6.5×55 shooters let's hear from you!!
 

So I picked up a modified mauser in 6.5×55 some time a go and I have been doing some shooting with it. It shoots really well! So now i have been thinking of picking up something like a tikka in 6.5×55 for a deer hunting gun. Anyone here shoot a tikka in this caliber or another brand of rifle? What game have you taken with your 6.5×55? And what are the pros and cons of the caliber.

I have owned a Mauser 93 great rifle. Currently own a Tikka T3. One of the best rifles I own, compares very well with my Sako in .260 but about 3 lbs lighter.

Mine is stock except for a water dip camo package, wears a decent scope and I have shot it to 700 yards And rang the gong. Mine likes nearly any 140gr. bullet Woodleigh, Bergers and Hornady eldx, all work great. There are two styles of brass for the cartridge, small primer flash hole or regular size so if your reloading be sure to check. Not fuzzy on primers and I use IMR powders for the most part.

Is and always will be my cartridge of choice. I have shot the cartridge for years AND I love it. If I could justify another 6.5 rifle I would look really hard at the CZ as well.

have a stainless tikka in 6.5x55 love it shoots 125 grain partitions real nice with imr 4350 but im now using 140 grain accubonds behind rl22

I've owned and hunted with a couple of Carl Gustave Mausers in 6.5 x 55

I've take Moose Deer and Bear with these rifles.

Pros; they do the job as well as any rifle I've used.

Cons; they are not as cheap as they used to be.

If you want a hunting rifle, the caliber is capable of doing the job.
If you want to impress your buddies, a 50 cal may be a better choice.

They won't be impressed but they'll be jealous.

Recently bought a Sako AIII in 6.5x55. Lots of fun to shoot!

I had a mauser 96 in 6.5x55, it shot so well it was almost boring, which seems fairly typical of the 96's that I've shot. That rifle had the barrel cut down to 20" and was nicely sporterized, carried and handled as nicely as any bolt gun I've handled. After hunting with it a few seasons I've come to feel that the 6.5x55 is one of the best deer cartridges ever invented, it has just that perfect little amount of overkill while remaining very easy to shoot.

Between me and my wife we killed quite a few deer and one moose with that rifle, using factory Fusion ammo. Killed everything we ever shot with it very quickly and was a pleasure to shoot, almost made a guy wonder why he even bothered more powerful rifles at times.

I ended up selling that rifle to a co-worker and despite making a standing offer to buy it back shortly after I never did get it back. I've decided that if I could ever find a Husqvarna 1900 carbine chambered in 6.5x55 I will be making room for it in my safe. But really, if you can learn to love the little Mauser 96 quirks, I don't think all that much is gained from going to a more modern rifle.

I built one off a Sako action in a mcmillan stock. It just shoots every type of bullet. Its one of my favorites

I started using a 6.5x55 some 35 years ago,i bought 2 around that time so my wife and I used the same cartridge to hunt with.She took 5 moose with hers and I shot my share with mine.Sold them both about ten years ago and bought a new tikka in 6.5 x55 and it is smack on,there's not many bullets it doesn't like.

For a cartridge that came out in 1894 it sure has seems to be holding up with anything new,infact there's guys looking for tikka's in this cartridge all the time. :)

TC Encore with laminate thumhole fitted with an E.Arthur Brown Acurracy barrel and a 3x9x40 Leupold. Worked up load for the Accubond 140. This one won’t be going anywhere.
First one I had was a Tikka T3. A really nice gun but the length of pull ended up being to short even with a limbsaver pad on it. So traded to a member here and it sounds like he still has it and really liking it. 😃

I have a Tikka stainless in 6.5x55. I’ve only killed a couple deer and handful of coyotes with it. The first deer was 475 yards and the second 80 yards. It is probably the most accurate Tikka I own.

6.5x55
 

Over 30 years ago I purchased all the Swedish military 6.5x55 models that were available from SIR mail order. A 96, 38,and M42B Ljungman with bayonets, cleaning equipment, and bullet pouches for just under $200.00 for all three with accessories. I had never heard of the cartridge before but was quick to learn how versatile it was. At the time the only factory ammunition available was Norma 156 gr. soft point and it was pricey. Invested in a set of dies and went to work reloading the empty factory brass that I had accumulated and started using the 96 for silhouette shooting. My fellow members at the club saw the results of a $59.00 rifle and were quickly ordering and customizing for their own use. The 6.5x55 soon became one of the most popular cartridges on silhouette night. Since then I’ve gotten rid of the military rifles but always been a fan. I now have four 6.5x55’s in modern actions my favourite being a Swedish built Lakelander heavy barrel that is amazingly accurate. There isn’t enough good I can say about this cartridge and with the great variety of hunting bullets available to the reloader, there isn’t any game on this continent that can’t be taken using the 6.5x55.

I plan on hunting this year with my mauser, it is also sportrized, it will be the first year hunting with this gun if all goes well I might buy a new cz in 6.5×55

Swede
 

[QUOTE=Quest206;3843846]Over 30 years ago I purchased all the Swedish military 6.5x55 models that were available from SIR mail order. A 96, 38,and M42B Ljungman with bayonets, cleaning equipment, and bullet pouches for just under $200.00 for all three with accessories. I had never heard of the cartridge before but was quick to learn how versatile it was. At the time the only factory ammunition available was Norma 156 gr. soft point and it was pricey. Invested in a set of dies and went to work reloading the empty factory brass ...Quote]

Pretty much my story as well. A M38, then a M42B from SIR in the mid 70's. The Norma ammo was pricey but quality was great. I also bought a case of "gallery" rounds from Milarm. They shot a little copper cup at subsonic speed, great for Grouse.

