6.5 PRC for Extreme Long Range Hunting?

[Wachsmann]

Here we go someone reinvented toilet paper. . That is funny to here the 6.5X284 has a larger case capacity. Is the neck any longer on the 6.5PRC or does it have a sharper shoulder angle to deal with less throat erosion? If so then there may be some benefit over the 284. I know its cool to have the latest and greatest hype gun/chamber. Heck I heard of some guys really pushing there creeds and getting 2850 or higher with 140's. I'll stick to the 284 and some good Lapua brass and 140's myself.

 

[CLP]

I think you have to compare the PRC and the 6.5x284 on a basis other than ballistics. I totally agree that there's very little difference in the two (6.5x284 was my go to for the prior 7 years). When I built mine the objective was the lightest rifle humanly possible. I think you can capitalize on the high BC bullets in a PRC with a more compact package. My rifle ended up just a shade over 5.5# and I don't think I could have gotten there with a 6.5x284. The key thing to consider with the PRC is making sure you have the .188 free bore if shooting VLD's.

 

[Greyfox]

Being a long time proponent of the 6.5x284 with dozens of long range hunting successes, I must admit that I was very intrigued when the 6.5PRC was first announced. The primary draw for me was the fatter case which "initially" implied its use in a true short action. Many still believe that this is the case. Unfortunately, like the 6.5x284, optimum performance was not achievable unless high BC bullets could be seated further(+2.9") out in order to use the case capacity......no-go with a true short action. Being a reloader for all my long range precision loads, the trade offs of the 6.5PRC that I "may" have considered(brass quality, re-tooling, etc) were the 6.5PRC was a true short action cartridge, did not balance out when considering my experience, success, and familiarity with the 6.5x284.

 

[yobuck]

Not knocking any cartridge, or any opinions of them.
But I am questioning the connection between the term (extreme) and 6.5 cartridges as for their use in hunting situations at those type distances.
Im of the opinion that (extreme) means distances beyond 1000 yds.
Do we have people here who would actually choose using one at those distances?

 

[Greyfox]

Not knocking any cartridge, or any opinions of them.
But I am questioning the connection between the term (extreme) and 6.5 cartridges as for their use in hunting situations at those type distances.
Im of the opinion that (extreme) means distances beyond 1000 yds.
Do we have people here who would actually choose using one at those distances?

While the bulk of my game is generally taken at less then 1000 yards, over the years I have shot a few smaller bodied deer and antelope beyond this range when I felt the conditions were well understood and I was confident of the shot. My furthest was an antelope at 1188 yards a few years ago with my 6.5x284 using a 142 JLK....chest shot, DRT. At that distance I had approximately 1700FPS, 900FPE......about the limit with a well placed shot on game this size. IMO.

 

[yobuck]

Well for sure where matters more than with what.
And for sure also, what gets hit also matters.
As a rule, antelope aren't as tough as whitetails and other species and will often fall over with a hit that wouldn't register on a whitetail.
Sure their gonna die at some point, but without someone watching thru good optics a shooter might not even realize the animal was hit.
And that could well be true even with larger cartridges especially at extreme distances and ive watched that happen also.
The (extreme) long range section here has probably been around for about 8/10 years now.
I cant recall reading about any extreme distance kills there, but no doubt some have taken place.
But id be willing to bet that lots more attempts have been made that didn't get discussed.

 

[yobuck]

Well for sure where matters more than with what.
And for sure also, what gets hit also matters.
As a rule, antelope aren't as tough as whitetails and other species and will often fall over with a hit that wouldn't even register on a whitetail.
Sure their gonna die at some point, but without someone watching thru good optics a shooter might not realize the animal was hit.
And that could well be true even with larger cartridges at extreme distances as well.

