6.5 CM is better than .308...

[Hoosker Doo]

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This article popped up in my news feed about SOCOM acquiring more AR-10's for the military in 6.5 Creedmoor rather than 7.62x51, and I was surprised at this claim that is made:

"SOCOM found that when using rifles chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor, soldiers had twice the likelihood of hitting targets at 1,000 meters, or 1,093 yards"

Twice as likely is a pretty huge difference, and with no more specifics or data were given, it made me wonder why.

Better ballistics and easier wind adjustment, less recoil (shouldn't be much), placebo effect, or just that creedmoor voodoo magic?

I'm proud to have a 6.5 creedmoor as one of my 3 go to rifles, but I would have thought hit rates would be similar.

 

[bojangles808]

duh

 

[Fujicon]

Dontcha know? It's magic!
Just like anything that ends in PRC, Nosler, Backcountry, and Western, all be magic!
Least that's what gun writers keep implying...

 

[Koda_]

Better ballistics and easier wind adjustment, less recoil (shouldn't be much), placebo effect, or just that creedmoor voodoo magic?

My guess is better bullet selection of higher bc bullets, faster twist rates for more flight stability.

 

[Marbles]

In an 8 lbs rifle

6.5 Creedmoor has 13.8 ft.lbs recoil
Based on 143 ELDX, 43 gr charge, MV 2700 fps. G1 BC is 0.625

308 Winchester has 17.2 ft.lbs recoil
Based on 178 ELDX, 43 gr charges, MV 2600 fps. G1 BC is 0.552.

MV comes from Hornady's Precision Hunter listings.

So, 20% recoil reduction with 4% increase in MV and 13% increase in BC. At sea level the 308 is going transonic at 900 yards, the 6.5 doesn't hit transonic until 1020 yards.

It makes since to me that all those factors add up to a large difference in hits.

 

[Turkeytider]

Sandboxx News | Military News with Meaning—Where Expertise Meets the Front Lines.

Sandboxx News makes the complex approachable. Bridging the gap between academic expertise and practical boots-on-the-ground experience, we remove the mystery from conflict and highlight the importance of military service and deterrence-reinforcing technology.

www.sandboxx.us

This article popped up in my news feed about SOCOM acquiring more AR-10's for the military in 6.5 Creedmoor rather than 7.62x51, and I was surprised at this claim that is made:

"SOCOM found that when using rifles chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor, soldiers had twice the likelihood of hitting targets at 1,000 meters, or 1,093 yards"

Twice as likely is a pretty huge difference, and with no more specifics or data were given, it made me wonder why.

Better ballistics and easier wind adjustment, less recoil (shouldn't be much), placebo effect, or just that creedmoor voodoo magic?

I'm proud to have a 6.5 creedmoor as one of my 3 go to rifles, but I would have thought hit rates would be similar.

Yep, been in the works for a while now. The ballistic performance and general shoot ability of the round was just too impressive to ignore. Looks like the original bolt action sniper rifle configuration based off of the 700 and 70 are pretty much a thing of the past ( ?).
Edit: Looked it up concerning the more “ traditional “ bolt action sniper rifle configuration . Maybe not as outdated as I thought. Just evolved.

 

[Hoosker Doo]

In an 8 lbs rifle

6.5 Creedmoor has 13.8 ft.lbs recoil
Based on 143 ELDX, 43 gr charge, MV 2700 fps. G1 BC is 0.625

308 Winchester has 17.2 ft.lbs recoil
Based on 178 ELDX, 43 gr charges, MV 2600 fps. G1 BC is 0.552.

MV comes from Hornady's Precision Hunter listings.

So, 20% recoil reduction with 4% increase in MV and 13% increase in BC. At sea level the 308 is going transonic at 900 yards, the 6.5 doesn't hit transonic until 1020 yards.

It makes since to me that all those factors add up to a large difference in hits.

The recoil difference is a lot more than I expected. Thanks for doing the footwork for me.

 

[sierracharlie338]

The Fudd in me wants to scream but Ill try to keep it at bay lol. I have several opinions about the 6.5 and while most of those are based on personal experiences there is no denying it has some advantages.

I have to laugh at the way the article was written making it seem like the shooter will just magically shoot better when handed a 6.5. If the shooter can't shoot the 308 accurately then he won't be able to shoot the 6.5 magically better because he changed out the cartridge.

That said, the sniper variant listed in the article sho is purdy....

 

[omicron1792]

The Fudd in me wants to scream but Ill try to keep it at bay lol. I have several opinions about the 6.5 and while most of those are based on personal experiences there is no denying it has some advantages.

I have to laugh at the way the article was written making it seem like the shooter will just magically shoot better when handed a 6.5. If the shooter can't shoot the 308 accurately then he won't be able to shoot the 6.5 magically better because he changed out the cartridge.

That said, the sniper variant listed in the article sho is purdy....

See. I think that is exactly what the article is saying. A bad shooter will indeed shoot a 6.5 creed better than a .308.

 

[sierracharlie338]

See. I think that is exactly what the article is saying. A bad shooter will indeed shoot a 6.5 creed better than a .308.

I should have been more specific. Bad fundamentals are bad fundamentals no matter what cartridge is being fired. Is the 6.5 easier on the shooter? Sure the numbers don’t lie.

 

[nm.otter]

A bad shooter will indeed shoot a 6.5 creed better than a .308.

as will a good shooter -- especially at 1,000 yards (probably 600+ once you add wind).