caliber choice meltdown

newby.204

Who here uses 6.5x55 for deer? whats your setup rifle scope and ammo wise? whats the cost per box of ammo? Im still stuck between .308 and 6.5, this rifle will never punch paper save for zeroing it!! will be purely a deer rifle/ mr fox if hes that unlucky.

It wasn't me!

newby.204 wrote: »

Who here uses 6.5x55 for deer? whats your setup rifle scope and ammo wise? whats the cost per box of ammo? Im still stuck between .308 and 6.5, this rifle will never punch paper save for zeroing it!! will be purely a deer rifle/ mr fox if hes that unlucky.

I'd have the .308 between those two. Far more versatile and pokier round. It's also cheaper to practise with and more available. Also heard a lot of disappointing reviews of the 6.5x55 from people with a lot of deer-killing experience. I was going to buy one myself, but changed my mind after that. .308 works well with a short barrel, around 20" as well, so if you're not concerned with a moderator, you can have a beautiful handling rifle.

rowa

.308 no doubt's

more bullet weights

more power

shorter round

american ammo manufacturers - more choice

cheap surplus ammo for plinking

bunny shooter

My favourite colour is blue What's yours ?

Ask 10 lads and all will tell you what they like, it's more to do with what you like I reckon

Apart from that I'd pick 6.5x55

Less recoil, and if you put a bullet from either calibre in the right place Mr/Mrs deer/fox won't be able to complain

jwshooter

dont get aa 6.5 .get any thing else

BoarHunter

Tikka 270 WSM with a 3-9x56 Leupold on top :rolleyes:

DR6.5

I use the 6.5 in a Sauer 202 Outback with a T4 mod, have shot sika, reds and fallow with it and have never had any problems with it, have used remington, federal and federal 140 grains in the calibre, im now using 120 grain Norma Ballistic tips, after using the Norma i would not go back to any of the other rounds they are a brillant round .

With the mod on there is very little kick off the rifle, id reccomend the calibre.

DR6.5

deerhunter1

It wasn't me! wrote: »

I'd have the .308 between those two. Far more versatile and pokier round. It's also cheaper to practise with and more available. Also heard a lot of disappointing reviews of the 6.5x55 from people with a lot of deer-killing experience. I was going to buy one myself, but changed my mind after that. .308 works well with a short barrel, around 20" as well, so if you're not concerned with a moderator, you can have a beautiful handling rifle.

I agree, have a 308, had a 6.5 could not wait to off load it 308 all the way

sako75 hunter

hey newby, i was your shoes this time last year. asked loads of guys and dealers for advice on calibre and so on. what i decided on was the 6.5x55 Sako 75 Hunter wood stock. im using Docter 8x56 illuminated scope. Had an old pair of Steiner binos but have a new pair of Steiner Ranger Pro 8x42 ordered, should have them next week! as for bullet weight i use 140gr federal power shock on fallow(havnt had the oppertunity to stalk sika or red yet). ive had a couple of runners but no more than 50-60 yards. for foxes i can only get my hands on 100gr lapua fmj. excellent bullet, can shoot 1/4 groups at 100yards. price for the federal between 27-30 euro a box and for the lapua 100grain 27euro a box. hope ive helped you in some way!

JDBLASER

If I have to hand in my mod I will be using my 6.5 for stalking, pussycat to shoot without a can and very accurate. Have no problems with kills using 120gr Norma bt. Less recoil then a .308 and not as hard on the ears. Shot placement is everything though, if your not confident of neck shots the .308 would be a safer bet. If you can get a moderater permit easily just buy a .270 and youll never look back IMHO

JDBLASER

Sako75hunter; wouldnt personally consider fmj's to be a safe option for foxes...

Jonty

BoarHunter wrote: »

Tikka 270 WSM with a 3-9x56 Leupold on top :rolleyes:

is it not too hard to find ammo?

arrowloopboy

Newby,take your pick from the following .308,.270 or a 25-06,steer clear of the 6.5x55.

arrowloopboy

JDBLASER wrote: »

Sako75hunter; wouldnt personally consider fmj's to be a safe option for foxes...

