Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Tell me about the 260 Remington

I have a T3 in 260 Rem as well. I very much like it with the SWFA 3-9 scope. Can't see me using much of anything else for most of what I'll be hunting. It really doted on the now discontinued Berger 139gr Scenar ammo. Looks like I'll need to go looking for a replacement until I get the reloading stuff back out.

Berger loaded Lapua bullets?

Mr. Mule Deer, Sir, firstly, I have REALLY enjoyed everything from you that I've ever read. I would never want you to think I was mouthing off. I have never fired a 6.5 CM, I've owned a 6.5x55 made in 1917 for... man I feel old, now(!) almost 30 years and was looking for a strictly target rifle for giggles and long(ish) range. I fell in love with the Remington 700 Magpul and knew that one in .260 would be much more available than the newest craze in 6.5 CM and, sure enough, my first search on gunbroker showed a brand-new specimen languishing for 6 days with zero bids and a starting bid of just $600. A very small bidding-war at the last few minutes and it was mine for $660 total (as luck would have it, the seller was an hour from my house), when exactly the same rifles in the CM or other cartridges were $1,100 all day. This was before I knew of the 1:9" or even 1:10" twist fiascos, but also as luck would have it, mine was a 1:8".

After reloading for it for just under 2 years, now, the 2.95" magazine would be a HUGE plus, but mine is nowhere close to that so my loads are nowhere close to the lands. That said, this was right at the ammo-shortage height and there was zero ammo available for the .260 or anything else, really. I did find some 7mm-08 cases and I already had all of the other components from loading for the Swede. I made up a few rounds using 140gr SST's by guess and by golly just to get the scope on paper. At the first shot, I noticed a black spot on the tape holding the target, but thought it could have been a stray stroke of the marker I used. At the second shot, I saw no difference and thought I was missing completely. Me being too lazy to actually walk down there and confirm, I started fidgeting with the scope... those first 2 shots were touching (I wish I could figure out how to post pictures). I've now dialed-in 140gr Barnes Match Burners and 43.1 grs of H4350 (after carefully working the seating depth) and I regularly get right around .315" groups (again, I wish I could figure out how to post pictures, but I can email them to anyone interested).

These groups are 4-shot groups (a practice I got used to to get 5 groups out of a box instead of 4). I have them measured with a micrometer and am not just trying to one-up your posted groups. I did get really lucky with this rifle and it may not be the norm (which after reading your results, I'm convinced it definitely isn't). I fully trust your experiences and would agree that this exact rifle in a 6.5 CM may be even more accurate, but I still love my .260.

I am not a pro-shooter by any means, but I try diligently and read a lot! The rifle is far better than I could hope to be. I had a long-range shoot set up a couple of months ago for my 50th birthday on a farm owned by friends from Church. We could've gotten 1,000 yards or darn close, but at the last minute (literally) the range officer (he was stationed with Carlos Hathcock with pictures to prove it and actually helped create the 6.5 Creed, again with documentation to prove it!) saw another farm about a mile straight in front of us with people walking around. Even though the owners had gotten permission, he didn't feel safe and I really didn't either, so 100 yards is all I've tested it to. So my sample of 1 is still pretty awesome, but evidently, not typical.

By the way, Mathman, I heard that Lapua owned Berger.

When ignorance and preference overshadow reality and purpose. Congrats!

After reading this thread I’ve sold all my 260s and 6.5X55s and actually any other inferior 6.5s and am going to purchase the superior 6.5CM (actually all ready have three)……….seriously there are physical reasons why the 6.5CM on AVERAGE can be more accurate but unless we are splitting frog hairs there is no practical difference between them. I understand “looniism” after living here all my life and I understand wanting to wring the most accuracy as is possible for a rifle/cartridge but I guess when it comes down to it I’m more of a “if it’ll work for the intended purpose” kind of shooter. I see both sides and would never claim superiority either way - the facts (as mentioned) do exist but I can’t loose sight of the fact that a few tenths of an inch (on average) is not going to affect the AVERAGE hunter over NORMAL hunting ranges/conditions. To each their own and what makes shooting so much fun - guess the problem lies when one side tries to convince the other that they are “right”………..and in my world (which is quite likely messed up) there is no PRACTICAL difference between these cartridges - I like them all!!

PennDog

As MD said and I finally believed there’s much more to CMs than speed and accuracy for 300 yard hunting. A lot has gone into chambering for longer high BC bullets, etc. The engineering of the CM family is better thought out and executed than straight up .308 family cartridges. Do I need one? Not really. That’s not the shooting I do. And the one .260 we have is far and away accurate enough in the Model 7 platform to do anything we might ask of it as are the 7mm08s. On another level however the 6.5 CM has sure done a lot of educating on the benefits of smaller case capacity and .264 bullets. Many more folks choose them now over say the “venerable” ‘Sem Mag. A good thing.

