Anyone use 6.5x55?

jpattersonnh

jpattersonnh

New member
I have been playing off and on w/ my 1962 Husqvarna 1600 w/ 87 and 100gr bullets for hunting Varmints. The 87 is so so past 150 yards, but the 100gr is a real accurate bullet. I have tested w/ IMR4064, H335, and BLC(2). The Rifle wears a 4x32mm scope but can really reach out. It has a ballistic plex reticle and it works within an inch or so of my standard 129gr Whitetail round at 300. The 87gr are older Speer and make Woodchucks fun. The recoil is so light you see the hit. I'm sure w/ a higher power scope I could really get out there, but this is primarily a Deer gun. It seems to be a great way to stay in practice w/ a meat gun. JP
 
I had a Remington 700 Classic a few years back and shot a Sierra 100gr HP through it with RL19. Shot very tight groups with a higher magnification scope.
 
Have a LH Win Model 70, rebarreled to 6.5x55. It's a 1-9 twist. I find the Sierra 85 gr/100 Vmax/Nosler 100 BT shoot well. All are shooting around 1.25" at 200 yds. Best part is, at around 3050 fps for all three of them, which shoots the groups stated above, they all hit within a 3" circle at 200 yards.

I'm waiting to test the 120s and 130s. Could be interesting...

I actually sold my M700 243 Win after I had 6.5x55 done. Haven't shot anything yet, but I can't see what the difference would be between a 75 gr Vmax in 6 mm at 3200 fps and an 85 gr varminter at 3050 fps.
 
My Ruger 77 shoots very well too. From what I've read & heard, this must be a common characteristic of the 6.5x55??

The load that I use is the one listed in the Nosler Manual for accuracy, and I shoot 140 Nosler Partitions and 140 Sierra GameKings within 1/4" of the same POI.

I haven't tried anything else.

 
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I have a 6.5x55 in a Sako model 75 and it's a pretty cool caliber. I have shot a lot of 85 grain Sierras and they did well considering the Sako is a fast twist. For coyotes I shoot the 120 A-Max over the top of Reloader 19. High BC with a decent velocity and very accurate.
 
Love the 6.5x55. Great 'do-it-all' cartridge with some inherently wonderful ballistics. I have one in a Remington 700 Classic that I will not ever part with. I have yet to splash a coyote with the 95 gr Vmax load I have prepared for it, but I expect the results would not be pretty (terminally speaking).
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I have loaded for a Husqvarna 1600 and a Winchester 70 featherwieght in 6.5X55mm and its a very good round. I used Reloder 19 and 120gr Noslers and the Barnes.
 
I love mine, just didn't respond because I've never played with the lighter bullets asked about. I've shot only 129 grain and above in mine (except for a short flirtation with 120 grain XLCs - no likey). With my current favorites, 129 grain SSTs, not many animals are safe from this rifle. I've shot hogs, antelope, and deer out to nearly 300 yards. Nevery had a problem, never recovered a bullet, never lost an animal. I point the rifle and something falls dead. It's almost boring in its regularity!
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I wouldn't hesitate to carry it elk hunting if the opportunity arose.
 
I had a 98 large ring that had been sporterized with a Husky take off barrel by Kimber back when they were in bad shape. It was a good strong bolt with quite a bit of free bore. It shot 100 grain bullets over IMR3031 really well. I couldn't get it to shoot the 140 AMAX bullets that I wanted to use worth a darn. So, I got rid of it cause I already have 2 243's the would shoot 100 grain bullets well too. Wish now I would have kept it and rebarreled it, cause it had a NICE action.
 
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Is it that much different than a 6mm Rem? Have a 6mm and am looking at a 6.5X55Winchester Feather light for $500 . Just don't know if it is worth the cost.
 
The 6.5 offers excellent SD, with great BC's. Their case holds about as much powder as a .308. But their bullets are so long that a 1-7 twist is needed to run some of higher weight bullets. The 140 grain Hornady SST offers a BC of .520 with a sectional density of .287 that makes for a fast hard hitting round with light recoil in a strong action. You would need a 30 caliber bullet of 190 grains or more to equal the same SD and BC. The problem with the 6.5 swede is most are still in old Husky and Mauser 96 actions that were not strong enough to take full advantage of the cases capacity.

I'd rather have a fast twist 6mm remington to make a long story short...
 
MGYSGT, where's the Model 70? if the gun and bore looks good, I wouldn't hesitate on that 6.5x55.

Or please tell me where it is.
 
I've got a CZ550 in 6.5x55. I generally shoot the Hornady 129gr SPT's for deer. Very comfortable, and very accurate. I got a bunch of 120 SPT's cheap so I'll try them maybe this year.

Very hard cartridge not to like, it just has so many things going for it.

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Originally Posted By: MGYSGTIs it that much different than a 6mm Rem? Have a 6mm and am looking at a 6.5X55Winchester Feather light for $500 . Just don't know if it is worth the cost.

