6.5 Creedmoor/260 for Deer, Elk, and whatever else.....

[General RE LEE]

My dad has been using the 130 gr version in his .270 Wby for years. The MV is around 3200 so they are cooking. They kill excellent on high shoulder shots, which is his preferred location. Very, very few runners. Pass throughs are 50/50, with the offside hide catching many.

Alhough, with the lower MV of a 6.5 creed, they'd probably expand less violently so you may get more penetration.

GTG in my experience, I wouldn't hesitate to try them.

I loaded up the .277 130 Interlocks for my buddy's Tikka 270. IMR 4451 and not a fast load at about 2800 FPS but cloverleaf groups. Every deer he has killed with my hand loads has been DRT. He's very impressed.

 

[bpitcher]

250lb Mule Deer Buck - 140 ELD-M 6.5CM, ~100 yards, MV 2580 (Son's first buck)

Entered quartering to in the shoulder and exited behind far shoulder (pictured). Caliber sized entry, entry scapula jello'd, chunk of ribs missing. Golf ball sized exit. Small fragment exit further down the torso. Massive internal damage



~180lb Mule Deer Doe - 140 ELD-M 6.5CM, ~100 yards, MV 2580 (Son's first deer)

Bullet entered shoulder quartering to. Caliber sized entry. Jello'd shoulder. Massive internal damage. Bullet caught in hide behind far shoulder.



Entrance


Shoulders removed

 

[Packmansion]

A lot of guys say you have more options as far as shot angle with say a 300 win mag or similar... Is there enough truth to this statement to make it worth considering? I have a few 300 magnums and plan to switch to 6.5 cm for everything moving forward from Bull elk to prarie dogs.

 

[Ajsomp]

A lot of guys say you have more options as far as shot angle with say a 300 win mag or similar... Is there enough truth to this statement to make it worth considering? I have a few 300 magnums and plan to switch to 6.5 cm for everything moving forward from Bull elk to prarie dogs.

Not sure what you are asking? Are you saying a 300 wm (or other 30 cal magnums) give you more penetration or “insurance” to take quartering or harder angle shots?

I would take the same shots with a 6.5 that I would with a 300 wm. For example I took a very hard quartering away shot with a bedded mule deer. It created a massive wound channel. I wouldn’t have shot the buck any differently if I was shooting another caliber and didn’t feel “under gunned”

 

[Packmansion]

Not sure what you are asking? Are you saying a 300 wm (or other 30 cal magnums) give you more penetration or “insurance” to take quartering or harder angle shots?

I would take the same shots with a 6.5 that I would with a 300 wm. For example I took a very hard quartering away shot with a bedded mule deer. It created a massive wound channel. I wouldn’t have shot the buck any differently if I was shooting another caliber and didn’t feel “under gunned”View attachment 797587

That is exactly what I was asking thank you.

 

[clperry]

130 VLDH
234 Yards
2360 impact velocity

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[mtnbound]

A lot of guys say you have more options as far as shot angle with say a 300 win mag or similar... Is there enough truth to this statement to make it worth considering? I have a few 300 magnums and plan to switch to 6.5 cm for everything moving forward from Bull elk to prarie dogs.

No truth to this at all.

 

[LIWolverine]

Doe at 68yards Hornady Black 140gr BTHP Match 6.5PRC

Never seen such an insane blood trail even though she ran almost 100yards. She pretty much had zero blood in her when we moved her and cleaned her.

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[Undrgrndprdcts]

Doe at 68yards Hornady Black 140gr BTHP Match 6.5PRC

Never seen such an insane blood trail even though she ran almost 100yards. She pretty much had zero blood in her when we moved her and cleaned her.

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Seems like a lot of the examples on here shot with the hornady black bthp always run a good ways, despite large holes and lots of blood loss.

