6.5 Creedmoor on Elk?

[kipper09]

What caliber would you compare shooting a whitetail with that associates shooting an elk with a 6.5 cm? For example, "hunting elk with a 6.5 cm is like hunting whitetail with a .223" -just curious

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I don’t think I ever mentioned a whitetail in that post. You can carry a slingshot if you want. I’m carrying something I’m confident in. Personally that’s not a 6.5 creedmoor. Like I said. I’m sure with good shot placement it will kill an elk. I’m sure many have been taken with a creedmoor. Just personal opinion and experience that they are extremely tough. That’s all.


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[Shootinsurveyor]

Was listening to a Mike Glover podcast where he shot a bull 4 or five times at around 250-300. His guide said keep shooting. When they dressed it out after it died, he said that its body fat had filled the bullet holes and were impossible to find the entrance and exit holes. Elk died quickly, but he said from now on he will use a bigger caliber to put bigger holes. Said he was going to a 300WM or something similar. I wonder what bullets he was using. He didn't say.

Side note-guy was a special operations sniper and said all of his shots were good accurate hits. Would the story have been different if he was using something like a Hammer Hunter or Barnes LRX?

 

[kickemall]

Avery Adventures has a podcast specific to this topic thats worth taking a listen to.

 

[Fartrell Cluggins]

I know there’s people that are more experienced than me that say it’s perfect for elk. No way I would ever carry a creedmoor on an elk hunt. I’m sure with good bullet placement it’s fine. But my world isn’t perfect. If I make a mistake I want the odds the best I can stacked in my favor.

What part of an elk would be the wrong spot with a 6.5 Creedmoor that with a 300 magnum wouldn't be the wrong spot? Please explain your answer.

 

[shwacker]

I don't have too much experience, but after taking a bull last year with my .270, I'm considering going to something more. They are big and tough.

 

[Indian Summer]

What part of an elk would be the wrong spot with a 6.5 Creedmoor that with a 300 magnum wouldn't be the wrong spot? Please explain your answer.

In heavy shoulder bone. My .300 RUM will keep on trucking. Next question….

 

[Fartrell Cluggins]

In heavy shoulder bone. My .300 RUM will keep on trucking. Next question….

What do the wound channels look like with similar bullets at the same yardage when comparing the 300 UM and a 6.5 Creedmoor.

 

[dsotm]

And that is worse than a hunter using a monster magnum rifle he/she is scared to death of and hits the elk in the rump? Old deaf and dumb. Nice slow death for an elk due to a hunter overcompensating for a "shortcoming".

Both the hunter and the elk would be better served if the hunter used the most powerful cartridge that he/she can shoot accurately and consistently.

It is very sad to see so many folks, especially on Rokslide, that are ardent proponents of taking an unethical shot for themselves but lecture others to only take ethical shots. If the shot sucks, the shot sucks and the shooter should pass.

Go to the range and look at the bulk of the shooters of monster magnums. Most look like they are having a seizure and that is before they take the shot. Far too many hunters are not willing to admit that they are not nearly as recoil tolerant as they believe.

100% this. Way too many holier than thou dbags that have to justify their latest super duper magnum purchases that they can't hit the broadside of a barn with.

What part of an elk would be the wrong spot with a 6.5 Creedmoor that with a 300 magnum wouldn't be the wrong spot? Please explain your answer.

Everyone knows that all bullets bigger than .264" automatically vaporize the vitals no matter where you hit the animal duh

 

[Indian Summer]

What do the wound channels look like with similar bullets at the same yardage when comparing the 300 UM and a 6.5 Creedmoor.

That’s apples and oranges! At 1000 yards one might not even make a wound channel. I shoot at a 1000 yard range. All the bench shooters have 6.5s. At 1000 yards they pick their bullets up off of the ground.

 

[Fartrell Cluggins]

That’s apples and oranges! At 1000 yards one might not even make a wound channel. I shoot at a 1000 yard range. All the bench shooters have 6.5s. At 1000 yards they pick their bullets up off of the ground.

Do you see how far away you have drifted from addressing the real question?

 

[prm]

A 6.5 bullet through the vitals makes them very dead. Even as dead as a magnum.

 

[Koozer]

I've shot several elk with a 300Win Mag and also a 28 Nosler. 300 Win Mag was with 180gr and 28 Nosler is 195 Bergers. I've had elk act like they weren't even hit with the 300 Win Mag! They are hardy creatures! I wouldn't be scared to use a 6.5 Creedmoor, I just wouldn't be afraid to send a follow up shot after a good hit!!

