As John Denman attests, everything old is new again with this rifle cartridge
Most hunting rifle cartridges originate from the United States. I doubt that anyone would argue that, so it follows that most of the innovations in new cartridge design would come from there. While it’s true that there have been some disasters; cartridges that were commercialised but never became popular enough to sustain manufacture of rifles and ammunition, there have been some resounding successes.
The hunters in the US seem to have only recently discovered the value of the 6.5 calibre. For a very long time the only commercial loading that received much support was the .264 Winchester Magnum. There have been others, mostly aimed at driving a 6.5mm bullet at rapid velocities. Some of these were the 6.5 Remington Magnum, 6.5-06, .26 Nosler and 6.5 Weatherby Magnum. Of all these, the most promising in practical terms is the 6.5-06. The .260 Remington is another good round, but often unappreciated.
The granddaddy of all 6.5 cartridges must be the 6.5×55, a European cartridge that has been around for a long time and deserves more attention. Other Euro rounds are the 6.5 Carcano and 6.5×54 Mannlicher. So, you can see that while we in the New World were ‘magnumising’ everything and burning up barrels, the people in Europe were quietly going about the business of despatching large game up to, and including, moose with cartridges many of us would consider inadequate. Being able to kill game without burning a lot of barrels had not filtered through to the Europeans.
Real US interest in the 6.5 began when long-range shooting gained in popularity. Soon shooters there were offered a plethora of rounds in the 6.5 calibre. People began to realise that great things could be done with it because it was easy to load for, with some great ballistic coefficient (BC) bullets available.
Hornady were, as always, quick to take notice and their senior ballistician, Dave Emary, liaised with noted long- range competitor Denis DeMille, who was also vice president at Creedmoor Sports. Apparently, the two wrote up a list of requirements for the ideal long-range cartridge, and they called it the 6.5 Creedmoor, not after DeMille’s company, but the historic Long Island rifle range of the same name.
Among priorities were that the rounds had to be extremely accurate, had decent barrel life, were easy to load for and didn’t have excessive recoil, an important factor when long shot strings were the norm in competition. It also had to be viable in a short or .308 length action.
Ever since its inception, people have been saying that there was nothing wrong with the old 6.5 Swedish but if that were the case, a lot of those shooters would have been using it. The Creedmoor has a case design that permits multiple reloading options due to a sharper shoulder, which minimises ‘flow’ of the brass. This means longer case life. It also has a comparatively long neck, and that is usually an asset to accuracy.
Even though the cartridge was designed for target shooting, it wasn’t long before hunters got hold of it. They soon found that many of the design features that made the Creedmoor desirable as a target round also applied well for hunting use.
My first association with the Creedmoor was, naturally, as a target round. I was into 500m Fly Shooting at the time, and I had bought a Savage 12 Long Range Precision rifle. I did well with that rifle, and still do. I also found myself with a huge supply of Creedmoor brass, and some quality dies. As hunting has always been my preferred activity, I decided a new rifle in that cartridge was a good way of putting all that brass to work.
Now, as I’m not getting any younger, I’m trying to keep things as light as possible. I looked at plenty of possible rifles and settled on the Tikka Lite. This makes the Tikka the odd one out in my safe. Before this all my hunting rifles were of traditional design. That is, walnut stocks, blued steel and controlled round feed actions.
The Tikka is none of these. But is really light and points like a Purdy shotgun. Being virtually weatherproof is a handy thing as well. And while the traditionalist in me recoiled a bit at the stainless steel and black synthetic stock, I came to realise that there is a place for this. Even before the rifle arrived, I had been researching loads for it, and I made some serious decisions along the way.
While the Creedmoor will hit a target with monotonous precision out to 1000m, or further, as I have done, that is not the requirement in a hunting rifle. My target rifle has a 26″ barrel, but the Tikka is just 22″. I needed high BC bullets for long-range, but not for hunting. So, I began researching lighter weight hunting bullets. Most of my hunting is for deer, the occasional pig may be a target of opportunity. I decided long ago that my maximum range for game would be 200m, so I really have no need of those slick 140gr projectiles.
So far, my pick of suitable bullets has come down to the 123gr Hornady SST and Nosler 129gr AccuBond. These are both well-constructed bullets that will penetrate. I try to use a bullet that will expend most, if not all its energy inside the animal. If you do your job right, one shot should be all you need. Bullets that plough through and leave a big exit hole, using up some of the energy they produce on the scenery, are not my preference. Some say they like a blood trail to follow. I say that if you do it right you won’t need a blood trail.
Range time with the Creedmoor in this light rifle has been enjoyable. The Creedmoor is extremely accurate, even in the slim barrel on the Tikka. For this reason, I limit my groups to three shots, with special attention to where the first shot out of a cold barrel goes. The Creedmoor is easy on the shoulder, even in a such a light rifle. Once out in the scrub, this transfers to you being able to handle that all important shot placement without fear of recoil.
Recoil was one of the considerations when the Creedmoor was developed. Many long-range competitors use a prone firing position, and long strings can wear you down when heavy recoil is a factor. The Creedmoor is a light recoiling round that won’t scare the most recoil sensitive hunter. This translates to better downrange accuracy.
There has been a lot of talk about the Creedmoor versus the .308. This mainly revolves around long-range shooting, where incidentally the Creedmoor excels. But from a hunting point of view, they are two completely different cartridges. Plus, the .308 does its best work with heavy for calibre bullets, and often on heavier game than the Creedmoor.
As the .260 Remington was spawned from the .308, there are obvious comparisons, although one US gun writer referred to the Creedmoor as the .260 Remington ‘done right’. They are both fine rounds however, and I think it’s pointless to draw comparisons. They both kill game, but the Creedmoor may have a slight edge in terms of accuracy. After all, that was what it was designed for.
As I mentioned at the beginning, the 6.5 calibre is incredibly accurate and kills game in a manner that belies its relatively small-bore diameter. Obviously, a lot of this comes from the wide variety of projectiles available, and the inbuilt ability to not only perform accurately, but penetrate as well. The 160gr projectile is still available should someone wish to hunt large and possibly dangerous game, but I wouldn’t recommend it.
It’s true that the old 6.5×55 Swedish has a larger case capacity and can be handloaded in the right rifle to higher velocity than most of the factory ammo available. But many of the 6.5 Swedish were built on older 1896 Mauser actions, and the steel in them won’t handle the pressures that the Creedmoor and .260 Rem rifles will. In fact, you can still get some European rifles chambered for the Swedish. The fact remains though that ammo and reloading components are just a bit more readily available for the Creedmoor and the .260 Rem.
Plenty of different powders have been tried in the Creedmoor, but most people come back to the powder it was originally designed for; Hogden’s 4350, or in other words ADI 2209. There are other powders that work well too, but they are more expensive as a rule and supply is not as good as the ADI powders.
The old saying about everything old is new again has certainly gained traction where the 6.5 Creedmoor is concerned.