the cartridges fault completely but a larger gun might not have lost the elk. Who knows it's all speculation.

 

[fariswm]

By the way. I am not bashing the Creedmor. I love the .260 Remington. Have never owned a 6.5 Creedmor. My point is that it is not the holy grail of cartridges. It has its place and has been a very successful round, but when it comes to Elk, some extra muscle would be a wise choice. If you don't have the extra muscle then you best place your shot perfectly or not take the shot at all.

 

[Tidus56]

140g 6.5 cal bullets with a muzzle vel of 2700 fps shooting elk past 300y is bad juju.

There are is a whole lot of us shooting it much faster than that
https://www.longrangehunting.com/threads/reloader-26-in-6-5-creedmoor.191114/page-18

But I assume you are talking about joe shmo with box ammo. I see your point if that's the case.
That said I would leave the Creedmoor home and bring the 280 AI or 28 Nosler for bull elk.
As for how critters react to being hit. when I was a kid I shot a doe deer with a 270 win and it looked at me. So I shot it again...nothing. Put another one in the chamber same result. I was so embarrassed that I had missed 3 times at 100 yards I put one more in and shot...nothing. I felt terribly embarrassed. So I watched for a bit, while being laughed at, finally she fell over. When we gutted her we found four hits in the chest cavity. Animals do weird stuff when hit sometimes.

 

[djm670]

Grew up with Elk in the hay meadow across from the house. Have shot several bull elk with .25-06 and even 6 mm remington. I may have used a .30-06 on one. Don't have a magnum rifle. Never saw the need. Never had an issue with either of the first two cartridges mentioned. Probably knowing the conditions, knowing your limitations and shooting good game killing bullets has the most to do with it. Didn't own a creedmoor until a month ago.. but I don't see any issue killing elk with one. None of these cartridges are long range hunters though. One needs to start with that knowledge I suspect. A 6.5 PRC, 6.5-284, 6.5ss 6.5S and or a .264 win mag would extend the range a bit.

 

[Garycrow]

I wonder what bullet they were using?

My experience on elk is a sum total of two bulls killed so I'm certainly not the Michael Jordan of elk hunting.

I used a 7mm rem mag on both bulls shooting 145 gr. barnes LRX's and neither of them moved out of their tracks after getting hit in the shoulder. Elk are big and big has to be respected, but from what I've seen pound for pound they're not as tenacious as a whitetail. Hit them in the right spot with the right bullet and they go down.

Where you don't have as much leeway on an elk is bullet construction, it takes a tough bullet to plow through all that flesh and bone. A lightly constructed bullet is asking for trouble in my opinion, especially in a smaller round like the 6.5 creedmoor. I don't doubt that the creedmoor is adequate for elk if the right bullet is used, but if I were using it it would be stoked with something like a 140 partition, accubond, TTSX, etc. It wouldn't be a Berger or Hornady ELD-X.

 

[WildRose]

I know I am going to get a bunch of flack for posting this, but....

In a recent conversation with a friend of mine, who has a grand slam of sheep on his bedroom wall, and a super slam of the rest of the game animals in North America less a barren ground caribou, I was told during a conversation about accurate smaller caliber rounds that he has four friends, who this year each lost mature elk bulls each with a 140 grain bullet reasonable well placed from a 6.5 Creedmor.
This cartridge, to me, seems to have the ability in many of its proponents minds to be the holy grail of all cartridge designs. It is sad when common sense is put back in the gun locker when any of us take to the woods with a weapon that doesn't really fill the bill for the game we hunt, when we know we have the horsepower in the locker to do the job properly.
Elmer Keith who we all know loved the .270 Winchester. But his favorite for hunting and guiding for elk is reported to be the .375 H&H. He also loved the .338 Win Mag.
Dead is Dead, but wounded is usually also dead but with a heavy dose of suffering to go with it.
I own a .338 Win Mag and have made it a point to be able to shoot it comfortably. I also own 2 25-06's and 3 .243's. I use the latter to plink, for my grandchildren to shoot deer, and for just a fun day on the range. When the hunt is on for me and as a back up it is 7mm Rem Mag, 7mm Exact or .338 Win Mag. Common sense to see that Dead is Dead when I pull the trigger on something worth shooting.