 

[Seamaster]

Surely mild cartridges are sufficient if the bullet penetrates the vitals. However, it must be said that the more powerful cartridges will penetrate at more angles and through more bone. In the real world of elk hunting (not the TV or internet versions) sometimes the shot angle is not the optimal one. Excited folks with very limited time or opportunities often take shots that some others would not. I have taken about four dozen elk and having a bit more power sure helped on a couple of them.

 

[Coues Crazy]

I don’t think I ever mentioned a whitetail in that post. You can carry a slingshot if you want. I’m carrying something I’m confident in. Personally that’s not a 6.5 creedmoor. Like I said. I’m sure with good shot placement it will kill an elk. I’m sure many have been taken with a creedmoor. Just personal opinion and experience that they are extremely tough. That’s all.


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my uncle dropped a big bull elk with a 6.5 prc from 500 yards away

 

[Azone]

These kinda threads never disappoint.

 

[GringoBling]

My buddy shot a nice 6x6 last year using my 6.5 CM and Hornady Precision Hunter 143 Grain ELD-X . It was a good shot and the bull expired quickly not far from impact.

 

[Indian Summer]

You can tell us that you know of an elk that actually died after being shot with a Creedmore? Of course they have! They’ve been killed by every caliber. This is not about that.

And the magnum guys can also tell their stories about elk that were shot with a .243 and just stood there like nothing happened then walked away.

It’s not about that either. We all have stories of perfect and imperfect scenarios. Sometimes we’re not sure what happened. “I thought I hit him pretty good”

The subject of a lighter gun versus a larger heavier one is about weight and velocity creating energy to cause damage. That and what happens when the point of impact is in the wrong place.

Yes bullet construction is extremely relevant. Assuming the bullets are the same a bigger heavier projectile is going to retain more energy and do more damage at longer ranges. Some people say energy doesn’t matter. I never understood that. How fast a bullet is moving combined with how much it weighs is what determines penetration. If a 140 grain 6.5 caliber bullet and a 210 grain .30 caliber bullet hit an elk doing the same speed what will the difference be? It weighs 50% more than the 140! It’s going to have the ability to penetrate deeper.

That might not matter on a nice broadside shot at 300 yards that easily goes through both lungs. But it’s important if the bullet passes through a shoulder bone, or the front of a hind quarter and 3 feet of guts on a bull that turned and quartered away. The bullet will continue on to the lung cavity and get the job done. It’ll do that to 1000 yards too. And yes more overall mass will create a larger wound channel if the energy is there to make good use of it.

A 6.5 is a great cartridge. But it’s not the wrecking ball that a 185 or 200 grain bullet at 3000+ feet per second is. Not saying that’s what anyone should shoot. Just saying that something bigger than a 6.5CM would be a better choice for an animal the size of an elk in big country.

 

[roosiebull]

It’s completely fine for elk, I have seen a few roosies that would agree, and none that wouldn’t.

One shot in particular, I took a teenager to kill her first elk, first shot was a done deal, it was standing there dazed, so I had her shoot again, almost head on… bullet entered the neck, went through the whole body, completely blew up the femur (made a mess actually) and exited… that’s surprising to me, but also confidence inspiring.

The elk I see shot with a rifle will mostly be with a creed, with some bigger cartridges mixed in, and the 7-08 is another good one for less experienced shooters.

If someone has no problem with recoil, shoot whatever you want, but heavy recoiling rounds make a lot of people really suck at shooting…. If you can introduce someone to shooting that never forms bad habits, that’s a big deal, and lighter recoiling cartridges are helpful there, and with modern bullet designs, they are also extremely effective on big critters.

Most horror stories come from poor shooting or poor projectile choices (like archery people blame broadheads or light arrows, or whatever)

I don’t rifle hunt elk, but if I did, I wouldn’t hesitate using the creed, it’s proven itself to me as a legit elk cartridge, granted about 350yds is the furthest I have seen them work on elk, but I assume their effectiveness reaches much further, I just haven’t personally seen it

 

[Marble]

Surely mild cartridges are sufficient if the bullet penetrates the vitals. However, it must be said that the more powerful cartridges will penetrate at more angles and through more bone. In the real world of elk hunting (not the TV or internet versions) sometimes the shot angle is not the optimal one. Excited folks with very limited time or opportunities often take shots that some others would not. I have taken about four dozen elk and having a bit more power sure helped on a couple of them.

I agree 100%. I'm similar in experience and throughout the years I have come to appreciate large powerful rifles for elk.

The great majority people shoot out of excitement, not accuracy.

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[mxgsfmdpx]

I’ve killed a pile of elk with my Sako and Tikkas in .260 Rem (almost identical to 6.5 CM).

129 grain SSTs on vitals are devastating.