6mm Creed or .243 Winchester

[brutus51]

Which would you chose in a new rifle and what brand.
Primary use is target shooting.

 

[mcb]

6mm Creedmoor for target shooting especially as ranges get longer. The 6mm Creedmoor has both the room and the twist to shooter longer heavier bullet than most 243 Win guns.

I have a Remington with a factory 5R barrel and is has been exceptional. My best with it has been a 5-shot .38 MOA @200 yards. It frequently does 1/2 MOA @100 when I do my part). If you can find a deal on a Remington 6mm Creedmore using the 5R barrel at a good price it would likely be worth it. Mine started out as a Magpul hunter though its now in a chassis. But with Remington's current financial situation you may or may not want to risk that depending on how much factory support you might expect.

 

[Chuck R.]

Define "target" shooting?

What's your budget?

To some guys TGT shooting is informal at a bench at 100-200 yds. To others it's LR precision and a match grade rifle & optic. The difference in "context" of TGT shooting is the difference between an $1100 factory rifle complete with $500 worth of glass to a $4000 rifle complete with $1500 worth of glass.

You're about to get recommendations all over the spectrum.

 

[brutus51]

Thanks for the replies,
Most shooting will be out to 200 yards and occasionally 300 yards ( my gun club is 200 and I have to travel quit a distance for 300).
Want to spend no more than 1K.

 

[jmorris]

Target shooting at 100-200 yards and every now and then 300, would be something built around a Kelbly, Bat, Farley or Stiller action in 6mm PPC.

<$1000 isn’t going to happen on a new one, might find something decent if you are patient http://benchrest.com/class/

$1000, is that rifle and glass?

 

[jmr40]

The 6mm CM is the better long range round, but 200-300 yards isn't long range. I'd go with a 223 for punching paper up to 600 yards and varmint hunting. You can shoot it cheaper and do just fine at the ranges you want to shoot.

If you want a dual purpose target and big game hunting rifle 6.5 CM is the way to go.

With either 6CM, 243, 223, or 6.5CM the Ruger Predators will give you the most accuracy for the least money Street price is around $400 which leaves a lot of money for good optics. I also like the Tikka's, but they cost a lot more, closer to $700.

 

[GoldieMI]

I grabbed a Savage 10T in 6mm Creed. used to play in the caliber
Hornady Brass/105 Berger Hybrids/H4350 Powder
It shot 5 shot groups at .7/.8s at 100 yards with the factory stock, I moved the action/barrel over to McRees Precision Chassis and I'm closer to .5/.6 inch groups now at 100 yards. At 600 yards- It's ~ 4"-5" for me. I find it an easy round to load for and it shoots well enough.
I haven't ventured to Youngs Longshot yet this summer to get out to 1000 yards with it.
6mm Creedmoor is not a long life barrel though- you won't get 6.5 Creedmoor or 308Win life out of it. However, the barrel swap on a Savage it quite easy for prefit barrels so I can shoot out this barrel and either grab a Shilen in 6Creed or change up the caliber and keep shooting away.

 

[GoldieMI]

Target shooting at 100-200 yards and every now and then 300, would be something built around a Kelbly, Bat, Farley or Stiller action in 6mm PPC.

+1 here- love my 6PPC at 100 yards lol...it's a perfect rifle to shake off a bad accuracy day.

 

[brutus51]

Already own a .223 and a 6.5 Creed along with a 6.8 SPC. Just looking for something new to quench my reloading addiction.
Also considering a 7mm-08

 

[Cemetery21]

At a max of 300, I don't think the paper can tell the difference between the two.
With a CM, you can shoot heavier bullets (jn factory twists), but considering the heaviest a .243 can handle vs what a CM can handle, I don't think you gain much at 300.
But, as a lifelong .243 shooter, I like the innovation of the CM. I can't think of anything you give up going CM over .243

 

[JJFitch]

6mm Creedmore VS. Win .243

Which would you chose in a new rifle and what brand.
Primary use is target shooting.

The math tells the story: For every MOA beyond 300 yards multiply 1 MOA X $1K but the 6 Creed was designed specifically to exceed the capability of the Win .243!

I love the 243 for the shooting I do. But if I was a single venue shooter with the $$$ I'd be looking very strongly at other cartridges!

Smiles,

 

[Varminterror]

This comparison in this context either yields “it doesn’t really matter” or “there’s a slight advantage for the 6 creed.”

Given that reality, there’s nothing terribly wrong with buying a 243win, but there’s no reason to do so, while there ARE potential advantages to buying a 6 creed. Even if you dismiss the very slight powder cost savings, because it is slight, the simple fact it is notably easier to develop loads in 6 creed is reason enough for me. It’s not 6 of one, half a dozen of the other - it’s 7 of one.

