If you had to choose one caliber between 6mm and 6.5 for deer and paper punching.

[20shadow05]

Hi all,

If you had to choose one short action cartridge between 6mm and 6.5 for deer 400 yards max and paper at 500 yards max, what would you choose and why? Has to be non-magnum and short action only.

Thanks in advance

Mark

[marky_mark]

Do you reload or just buy ammo?

[CNP]

.243

[20shadow05]

Sorry,

I do reload

[marky_mark]

6.5 Creedmoor is hard to beat
6.5 prc if your looking for a little more zip
I like the 6.5x284 but it’s tight in a short action but do able

[Jerry D]

Just for deer, maybe a 6x47 or 6mm cm if you want different.

.243 for commercial availability but lack of target ammo on the shelves.

6.5cm will have everything and is growing.

All of these can handle what your asking at twice the distance.

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[58thecat]

6-284

[Nyksta]

the 6.5 creedmoor is doing well for popularity

[catnthehat]

No question , 6.5, either a 260, Creedmoor a 6.5x55.
The case capacity between the three is very little and the barrel life -(that matters to some ) is better than the 6's with the same capacity .
Throw in bullet wright and there simply is no contest .
Keep in mind that this is coming from someone who owns and shoots match rifles in 6mmBr, and three different 6.5 cartridges out to 1 k and has two of them in rifles that can hunt. Not just an opinion based on what I have read !
Cat

[waldedw]

6.5 PRC I love mine

[catnthehat]

Originally Posted by waldedw

6.5 PRC I love mine

The 6.5 PRC is about as big a case as I want to go these days - have inveigh those sitting in the rack as well, it is very similar to the 6.5 Badcat and the 6.5 SAUM we were messing with in the early days of the short mag craze .
I no longer take what I consider long range hunting shots so for me there is no need for the extra case capacity , but it is a fun cartridge to shoot, for sure!
Cat

[markg]

Where is the love for the 6.5x 47? I wouldnt recommend this to anyone who is not a reloader though.

I have a 6.5 X47 and I have a 6.5 Creed they are both great. Tough to choose between them. I will admit its nice to be able to buy ammo off the shelf.

The 6.5 x 47 is just such a great cartridge. So easy to make good loads for and the recoil is so mild.

Either is great.

[Stinky Coyote]

I’d be choosing between the 6.5 Grendel (2004 release) or the new 6mm version just release by Hornady called the 6mm-ARC (2020 release).

Efficiency would be my favorite reasons why, they both have more than enough hp for deer/sheep/antelope/black bear out to 400 yards but super fun to shoot for any reason including paper and varmints/predators or taking people shooting.

They both will have the best barrel life of all the 6mm/6.5mm variants as they only burn about 29-30 grains of powder. Edge should go to 6.5 here as it will run 170-220 fps slower with it’s 15-20 gr heavier bullets. Budget 5000+ rounds barrel life on the 6.5 Grendel. They get that out of AR rifles in the US where 20 round magazine dumps are part of life. Bolt actions with some care in general barrel cooling…could be a lifetime trying to wear a barrel out? In saami spec it's a low pressure cartridge at 52,000 psi, also good for barrel life, but it's for operation in semi-auto's, in bolt actions you can run it up to regular pressures and gain another 100 fps reloading.

Recoil energy ft/lbs in the single digits for all day shooting comfort and anyone can drive them well. Also spotting impacts, edge going to 6mm for that just due to lighter bullets for a little less muzzle jump.
Reloading stuff for either won’t be an issue, the 6mm-ARC will be as popular in a couple years as the 6.5 Grendel is now and then it will likely supersede the Grendel and eventually start taking on the .223 for popularity by the time it hits the same age as the Grendel is now. But getting into the 6-ARC in year one will be a challenge up here in Canada.

Overall efficiency to 400 yards I’d choose the Grendel but I am far more hunt biased and will occasionally go after 3rd class game such as moose or elk and rather have over 120 grains of bullet going down range despite the slight sd advantage of the 108 gr 6mm, even on class 2 game like deer/sheep. I feel you’re going to get a little more for the powder burned in the Grendel than the ARC as you usually do when you slow things down on same case. If I shot more paper, targets, varmints…then I’d be inclined to look at the 6mm. It will have a little shorter time of flight, little flatter pbr and to all distances, little less wind drift too, but splitting hairs inside 400. I’d definitely choose the 6mm if wanted to paper/steel punch out to 1000. Most Grendel target peeps struggle to get good grouping past 800, the extra speed and sd of the ARC will easily add 150 yards effective range to the Grendel, both go well beyond your asks.

Downside will be these are both micro-action length cartridges, based of the 7.62x39(220 russian) case, limited range of rifles currently. CZ 527, Howa Mini, Ruger American as the most common choices. And most haven’t started chambering the new 6mm-ARC but I’d bet the Ruger will be the first with Howa 2nd and CZ 3rd.

