Retraction: 6.5x55 SE

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RPRNY

RPRNY

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Love the cartridge, love the Swedish Mauser. I am a fanboy, partisan etc. In posts past I have eloquently made the case that the 6.5x55 can create world peace, solve the fiscal crisis, feed the hungry etc. etc. Of lesser import, I have noted that the 160 gr RN has been used successfully on moose in Skando-land and should do for any game in NA.

I retract.

This morning as I was on the deer stand, a moose cow and her calf ambled by, utterly disregarding me, at 50 yards. Holy Shizzle :what: I have seen moose fairly close up in Sweden. They pale in comparison. I have seen moose in the US at farther distances - scale is everything. Even if I had had a moose tag, I would not have taken the shot. She was bigger than any hunter or jumper I have ever ridden. Must have been at least 800 lbs. I have never been so close to one. These are not a deer species, they are the last of the dinosaurs. Moososaurus Rex!

Anyway, to quote a line from The Matrix, "we're gonna need a bigger gun".
 
While my 6.5x55 is not my first choice aginst such a large animal (or my second), remember that a bullet through the vitals still kills, I don't live that far North but a few friends of mine have used their 6.5x55s sucessfully on bull moose in the states. Me personaly I would use the largest caliber I could shoot accuratly.
 
Kachok said:
While my 6.5x55 is not my first choice aginst such a large animal (or my second), remember that a bullet through the vitals still kills, I don't live that far North but a few friends of mine have used their 6.5x55s sucessfully on bull moose in the states. Me personaly I would use the largest caliber I could shoot accuratly.
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Kind of like a heavy soft point .224 into a whitetail, with which we have debated before?
 
I lived in bush Alaska for a while, but never killed a moose. Still, plenty of guys use fairly "normal" caliber guns for moose. Large magnums aren't necessary. Moose have fairly large vitals, and don't seem to be that hard to kill.

But they are HUGE animals.

They just don't have rhinoceros hides. If 7.62x54r is sufficient for moose (and it is), then surely 6.5x55 would work as well.

Aaron
 
I was being somewhat facetious. I was just blown away by the size of the creature while sitting out there waiting for one of our scrawny southern VT racing deer to come by.
 
meanmrmustard said:
Kind of like a heavy soft point .224 into a whitetail, with which we have debated before?
Click to expand...
I have said many times before that with the right bullet (one with adequate penetration) a 223 can be used for deer within reasonable ranges given a skilled rifleman. I have also said that it is not the ideal caliber for the species as is the case here. I used to think the 223 was totally inadequate reguardless but that was before I saw what they could do with advanced modern bullets.
 
Kachok said:
I have said many times before that with the right bullet (one with adequate penetration) a 223 can be used for deer within reasonable ranges given a skilled rifleman. I have also said that it is not the ideal caliber for the species as is the case here. I used to think the 223 was totally inadequate reguardless but that was before I saw what they could do with advanced modern bullets.
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Well said. Minus the "not ideal caliber" part (deer calibers to me are super subjective), its really up to the dude pulling the trigger.
 
The ones up here are alces alces gigas. I've seen big bulls hop up on two legs, bash their chests into trees and knock the things down to get at the sweeter eats.

But they do not have a reputation for hard killing. The bigger the moose, the bigger its lungs and the bigger its heart. They're not difficult to kill with a proper broadside shot. And the old saying is they take about a minute to die regardless of what you hit them with. As long as the bullet gets a good heart/lung shot, that moose will die. The heavy loaded 6.5 will go deep through even the biggest moose and if you do your part, it will do its part.

The hard part is AFTER that, when you realize how much of it there is to take apart and lug out of there. They go on forever. Folks used to regular deer have been in for a shock, and sometimes get into legal trouble for waste of game.
 
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meanmrmustard said:
Well said. Minus the "not ideal caliber" part (deer calibers to me are super subjective), its really up to the dude pulling the trigger.
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I think the ideal cartrage for any given animal should be more then adequate for normal situation, and at ranges beyond what you would expect. My 6.5x55 and 308 both give me more then enough energy at ranges I dare not shoot, and penetration that would allow me to shoot through a deer darn near length wise. Neither one is harsh to shoot and they both come in compact/handy rifles. I think of small caliber hunting as a intended handicap, much like bow hunting. The same principals apply, limit your range and be extra cautious of your shooting angles. Functional but far from being the perfect cartrage IMHO
 
My Grandad used to hunt Canada with three friends every year. He always said to use the largest caliber you could for moose. Not that they were particularly hard to kill, but that if you didn't make it DRT, it would trot into the nearest water and die there. Then you had to fish it out. Me, never hunted them, much less killed one.
 
Kachok said:
I think the ideal cartrage for any given animal should be more then adequate for normal situation, and at ranges beyond what you would expect. My 6.5x55 and 308 both give me more then enough energy at ranges I dare not shoot, and penetration that would allow me to shoot through a deer darn near length wise. Neither one is harsh to shoot and they both come in compact/handy rifles. I think of small caliber hunting as a intended handicap, much like bow hunting. The same principals apply, limit your range and be extra cautious of your shooting angles. Functional but far from being the perfect cartrage IMHO
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I don't do much long range hunting, so anything I can hit a deer with that is legal usually works well. I've taken them at 200 with .223, and about 50 yards with 9mm. They aren't tough animals.

As for moose; I don't know if I could bring enough gun. They sound intimidating.
 
Here in Alaska I have been hunting moose every year since LBJ was the president.
(Except when I was overseas for a 6 year period)

Most I harvested with a 7x57mm Mauser. A few with the 6.5x55mm. A 30-30 on a couple occasions,,, Two with a pistol, A couple with a Bow and one with a muzzle loader. A 358 Norma Mag on 4 or so,,,, and a 30-06 a couple times...

Shot Placement is all that counts...

Although the recent influx of carpetbaggers to Alaska has resulted in a low moose population,,, so in the future I may do my moose hunting with a camera.
 
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It is more about where you hit them than what you shoot them with. That being said, sometimes the best you can count on is a hit somewhere to general center mass. If I knew that might be the case I would bring a bigger gun.
 
Moose are amazing animals. They'd be truly majestic if they weren't so darned ugly. And mean.

I've never been intimidated by one, but a friend of mine was not so lucky. He didn't get trampled, but I suspect he may have messed his trousers after getting too close to a calf when mom was not far off.

When I lived in Big Fork, MT, we used to meet my Grandfather (from Columbia Falls) in Kalispell, often at the indoor pool/rec center. The moose would walk right up to the windows and just hang out.

Anyway, to quote a line from The Matrix, "we're gonna need a bigger gun".
Click to expand...

Couple lines mixed up there.

Jaws:

"We're gonna need a bigger boat"

The Matrix:

"We need guns. Lots of guns"
 
Back in the 70's on a road trip that had us camping in Montana in August me and two buddies were on a very short dock when a young bull came out of the trees and stood there looking at the three of us as we prepared to dive into the lake. All four of us were perfectly still for a moment.

The young bull snorted, turned left and chugged down the shore line about up to his shoulders in water. He jogged like the water was not there.

My opinion of moose changed from that day forward. So much bigger up close than any picture could ever show!

And quite honestly I always figured Swedes shot moose with 6.5X55's because Swedes are cheapskates and that is all that was available.
 
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