The 243win has been my favorite cartridge for deer, hogs, coyotes, and midrange target shooting for over 20 years. With the advent of 6 creed, I’ve sold or converted all but one of my 243’s, and don’t expect I will ever buy another - and DO plan to convert my last 243win sooner than later. It takes nothing away from the 243win to say the 6 creed is better in multiple ways for this application.

 

[Skylerbone]

It’s really 6 of one...nah, I’m not stepping on that grenade! My last non-AR was a .243 but that was a specific deal not to be passed up and were it 6mm “xyz” instead, I’d have been even happier.

In terms of your goal, to feed your reloading addiction, I see no reason another .223 couldn’t do that. Any hunting rifle I own and load for gets its own ammo and not generic fodder. If you reload for accuracy I’d say save the powder cost to buy a second die set and some Varget.

 

[LoonWulf]

6 of one, .243 of another............



I'd let the rifle dictate the cartridge in this case. Find a rifle you really like, and get which ever it comes in, if it comes in both, I'd go with the Creed.

 

[Legionnaire]

6 Creedmoor ... from a guy who owns .243s.

 

[jmorris]

Upon further thought, with the $1000 limit. I would find someone that is itching to “upgrade” to a 6mm cm that already has a really good 243. All you need to do is position yourself to “take it off their hands”, at a discount for the inferior chambering.

You’ll then likely have more rifle than you could buy new for the same amount of money.

 

[brutus51]

Any thoughts on the 6mm PRC?

 

[D.B. Cooper]

Thanks for the replies,
Most shooting will be out to 200 yards and occasionally 300 yards ( my gun club is 200 and I have to travel quit a distance for 300).
Want to spend no more than 1K.

As I live and breathe, buy the 243 Winchester. It's all you'll ever need for what you want to do. I shot NRA High Power across the course (200, 300, and 600 yards) with a Savage 110 (pre accu-trigger) for a number of years. With handloads, a lightened, crispier trigger (I think you can do that yourself now with the new accu trigger guns) and glass bedding in the factory stock; it was a half MOA gun. This was a hunting package gun that I had modified to meet NRA match rules, but I used the factory action and 1:10 hunting profile barrel. Twenty years later, and I've converted it back to a hunting rifle and it's still a good shooter with heavier (up to 100 grns) bullets. (I'm back to shooting Barnes 80 & 85 grns because the lighter bullets do a lil better.)

However, @mcb is right about twist rates. If you want to shoot those 107 grn VLD type competition bullets (anything over 100 grns really) you need a faster twist rate. The gunsmith who modified my gun for competition really wanted me to buy a a barrel with a 1:7 twist, but, at the time, there just was no budget for it. However, if you stick with 60-80 grn bullets, and I always liked the Sierra Match Kings, you'll be well pleased with a 243 Winchester. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another Savage 110. In any caliber.

 

[someguy2800]

I would do a 6 creedmoor because of slightly better barrel life. One thing to watch for on a 243 is that most factory rifles have a 1:10 twist which is unsuitable for the 108+ grain eld bullets popular in competition now.

 

[horsey300]

Any thoughts on the 6mm PRC?

what barrel life he says! We run a 6-284, way way way overkill, and the barrel's not long for this world, how about a 6.5 grendel? They're fun, still overkill for 300 yds, but the barrel will last and you'll enjoy shooting it more, also, why not really up the challenge with a .308x39?

 

[Varminterror]

The 6 ARC might quickly become my favorite 0-1,000 cartridge. I have been adoring the 243LBC for a couple of years now, just a touch more heat than the ARC. 6 creed and 243win use about 50% more powder to get the same job done at short to midrange. A pair of bolt guns in 6 ARC are in my son’s and my future.

 

[Steve S.]

If you visit this forum frequently, you know that this is the age of “6’s”; your question was answered before you asked it. However out to an occasional 300 yards and reloading, the difference will be the shooter - pick the rifle and settle for either caliber - tomaytoes or tomahtoes!

 

[brutus51]

• ok so I'm really starting to lean towards the 6 Creed but what about rifles, which brand will provide the biggest bang for the buck?
• Please keep in mind my 1K max budget.
• Sticking to a bolt action platform.

 

[jmorris]

Any thoughts on the 6mm PRC?

Waste of powder and barrel life for 300 yards and less. Wrong direction from the other two choices.

6mm PPC has dominated BR matches out to 200 for quite awhile and there are a number of stops between it and even the 243.

 

[horsey300]

• ok so I'm really starting to lean towards the 6 Creed but what about rifles, which brand will provide the biggest bang for the buck?
• Please keep in mind my 1K max budget.
• Sticking to a bolt action platform.

Pick any cheap budget model (skipping Remington) used with an adjustable trigger, throw on a good scope xtrii on sale at Natchez right now for example, and with your leftover money, throw on a stock and pod till you feel the need to upgrade to a chassis or something, this is an age of precision rifle nuts and options are SOOOOO much better than they were in yesteryears.