Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters 6.5 Remington Magnum?

I can read just fine. The Creed can absolutely do things the Swede can’t. Just because you don’t care about those things doesn’t make them less true.

I do also have the flat bolt Ruger 77 in 6.5 RM. It was one of the models that came with factory sights, but they had been removed by the previous owner. Mine was placed in a McMillan and was blasted and flat finished by Jim Lutts, who was once well known for Sako work. Best I can remember, he was in Sweetwater, KS. and built some really great shooters in the 1980's and previously. He also built a Sako 7-08 along with his work on this rifle for my dad. The Ruger was purchased as a barreled action, and sent directly to him. I remember that he told my dad "I know the Sako will shoot, but who knows about that Ruger". Well, it actually does quite well, and I am very proud of it. A charge of H4350 and a 120 Nosler BT does superbly. I stashed the brass deep a long time ago.

Jim also built a 22-243 Sako for my cousin, which is what spurred our interest in his abilities. Although he was a Sako man, he prepared this Ruger 6.5 RM quite well.

Maybe some may remember him (Jim). I remember reading on a 1911 forum several years ago where his son had posted on his passing.

Best,

Chris in AL

Stop it, you're making sense

My “skills” (I use that term very loosely) come from having more time than money.
I didn’t have any neck issues, that is likely to change if you go down to the 6.5rm of course.

It’s a bad habit I know. 😂😂

i have liked Mule Deers articles because they are useful and his writing is aimed at the mass of hunters and not so esoteric as to be misunderstood. I particularly like the comments about the many cartridges that essentially duplicate each other. One might get the idea that the latest and greatest kills light lightning while the old standard is useless. Thank you John.

I think the 6.5RM a good cartridge, maybe great. The 6.5 RM is maybe halfway in performance between a 25-06 and a 270 and I have a couple 25-06's and a few 270's - both great cartridges.
I have a few belted cartridges, I like them. I don't care that belts aren't in "fashion". For some odd reason, the manufacturer's do??? The only downfall for me regarding a belt is case availability with some cartridges and the work in chambering, say a 98 Mauser, with a cartridge that is with or without a belt.
The 264 would make more sense to me than the 6.5 Rem Mag if I were to go with a belted 6.5, for the reason MD mentioned regarding case availability.
I have a "new" 350 RM 700 Classic with lots of factory ammo and brass. I started using the 350RM in the 600 action almost 60 years ago. That was a very decent woods rifle in my opinion. The short barreled 6.5 RM made/makes little sense to me. Now, I would pick the 35 Whelen over the 350 RM, due to brass (if I didn't have a boat load of 350 brass). I also have a used 35 Whelen and it will be used because brass is cheap and plentiful and maybe my kids will get some $'s out of that 'new' classic.
I sold that 600 because I won't be hiking in the mountains in the thick timber anymore. A short handy big game rifle has no use for me except maybe a lever action rifle for whitetails.
The 6.5 RM in a 700 would fulfill almost all my needs in a game rifle. Yet, if I had to have a 6.5 chambered rifle with 6.5 RM case capacity. I couldn't justify the 6.5 RM over a 6.5-06.
Of all the 6.5's out right now, the 6.5x55 is easily my first choice. Swimming against the stream is one thing I get accused of, but in the 6.5 RM choice, I'll pass.

I have spent some time with the 6.5 Rem Mag. Great cartridge.

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/7876956/1

Thank you!

Have written about a bunch of different subjects in my 40+ years of making a living as a writer, for over 40 magazines. My early training was in journalism and wildlife biology, both of which demand some degree of objectivity, and research--as do many of the magazines I've written for, which have included historical journals and National Geographic. When I got more into gun writing in the 1990s it seemed right to apply those principles. So far it's worked out OK!

Keep up the good work John. I'm one who appreciates your honesty and willingness to share your experiences with us. I know you have helped me many times.

I carried a 6.5 REM. as a Jeep gun for about a year, mostly because it was short and handy, would have to look up my reloads for it but it killed every thing I pointed it at, not the greatest round and rifle i have used but ok for most uses and critters sold it to one of our hunters along with 200 reloads and dies. bought a 6.5 PRC, the PRC is the easy way to go. Rio7

Thanks very much. That means a lot. Hope your hunting goes well in Texas this year!

