6.5 creedmoor factory ammo

[Greyfox]

The biggest issue I have found with factory ammo is not necessarily the short range accuracy/precision which can many times best a handload, but the velocity-ES. This is not that much of an issue a short/mid ranges but can make a material difference depending on target(game) size at the longer ranges. Quite frequently, ES is a function of a specific ammo/barrel/chamber combination and the load needs to be tailored to achieve the best results. I often use factory ammo in my 223 and 22-250 for predator hunting to 400/500 yards but found I need to use precision handloads for my long range shooting for best results.

 

[SCdeerhunter]

you may find, as I did, over 30 yrs ago. It's not EZ to get better results, hand loading, than with the right premium load.
it takes time, practice, mistakes, and good equipment, to better those boxed ammo's. So I suggest you find a good one and stick with it until you can best it.

This is true. If a super accurate factory load with the projectile you want is found, it may be better to stick with that. But that also depends on the volume of shooting you do. If you're shooting 2000 rounds a year, the 50%+ savings in handloading adds up fast. And hey, a lot of guys find the load development to be a fun and rewarding hobby in itself. They don't settle on just 1 or 2 loads for a given rifle.
Also for some, as we move into an era of non-lead mandates for hunting, shooters will want very different ammo for hunting than for target shooting. Barnes and others are great hunting projectiles, but pretty expensive for target shooting.

That's one of my concerns at this point. Plus if I started reloading right now it'd cut into my shooting time alot. Work too many hours. So I'd rather use that time to go shoot as much as possible and get as much practice as possible

 

[Crews]

I'm missing something here. The OP has a custom rifle and wants to shoot factory ammo? Leaving a lot on the table by not reloading. Essentially a money wasting guessing game in my opinion. If I were to only shoot factory ammo, I'd have bought an Axis.

I'm sorry, but that is a pretty narrow view of the way the world works. There is no doubt that handloading is the best option for the best performance, but there is a tremendous amount of middle ground out there where it makes plenty of sense to shoot good box ammo out of a nice custom rifle. Especially when Hornady 6.5 Creedmoor ammo with an SD in the low teens shoots .5 moa and sells for not much more than $20/box. You'd have to do a whole lot of shooting to justify the cost and time associated with reloading. I think for a lot of folks, it's a wise decision to buy a "factory ammo friendly" gun and spend the rest of the time practicing.

 

[SCdeerhunter]

I'm sorry, but that is a pretty narrow view of the way the world works. There is no doubt that handloading is the best option for the best performance, but there is a tremendous amount of middle ground out there where it makes plenty of sense to shoot good box ammo out of a nice custom rifle. Especially when Hornady 6.5 Creedmoor ammo with an SD in the low teens shoots .5 moa and sells for not much more than $20/box. You'd have to do a whole lot of shooting to justify the cost and time associated with reloading. I think for a lot of folks, it's a wise decision to buy a "factory ammo friendly" gun and spend the rest of the time practicing.

Yeah that's pretty my whole mentality on it right now. Go

I'm sorry, but that is a pretty narrow view of the way the world works. There is no doubt that handloading is the best option for the best performance, but there is a tremendous amount of middle ground out there where it makes plenty of sense to shoot good box ammo out of a nice custom rifle. Especially when Hornady 6.5 Creedmoor ammo with an SD in the low teens shoots .5 moa and sells for not much more than $20/box. You'd have to do a whole lot of shooting to justify the cost and time associated with reloading. I think for a lot of folks, it's a wise decision to buy a "factory ammo friendly" gun and spend the rest of the time practicing.

This was pretty much my line of thinking when I decided to go the custom route. Plus I just wanted a rifle that was built to my specs. I do intend to start reloading eventually,just not now. I'm going to shoot the precision Hunter ammo I have now and depending on How it performs I might do the custom load work up from copper Creek. Availability of match grade ammo was also a deciding factor for choosing the creedmoor.

 

[stwcattle]

Back from our yearly NM cow hunt at Vermejo Ranch NM.
A friend of ours 18 year old daughter took her first bull elk. A heavy 6x6 at 120 yards. My wife shot her cow at 270 yards and I shot one at 340 yard. All one shot kills and i think the bull made it 40 yards before going down.

All three shots factory Hornady 6.5 creedmoor 143gr ELD-X

 

[Crews]

I'm going to shoot the precision Hunter ammo I have now and depending on How it performs I might do the custom load work up from copper Creek. Availability of match grade ammo was also a deciding factor for choosing the creedmoor.

Once again, everyone's needs are different.... but personally I wouldn't waste the money on the Copper Creek thing. The beautiful part about Creedmoor is that with a premium rifle, it'll shoot the Hornady box ammo extremely well, and any of those bullets will kill animals effectively. And it's so cheap, I have a hard time seeing a significant return on investment for custom load work unless you're shooting past 600 yards all the time. And let's be realistic.... most of us are in very good shape if we're truly proficient at 600 yards. That's a long shot on an animal for about 99% of the hunters in the world. I wouldn't be scared to shoot a deer out to 500 with the ELD-M or 130 Berger Hybrid either, and that stuff is cheaper than the ELD-X "hunting" bullets.

Keep running that Hornady ammo and practice, practice, practice!

 

[SCdeerhunter]

Back from our yearly NM cow hunt at Vermejo Ranch NM.
A friend of ours 18 year old daughter took her first bull elk. A heavy 6x6 at 120 yards. My wife shot her cow at 270 yards and I shot one at 340 yard. All one shot kills and i think the bull made it 40 yards before going down.

All three shots factory Hornady 6.5 creedmoor 143gr ELD-X

Congrats on the hunt! Can't wait til I can hunt out west next year. But that performance is reassuring. I'm going to give them a shot. Hopefully have the rifle set up and ready to go sight in middle of next week. Scope and rings are in the mail. So I'll see then what it's going to do with the eldx

Once again, everyone's needs are different.... but personally I wouldn't waste the money on the Copper Creek thing. The beautiful part about Creedmoor is that with a premium rifle, it'll shoot the Hornady box ammo extremely well, and any of those bullets will kill animals effectively. And it's so cheap, I have a hard time seeing a significant return on investment for custom load work unless you're shooting past 600 yards all the time. And let's be realistic.... most of us are in very good shape if we're truly proficient at 600 yards. That's a long shot on an animal for about 99% of the hunters in the world. I wouldn't be scared to shoot a deer out to 500 with the ELD-M or 130 Berger Hybrid either, and that stuff is cheaper than the ELD-X "hunting" bullets.

Keep running that Hornady ammo and practice, practice, practice!

I agree with that. I would only do copper Creek if factory stuff doesn't shoot well enough to stretch it out. And 5-600 is my self-imposed limit on fur regardless of how well I shoot at steel. Too much can happen under field conditions for me to try any further. No judgement on others who can and do shoot farther, just my thoughts on it.