Jd,do you have shooting in Glenmalure ?

ejg

The swede would be one of my last choices. Love the way people are more concerned about a little shoulder pain than the welfare of the animal. Get a stock fitted well and the recoil of the little 308 is a doddle.

If deer could shoot back, what would you grab??? 308 or 6.5??

edi

jwshooter

ejg wrote: »

The swede would be one of my last choices. Love the way people are more concerned about a little shoulder pain than the welfare of the animal. Get a stock fitted well and the recoil of the little 308 is a doddle.

If deer could shoot back, what would you grab??? 308 or 6.5??

edi

its a endless debate .in my mind the 270 is the best all round cal for ireland now i can get 110gr v max for it ,fallowed closely by the 25,06 .

the 120gr v max in the 6.5x55 is the only factory i would be happy to use in culling deer .
when you hear lads on about recoil, accuracy ,the have shot <few> deer to talk about .

4gun

the recoil from a well sholdered 308 is hardly noticeable but i have never fired a 6.5 but was firing next to a guy at a range who had one, thought it made a bigger bang ,then again his gun had a muzzle brake on it....both will get you what you want,
check enegy and bullet velocities and make your mind up from there keeping in mind the size of the animal you intend to shoot

sixpointfive

you will only notice recoil when sighting in a rifle, when you are out hunting you never feel it kick, 6.5 is good round in my opinion but 308 has a lot more going for it in bullet choice and availability, both will do the job but 6.5 needs to be fed the expensive rounds to get consistent results.
Antway there is <little> kick out of a 308 so id be goin that road

JDBLASER

arrowloopboy wrote: »

Jd,do you have shooting in Glenmalure ?

Sure do.. Do you?

jwshooter

JDBLASER wrote: »

Sure do.. Do you?

doe you walk through the shadow of the valley of death you will fear no evil.

lordarpad

ejg wrote: »

The swede would be one of my last choices. Love the way people are more concerned about a little shoulder pain than the welfare of the animal. Get a stock fitted well and the recoil of the little 308 is a doddle.

If deer could shoot back, what would you grab??? 308 or 6.5??

edi

hmm, Friend of mine who is a sniper is just moving from .308 to 6.5x55. Does that answer your question?

rowa

most military users eg. snipers or sharpshooters are moving up to th .300 win mag or .338's , not back to a 6.5 , the 6.5 is excellent for target shooting i am told .

It wasn't me!

Jonty wrote: »

is it not too hard to find ammo?

Probably not in France. Here, I'd say it's a massive pain.

bunny shooter

rowa wrote: »

most military users eg. snipers or sharpshooters are moving up to th .300 win mag or .338's , not back to a 6.5 , the 6.5 is excellent for target shooting i am told .

Agreed BUT they are 'issued' with those rifles they generally have no choice in what they use

newby.204

bunny shooter wrote: »

<snip>

with all due respect bunny, paper isnt going to run 200yrds if your using an unforgiving round, whilst 6.5x55 has a high BC making it excellent for target shooting, i wnat to kow about knockdown power on deer, so paper punchers arent really who i wnat to be talking to, whilst at the same time i am concerned with accuracy

bunny shooter

Fair points, newby.204, but I was replying to JW's statement not your excellent question

Watched my target fly away at 200 yards once after I shot it with a CG63 in 6.5x55........... mind you there was a terrible wind blowing

Malaga2

rowa wrote: »

most military users eg. snipers or sharpshooters are moving up to th .300 win mag or .338's , not back to a 6.5 , the 6.5 is excellent for target shooting i am told .

300WM and 338 are for distance plain and simple...handy in the mountains of Afghanistan...Canadians and US are bringing a lot of 50's to the party...but this has nothing to do with the post. 6.5 is a great deer cal and has taken animals to the size of Moose with decent shot placement...ammo pricing will have a big bearing..I have a couple of 308's one 6.5 and a 270....shoot the 308's a whole lot more...

arrowloopboy

JDBLASER wrote: »

Sure do.. Do you?