John

I’ve got the same gun as shown above. One day as a test I shot 10 each 120 Sierra bullets into a 2 inch group at 300 yards. I don’t know if that’s good to some of you but for me out of a hunting rifle it’s great. I fired them as fast as I could get back on target. Edk

Guy I worked with has a Rem 673? and has shot it for at least 50 years. His biggest gripe was how deep you have to seat the bullets and if shooting heavier bullets how much case room the deep seated bullet took up. Could probably be fixed with a custom reamer. A couple things the 6.5CM fixed from the start.

That Remington always seemed a little mixed up to me. Magnum cartridge and short little barrel just never felt right.

One of the oldest myths in centerfire rifle cartridges is that seating a typical .30-caliber or smaller bullet out longer increases powder room enough to make a significant difference in muzzle velocity.

This is because any increase in powder room only results in about a quarter as much velocity--when the same bullet is loaded to the same pressure.

Let's say a 140-grain spitzer could be seated out 1/4" more in the 6.5 Remington Magnum. The case holds about 60 grains of powder, and seating a .264"-diameter bullet out that quarter-inch results in about 5.7% more powder room. Divide that by 4, and the result is 1.4% more potential velocity. Which amounts to about 40 fps in handloads getting around 3000 fps.

(Of course, this also assumes the magazine is long enough for bullets to be seated out that far.)

True, if you are using the same powder.

But if you go to a slightly slower powder you will see a significant gain in velocity.

That was my experience with a long throated 300 win mag in a Rem 700, and others.

I have no doubt you got those results, but did you actually have the pressure tested? Or did you judge it by traditional "pressure" signs? One of the interesting things about such pressure signs is they usually don't show up until around 70,000 to 75,000 PSI, which is 5000-10,000 PSI higher than the SAAMI maximum average pressure (MAP) for any cartridge. (This has been determined by numerous pressure tests over the years, including some I've conducted with the help of piezo-electronic laboratories.)

As I specifically stated in my post "when the same bullet is loaded to the same pressure."

The rule was developed with using the "best" (highest-velocity) powder in whatever cartridge. This was determined by analyzing the pressure-tested data from every published source available.

My usual example, because it's easiest to comprehend, is the the .300 Remington Ultra Magnum compared to the .308 Winchester. The SAAMI MAP for both rounds is close enough to demonstrate this.

The .300 RUM has just about exactly twice the powder room of the .308. Does it get twice the velocity with the same bullet weights? That would mean over 5000 fps with 180-grain bullets.

Obviously it doesn't get that. Instead the .300 RUM gains about 1/4 more muzzle velocity than the .308--again, with actual pressure-tested results.

Wholesale sports closed about 8 years back here. In the back was a half a shopping cart of new R-P 6.5 Rem Mag brass. It was wheeled out, sold as a lot to one guy. I ended up buying 700 pieces of it from him. Bought a 298 neck 6.5 reamer and built three guns. Two model 700’s stainless SA Bartlien, Wyatts, one in a McMillan classic the other a lightweight in a walnut mountain rifle stock. Third was in a stainless Kimber 8400. Bartlien again. The guns drive tacks with everything I feed them. 120ttsx, 130AB, 140 Berger, 143 Eldx. I enjoyed this journey. Killed some nice stuff at reasonable distances. But don’t see the difference between a 270win, 6.5prc, 6.5 RM when it comes to a hunting rifle. A couple of mule deer.

Good bucks! Am assuming they're from Alberta. Have been lucky enough to hunt mule deer there a couple of times....

Would be interested in how you define "reasonable distances." I have done some semi-"long range" shooting of big game, mostly when I was guiding and had to finish off animals others had wounded. But in recent years haven't shot any ranges beyond 400.

Thanks MD.
Those two were shot at 350 and 450. Another pronghorn was killed at 400. Id be comfortable to 550 with good conditions prone off a bipod. But have always been able to crawl and sneak my way closer. Past that, never say never, never had to.