.260rem/ 6.5creedmore help....

[Polytech]

I'm contemplating a 6.5 hunting rifle and I have a couple of questions.

1. Whats the shortest barrel length I could run with either the .260rem or 6.5C and realize the potential of the rounds?
2. Which would be the better choice? .260rem, 6.5C, or other 6.5 caliber? Factory ammo is a must I will be reloading but I want to be able to go off the shelf if need be.

Other bits of info, probably go with GAP for the build and manners for the stock...

 

[bowslngr]

I have them both. They are so close in performance that my best advice would be to flip a coin.
With respect to factory ammo, you will be able to find more for the 260, but I have found the Hornady 6.5 Creedmoor ammo to be remarkably good.
With respect to reloading, they use the same assortment of bullets so that is not an issue directly. The 6.5 Creedmoor cartridge is slightly shorter so it may help a bit with longer bullets and magazine length constraints. In either case, you are dealing with 2nd tier brass unless you go with the Nosler brass in 260 or you decided to neck some Lapua up or down.

 

[Polytech]

what about barrel length? How short can I go before I reduce the performance of the cartrige?

The main reason I'm going for a shorter barrel (besides weight) is that I'm about 5'10" and I like to carry my rifle on a 2point sling at "patrol ready" and I've found with my 24" FN .308 the muzzle gets very close to the dirt on inclines and it bothers me. So I think a shorter gun would be better and the 6.5 ballistics are much better also.

 

[2644ever]

If you plan to have a short barrel, the rule of thumb would be to choose the most powerful cartridge in your line up, otherwise performance will be poor. In the old days the swedes used the M 38 that was chambered in 6.5 x 55 Mauser and fitted with an 18" barrel. They could get away with this because the Swede is a potent round; had they tried to do the same with, say, the 6.5 Arizaka or the 6.5 Carcano, they might have ended up with a very unsatisfactory combo. I used to shoot a .260 in a 20 incher and the blast was fierce but I would reach 2800 fps with a 139 grain moly Lapua (compressed load of N560) without problem, you just can't do that with the Creed' or the 47... So, try to not get it shorter than 22" whatever your choice is.

 

[therifler]

rem. 260 22" barrel will kill for sure deer size animals that is all i can attest to . 120gr tips . T.R.

 

[Polytech]

would I see a signifigant performance drop if I were to run a 20" barrel?

 

[DOGCAPPER]

For practice I built a 260 from spare parts:
600 action with center grip pistol stock
20" 6.5 barrel
Shot extremely good with 87 gr and 107 gr

Got bored and built bullpup rifle stock installed barreled action scout scope mount

Thing is ugly, heavy (1.25 st bbl) shoots a DOT with above bullets at 100 yds using max 4895.

 

[therifler]

i got 2800 out of the 22" barrel but we only checked one load . i believe it was 414 powder . with a 20 " barrel you may drop 60 to 80 fps. but that is just a guess. T.R.

 

[bowslngr]

If you are talking about typical mule and whitetail deer hunting, you could easily get away with an 18 or 20 inch barrel in either case. You may give up 150-200 fps in muzzle velocity, but you don't need it.

My 12 year old daughter hunts with a 22" 260. I have her shooting a reduced load that I put together for her that only achieves about 2600 fps with 120 grain bullets. This is quite a bit less than you could achieve with a full load in a shorter barrel. I am confident that her setup is lethal out beyond the limits of her shooting ability (250 yards).

 

[GSSP]

Gun writer Greg Rodriquez took his two kids to Africa a year or so back to hunt plains game. They were shooting the little Ruger 77 compact with the 16-1/2" barrels. Zebra's, which are pretty tough to kill, were efficiently dropped with 260 Rem and 120 Barnes TTSX.

Thus my decision to have Chris Matthews of LongShot Rifles build me a light weight 6.5x47 Lapua for all No American big game except Grizzly. It will be on a Pierce SA, Broughton barrel and McMillian Rem Sporter stock. Hope to have it in my hands by this fall. I've already tested 140 Accubonds and 140 VLD's up to 2900 fps in my current 6.5x47 L with a 26" Krieger, using Rel 17.

So, I feel a shorter barrel with your 260 Rem would work fine.

Alan

 

[15Tango]

Either way you're ending up with a fine cartridge.

The Hodgdon manual has data for the Creedmoor that's out of a 24" barrel and it didn't give up much performance over the standard 28" tube that Hornady claims its performance from. Neither will out perform the other in any drastic way ballistically, I'd be willing to guess the Creedmoor will be a tad more inherently accurate though with its case design.

Neither has Lapua brass available but both can be formed from Lapua brass that's available: .243 win for the .260 or the .22-250 for the Creedmoor so brass isn't a deciding factor either.

I'd give the nod to the Creedmoor for loading heavy bullets in magazine length though, that was one of the original intents of the cartridge.

Factory ammo there will be more flavors available in the .260 but the Creedmoor has higher quality factory ammo available.

The .260 isn't going anywhere, it's too good of a cartridge and the 6.5 CM has caught on it seems and a lot more people are running it every day, I don't think it's came to be the flop that many thought it would be when it was introduced.

The .264" bullets prove themselves time and again with their superior sectional density and ballistic coefficients - they will carry more energy further down range and plow through whatever you hit even if the velocity isn't that high. Standard 6.5X55 loads are much slower than that of a .260 or a Creedmoor and that cartridge is one of the best known hunting cartridges available. What's the worst that could happen with a .260 or 6.5 CM out of a short barrel, you get down to 6.5X55 velocities?

Flip a coin maybe?

Wayne