Nope,not this year,last year and year before.

oldzed

jwshooter wrote: »

its a endless debate .in my mind the 270 is the best all round cal for ireland now i can get 110gr v max for it ,fallowed closely by the 25,06 .

the 120gr v max in the 6.5x55 is the only factory i would be happy to use in culling deer .
when you hear lads on about recoil, accuracy ,the have shot <few> deer to talk about .

Plain and simple - you are <incorrect> , The 6.5 is more than adequate to take out any deer in this country and much bigger. It is still classed as legal for Elk in the nordic countries and is up to the job with 165 grain heads if you keep the distance sensible . I have never had any issues with the killing power of the 6.5 and anybody who has has only their shooting to blame, The only bad ammo I have seen here for the 6.5 was some hirtenburger 160 grain crap that came in a few years ago . other than that any of the commercial 6.5 stuff is ok . but the hornady stuff at the moment is not performing out past 100m , this is a fault in the ammo not the rifles . I asked marko nikko who shoots and works for sako at the bore silhouette rifle championships the world cup in the czech republic what his views were and he thinks if you are hunting only then a 308 is probably better because it has a bit more knockdown power and is a bit more forgiving to poorer marksmen because of that . what does he use a 6.5. why - its well up for the job , more accurate , is much better in the wind , and is more consistent when you are firing a lot of rounds in a day . nobody uses 308 in centre fire sils. its not up to the job at 500metres vs the 6.5 due to its poor wind performance. if you cant put a deer down with federal 140 gr softpoints through 6.5 . you need to work on your shooting and a 308 is not going to fix that problem for you .the biggest problem here is that the standard of shooting of most deer hunters ranges from average to terrible and whether they have a 22/250 or a 300 win mag if you dont hit them right . they wont go down cleanly personally I have nothing against the 308 but use a 6.5 myself and will never change from it . I have never lost a deer with it and it was good enough to take a silver in the big bore hunting rifle world cup for me this year. and what beat me - a 6.5 and what was third - a 6.5. thats enough for me. and by the way i for one have shot enough deer over the years to talk about it if i want

jwshooter

bunny shooter wrote: »

<snip>

your in the .22 ,223 degrade right .
so how would you know any thing other than what you have read and been told about what it takes to kill a deer quickly and humanly.

the ability of the stalker ,there knowledge of deer behavior and anatomy cant not be learned on a range.
i dont know how many hours i have spent on the ground so far this year ,its a lot .what im getting at is dont judge every one by your own standards ,as i find very few live up to mine.
the 6.5x55 is not the best cal for irish deer stalking conditions .

Cass

Going to throw my tupence worth in here.

I shoot 6.5 and .308. I do alot of target work and a reasonable amount of stalking. I'm not a prolific shooter, only shooting what i'll use or need, no more. I have used my 6.5 mostly for the hunting. Using every different round until i finally settled on Federal power shok. The Hornady do not run through the 6.5 well at all. On the range zeroing with the Hornady i had 5-6 inch groups at 200yds. In case you think its me i used 5 target rounds without adjusting the scope and got .5" group.

The 6.5 has dropped every Deer i've shot at with one shot. Ranges vary from 110yds to 290yds. Have used the .308 a couple of times and it fires every bit as good as 6.5 and for what i need. I don't use it too much as its target designated and not really suitable for carrying. Have just got my licence through for a 30-06. I bought the rifle months ago and was unsure as to whether i made the right choice, but after reading the threads here i feel i have.

I think another poster said it best, that every lad will have his own opinion as to what is best, but it'll be down to what you like. Take everything on board, think it over and make an informed decision on the information you have. It's all a learning curve.

Best of luck newby.204

macnas

Tikka .300 WSM + Leupold 3x9x40

bunny shooter

jwshooter wrote: »

your in the .22 ,223 degrade right .

WRONG

Check some more of my posts

jwshooter wrote: »

so how would you know any thing other than what you have read and been told about what it takes to kill a deer quickly and humanly.

the ability of the stalker ,there knowledge of deer behavior and anatomy cant not be learned on a range.
i dont know how many hours i have spent on the ground so far this year ,its a lot .what im getting at is dont judge every one by your own standards ,as i find very few live up to mine.
the 6.5x55 is not the best cal for irish deer stalking conditions .