The easy buttons however might be 6 or 6.5 creedmoor in a normal short action. Overkill for your needs but easier to find equipment, ammo, reloading supplies. Low double digit recoil energies and barrel life edge to the 6.5 again, good but not Grendel good.

6mm seems to have best rep as a combo deer/target bullet diameter choice.

I've had zero issues shooting the same size groups at 500-550 yards with at least 3 of my 6.5 Grendels as anything else i've shot. Very easy to dial in and get on target and shoot my usual 1/2 moa then 1 moa 3 shot groups.

[raised by wolves]

6mm Remington or a 260 Remington.

[sns2]

Cat kinda nailed it in my opinion. For a dedicated deer gun, it really is hard to beat the 6.5 Creed. Reams have been written about its efficiency / ease of finding an accurate load, but for me it is just such a sweet shooting little cartridge recoil wise that it really is hard to beat. My next gun will be another 6.5 Creed.

[elkhunter11]

If it's more for target, the 6.5CM, if it's more for hunting, the 6.5PRC.

[huntingfamily]

Originally Posted by catnthehat

No question , 6.5, either a 260, Creedmoor a 6.5x55.
The case capacity between the three is very little and the barrel life -(that matters to some ) is better than the 6's with the same capacity .
Throw in bullet wright and there simply is no contest .
Keep in mind that this is coming from someone who owns and shoots match rifles in 6mmBr, and three different 6.5 cartridges out to 1 k and has two of them in rifles that can hunt. Not just an opinion based on what I have read !
Cat

Couldn't have said it better Cat.

[Redneck 7]

.243 or a .260. No need to get into the bigger hyped crazed ammo fads. Stick to what’s been around the longest and enjoy shooting!

[.264 Win Mag]

6.5 PRC I would say or it’s close cousin the 6.5x284. They offer a very nice balance between barrel life, speed, and energy. That being said I do love my .264 win mag.

[Jeron Kahyar]

Can I put a vote in for the 257 Roberts (AI if you reload)? It fits the between 6 and 6.5mm. Seems to be little love for the quarter bores these days.

[blackburbot]

6 dasher. Damn near no recoil, super cheap to reload for, less powder than any others mentioned except for maybe the grendel. Designed for target shooting and with a 27" barrel sending a 105gr pill over 3000fps. The competent smiths in this province regularly spin these up that do incredibly small groups at distance.

I would venture to say they are way more accurate than the 6.5creedy.

[stob]

I have a custom 6.5 x 55 and 243win...I reach for the 243 more often than not...but used the 6.5 for everything for 20 years mostly with 156gr vulcans or 95gr vmax

[Lefty-Canuck]

260 rem or 260imp, have both and they do both.

LC

[kujoseto]

My vote goes to the 6.5 over 6

Short action you can’t go wrong with 260 or (I can’t believe I’m saying it) 6.5 creedmoor aka manbun.
I went with what I call the 6.5 manbun magnum which has long been referred to as the 6.5mm Swede
I think manbun magnum is what the mm has always stood for but we never knew for over 100 years

[catnthehat]

Originally Posted by blackburbot

6 dasher.

I would venture to say they are way more accurate than the 6.5creedy.

Until the wind picks up!
I have two match rifles in 6MM BR, one an F/O rifle and another that I use as a training rifle for Palma match . When the wind picks up at 1K they can't compete with my bigger 6.5's
As far as hunting goes, there are far better cartridges out there with factory ammo or brass readily available .
Cat

[prarie_boy1]

Originally Posted by 20shadow05

Hi all,

If you had to choose one short action cartridge between 6mm and 6.5 for deer 400 yards max and paper at 500 yards max, what would you choose and why? Has to be non-magnum and short action only.

Thanks in advance

Mark

I faced this same dilemma about 9 months ago and as I had a old rem 700 .30-06 and a 6.5mm 1-8” benchmark blank collecting dust I decided to have a 6.5x55 spun up. If it were a short action I had I would have likely went with the .260 rem

[antmai]

6.5cm is my vote. Seeing the energy at distance has made me ‘almost’ regret my 308 rig.

[Jerry D]

Originally Posted by antmai

6.5cm is my vote. Seeing the energy at distance has made me ‘almost’ regret my 308 rig.

Im in this dilemma as well, considering a 7mm08 as a good middle ground.

For closer ranges, the .308 will make a larger wound cavity if that means anything to you, while penetrating deeply enough!

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[helluvahunter]

25-06 with 80gr or 100gr TTSX very hard to beat.

[EZM]

Originally Posted by kujoseto

My vote goes to the 6.5 over 6

Short action you can’t go wrong with 260 or (I can’t believe I’m saying it) 6.5 creedmoor aka manbun.
I went with what I call the 6.5 manbun magnum which has long been referred to as the 6.5mm Swede
I think manbun magnum is what the mm has always stood for but we never knew for over 100 years

"manbun" ........ a perfect reason why, despite it excellent reputation and top mark performance - I just can't get on board with the CM crowd.

It's the non fat vanilla frapapuchino of the 6.5's

They are great, but you don't want your friends seeing you drink one