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Backcountry Hunting Podcast

Reasons To Hunt Elk with a 6.5 Creedmoor (Really!)

Backcountry Hunting Podcast

Joseph von Benedikt

Backcountry, Rifle, Deer, Podcast, Elk, Mountain, Sports, Hunt, Wilderness, Cartridge, Hunting

4.91.1K Ratings

🗓️ 19 May 2023

⏱️ 66 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Controversial, capable, unpredictable... The 6.5 Creedmoor is one of those cartridges that generates a lot of love and hate. Even though we usually recommend bigger cartridges for elk, there are times and situations where the 6.5 Creedmoor is the best choice.

In this episode, we take a candid look at the 6.5 Creedmoor's capability, consider ballistic data, and compare it to legendary cartridges such as the .270 Win. and .30-06 Springfield, and establish where we believe the "Creed's" comfort zone is for use on elk.

As bullet choice is more crucial than cartridge choice, we also detail optimal 6.5 projectiles for use on elk, and discuss shot distance, shot angle, and shot placement.

Anchoring the discussion, we detail several different solid reasons to choose the 6.5 Creedmoor for hunting elk.

ENJOY!

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Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Years ago, when the 6.5 Creedmoor had just been endowed by heaven or hell or a combination of both,

0:07.1

with the stardom that catapulted it to the position of best-selling hunting cartridge in America.

0:13.0

I walked off a high mountain ridge and joined a hunting companion where he and a friend were loading horses into a trailer.

0:20.0

See much? I inquired.

0:23.0

Yep, my friend got a long shot at a bull.

0:27.0

Just missed.

0:28.0

Now, he told me the shot distance and it's been a while so my memory could be wrong but if I'm not

0:34.4

mistaken it was a whisker more than 11 hundred yards. Now my pal's pal was

0:41.2

shooting a superb custom rifle built by one of the finest gunsmiths in the west,

0:46.8

a chap known for his precision long-range hunting rifles.

0:50.6

It had a defiance action and proof research barrel and McMillan stock and Timney

0:55.0

Trigger and wore a $2,000 precision hunting scope and it was chambered in 6.5

1:01.3

Creedmoor.

1:03.0

But 1,100 yards?

1:05.7

Holy moly.

1:07.8

Yes, the chap could hit steel targets that far away,

1:10.9

but shooting at an elk seemed a bit beyond the pale of responsibility.

1:15.4

True story and one that explains a lot of the negative opinions on using the

1:21.4

6.5 creed more an el Elk. There's more to it, of course.

1:25.7

Equally is problematic or the long-range match type bullets often fired from the 6.5

1:31.9

Creedmoor by hunters. But does the cartridge really deserve all the negative

1:38.0

kerfuffle or on the other hand the near magical characteristics often attributed to it? Well it's been called the

...

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