Yes, it's different. For all intents and purposes, the 6mm tops out with 100 grain bullets. The 6.5, depending on the rifle it's chambered in, can shoot up to 160 grain bullets. While come consider the 6mm family of cartridges a bit light for deer, the 6.5 is perfect. In fact, in its homeland (Scandinavia) it was and is still quite commonly used to take moose with little trouble. It's kind of like the .30-06 - plain, maybe even boring, but gets the job done with minimal fuss. It's a mild mannered cartridge that is suitable for women, kids, or even guys like me that don't mind saying I'm not a fan of recoil when it's not necessary. When chambered in a modern action, like that Model 70, you can load it up a bit and you basically have a .270 Win. With plain ol' cup and core bullets (the Hornady SST), mine kills whatever I point it at. For $500 I'd be hard pressed to pass on that Winchester, especially if it's a Classic.
 
Originally Posted By: DesertRamOriginally Posted By: MGYSGTIs it that much different than a 6mm Rem? Have a 6mm and am looking at a 6.5X55Winchester Feather light for $500 . Just don't know if it is worth the cost.

Yes, it's different. For all intents and purposes, the 6mm tops out with 100 grain bullets. The 6.5, depending on the rifle it's chambered in, can shoot up to 160 grain bullets. While come consider the 6mm family of cartridges a bit light for deer, the 6.5 is perfect. In fact, in its homeland (Scandinavia) it was and is still quite commonly used to take moose with little trouble. It's kind of like the .30-06 - plain, maybe even boring, but gets the job done with minimal fuss. It's a mild mannered cartridge that is suitable for women, kids, or even guys like me that don't mind saying I'm not a fan of recoil when it's not necessary. When chambered in a modern action, like that Model 70, you can load it up a bit and you basically have a .270 Win. With plain ol' cup and core bullets (the Hornady SST), mine kills whatever I point it at. For $500 I'd be hard pressed to pass on that Winchester, especially if it's a Classic.


While I agree with the majority of what youre saying here are some thing I disagree with. 6mm bullets go up to 115 grains, they do not stop at 100. The 6mm is perfect size for deer and game in that size. The 6.5 is a bit overbore for a deer. Otherwise I agree with everyting else stated in the above.
 
The 6.5x55 is very under rated. It is not a .270, it lacks the recoil. I can hot rod my 1600 as it is a small ring '98 Mauser. It likes 100...130gr bullets best.
140's are problematic as it has a short throat. I have 4 others that like up to 160gr, so I really use this rifle w/ quality lower grain bullets for other game.
 
Originally Posted By: chefpierreOriginally Posted By: DesertRamOriginally Posted By: MGYSGTIs it that much different than a 6mm Rem? Have a 6mm and am looking at a 6.5X55Winchester Feather light for $500 . Just don't know if it is worth the cost.

Yes, it's different. For all intents and purposes, the 6mm tops out with 100 grain bullets. The 6.5, depending on the rifle it's chambered in, can shoot up to 160 grain bullets. While come consider the 6mm family of cartridges a bit light for deer, the 6.5 is perfect. In fact, in its homeland (Scandinavia) it was and is still quite commonly used to take moose with little trouble. It's kind of like the .30-06 - plain, maybe even boring, but gets the job done with minimal fuss. It's a mild mannered cartridge that is suitable for women, kids, or even guys like me that don't mind saying I'm not a fan of recoil when it's not necessary. When chambered in a modern action, like that Model 70, you can load it up a bit and you basically have a .270 Win. With plain ol' cup and core bullets (the Hornady SST), mine kills whatever I point it at. For $500 I'd be hard pressed to pass on that Winchester, especially if it's a Classic.


While I agree with the majority of what youre saying here are some thing I disagree with. 6mm bullets go up to 115 grains, they do not stop at 100. The 6mm is perfect size for deer and game in that size. The 6.5 is a bit overbore for a deer. Otherwise I agree with everyting else stated in the above.

Right you are, but for most factory rifles chambered in .243 or 6mm, those long heavy bullets are not a real option, hence my caveat "for all intents and purposes." Bring on a barrel with the right twist and you open up way more options for sure!
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I had a wrong letter in one sentence - I tried to say that "some consider the .243 a bit light." I don't necessarily agree, just stated a common position taken among deer hunters. Heck, I shot my first rifle-killed deer with a .22-250. Shot him right in the base of the skull as he turned to look at me over his back. Hit him so hard he did a complete flip and lay there on the ground facing the way he'd come.
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I'm not sure I'd agree that the 6.5 is overbore for deer though, unless you're speaking of the .264 Win Mag. The plain jane 6.5x55 is a great match for deer-sized game, and considerably less potent than the .300 mags that many folks, particularly out west, routinely shoot deer with. I'm a big fan of the little Swede, but honestly, I'd hunt with a rock if I had to.
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