Is a 6.5x55 sufficient enough to drop a big woodland red stag ?

[The deer man]

Thanks Mark , I say woodland , but it's actually a mix of farm and woods, and shots can be upto 250yrds.

What at I really meant by woodland , was none hill stags, due to the size difference. I came across a few this weekend while out on roe bucks, the size of some of the stags, made me blush to say the least!

Not much difference I'd image between the 6.5 and .308, but I'm sure a 300 win mag would solve the confidence issue! ( which is on my wish list)

Forget your wish list and use what you've got! I've used 120gr Sierra Pro-Hunter and 140gr Sierra Game King on Reds in my 6.5x55 for some time and both are perfectly good. In fact the 140's (as Muir said) take some beating. I'd put money on you shooting a 6.5 far more accurately than a 300 and that's what counts.

Anybody think the 6.5 isn't enough, try shooting 12mm steel plate at 100 yards and see what it does, that'll be a confidence boost!

 

[Muir]

I agree! Bullet choice is one thing but to have second thoughts about your hunting rifle is....well.... just not right. Nothing I have shot my 6.5x55 at required a second shot. Large mule deer does in 180 lb class went down spectacularly when hit by a 140 GK. I had a friend in Silver City, New Mexico who was taking elk with his 6,5x55 in the 60's and 70's using a Hornady 160 grn RN. My ex brother in law was a professional guide at a very expensive elk ranch and he used a 6.5x55 with 156 and 160 grain RN bullets to finish off elk that idiot Texans had gut shot. He would send a 160 lengthwise through a fleeing bull and drop it on it's nose. It never failed to amaze the idiots with the 300 and 7mm Remington Magnums. To this day he says he regrets trading off that 6.5x55.~Muir

 

[shooternz]

A lady friend borrowed my 6.5x55 to hunt Reds in Fiordland NZ dumped an eleven pointer with one shot at 260 metres with one of the old 139 grain Norma Vulkans I hand loaded velocity was 2475fps,
just need to pick the right projectile for the job and the vulkans are hard to beat.
Robert

 

[stecad]

Take a trip to the Polar Museum in Tromso, Norway. They have a great collection of rifles that were used for hunting. During the pre & post war years when polar hunting was at its peak they were culling seal, walrus and polar bears, etc. The rifle that was used was the Krag-Jorgenson in 6.5 with a 140grn solid head. Cheap as chips, plenty of ammo and killed everything.
Bullet placement is the key.

 

[finnbear270]

Bullet placement, followed by the lesser important, quality/type of bullet, a bullet through heart or brain & death will follow. I like the Partitions, but I'm biased!!

 

[Sivell]

The .300 win mag may add to the confidence issue, as it's got a lot of recoil and muzzle flip unless you plan to moderate it or use a muzzle break. In my experience I went to a 8x68s I found this to be much more manageable.

 

[Canadian1]

I took a 475 kg moose two years ago with my 6.5x55mm and 140gr partitions. 125 yards broadside. Complete pass through. Complete destruction of vitals. Anybody who questions the effectiveness of this cartridge with heavier projectiles, guide or not, is really quite ignorant.

 

[Blue400]

If sika where 300 lbs you would probably need a 50 cal! but for large reds a 6.5 will be fine with anything over 120 grain and over if you it the spot.
atb blue.

 

[User00003]

I took a 475 kg moose two years ago with my 6.5x55mm and 140gr partitions. 125 yards broadside. Complete pass through. Complete destruction of vitals. Anybody who questions the effectiveness of this cartridge with heavier projectiles, guide or not, is really quite ignorant.

it's funny about bullets, irrespective of 'advances' in technology in the last 20 years, the nosler partition is probably (read 'definitely') the most excellent bullet ever made for both expansion and penetration. I have more trust in this bullet than you can imagine, and mix that with a rifle you have trust in, and a clean breaking trigger, a quality scope,,all leads to really confident shots on game and good hunting experiences..