There's nothing magical about the 6.5cm, it's "just another 6.5".

Finally Americans though are learning the utility of the 6.5's whereas Europe, Africa, and The Far East figured it out a hundred years ago.

The 6.5x55 has taken everything from rabbits to elephants, rihinos and hippos over the last hundred plus years.

I shoot the .264wm, 6.5LRM, and .260 Rem and I'm more amazed every year with them.

I'm not about to give up on my 7mm STW's, 300wm's or .300 Rum's (just bought another actually) but, there's virtually nothing you can't kill and kill cleanly with an accurate shot and the right bullet.

 

[WildRose]

You are correct in your thoughts. They lost those bulls because they believed the media hype about the 6.5CM. They watched the idiots on YouTube and on the hunting shows that through the magic of editing, seem to never miss, and never make a bad shot. They heard all the bullsh!t stories about how it has mystical powers and, and how the military is adopting it, and how it's "just as good as the .300 WinMag" (that's not a joke, I've actually heard someone say that) .

Hope they learned their lessons, and don't fall for the same BS hype with the 6.5 PRC and .300 PRC.

The 6.5's will obviously take elk cleanly and efficiently but it requires the right placement, right bullet, and enough energy to get the job done.

 

[WildRose]

I lost an axis deer this year with a 6.5 Grendel..I think mostly due to bullet design, but a 6.5 is on the very light side for these robust deer. I know I will hear how many moose are taken with a 6.5x55 etc etc...

I find it funny, when you mention 30 and 33 caliber here you are shooting a cannon, but in Africa I pull out a 375 and no one raises an eyebrow.

I still say if I had one gun I'd take my 338 Norma or my 375 ultra. I know some will say i didn't know elk have bullet proof vests etc... it for the man that does not live in elk, or moose country--some of us draw or pay for very expensive tags. I can tell you having a little extra never hurts.

I have a very good friend that has shot a ton of game--hunted almost everything from Markhor to stone sheep...his choice is a 300 weatherby...his other gun 375 HH imp. He told me no one ever scoffed at him for showing up with a 300 mag....

I regularly hunt with a 223 and a 6.5x47...but I can tell you if I were paying for a Aoudad, whitetail, or axis hunt..I'd take more gun...I can pick and choose my shots--I can hunt almost any day I am home..and on more than one occasion I have longed for more rifle.

I remember one windy day I spotted a really nice ram on the side of a hill. My brother and I worked ourselves into position, he was a heavy broomed Aoudad feeding up and away--I had my McMillan talon 257 WBY with us loaded with 100 grain Speer bullets...a 257 is a hammer on Aoudad, but this guy was at about 475 yards feeding away. Wind was blowing about 20 and we would have to hoof it to make up any ground. We let him walk--and I never saw that ol monster again. I longed for my 7mm R.E.M. Mag. I would have taken the shot with my 338 Norma, 300 Norma, 7 mag, etc...just think, if I would have paid 5k and it was the last day..shooting a little more gun and practice with a bit heavier caliber would have paid off.

Zeeve told me long ago--shoot the heaviest caliber you can shoot accurately when you go to a new location it will pay dividends.

I get that theory but honestly, when it comes to myself and most of the other guys I've known in the business it's "Shoot whatever you're most comfortable with and confident in".

That being said I'm definitely one of those in the "bring enough gun" category but then I have more than enough guns to choose from so I'm never limited for any game on the planet.

 

[MudRunner2005]

The 6.5's will obviously take elk cleanly and efficiently but it requires the right placement, right bullet, and enough energy to get the job done.

I know it will, but it's not ideal. From what I've gathered, you really need something that's a heavy-hitter with a 155 or 160 over 3K, like the 6.5 SS, 6.5 Sherman, 6.5x284, .264 WinMag, etc...