Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Which 6.5 Creedmoor Rifle 2 Buy

Sounds like a good plan, I've had a 20" .308 CTR since they first came out. The rifle has been an absolute hammer with a few different bullets, and delivered my only honest .25" 5 shot group from a hunting-ish weight rig, with plenty of <.5" groups to round things out. The only two things I would change about my CTR is to have it in stainless instead of blue, and 6.5 CM instead of .308. I ran an SWFA SS 12x on it for years, which worked great for a range gun, but switched to an SS 3-9x this year since I'm probably going to try to use it suppressed for Muleys and maybe Antelope (basically my hunts that won't require long hikes).

In terms of 6.5 factory fodder, both of my rifles have really liked the 143gr ELDx Precision Hunter ammo, in fact it was the load to beat in my Montana. If you want tougher bullets for something like elk, Federal now has a 140gr Accubond factory load that looks a lot like the handload I used last year. I haven't tried any factory loadings of the 127gr LRX, but that bullet really shoots in my handloads, definitely worth a look.

A 24” CTR isn’t a CTR..... it’s just a TR...

20” all the way, canned/up or not. A rifle that’s under 40” OAL, and under 10lbs all-up... with the LR capability of a .260/Creed CTR + 10x SS, is aweful handy in a lot of situations.

Still like the idea of a 22" Tikka, 6x something, and the mountain tactical BM (if you must)

First and probably last time we’ll agree...22” inch would be the schit! Thinking 24” then chop 2” and crown. 😎
10x SWFA. See, your wrong once again....😂

You’d never notice the difference between 22” and 20” in the field..... but you certainly notice it in the truck...

Harder to poke out the window at a moment's notice??

Looked at the CTR SS online today. Lots of good stuff for about a grand, and only 8lbs.

Is that rail integral or screwed on?

Rail is screwed, pinned, and epoxied on there.... no schitt. It’s removable, but sometimes it takes a little elbow grease.

That's what I did. I bought a Vanguard stock from the classifieds on here. The original Howa Houge stock pretty much sucks, and the LOP doesn't suit me, and I'm not a short guy, being 6 foot. The new stock fits ne better, although I'm not a fan of that style stock. As much as I like Howa's, I have never understood why they make them so heavy.

As far as a comparison between the Howa and a Ruger American, it's not close as far as I'm concerned. The Howa is a much better made rifle.

Yeah, I get there’s not enough increase or loss from a 22” to a 20”. 2” inch, albeit a slight length increase, has a more appealing and aesthetic look to me...As for maneuvering the barrel out my truck window...I would never do such a thing...😉

“Because it looks better” is a great reason to do something..... if you’re a woman.

You asked for it doggy...Here’s Dogs graduation picture from Montessori School...Class of 1975

Oh, I,wouldn't want to remove it. That's about the slickest rail setup I've seen. Like to see one like it on a regular Lite Stainless.

RAR-Ps are pretty darned accurate for the $$ and when restocked with a Boyds Heritage they take a positive jump in the area of ergs, but at a greater cost than that of a V2 stock for a Howa 1500.

Per 24hourcampfire SOP, results that don't fall within the prevailing group-think mentality of the moment are met with snark, or "I've used _________product for years and never seen such a result", whether it's Leupold scopes not tracking, Remington bolt handles coming off, or problems with Tikka.

Tikkas are fine, but they have issues and limitations, as does every other rifle design, in its own way.

Take a look at the Sauer 100 XT.

Just what kind of "brush" are you walking thru that releases the mag and flips the safety? The release is on the bottom and the safety is on top. How does that happen? This is not meant to be snarky, just really wonder what are you walking thru? How are you carrying the rifle?

Safety being tripped happened while bushwhacking through juniper and dog-hair pine thickets. Rifle was slung or in hand depending on the moment. After the first incident I kept pretty good track of it, and was able to reproduce the situation, so I quit carrying with a round in the chamber.

Magazine release happened while crawling through russian olives. I was mildly surprised here, as the mag release is pretty well tucked up out of the way, and maybe would never happen again....though I've seen several other detachable magazines have similar issues so I wasn't all that surprised.

Keep in mind I've also had issues with the SWFA Non-HD scope turrets spinning during similar movements, and others don't seem to have these issues, so it may just be me. But then again, there aren't as many people pushing brush for hunts anymore, going through the deepest darkest sections on hands and knees.

It almost pains me to admit to owning a 6.5 CM but I do. Started as a Rem 700 Ltr that’s been rebarreled with a 20” 1:8 Bartlein marksman contour and badger bottom metal added. Threw a spare SWFA 3-15 ffp mq on it and so far am happy with it. It shoots the Hornady match 140 eld’s Superbly and does the same with 140 bthp’s. I figure I will work up a good 123 load and stick with it long term.

It’s got enough weight to be steady on target but not so portly as to be a pain to carry and should be ideal from the truck.

20" barrels don't look so bad with the appropriate accessories installed.





Although admittedly, they aren't as sleek as an 18.5"




As for cutting down a Creedmoor, when I had my Montana chopped, the velocity changes were:

140gr AB/RL16
22": 2,760 fps
20" w/can: 2,765 fps

127gr LRX/RL16
22": 2,915 fps
20" w/can: 2,897 fps


Just something to think about since with the May day sale at Whittaker's, you could pick up a 20" SS CTR for ~$880.