6.5 Creedmoor and .308 for hunting

[rottenruger]

Hi all!
I’m an experienced carbine, pistol, and long range shooter with a good grasp on the basics of ballistics. I don’t reload yet but I’d like to! I’m just looking to learn, so if I ask dumb questions kindly take them with a grain of salt!

So my questions are twofold

1. When it comes to REAL terminal ballistics, not marketing hype, what are the differences between the 6.5 Creed and .308, and how big is the gap? Pictures welcome

2. With reloading as the goal, but factory ammo being the current reality, what factory bullets, weights and specifics loads do the real work in regards to terminal ballistics?

Feel free to answer one, both, or none of the questions! Thankful for all help and knowledge!

I like the 308 but love the 6.5.......the bullet is just more ballistically efficient. Do you know this bullet is sp;inning at well over 100K RPM? But then, most bullets are.......

Started with an inexpensive Savage 6.5, loved it so much that when I read Ruger had the RPR in 6.5, grabbed one! One instructor on a range said it was about the second flattest shooting rifle he had ever had there. (Thanks, Chief, you taught me a lot.)

Wanting a Daniel Defense Delta 5 in 6.5 Varminter now........ 0.5 MOA guarantee........ And at 71, I need all the help I can get!

I'm a reloader, so when I first got my first 6.5, I purchased some Lapua and some Hornady to get started, and am mostly reusing that same brass, years later, with a few hundred Lapua and Hornady cases added in. Liked both factory loads, don't like having to get used to both since they're not the same. My favorite bullet is Hornady 140 gr ELDX Match. Varget, Hybrid 100V and Superformance are my powders, Varget being my favorite, but using what I can get during these suckey Covid Times. No pref on the brass, just using one consistently, among a case lot for more consistency, seems to work. Some believe in annealing for every reload, but I'm not that precise, no one pays me to shoot, I PAY to shoot. I'm a shooting addict. Use the Giraud Case Trimmer to tune each case, after full sizing each go-around. Chargemaster 1500 measuring, with doublecheck on the Hornady digital scale. ALWAYS FLASHLIGHT your charged cases before planting bullets, to avoid squibs!!!

If you're gonna reload, get with someone competent for some beginning head-ups, and save a lot of money on mistakes and quick "out-grews". You'll shave a lot of learning time and learning mistakes, too. I bumbled along with NO direct help, and if it wasn't for you tube (SCREW BIG TECH, a paradox), I'd still be bumbling along.

A fool learns from his own mistakes, a wise man learns from the mistakes of others........ Nietzsche.......or was it Bismark?

I learned TONS on YouTube reloading videos. Eric Cortina is one of my favorite teachers. And I did my share of learning from my own mistakes.

Do you like cutting grass? Dumb question, out of context, eh??? Well, reloading is like cutting grass, only more interesting. Once you get the hang of it, it is just rewarding, keeps you busy and you get to see the results fairly quickly. Only, after reloading, you also get to go shoot the results! WIN WIN.

Luck with it all, and Happy Trails !!!

 

[jgsh1375]

With 50+ years of experience hunting deer and hog, the tried and true .30 cal, 150, 165 or 168gr, soft points have never failed me. No lie, all one shot kills. Full disclosure-I only shoot less than 250 yds.

 

[TxWelder35]

Would like to avoid the 3 foot engagement if I can

I’ve had a lot of experience out to 1200 on my 6.5 boltgun, a PRS/Tactical build. New to .308 for the most part! I have a LMT MWS with a 16” .308 barrel as well as a 20” 6.5 barrel, so both are on the table! I know I’ll have fun and success at long range with the 6.5, and .308 will work with a little effort, but also new to hunting. So looking for the best out of each, and where their respective windows of performance are!

I highly doubt in any situation that a 16” 308 is going to outperform a 20” 6.5 Creedmoor

does is make a difference at 100 yards? Probably not. But once you start stretching out further is will make a big difference. That 308 is going hit the velocity threshold where the bullets will not expand much much quicker than the 6.5, also the 6.5 will be much less effected by the wind.

below is a 308 federal fusion at 2600fps which is generous with a 16” barrel and a 6.5 143 eldx at 2700. Hint the 6.5 is the better one

 

[918v]

Consider the application. A 16” AR is not a 1000 yard pig sticker. Second, 6.5 AR’s are less reliable and prone to pressure problems. It’s the last thing I would consider for anything other than a range toy.

 

[Greg Langelius *]

I'm a bit of a Neanderthal on the Hunt.

I use the cambering I've always used, along with danged high percentage of the other hunters, The veritable old .30-'06; .30 caliber at my preferred best. It provides the max recoil I can handle, the max ballistics, external and/or terminal, and my latest selection for both target accuracy and terminal effect, the Speer Gold Dot Rifle Bullet.

Police use it a lot in .308 (they don't mess around when it comes to their own personal safety or that of a hostage). I refer to the Speer Gold Dot Rifle bullet; preferably the 168gr for either .308, or for.30-'06. In addition to excellent performance, it's a bunch more affordable than the Target hybrids, etc.; and I can usually get them direct even in this market, provided I make the effort to check he website daily.

Speer Bullet Data.

I have nothing against the 6.5; I've been a .260 Rem shooter and reloader for two decades. Not for hunting, I have better for that (see above); but for F Open class competition. It has been a classy performer, bringing me to the best of my potential marksmanship. That performance is not championship grade, but the rifle's not my problem. It's so unfortunate that Remington has chosen not to support their own product in the manner it deserves. Other makers do it better, and my .260 (as well as .223 and .308 target rifles) has/have been Savages. For my purposes, my skills, and my own preference for home gunsmithing, the Savages have been my ideal choice. FYI, I'm no expert, just mouthy, and hopefully long lasting (turned 75 this year).

In light of my age and health, shorter distances are in order, closer to roads, and easier for retrieval/repair of targets. Muzzleloader folks tend to bunch together and share a true American tradition that's about as far away from an AR Ban as one might find. I am also training up my host of fetchermites (22 and 24 y/o Grandkiddoes), to do the footwork, and we all get together for some beers, etc., after the the gear is put up and safed. Since my health demands on limiting my fluid intake, I find I prefer a nice sip of bourbon for my part in the festivities. Don't fear Reaper, and keep your powder dry.

Speaking of which, you preppers can fudge up your own Propellant (hint, think about decomposed urine), and cast you own round ball and Minnie (think recovered bullets, lead soldiers, and wheel weights) - (beware, most of the new wheel weights are not lead (bismuth?) Bismuth can be nasty to cast, it swells as it hardens, and it gets very hard and they need a higher heat to melt them, too). Percussion caps are more difficult. Butt they are also tiny, cheap, and easy to stock up and store in an ammo can). Neat for trip cord trail alarms, etc., too... ). Non-metallic friction fuses are better against detection.

Greg