My thoughts, and some facts, for what they're worth.
I've never heard such kerfluffle over a cartridge, good and bad, in my shooting/hunting career. Some herald it as the best designed, flattest shooting, most magical cartridge ever. Others pooh pooh anyone who shoots it, saying that it is nothing but a fanboy cartridge that will soon fade away from existence. Very few shooters, hunters, writers, reloaders, etc, seem to be able to take a neutral stand on it, almost like modern day politics. I hope to do just that.
Statement #1: It's such a flat-shooting cartridge that you don't need to hold over for hundreds of yards - Truth of the matter is it's no flatter shooting of a round than a 7-08, 308, 243, 270, 30-06, etc (actually a little LESS flat shooting) out to well past most distances that any sane person without specialized equipment, training, and/or time to practice should be shooting. At around 800+ yards it starts to get a little bit ahead of those rounds, but, really...?
Statement #2: It will die out soon, and you won't be able to find any ammo for it - How can anyone make this statement with any level of certainty, or even confidence? Truth be told, there have been so many rifles sold in this caliber over the past few years that it is not likely to go away anytime in my lifetime.
Statement #3: It is so strong that it punches above its weight class - What does this even mean? A marginal caliber for a certain type of game comes down to physics, not cartridge or caliber. I understand what SD is, but in today's world of premium bullets it is little more than a number. If a 270win is considered marginal/minimal by some for elk, how will the .3cm of less bullet diameter at a lower velocity make it kill better?
Statement #4: It was designed with accuracy and performance in mind, so a) it is an inherently accurate round; or b) if I buy a rifle in this caliber it is most definitely going to be accurate - It WAS a purpose-built caliber, but that was more for the long neck giving it the ability to better use heavier bullets without taking up case capacity (as opposed to the 260 which has a shorter throat/longer shoulder) and with an already pseudo-improved design that maximizes the shortened case body and reduces cartridge growth. It is a really neat design, but not naturally more accurate. The gun-rag writers really have hyped this stuff about the caliber up, but I think that we can all admit that rifles have just gotten more consistently accurate due to improvements in machinery and mfg processes, regardless of caliber.
Statement #5 - You must be a fanboy/ crowd-follower/sheeple/etc to shoot this round: Sure, there are some who just want to ride the wave, some are misinformed, and some are caught up in hype. But many intelligent, level headed people like and shoot this round, and they don't go out of their way to discuss it. They don't practice the official "6.5 Creedmoor handshake," or say 3 "azugahs" before mentioning anything about their caliber to fellow club members. They just like the little caliber for what it is.
The fact of the matter is that the 6.5 Creedmoor is a neat cartridge. It has been hyped and overmarketed to some people's chagrin, but it's developers and those who chambered the first rifles in that caliber recognized how poorly Remington had done on the 260. The 260 is actually a superior caliber in case capacity and velocity, but has always been chambered in too slow of twist rates to properly utilize heavier bullets. The Creedmoor is not magical, doesn't shoot as flat as a laser beam, and won't allow you to desex a flea at 1000 yards without practicing, but it is a very effective low recoil deer round at any range that any other medium capacity, high velocity centerfire cartridge would be effective at; not better or flatter, but just as good. I don't think that anyone should get wrapped around the axle about this hype, as it will eventually die down when the next big thing comes out, but it will not go away.
If you are looking at a new deer rifle, a 6.5 Creedmoor will likely fit the bill really well. If you already have a 260, 270, 25-06, 7-08, 308 (I think you get the picture), don't get rid of them to get a 6.5. What you have is already just as good. I personally feel that any rifle that can fire a 120gr+ bullet of decent construction at 2800+ fps will more than effectively take deer at all reasonable ranges with proper shot placement. Some will even say less is appropriate, and I wouldn't tell them that they are wrong . A 223 or 243 will work with well constructed bullets placed in the proper location.
I've never heard such kerfluffle over a cartridge, good and bad, in my shooting/hunting career. Some herald it as the best designed, flattest shooting, most magical cartridge ever. Others pooh pooh anyone who shoots it, saying that it is nothing but a fanboy cartridge that will soon fade away from existence. Very few shooters, hunters, writers, reloaders, etc, seem to be able to take a neutral stand on it, almost like modern day politics. I hope to do just that.
Statement #1: It's such a flat-shooting cartridge that you don't need to hold over for hundreds of yards - Truth of the matter is it's no flatter shooting of a round than a 7-08, 308, 243, 270, 30-06, etc (actually a little LESS flat shooting) out to well past most distances that any sane person without specialized equipment, training, and/or time to practice should be shooting. At around 800+ yards it starts to get a little bit ahead of those rounds, but, really...?
Statement #2: It will die out soon, and you won't be able to find any ammo for it - How can anyone make this statement with any level of certainty, or even confidence? Truth be told, there have been so many rifles sold in this caliber over the past few years that it is not likely to go away anytime in my lifetime.
Statement #3: It is so strong that it punches above its weight class - What does this even mean? A marginal caliber for a certain type of game comes down to physics, not cartridge or caliber. I understand what SD is, but in today's world of premium bullets it is little more than a number. If a 270win is considered marginal/minimal by some for elk, how will the .3cm of less bullet diameter at a lower velocity make it kill better?
Statement #4: It was designed with accuracy and performance in mind, so a) it is an inherently accurate round; or b) if I buy a rifle in this caliber it is most definitely going to be accurate - It WAS a purpose-built caliber, but that was more for the long neck giving it the ability to better use heavier bullets without taking up case capacity (as opposed to the 260 which has a shorter throat/longer shoulder) and with an already pseudo-improved design that maximizes the shortened case body and reduces cartridge growth. It is a really neat design, but not naturally more accurate. The gun-rag writers really have hyped this stuff about the caliber up, but I think that we can all admit that rifles have just gotten more consistently accurate due to improvements in machinery and mfg processes, regardless of caliber.
Statement #5 - You must be a fanboy/ crowd-follower/sheeple/etc to shoot this round: Sure, there are some who just want to ride the wave, some are misinformed, and some are caught up in hype. But many intelligent, level headed people like and shoot this round, and they don't go out of their way to discuss it. They don't practice the official "6.5 Creedmoor handshake," or say 3 "azugahs" before mentioning anything about their caliber to fellow club members. They just like the little caliber for what it is.
The fact of the matter is that the 6.5 Creedmoor is a neat cartridge. It has been hyped and overmarketed to some people's chagrin, but it's developers and those who chambered the first rifles in that caliber recognized how poorly Remington had done on the 260. The 260 is actually a superior caliber in case capacity and velocity, but has always been chambered in too slow of twist rates to properly utilize heavier bullets. The Creedmoor is not magical, doesn't shoot as flat as a laser beam, and won't allow you to desex a flea at 1000 yards without practicing, but it is a very effective low recoil deer round at any range that any other medium capacity, high velocity centerfire cartridge would be effective at; not better or flatter, but just as good. I don't think that anyone should get wrapped around the axle about this hype, as it will eventually die down when the next big thing comes out, but it will not go away.
If you are looking at a new deer rifle, a 6.5 Creedmoor will likely fit the bill really well. If you already have a 260, 270, 25-06, 7-08, 308 (I think you get the picture), don't get rid of them to get a 6.5. What you have is already just as good. I personally feel that any rifle that can fire a 120gr+ bullet of decent construction at 2800+ fps will more than effectively take deer at all reasonable ranges with proper shot placement. Some will even say less is appropriate, and I wouldn't tell them that they are wrong . A 223 or 243 will work with well constructed bullets placed in the proper location.