So about the same as you knew about .204 Ruger here a while ago ..................... That was a deafening silence, can we have it again ?

.243

ive said it before and ill say it again,when it comes down to it "its the nut behind the butt" and where he(or she)puts that bullet regardless of deer cailbre,
i dont shoot either round for deer simply because i never had a reason to up bullet power to this level,
the one ive been using for the last 15 years and taken them from 50-350 yards,its what i started with and it never gave me any cause to question its ability,
there i one piece of advice that is given to anyone starting out,but i dont think it has ever ventured into a deer stalking thread it's the "start at the bottom,and work your way up with expereince"
my two cents if you aint sure "little steps first"

jwshooter

bunny shooter wrote: »

<snip>

im only in from stalking and will be out again in the morning .
i had a lovely eve .
i was out with a old friend he brought me for a stalk , on fallow .

we had a buck and a doe n fawn walk into 20 yards ,had a very entertaining eve seen a lot of deer in good company .

shannonpowerlab

What would be the normal engagement distance? 100m?

bunny shooter

shannonpowerlab wrote: »

What would be the normal engagement distance? 100m?

Depends on terrain mostly. Wooded areas would be shorter range and open mountain longer.

Range should of course be decided by the shooters ability to ensure a clean kill at whatever range he/she shoots at

shannonpowerlab

how close could an average person get to a deer practically with a bit of patience...would you know?

bunny shooter

shannonpowerlab wrote: »

how close could an average person get to a deer practically with a bit of patience...would you know?

Wind direction, use of cover, camoflague, luck and numerous other variables come into it No two situations even in the same area would be the same

Deer shooting friends of mine previously stalked to within 70 yards to get kills as all they had were 22 magnums, pre "big" calibre days

Cass

jwshooter wrote: »

.........the ability of the stalker ,there knowledge of deer behavior and anatomy cant not be learned on a range..............

I'd agree with you on the practical end of deer stalking and the value of the in field training for want of a better phrase. I will say that the training, practice and experience with gun handling and scope adjustments etc on the range aids in my ability to shoot safely. I can adjust my scope from 100 to 400 yds in a few clicks and without looking at the scope. This comes from practice on the range and my understanding of the rifle an equipement i have.

Originally Posted by shannonpowerlab

how close could an average person get to a deer practically with a bit of patience...

To repeat what bunnyshooter said and tie in with what i was talking about above, each shooter has their own style. Mine is to know the exact adjustments of my rifle and scope and get to within a set distance then take my shot from there. Rarely go out on my own and my cousin carries a .243 that is always set for 100yds and he has a better free hand shot than me so if we come across a deer within that range and those conditions he takes the shot not me.

CJhaughey

Heres a thought, why not get a 243 Win? Sort of a compromise between the 6.5 and the 308.
You lose 0.5mm on the cal. but it uses the 308 case necked down.
Plenty of ammo available and not too bad pricewise.

Sparks

Lads, the next time it takes a half-hour of mod time to go through a thread and edit or delete out a genitalia-measuring session, the unzipped participants are getting banned for a week on general principal. You're not twelve years old for feck's sake.

JDBLASER

shannonpowerlab wrote: »

how close could an average person get to a deer practically with a bit of patience...would you know?

The right terrain, good wind and plenty of patience, bout 5 yards;)

shannonpowerlab

Uh....That is a bit too personal for my liking...It is nice to have some meet in my stomach but...when it looks at me with those cute eyes...
I do have a difficulty pulling the trigger....

I think I'll stick to the birds...

shannonpowerlab

Sparks wrote: »

Lads, the next time it takes a half-hour of mod time to go through a thread and edit or delete out a genitalia-measuring session, the unzipped participants are getting banned for a week on general principal. You're not twelve years old for feck's sake.

