6.5 Creedmoor enough gun for Elk?

Nothing specific to what you're asking but this thread has a number of useful insights.
https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/6-5-creed-for-elk.895044/

Without a doubt, but this old horse has long been fertilizer.

A 6.5x55 Swede has been used to harvest pretty much every animal on this planet. A 6.5CM is a ballistic equivalent. The classic 6.5 Swede load is a 160gr Round Nose

CarJunkieLS1 said:

A 6.5x55 Swede has been used to harvest pretty much every animal on this planet. A 6.5CM is a ballistic equivalent. The classic 6.5 Swede load is a 160gr Round Nose

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It is likely that the 6.5 Swede has taken more moose (which on average are larger than elk) than any other cartridge. At least that's what the Scandinavians say. Hence, I think your implied point regarding the effectiveness of the 6.5 creedmoor on elk has merit....

the 30-06 with 180gr. bullet is a better choice.

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Maybe. With the same shot placement you could argue that a larger game animal might take fewer steps before falling over if hit with a 30-06. But dead is dead. And the other side of the argument is that most people will shoot the 6.5 more accurately which could lead to better shot placement.

And a 180gr 30 caliber, 160gr 28 caliber, a 150gr 27caliber, and a 140 gr 26 caliber bullet will all penetrate pretty much the same. If they all leave the muzzle at the same speed they all have similar trajectories and similar impact velocities at all ranges.

I grew up thinking 30-06 was middle of the road. Fifty years later I've decided it is borderline too much for most North American game. It's taken me a while for me to come to that conclusion, but that is where I am.

I'm not an elk hunter but have several friends and family that are. A few of them switched to the 6.5 Creedmoor and I want to say all the elk shot by it (from my circle) have been killed by the Hornady 143 ELD-X.

My one friend who has shot a couple and guided for a few more, swears it is just as effective as the 270 he was using for nearly 20 years prior.

I want to say the longest shot was on a big cow at just under 500 yards, broadside, and the ELD-X was found expanded in the off side hide.

Sure it is. Just take a reasonable distance shot, use the correct bullet and it's fine for Elk sized game. Not much else to say....

I believe it is one day I hope to find out

6.5 Creedmoor is on elk like the 223 is on deer. Doable? Yes absolutely, people hunt deer with it every time. Although 308/30-06 are better choices.

For Elk the 6.5 Creedmoor is good too, plenty of kills, however I would take a 7mm Rem Mag or 300WM personally.

shot placement is more important than caliber, bigger caliber helps with sloppy shot placement.

Our son has used the 6.5 CM on deer with factory loads and has been very disappointed. He has never been disappointed with his .30-06. I think most factory loads are geared towards accuracy and not game performance.

351 WINCHESTER said:

Our son has used the 6.5 CM on deer with factory loads and has been very disappointed. He has never been disappointed with his .30-06. I think most factory loads are geared towards accuracy and not game performance.

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There are some good options.
As a note, the eld-x isnt a fantastic short range option....or well may not be.

Ive seen quite a few animals dumped with tipped match bullets and took one 800lb feral bull with an eld-x from my 6.5-284.

LoonWulf said:

There are some good options.
As a note, the eld-x isnt a fantastic short range option....or well may not be.

Ive seen quite a few animals dumped with tipped match bullets and took one 800lb feral bull with an eld-x from my 6.5-284.

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I know. I have cleanly killed deer with a .22 lr too under ideal conditions, and the 6.5 will kill elk and even elephant, but how far are you going to have to track them? My advice is to always use enough gun. Our son is open to suguestions as to what would be a good bullet for his 6.5cm for deer.

351 WINCHESTER said:

I know. I have cleanly killed deer with a .22 lr too under ideal conditions, and the 6.5 will kill elk and even elephant, but how far are you going to have to track them? My advice is to always use enough gun. Our son is open to suguestions as to what would be a good bullet for his 6.5cm for deer.

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Really hard to say, id expect it depends on the shots and distances expected.
I really like heart/lung shots, so driving a heavy for cal soft bullets where most of my experience is.
My one shot on larger game with the EldX resulted in an upside down cow in less than 40yds, but very unimpressive looking wounding. That said those things usually take some killing, so having it pile up real quick is impressive.

Given that particular experience, id avoid the Eldx at impact velocities in the mid 2000s or above, but WOULD shoot an ABLR, AB, or other bonded expanding bullet.

Likewise my experience with stuff like the 140gr fusion my 280Ai would have me avoiding THEM for soft shots even on larger game. Were i using those id be trying to put them thru a bone or two......

Really depends..

Ill also never say a negative word about using a larger more powerful round to hunt with as long as the shooter can handle it comfortably.

I've taken more Elk with my 25-06 than any of my other options. So I would say yes.

CarJunkieLS1 said:

A 6.5x55 Swede has been used to harvest pretty much every animal on this planet. A 6.5CM is a ballistic equivalent. The classic 6.5 Swede load is a 160gr Round Nose

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On a moose drive where 4 or 5 guys shoot at an animal is not the same as we hunt here.

In Africa I'm sure a lot of game animal 's were also wounded by the 6.5x55, just like many other military surplus caliber used on very big and dangerous game.

While I'm also sure elk in the US have been killed over decades with .25-35 or .30-30's there are better choices. Personally if I'm going to invest $6K + in an elk hunt, I would use a bigger cartridge.

351 WINCHESTER said:

I know. I have cleanly killed deer with a .22 lr too under ideal conditions, and the 6.5 will kill elk and even elephant, but how far are you going to have to track them? My advice is to always use enough gun. Our son is open to suguestions as to what would be a good bullet for his 6.5cm for deer.

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This

https://www.hornady.com/bullets/eld-x#!/

ELD-X is popular, but it's just an Interlock that goes further. Which is not necessarily a bad thing.

Jack O'Connor swore by the Win 270 for elk. With the far better bullets available today than in his prime, the 0.013" smaller diameter of the 6.5 will make zero difference (except for the even flatter trajectory. And 140 grs is 140 grs at not much difference in velocity.

Of course, I'm no Jack O'Connor, not even a pale immitation, so I hunt elk with the 30-06 and 180s. But that's just the old fashioned in me.

Roverguy said:

Jack O'Connor swore by the Win 270 for elk. With the far better bullets available today than in his prime, the 0.013" smaller diameter of the 6.5 will make zero difference (except for the even flatter trajectory. And 140 grs is 140 grs at not much difference in velocity.

Of course, I'm no Jack O'Connor, not even a pale immitation, so I hunt elk with the 30-06 and 180s. But that's just the old fashioned in me.

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Ironic. I just held one of his shotguns today. My dad bought it off him in the 70's. A rare Browning o/u solid rib lightweight 12 ga. Cost him $500.

I shot my first elk with a .257 Roberts at 260 yards using a 120-grain Nosler bullet. One shot and the cow walked ten feet then collapsed and rolled down the mountain onto a logging road.

Subsequent elk have been shot with larger calibers and no difference in any of them.

351 WINCHESTER said:

I know. I have cleanly killed deer with a .22 lr too under ideal conditions, and the 6.5 will kill elk and even elephant, but how far are you going to have to track them? My advice is to always use enough gun. Our son is open to suguestions as to what would be a good bullet for his 6.5cm for deer.

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Any of the bullets marketed as hunting bullets will work just fine. Some of the match bullets will too, but there aren't a lot of data points on some of them.

Goosey said:

ELD-X is popular, but it's just an Interlock that goes further. Which is not necessarily a bad thing.

View attachment 1028139

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ELD-X...