One more general observation: Where were all you guys when the .300 WSM became the screaming rage after it was introduced in 2001?
I joined the Campfire in 2001, and hardly saw any rants about how all the .300 WSM did was duplicate the ballistics of the .300 H&H, which had been around almost as long as the 6.5x55. Why not? Were you only 50 then, so hadn't yet the old man's tendency to rant about anything new?
Might also note that while the .300 WSM is still around 18 years later, the big sales boom only lasted a few years., and I believe the .300 Winchester Magnum is outselling it now.
But 6.5 Creedmoor sales have been growing since it was introduced in 2007. Partly that's because it did NOT appear 2-3 years ago as many people seem to believe, and there was NOT a bunch of publicity surrounding its introduction, as there was with the .300 WSM, because it was introduced as a target round. It wasn't until hunters started trying it and began reporting how well it worked that rifles companies started introducing many hunting models, and the round really took off.
I bought the first hunting rifle chambered for the 6.5 Creedmoor that I ever laid eyes on, a new Ruger 77 Hawkeye with a (gasp!) walnut stock. It was in a local sportings goods store, and the guy who ran the gun department (whose idea of a new-fangled rifle cartridge is the .280 Remington) told me other folks were reporting great accuracy.
But I didn't just go ahead and buy it. Instead I phoned one of my magazine editors and asked if he would be interested in an article on the 6.5 Creedmoor. He was, so I bought it, and some factory ammo. The very first group it shot at 100 yards, with that ammo, was .6 inch--and that was FIVE shots, on three.
That editor eventually (like some of you guys) eventually grew sick of hearing about 6.5 Creedmoor, so decided not to run any more articles on it unless he absolutely had to. However, about a month ago he called me and ASKED me to include some 6.5 Creedmoor results in an upcominhg article on some new bullets. Why? Because readers had started complaining that they weren't getting enough 6.5 Creedmoor information in the magazine.
So no, the 6.5 Creedmoor's popularity wasn't due to an intense PR campaign to turn it into the latest fad. Instead the interest grew from people who started using it for hunting, and unlike many other rounds that did turn out to be fads or semi-fads, sales continue to grow 12 years after it appeared. This many not make you happy, but so far I haven't heard of anybody FORCING shooters to buy 6.5 Creedmoors.
I still have the Shooting mag when the 6.5 CM was being introduced. A friend on Team USA was highlighted when F T/R was taking off and I kept the magazine. It was Mike Demilles loading off the probably now long dead .30 TC and he convinced Hornady to offer loaded cartridges. Might be slightly off on history and details but that was 2005 ish I think. I was pretty surprised when it grew legs a few years ago after over a decade without much commercial visibility from my perspective at least. I was organizing my office and found the magazine again last week. It was either a one off for Comp shooters from a larger name magazine or Precision Shooter. I boxed it up with some books to store and can’t remember now. The 6.5CM ad was the back page. I agree with your comments it wasn’t heavily marketed at introduction. More of a limited target market trial. IIRC Hornady just started into really innovative powders(Superformance) and calibers like the .308 Marlin Express or whatever the flexible tipped rounds where for leverguns.
I remember the Short Mag craze as well. It was right when I started hunting big game roughly. The 300 WSM probably remained popular than most of the others and until GAP started promoting the 6.5 SAUM I never heard much about Remington or Ruger? Short mags. The WSSM’s fell out of favor even faster. The 6.5 CM was purpose built before its time and lived long enough that when PRS and other Shooting sports became mainstream it had the support structure all ready to capitalize. It definitely wasn’t a Short Mag story as it appears some believe.
Full disclosure, I don’t own a 6.5 CM but did have a beautiful shooting TC Icon and followed the 30 TC and then 6.5 CM with interest the past decade or so. Hornady seems to have done a great job of figuring out the economics of niche calibers, etc.