Cass

JDBLASER wrote: »

The right terrain, good wind and plenty of patience, bout 5 yards;)

I just got the image in my mind of you (like the cartoon characters) creeping up on the deer disguised as a bush. You know the ones, with the feet poking out from the bottom.:D

Seriously how did you get that close. The only time i was that close to a deer was when one got startled and made a b-line directly for me and the ditch i was hiding behind. Thats some good stalking or a realistic cardboard cutout.:D

4gun

Sparks wrote: »

Lads, the next time it takes a half-hour of mod time to go through a thread and edit or delete out a genitalia-measuring session, the unzipped participants are getting banned for a week on general principal. You're not twelve years old for feck's sake.

I know it's definately childish to carry on in this manner..but isn't this what all the banter and goading and p**staking that goes on down at "the ranges" looks like when it's written down
It's boisterous and boasting and the whole competive side coming out of male minds. Believe it or not but some of us find it amusing to read two shooters having a p**sing compitition otherwise the shooting forum would be as lifeless as an old bird that's been dead for two weeks and would stink every bit as bad
what do you want people to do "keep it serious" have it for old fuddy duddies who are not into "that sort of thing"
change the web to BORED.ie in that case

jwshooter

there has to be a bit of wind and in the right direction ,years ago i stalked in on a sika calf and caught it ,i have a witness to this .late one eve a sika pricket was running in front of the landrover i jumped out and chased it down ,i have a picture of that lad.

saturday i had a friend out for a stag we stalked into 10 yards of a good 8 point sika stag .later we stalked into 5 yards of a calf .

we had something interesting happen ,we were sat on a rock glassing a clearance 300yds away .i gave a few blasts of the whistle to see whats about ,a stag answered down wind to the right .
at the same time a big 8 point came into the clearance .
at this point my dog indicated that a deer was coming into us from the right..

the big 8 pointer crossed into some trees and ran another 8 pointer out of it.
we decided to get a closer look at the big lad and made our was around the clearance.

we were a 100 yards above where we last seen him . when glassing i looked back at the rock where we were sat . only to see another stag was sniffing the ground where we sat .a fine stag to boot.

we stalked up a ride line on to the hill ,we were gone 100yds when we looked back to the clearance only to see half a dozen hinds with stag ,standing in the middle of the ride line looking at us.

there is never a dull day when your on the hill.

Sparks

4gun wrote: »

what do you want people to do "keep it serious" have it for old fuddy duddies who are not into "that sort of thing"

I want them to keep it civil. It might be fun and games to yourself, but you're not the one getting the legal threats on the back end. This sort of thing keeps leading from 'boisterousness' to the High Court and if we don't stop it, the website name will change to GONE.ie. Besides, I personally think posts like the one above are more interesting than two lads sniping at one another.

4gun

Sparks wrote: »

I want them to keep it civil. It might be fun and games to yourself, but you're not the one getting the legal threats on the back end. This sort of thing keeps leading from 'boisterousness' to the High Court and if we don't stop it, the website name will change to GONE.ie. Besides, I personally think posts like the one above are more interesting than two lads sniping at one another.

Yeah, I know someone has to draw the line sorta tell the children to go to bed sort of thing. All's i'm saying is there has to be a place for that kind of chat, it's as much a part of shooting as guns and bullets
but who are these legal threats coming from. If I insult another poster by means of saying he cant shoot for crap how does that fall on boards, we all don't have our solicitors on speed dial ya know, direct insults I agree absolutely should not be allowed as they may or may not be true
I'll admit I did not read the tearms and conditions of Boards.ie compleately but I would have thought that there was a disclaimer in there somewhere that we all agreed to, to prevent such action from being taken against boards

JDBLASER

ezridax wrote: »

I just got the image in my mind of you (like the cartoon characters) creeping up on the deer disguised as a bush. You know the ones, with the feet poking out from the bottom.:D

Seriously how did you get that close. The only time i was that close to a deer was when one got startled and made a b-line directly for me and the ditch i was hiding behind. Thats some good stalking or a realistic cardboard cutout.:D

It was takin in August and the wind was good and had great cover, he never knew I was there and I managed to take the pic and get away without disturbing him! If it had been in Sep I would have taken a shot at prob 150yrds and missed out on the buzz of the "stalk". With all the talk of big calibers and distance shooting we, and I include myself in this, often forget about the skills that have for centuries been an integrtal part of deer stalking.