CAPITALIST,

That's some good shooting!

If you have read this entire thread (which would now be a real slog) you may have noticed that I also own both a "traditional" custom 6.5x55 and my Tikka .260. Oh, and a Sauer drilling in 6.5x57R Mauser, another round that's very similar in powder capacity to the 6.5x55/.260/6.5 Creedmoor--and it even has a 1-8 rifling twist, which apparently just about every European nation knew about long before America. (There's also a "modern custom" 6.5 PRC, but that's another story...) I have hunted with all my 6.5's, but the last one I took hunting was the drilling, which took a pronghorn buck last fall.

Unlike some on the Campfire who profess to "hate" certain rifle cartridges, I have never been able to work up even a mild dislike for one--one reason I have what some would consider many rifles. I also try to be rational enough to provide some journalistic balance to my gun writing, the reason I feel obligated to seriously try new rifles and cartridges (and also some old ones!), rather than shoot a few groups with somebody else's rifle--and then think I know all about it/

Glad you like my writing!

Good hunting,
John

shootem,

Yep, and the 6.5 Creedmoor has done more than any other 6.5 cartridge to provide new bullets, and even powders, for use in other 6.5s. In fact it has pretty much erased the long-time American prejudice against 6.5mm rounds, to the point where the first bullets to disappear from gun-store shelves and handloading websites during this latest "shortage" (buying panic) were 6.5mms.

But I also observed another trend here in Montana after hunters finally "discovered" the 6.5 Creedmoor, years after it appeared: It started to replace the .243 Winchester as the starter-cartridge for kids and wives/girlfriends. This was due to several factors, recoil almost as light as the .243, excellent out-of-the-box accuracy even from inexpensive rifles and factory ammo, and heavier bullets than the .243, which gave many hunters the idea it would be more effective on elk than the .243.

The excellent and inexpensive factory ammo was a MAJOR factor. While typical Campfire members might not understand or even believe it, only a minority of hunters handload. Being able to find a wide variety of factory 6.5 Creedmoor ammo was indeed a major factor in the round's increase in popularity over the past decade. In fact, you could often find stacks of it at local stores--which usually carried a very limited supply of .260 or 6.5x55 ammo, or none at all.

In fact, I cannot think of a Creedmoor hater I've run into who wasn't a handloader, and their opening statement (many feel the need to make a speech) is something like, "It doesn't do anything the 6.5x55 hasn't been doing for over a hundred years." That is partly true, if you happen to handload, and believe muzzle velocity is the only criteria for a hunting cartridge.

Which is another thing that puzzles me about some of the Creedmoor hate: If velocity is the primary criteria, why do so few rifle manufacturers chamber the .264 Winchester Magnum? Periodically some do, and in fact my last .264 (have owned several) was a synthetic-stocked Ruger from a run of .264s they offered a few years ago, with 1-8 twist barrels. But it didn't create a new .264 era--and neither did other older American 6.5 cartridges from the .256 Newton to 6.5 Remington Magnum.

Of course, we do have an entirely new generation of "magnum" 6.5s, including the 26 Nosler and 6.5-.300 Weatherby Magnum. I've owned both, in rifles made by Nosler and Weatherby, and they shot well. But unlike the 6.5 Creedmoor, the ammo and even brass was expensive, and often hard to find.

The 6.5 PRC looks like it might be the next fairly successful American 6.5, but it can still be hard to find both ammo and brass--and the cases are almost impossible for even handloaders to make if they can't find any, because the "parent" case is the Ruger Compact Magnum, also not common. But 6.5 Creedmoor brass can be easily made from several other easily available cases, including fire-forming .22-250s.

Mule Deer, Amen to the two above posts. I have never understood why someone would get bent out of shape over whichever cartridge another shooter chooses. I choose what I want or need without caring what other shooters may choose.

in 2009 I built a 260 with a Douglas barrel on a VZ24 Mauser.
I built a 260 with a Shilen barrels on a Parker Hale Mauser


Finally in 2021 I built a 260 with a Bartlein barrel on a 1903 Turkish Mauser.... and shot a deer with a 120 gr NBT bullet.


My impression is that the 260 is better for long range deer hunting than the 243 and 308, but not as good as the 6.5-06 or the 280 AI.

That means the 260 is about as good as it gets in a short action.

I have a Tikka T3 with a 1-8 barrel also, bought before the CM craze, and wanted to shoot the 140 gr Berger VLDs that I came to like by shooting them in a custom 6.5-.284. It shot very average groups, and I wanted to get them closer to the lands.

