I just bought a Ruger #1 in 6.5 Creedmore. The rifle has a 28 inch barrel and from what I can determine this is what was put on them at the factory. Why such a long barrel? I would think 22 inches would be sufficient to burn all the powder, my 264 WM is 26 inches and takes a lot more powder. Is the length to help with accuracy?

Cause many of the Creedmore fans think it is a long range cartridge. So it makes them feel good . In reality though, no real reason. But it is a good one for collector value

It makes it more Creedmoorish

You got a special edition Creedwaymore.

And my .270 has a 26" - go figure

I think the same year (or maybe the year before) They ran some .257 Weatherby's with 28" barrels. Maybe using 28" for the 6.5's saved them some tooling cost?

You gain probably 40-60 fps with the extra 2". The rifle is still fairly handy, since there's no silly magazine.

Yes, the established thinking is that it is a long range cartridge.

Ruger just made it a shorter range cartridge with that barrel though.


6" shorter range with the 28" bbl vs the 22" bbl.

Geno

PS, over the years many have wondered why Ruger does anything they do. Some decisions work, some don't, some make us really happy, some REALLY pissus off. Go figure, eh?

IIRC, the Hawkeye in 6.5 has (or had) a 26", probably longer overall.