I had 2 friends approach me wanting a 6.5 Creedmoor. They don't reload and knew quality, off the shelf ammo is available. One bought a savage Axis II precision for a good deal at 699. He bought a budget Vortex Diamondback 6-24 scope. All in he's at 1100 or so dollars. The other bought a Tikka T3 Tac A1, 1800 dollars, and borrowed from me a Nightforce 12-42 benchrest for the time being till he can get his own scope. We shot at 600 yards yesterday both using the Hornady 140g ELDM ammo. The savage shot very well. I was in the pits and when the wind was constant, he shot
8 rounds that could have been covered with the 3 inch spotting disc. Yes he needs to learn wind reading and work on basic fundamentals but could be a very good shooter.
The Tikka shot as good if not better, but by better, I'm talking about the shooter. He's a bit more experienced and held a 7 inch vertical maybe a 11 inch horizontal over 20 shots in very windy, switchy wind. He shoots a bunch but not at 600 yards.
I don't understand all the animosity toward the 6.5 Creedmoor, won't get into a pissing match about it, but both of the riffles shot very well. Austin you can't go wrong with either one of these rifles depending on your budget.