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Best 6.5 CM Hunting Bullet for Moderate Long Range Distances
- Thread starter MoreSalsa
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snox801
Well-Known Member
What part of his needs won't it meet.
He laid out parameters and I have responded with data.
The bc will be irrelevant if the FPS drops below min for expansion. Since he is looking for a hunting bullet not a target it indeed does.
As stated above I posted that in fact both loads of hammers I use stay above min FPS just a touch farther than those of the 147 Hornady. I've played with the numbers for Berger's also and in the creedmore you simply can't get enough speed to make the bc relevant for hunting.
Did you recover the bullet? If so, I'm assuming not a pass-through ... how much expansion are we talking? Or, what was the exit wound like if it did pass through?
If we are talking good expansion then honestly if the LRX shoots well in my rifle (fingers crossed) and that is their consistent performance for my application at that range, then I have no need for any other bullet. 500 yards is as long as any shot I ever plan to take on the deer, antelope, or hogs. In reality it's probably farther than any shot I'll take. It's just that I'm going to be out at the range testing different loads and I'd like to have an option for if and when I ever start shooting at those sorts of ranges, and then stock up on that ammo so I'll have it.
My only concerns are A. you are talking about an elk and I am talking about smaller game -- not sure if I'm going to get the same performance on the smaller animals and B. I just don't know if that is their consistent performance ... from what I've seen, at 500 yards when you are probably dipping below 2000 fps, minimal expansion (like the petals just barely peeling back) can be common.
snox801
Well-Known Member
Not sure you will find a lead bullet that will outperform a mono at distance. They will carry higher bc than the monos but because they will start out slower they still hit the min FPS to open around the same distance. Won't do any good to poke a 6.5 diameter hole in something and hope you can track it down after. They can go a long way with a pencil size hole in the lungs.
For long range targets hard to beat a Berger or atip.
snox801
Well-Known Member
You are forgetting the king of high bc monos also cutting edge.
They have indeed won more ko2m than anyone. They are pretty darn good on game. Just slightly less than hammers. They are what I used before and if anything happens to hammer I will return.
I should say that I debated including anything about BC. In the end, I guess I'd just say that since I am talking about ~500 yard distances, high BC is nice. But I know it's not going to make a big difference at those distances. Lower minimum expansion velocity is much more important for what I'm looking for.
Magnum44270
Well-Known Member
Cannot beat Nosler Accubond long range. Best combo of expansion and penetration.. but also hold together up close
I'll add that last night I was reading some magazine put out by Federal. It's pretty clear that they think I should be using either their Accubond load or their Terminal Ascent, which they say is the "holy grail" for what I'm looking at. It's just marketing so I take it for what it is. But I find it interesting that no one mentions the Terminal Ascent bullet.
Yeah, seems like it would be a good choice in the end. I actually had a chance to get some and passed it up. I had read a lot of bad reviews but as I recall, a lot of those were for short range shots, but I'd use them strictly for long range shots.
In the end, it really seems like the ELD-X does work well, but has enough failures that it leaves a lot of hunters looking for something better. Maybe that is just the fact that no bullet is going to perform flawlessly every time ... or maybe it means that there is room for a better design. Also, it really does seem like it was designed for faster shooting calibers than the 6.5 creedmoor. I have seen a guy who does custom, hotter 6.5 CM loads with ELD-Xs and claims that they need that extra speed to shine. So, in the end I wonder if something like the Accubond LR might be a better choice.
snox801
Well-Known Member
I was just pointing out that it is really irrelevant when talking a hunting bullet in a creedmore.
Everyone really gets caught up in it because this is indeed a long rang hunting so bc should be important. But it's also a hunting site, so I do believe nobody here wants to wound and animal because the high bc bullet they insisted on so they could hit the target farther out but did not expand.
snox801
Well-Known Member
I have been curious about the ascent. Seems like it would be a solid performer
Might not hear a bunch about them here because most Reloader or simply not enough time on market to form an opinion.
I'm sure they have been out for a bit but may be hard to find. I've never seen them on shelves.
No, I did not; I provided a link to a list of monolithic bullets on #10 for the OP to consider.
Stammster
Well-Known Member
Federal is really proud of their Terminal Ascent. When I called up their technical guys about some 150 gr .277 Fusions I bought and all the guy wanted to do was sell me on the Terminal Ascent - which was their version of a solid base bonded tipped bullet.
I finally had to tell the guy "look, I just bought your Fusion bullets. I don't need any others right now. Do you have any load data or what?"
I finally had to tell the guy "look, I just bought your Fusion bullets. I don't need any others right now. Do you have any load data or what?"
big johnson
Well-Known Member
130 swift sir. if you can find them worked great with total pass through on deer, but never shot anything past 250 yds.