 

[diverc18]

525 yard steep uphill broadside bedded shot on a small Billy. Entered 3 inches behind the shoulder and exited just below the spine drt. Exit was about 3 inches wide and internals were all mush as expected with 147eldm

 

[houser52]

Tikka T3X Lite, 6.5 Creedmoor, 18” barrel, 120 gr. Sierra Tipped Gameking, 2490 fps impact velocity, 110 yards.

Caliber size entry hole, through the lungs and a quarter size exit. Dropped and was done in 30-45 seconds.

Took him to the processor and didn’t get any autopsy pics.

First animal using the 120 TGK in the 6.5 but it sure did the job this time.

 

[Plagioclase]

Tikka T3X Lite, 6.5 Creedmoor, 18” barrel, 120 gr. Sierra Tipped Gameking, 2490 fps impact velocity, 110 yards.

Caliber size entry hole, through the lungs and a quarter size exit. Dropped and was done in 30-45 seconds.

Took him to the processor and didn’t get any autopsy pics.

First animal using the 120 TGK in the 6.5 but it sure did the job this time.

 

[Plagioclase]

I've been moving to smaller cartridges for elk over the past 6-8 years. 300 mags > 7 mags > 30-06 > 280 AI > 270 > 308 > 6.5 creed. I shoot the smaller cartridges better.

Last year bought a Kimber 6.5 creed to practice with. It shot most loads well. I read this thread last year and became curious. I bought 142 gr Accubond LR to try (SPS specials). They shot well. I was going to shoot them but a buddy gave me some 150 LRAB to try. They shot just as well. I decided in Aug to take the creed for everything this year.

In late Oct, I shot a big cow elk at 40 yards in the timber. She was quartering to me. I tucked the ABLR inside the left shoulder. No blood at the shot but then she started really bleeding and moving along contour. She went 40 yards and turned right - straight down over a 45 deg slope. She started bouncing off trees and went another 30 yards or so and piled up. The blood trail was impressive.

Earlier this week I shot a doe at about 85 yards dead broadside. Perfect shot, shredded lungs, and a 50 yards death run. Stevie Wonder could have bood trailed that one.

I still have a buck tag and a week or so to find a volunteer.

Load: Re-16 - 41.5 gr, 150 LRAB, shot in a Kimber Hunter 6.5 creed.

I'm a believer.

 

[sclb745]

Took this doe this evening. Shot was at 80ish yards, 6.5 cm Hornady match 140 eldm. Quartering towards me, shot broke front left leg, took both lungs out and got stuck in the hide 3” behind last rib. Gore pic is rib cage behind the impact shoulder, that entire shoulder was lost. She dropped on the spot, got up and somehow ran 10ish yards before going down for good. Recovered bullet weighed 58.5 gr

 

[andrew_hood27]

Tikka T3X Lite, 6.5 Creedmoor, 18” barrel, 120 gr. Sierra Tipped Gameking, 2490 fps impact velocity, 110 yards.

Caliber size entry hole, through the lungs and a quarter size exit. Dropped and was done in 30-45 seconds.

Took him to the processor and didn’t get any autopsy pics.

First animal using the 120 TGK in the 6.5 but it sure did the job this time.

You ever use a 147gr ELDM out of that 18” barrel? I’d be interested to know what the MV is.

 

[houser52]

hood27-

Never tried the 147 but have tried the 143 eldx with 44.5 gr of Ramshot Hunter and the velocity avg. was 2613 which sounded slow. Haven’t tried any other powders with the 143 but it looks like RL16 might be a little faster and I have some of that. I’ve also seen where Tikka barrels are sometimes slower than others.

44.8 gr of H4350 gives me 2822 with the 120 TGK and shoots a little less than 1” at 100 yds. The way it shoots and with a pass through on the buck, I may not mess with it.

 

[Pescetism]

Young WT buck - 129 gr ABLR ~ 35 yards MV 2,650 40 yard run w/ heavy blood trail. Pictures of the heart and lungs not included....they looked like an indistinguishable red mush.