6.5 prc elk bullets

[Idaho Lefty]

Do your OWN "Homework", on, Terminal Bullet Testing, sadly, most Hunters,.. DON'T !
When looking for, a good .270 WSM Bullet, I read a lot about, the "good Choices" / experiences, then,.. I TESTED, them.
Barbour Creek, on YouTube has lots of, GOOD , Video's IF, you are too lazy to, "Test" yourself.
Bigngreen was, "Bang on" with, his BERGER recommendation, to me ! And the Proof's, in the Pudding ( aka, Elk ).

 

[Wetwrk]

I where going on a Elk hunt I would pick the best bullet for my chosen caliber and maximum distance I expected too shoot . I also would know exactly where too put that chosen bullet in the elk for the best possible Terminal performance.

Yup, couldn't put it much better. I base my shot on minimum feet per second to expand the bullet, time of flight, and retained energy in foot pounds at impact. Right now 156's Bergers out of my PRC take 1.35 seconds to go 1000 yards. That could be a critter taking a side step, a full step, or turn around the other way before my bullet actually got there. 700 yards is my limit on game, and I'm going to be really really picky. 500 yards is pure confidence for me at this point. And I practice a lot. I shoot my gongs out to 1000 yards off my deck. Pretty much have a gong every 100 yards across my alfalpha field. I bet I only hit, first shot, cold bore on that ten inch gong, one in five shots. Thats my 1000 yarder mind you. I can wack my 300, 400, and 500 cold bore almost every time. -WW

 

[vancewalker007]

Hey all,
I'm new to the forum and new to reloading. I just bought a proof MPR in 6.5prc with a 24" barrel and 1:7.5 twist. I have all the components to reload my own stuff. I'll be hunting mostly mulies but also would like to be able to hunt elk. The biggest question right now is what projectiles to load to make effective and ethical kill on elk. Max effective range I'm looking for is probably 500 yards and under. I have a bunch of Berger 156 EOL. Should I look for something with a bonded core? Thoughts and experiences welcomed. Thanks!

Well, I've killed African Antelope as big and bigger than Elk with the 156 EOL. I would say use the 156. Because Elk are tough getting the bullet into the boiler room (heart/lungs) is super important. A poor shot with any bullet on an elk is going to cause a recovery problem. So, a super accurate rifle and staying inside your personal accuracy window is the most important issue on a tough animal. You don't go shooting at Cape Buffalo at 800 yards for example, you want that bullet in the right place.

 

[WildRose]

An Eland! That's pretty impressive, that is a big animal.

And not at all soft. Of course the Swede has taken thousands of them with the 160RN so I don't doubt it for a second.

 

[WildRose]

We call bull chip on stuff like that where I come from.

I've learned to just make a mental note and ignore them for the most part particularly when the same types of statements come from the same source repeatedly over many years.

Best to just let it lay

 

[WildRose]

Apparently, all I need to do, is learn how to separate basic physics… from reality.

You know when I can see consistently mono's and bonded bullets passing through four or five feet of heavy animals leaving minimal blood shot over the course of three years I think the physics matches reality quite well.

Having put them through several thousand heavy, thick bodied animals on 2 continents I'm pretty confident in my findings.

They aren't stopping, they track true, and they don't blow up or that would not be possible.

 

[bigngreen]

I've learned to just make a mental note and ignore them for the most part particularly when the same types of statements come from the same source repeatedly over many years.

Best to just let it lay.

Probably a good idea!!

 

[Salmonhead]

I'm a big fan of the Swift Scirocco bullets, especially with high impact velocities.

 

[Joefrazell]

6.5 and elk= bonded/ mono and taking out shoulders with a mono. Personally I'd look for a 130 mono that shoots well. I've used 147 eldm and it works but leaves much to be desired

 

[Ga6570]

What powder and weight did you find to be close to the factory 143 ELDX loads?

believe it or not - powder I'm using is IMR 4831. i had some on hand and gave it a try and has been giving me consistent velocity around 3000fps - after more shooting the Ave has been 3015, factory loads were right around 3000. was just about 52.5gr

elevation ranges between 3800' and 5500' for the most part in areas i shoot targets and hunt.

my factory rifle - X-Bolt with 26" barrel - HCLR - been great at shooting steel and milkjugs at 1000 as well.

 

[Txcowboy50]

All of the Hammer bullets I've tried have all been accurate . So far I've loaded them in both of my 6.5-284s 1-9 twist 121gr Hammer Hunters , The 131gr Hammer in one of my 6.5PRCS 1-7.5 twist , the 124 Hammer hunter 123gr absolute and the 109 gr absolute in my 1-8 twist 6.5 Prc . I have also loaded the 90 gr absolute Hammers in my 25-284 .The all are shooting under .75 on a bad day . There is a lot of load info on this site , look up the Hammer Hunter and the Absolute Hammer load data the members here have compiled over several years .I've been loading for 60 yrs and have never seen another bullet easier too work a load

Do you mind sharing your load data for the 131 gr hammer for 6.5 PRC?

 

[gillettehunter]

So far I've had great luck with the 156 Berger's. I have a 6.5 SS. With RL 26 I have them running at 2990 fps. So far the last few yrs I am 8 dead animals for 8 shots. All deer and pronghorn at this point.

 

[zerosprk]

Make sure the tips of those Bergers are clear. If you do, they are absolutely wicked on critters. Put the bullet in the right place and they will be DRT or piled up at the end of a very short blood trail that a blind person could follow. At least that has been my experience.

 

[Txcowboy50]

I have load 156 Bergers over 56 gr of H1000 and are shooting .3 moa at 200 yds. I have not done the chronograph but from load they should be about 2950+ out of my 26" proof barrel. From what I am hearing, I think this will be a good elk load with a gun that weighs 3 lbs less than my 300 wby mag.