Ended up modifying the magazine like you did, and also filed the bolt stop to gain some length. Additionally, I relieved a tight spot between the stock and barrel, also noticed a divot on the aluminum recoil lug, and swapped to an aftermarket titanium offering.

After the tweaks it shot like everyone said a Tikka should shoot.

Mad Dog,
I’m about your age give or take a few months. Seems the older I get the less I knew when I was younger and not just about shooting. But being a deer hunter as far as “big” game goes I have certainly figgered out magnum doses of powder and recoil are just not required to take flesh & blood animals. And .264 to .284 diameter bullets are extremely effective. Never too old to learn.

I have one 260, the only one I have ever shot and it is a tackdriver. I have to seat the 140 grain match bullets a bit deeper than I like but still not outrageous. If I had a Creedmoor in a similar rifle and it shot as well I would be very happy with it. I don't hunt with it as it is a bit heavy so I generally shoot it when I want to shoot really tight groups. The throat is a bit long for the mag box length but even with some jump it still shoots splendidly. I really like that I can use various brass from 308 to 243 and with a bit of work they work just fine. My only real bitch is the donut thing can be an issue with some brands of brass and when necking up 243 cases. All this said when this barrel is toast I will probably rebarrel to the 6 Creed for no real good reason.

Shooter Two has entered the game.....

I jumped on the .260 bandwagon back when Ruger started chambering the cartridge in the M77 MkII - purchased mine (boatpaddle/stainless) new at the Fargo Scheels for the princely sum of $379. I now own three rifles so chambered (said Ruger, M700 custom, Forbes 20b), down from four (sent the M700Ti down the road). Were I not so "invested" in the cartridge (die set for each rifle, brass for each, and a plethora of bullets) I could see myself investigating the Creedmoor. I do believe it to be better suited for it's intended role as an accuracy/distance cartridge. I also believe it (and the 260) to be an "ideal" starter cartridge for new shooters/hunters. One only need to take a close look at the ammo shelf at your sporting goods store to see.....I didn't see a single box of 260 ammo the last time I was in Scheels, yet they had damn near a whole shelf of Creedmoor loads - that speaks volumes about the popularity of the cartridge.

Some advices to those loading the 260.... for hunting, I've had excellent accuracy results with (perhaps suprisingly) the 120gr TTSX - it just plains shoots well in all three of my rifles, and I've tried most of the bullets mentioned. My rifles also like the target bullets (Berger's VLDs and Lapua Scenars) in the heavier weights (though I've never tried them in the Ruger). If you can find it (and afford it) Berger's loaded ammo is/was as excellent as their bullets and you wind up with Lapua brass to reload (WIN!) - and for some reason their 136gr Scenar L load (now discontinued?) shot extremely well out of my Forbes..

Kaiser Norton


Just did a quick check...looks like Berger is down to one load (130gr Hybrid OTM). They used to offer the 140gr Hybrid and the 136gr Scenar L.

Good post, Shooter two...

I had a fascination for everything 6.5 for some time, built and chambered rifles for 6.5s including the 260 Rem, 6.5x55, 6.5-06, 6.5 CM and 264 Wim Mag. After the new wore off, I decided to simplify my life by just choosing the various 270s that I already owned and sold off my 6.5s. I saw no advantage to the 6.5s v 270 then but the newer bullets in 6.5 with higher SDs do give them some advantages when ranges exceed 500 yards.

I remember first reading about the 260 Rem and it seemed to be marketed for women and small framed hunters and that makes sense and does offer some advantages over the venerable 243 but it didn't strike a chord for me. I've got nothing against the 6.5s but I'm culling my safe herd in an effort to have more nice things v lots of things and rifles that I actually use instead of rifles that I'd like to use under certain circumstances.

If I ever own another 6.5, it will probably be a PRC simply because it represents the best compromise of all of the 6.5s combined. More recoil than the CM but less overbore than the WM and more on pace with the 270 Win for most hunting applications.

My favorite CM is the 6mm, fun, accurate and easy to shoot and ammo generally available and affordable (the reason I gave up on my 240 Wby). As Mule Deer alluded, the competitive crowd is moving against the high velocity tide with lower case capacity and the 6mm GT is usurping the CM where it once competed.

Every heard of the 6.5 PRC?

Leave it alone. Especially if it handles a range of bullet weights well.

I replaced a rusted up .244 barrel on a Rem 725SA with a stainless 700 .260 TI (was looking for a 7-08, actually, but this was there...).

It only likes 140's, but I can live with MOA. It's taken elk, wolf, and maybe 8-10 caribou, out to, and beyond, 300 yards. What's not to like?

I can open bolt faces to belted magnum diameter and get fat cartridges to feed. I did it again last month when I converted a 1908 Mauser to 300WM, but that level of effort seems out of scope for comparison to an easy short action rebarrel to 260.