The 6.5 Swede was the cartridge that started (forced) me into reloading. Favorite hunting bullet is still the 160 gr round nose.

When Ruger brought out the 77 MKII in 6.5x55 I snapped one up. Still one of my go to rifles for hunting.

I have harvested Mulies, White Tails , Moose and a few Yotes over the years with it.

I’ve got a few 6.5x55s and sold a couple. Really regret selling the lakelander I had. My T3 is my go to beater 6.5 with the plastic stock. It’s a tack driver. Worked up some loads with Reloder 26 and man oh man. Unreal.

I’ve shot a few deer with it and would use it on any big game we can hunt in Alberta. Reloading is a must if you want to get the most out of this cartridge.

What bullet and what kind of velocity are you getting with Reloader 26?

So far I’ve only loaded the 142 accubond long range and I hit about 3040 FPS before I ran into pressure signs. I will have to do more development but I ran out of powder. This was out of a 22” barrel Tikka m65. Will also try through a 24” husqvarna 1900 action when I get my hands on more powder.

Some guys are hitting up to 3130-3150 with 130 grain bullets. I wouldn’t have believed it, but after seeing what I saw with the 140s, I do now. There is something about RL-26 and the Swede (and 6.5 Creedmoor). I spoke with a benchrest guy when I hit these velocities at the range because I thought this was wrong. I showed him my brass and he said it looked fine (which is what I thought too, almost looked too good to be true so I wanted a second opinion). When I told him what powder I was using he said “yup I hit 3000 FPS in my 28” barrel creedmoor with that powder too”.

Salavee has stellar results too. It’s jusf a weird combination.

I have been shooting ppu ammo out of my rifle, is the action strong enough to take factory ammo? I know ppu is factory ammo but I was told it's safe for all rifles to shoot.

My dad picked me up an old Husqvarna 6.5 x 55 from the edmonton gun show when I was 14. Love that gun. Iron sights. Got my first moose with that gun. Accurate, lighter recoil. What's not to like.

So 2 years ago I bought my 14 year old a stainless steel Tikka 6.5 x 55. Super accurate, easy to shoot.

I have a rem 700 original classic 1:9 twist that i shot out and rebarreled with a jury 1:8 twist barrel... I am really fond of the 156gr Vulcan bullet and 160 gr woodleighs and H-interlocks, but the 140 gr any brand works very well too ... i use mag primers and slow slow powders

one of the best
 

Over the years, I have moved about 10 or so 6.5's through the cabinet. All shoot well enough to be keepers but someone always talked me out of them. Today, I have just two, a Sako AV that shoots almost anything accurately enough for me. The other is a Krag Jorgensen, military trim that was used to train high school students pre WW2. Its a safe queen now but has dropped more than its share of game.
My son has a newer Tikka which loves Nosler accubond loads.
The older 96's loved the 160 round nose.
I have always used the 6.5 to introduce new shooters to larger rifles, light recoil, accurate, easy to pack.
You can study the ballistics all you want but it is my suspicion that the numbers are actually better in the field. The caliber seems to hit harder and drop larger game than the stats suggest. I loaned one to a buddy for a moose hunt. One shot in the boiler room, three steps and the moose was tipped over. I can't count the number of one shot kills I have accomplished.
If someone asked 30-06 or 6.5 Swede, there is only one answer.

Haven’t shot a ‘55 for many years but still have 50 pcs of (fired 1 time) Rem brass left over from the last one ... most FL sized and primed ... free to anybody that wants to pick up at SPFGA. PM me if you want it.

Maybe you should keep the brass and find a rifle to use it in.😁

I shot several brands of North American factory amo out of mine, as well as some European stuff and some handloads that came with it. The amo that came with it was noticeably hotter than the North American stuff, and sometimes the cases were a little sticky to extract. I cant recall if it was just the hand loads or if the Euro brands got sticky too, It shot all the North American stuff without any issue however.

Mine would shoot 140 grain Winchester power point and Federal Fusion amo to the same POI, so that's what I stuck with.

powder
 

RE#22 in 129-140gr and IMR 4350 with the 156-160gr.Norma factory loads used N-204 AKA RE#19

I revived an M96 action that I bought from TradeEx. In was surprised with how well this old rifle shoots. I haven't taken it hunting, but I definitely don't regret getting one of these.

Just got back from the range! Bought the Tikka 695 off the EE on this site! Love the rifle! I think I'v found a load it likes!
https://i.imgur.com/okn3LQy.jpg

Nice group and l bet your velocity if checking with a chrony is right around 2700 fps. Zediker in his book 'handloading for competition' claims that all bullets have a speed level that they are best at and that level is usually not as fast as they will go. For the 264 he claims that the best accuracy is reached at about 2700. Excellent shooting and congrats.

Thanks! and yes I think it would be close to 2700fps. Happy with the results!

https://i.imgur.com/MuqxrD7.jpg
My FAIR express rifle.
I used 160's in it for the most part but also shot some 140 grain bullets
The 160's ran about 2,350 FPS
Cat

Grandson got his first deer with a sporter 96, cut to 20" barrel shooting 140 gr partitions. Sweet shooting caliber, I shoot sporter M38 , and M96 with the same loads. There is nothing not to like in a 6.5 x 55 and the old M96's are also chambered in 30-06 , and several other higher pressure chamberings.