6.5 x 55

[Beretta28g]

What is the best load for a 6.5 in both deer and a vermin role?

 

Deer primarily, so not to much meat damage.

[henry d]

140 grn sp for deer(45.6 gn 160). Roe and fallow are both dropped with little meat damage unless a bullet is badly deflected by a rib, but that can be said by a lot of rifles and the 6.5(140 grn) is not too fast or light to give explosive results.

 

Vermin........ don`t tend to eat or send a lot to the gamedealer, so can`t say

[Beardo]

i've heard the 100gr Nosler BT's are good for vermin and stabilise in just about any barrel.

there are lighter bullets available but heard mixed reports about then shooting well

[njc110381]

I think the best way to go is to find a Deer bullet that groups well and use that. A varmint bullet will make a real mess of a Deer, but a Deer bullet will still vapourise a Rabbit and go right through a Fox from front to back.

 

If you want something flat shooting then perhaps a 120grn Nosler ballistic tip? I certainly wouldn't go much lighter than that because under 120grn most bullets are designed to fragment in 6.5mm. I used to use Barnes TSX (130grn) because they shot well, didn't mush up the Deer and literally exploded smaller pests. I split a Fox open from end to end with one once so one things for sure, it didn't suffer!

 

The only down side I can think of when using Deer bullets for Vermin is that they tend to hold together. I always feel that my backstop needs to be just that little bit more certain when firing a bullet that doesn't break up on impact. If you shoot a really frangible bullet you can be fairly sure that as soon as it hits the target or the ground it's not going to go much further which is why I just swapped my 6.5 for a .243. I have other calibres for Deer though.

[Beretta28g]

Cheers i was thinking of using a Hornady SST bullet of 140g for my deer work and didnt know wether to load something like 120g Nostler partition bullet for my vermin or stick to just one load?

 

 

Lapua brass CCI primer 47 grains of reloader 22 and a hornady sst bullet is what i think it shall be.

[SSS]

IMO, sticking to one load would be much more simple. Saves re zeroing whenever you go out for different things

[seeker]

Sierras 'recommended hunting load has 140s at 2600 about the same speed as Vihts Accuracy load with the 139s.. At that weight I get good results at this speed with SPs, so there must be something in it?

As an observation the reinvention of newer, shorter 6.5 cartridges has spurred a 'relative flood' of bullets at the lighter weights (110 , 130s), especially in lead free monometals from Barnes, Hornady, Berger .. wonder where this ones going?

[njc110381]

The 120grn if it's a partition should be fine for Deer and vermin. If you are going to load two loads (I'd stick to one myself!) then the 120 partition wouldn't be my first choice to go with an SST as they are very similar.

[Dunkield]

IMO, sticking to one load would be much more simple. Saves re zeroing whenever you go out for different things

Is... the right answer

[markg]

I have shot a few deer (roe,red and fallow) with hornady 129 SST with good effect.

The problem is the retained energy with these heavier bullets passing through small animals.

 

Hornady do a 95 vmax (i have some loaded to try on fox), but I think it will make a lot of damage if used on larger deer.

 

I think the 100g nosler would be the best comprimise.