 

[Muir]

it's funny about bullets, irrespective of 'advances' in technology in the last 20 years, the nosler partition is probably (read 'definitely') the most excellent bullet ever made for both expansion and penetration. I have more trust in this bullet than you can imagine, and mix that with a rifle you have trust in, and a clean breaking trigger, a quality scope,,all leads to really confident shots on game and good hunting experiences..

True. I had a person once classify the Partition as a "modern generation" bullet, but....

I think they date from 1947! ~Muir

 

[shooternz]

The RWS H mantel is the same as the Partition and was designed in 1934, there were some 2 part cast bullets from the late 18oo's I believe , so nothing is new all been tried before, probably some one made round balls out of copper at some point in time, I know they tried silver back in the dim past,
Robert.

 

[Muir]

The RWS H mantel is the same as the Partition and was designed in 1934, there were some 2 part cast bullets from the late 18oo's I believe , so nothing is new all been tried before, probably some one made round balls out of copper at some point in time, I know they tried silver back in the dim past,
Robert.

I wasn't claiming they were the first, just commenting that they were not the latest! You're right. Nothing is really new. Who remembers when the term "ballistic tip" referred to a Norma bullet?? It had a different usage, but the (yellow, iirc) polymer tip was a Norma invention, not Hornady.~Muir

 

[willie_gunn]

Is a 6.5x55 sufficient enough to drop a big woodland red stag ?

Should have asked this guy for his opinion:

 

[jthyttin]

The RWS H mantel is the same as the Partition

From RWS lineup the Doppelkern (Twincore) would be closer match for Partition.

 

[finnbear270]

Jeez, either that guy has at least three boxes of shredded wheat before going out, or there's a steel wire I can't see!

 

[willie_gunn]

Jeez, either that guy has at least three boxes of shredded wheat before going out, or there's a steel wire I can't see!

Steve - he's cheating, it's a powered trailer

It was great for extracting the beast, but getting it through the forestry debris took a lot of additional manual heavy shifting

 

[User00003]

I wasn't claiming they were the first, just commenting that they were not the latest! You're right. Nothing is really new. Who remembers when the term "ballistic tip" referred to a Norma bullet?? It had a different usage, but the (yellow, iirc) polymer tip was a Norma invention, not Hornady.~Muir

I have a box of the original normal BT's you describe from around, oh, must be early '70's, in 6.5swede believe it or not..

 

[mchughcb]

I took a 475 kg moose two years ago with my 6.5x55mm and 140gr partitions. 125 yards broadside. Complete pass through. Complete destruction of vitals. Anybody who questions the effectiveness of this cartridge with heavier projectiles, guide or not, is really quite ignorant.

Sorry, off topic but as you've brought it up.

Serious question, how many moose have you shot with the 6.5x55 and had a complete pass through? Just asking because I've hunted them with 308, 8x57, 300Win mag etc and we didn't always get a pass through.

 

[mchughcb]

Thanks Mark , I say woodland , but it's actually a mix of farm and woods, and shots can be upto 250yrds.

What at I really meant by woodland , was none hill stags, due to the size difference. I came across a few this weekend while out on roe bucks, the size of some of the stags, made me blush to say the least!

Not much difference I'd image between the 6.5 and .308, but I'm sure a 300 win mag would solve the confidence issue! ( which is on my wish list)

Interesting question. I'm not confident I'd cleanly drop a red stag at 250 yards on a rear quartering shot with a 6.5x55 on the spot. Low percentage shot but maybe that's all you get.

Whenever someone quotes me 6.5x55 on moose in Sweden, I ask are you shooting over hounds and do you have a blood tracker for follow up. If the answer is no then I'd be using something bigger.

300 Win mag gets my tick of approval.

 

[andykat]

thanks everyone - the advice is over whelming! il try some heavier bullets and see how we get on - its a little way off yet till the rut - but il let you all know how i get on (or not if i shoot miserably )

im going to give the Norma Vulcans a try at 156g down the range and see what they are like - in a nut shell you all saved me £1200 for a new 300win mag barrel for my R8. -

happy shooting peeps!