 

[Greyfox]

Well for sure where matters more than with what.
And for sure also, what gets hit also matters.
As a rule, antelope aren't as tough as whitetails and other species and will often fall over with a hit that wouldn't register on a whitetail.
Sure their gonna die at some point, but without someone watching thru good optics a shooter might not even realize the animal was hit.
And that could well be true even with larger cartridges especially at extreme distances and ive watched that happen also.
The (extreme) long range section here has probably been around for about 8/10 years now.
I cant recall reading about any extreme distance kills there, but no doubt some have taken place.
But id be willing to bet that lots more attempts have been made that didn't get discussed.

This poll was started in 2007. Not sure how up to date it is, but the last post was in 2018.

https://www.longrangehunting.com/threads/longest-big-game-kill-with-rifle.23445/page-29

 

[HiTechRob]

With bullets 150 grains and higher it seems the 6.5 PRC (Precision Rifle Cartridge) would be a good ELH cartridge. Not a bad "barrel burner" and very flat shooting with enough energy at say, 900 yards and out to 1,200 yards to kill deer and antelope. At 150 grains and above its BCs are very high and with VLD bullets it would good in the wind.

Anyone have hunting experience with this relatively new cartridge?

Eric B.

Yes. I have a Gunwerks Clymer 6.5 PRC I built with a Titanium action and Proof Research 24" carbon barrel. I am shooting a 143-grain ELD-X and getting 2,920 velocities at the muzzle with my load. I wouldn't say I have hunted extreme long range with it, but it definitely shoots comfortably between 600 - 900 yards with the terminal performance to take game ethically. Based on my ballistics, the max range for one-shot kill is about 960 - 980 yards to keep 1,600 fps velocity and 1,000 ft/lbs of energy for the bullet to perform. I have heard of others taking Mule deer and antelope out to farther ranges, but I have not personally. I will be doing a load workup for the 147 ELD-M soon as several of my western hunting buddies are using it as their preferred round. Hope that helps.

 

[Danehunter]

I guess the 6.5 PRC or 6.5/284 are moot for me B/C I just purchased a 6.5 CM Browning X-Bolt Pro. I shoot competition with a 6.5 CM Ruger Precision Rifle so I had precision dies and a lot of cases and bullets so I'll stay with it for now.

My X-bolt Pro has a 22" barrel which I wish was 24" for a bit more velocity. I may try the accuracy of Hornady Superformance cartridges and check the accuracy. Who knows? Maybe my barrel will like Superformance loads.

At any rate, with Browning's new 1:7 fast twist I'll be shooting 140 grains and above to take advantage of it.

BOTTOM LINE: My 6.5 CM is definitely not for big game beyond 600 yards unless it is antelope out to 800 yards. Just not enough energy left for a clean kill beyond those ranges, even with 150 gr. bullets.

Eric B.

 

[Deleted member 103481]

I think PRC will be quite good for an all around long range rig. Target/LRh combined.

I don't think it fits the ELr bill very well. Maybe for antelope, but that's about it.

I think of ELR as over 1k and PRC is flirting at 1000 ft lbs depending on altitude For true ELR I'd say do it right and grab a long action magnum and put some horsepower on it.

 

[Danehunter]

If I HAD to shoot big game near 1,000 yards I'd use my .300 Win mag Browning A-bolt with 215 or 230 gr. Berger Hybrid bullets. Word is they kill cleanly even though they are meant for target use. At this weight they actually remain supersonic longer than say, 180 gr. bullets.

Eric B.

 

[jasent]

If I HAD to shoot big game near 1,000 yards I'd use my .300 Win mag Browning A-bolt with 215 or 230 gr. Berger Hybrid bullets. Word is they kill cleanly even though they are meant for target use. At this weight they actually remain supersonic longer than say, 180 gr. bullets.

Eric B.

the elite hunters are hybrids

 

[Kimber7man]

I'm also intrigued by the 6.5 PRC after seeing how my buddy's Ridgeline in 6.5x284 did, but my 6.5 SAUM does everything the PRC does at 50-100 fps faster. So I'll stick with what's working so far...