6.5x55 Factory ammo performance

webley22

Well-Known Member
Hi all. I have recently started using a 6.5 and am currenly only using factory ammo as i dont reload at the moment. I will mainly be using it for Roe to begin with and am using remmington 140grn core-lokt at the moment and woundered if people can recomened any alternative brand. Obviously accuracy may varie from gun to gun but an idea of terminal performance would be useful. Alos would trying to find some 120grn ammo be more usful than the standard 140grn stuff? Cheers
 
I've used Norma factory ammo - 140gr SP Nosler (Ref 16559). No complaints at all, and I've run through well over 1000 rounds of it. Excellent accuracy, great terminal performance.
Also worth giving PRVI ammo a try, much cheaper (about £60/100 from Henry Krank) and it shoots very well in my rifle, and again no problems at all with terminal performance over several hundred rounds on everything from roe to large red stags. If it works in your rifle, you're laughing.
I picked up a batch of Federal 140gr SP at one point, and it was fine but chrono'd slightly slower than the PRVI and Norma 140gr, and dropped a touch faster.

I'd suggest you pick up a box of PRVI and give it a shot. I use the 139gr SP, and at 60p a round it's hard to beat.
 
Thanks, im trying to order in some Privi but it might take a few weeks. Norma doesn't get too many bad reviews but it is very expensive unfortunatly...
 
How far are you from Leeds? I was down there a couple of weeks ago and picked up some from Henry Krank, they had plenty of 6.5x55 in stock then.
 
I have tried several brands of factory Sweedish at 139 & 140 grn and to be frank at 100 M from my Mauser i find very little difference in grouping between them. As for terminal performance its just one of those rounds that always does a good job on anything in these isles.
 
i find very little difference in grouping between them

Same here, the cheap PRVI stuff shoots to the same point of impact as the more expensive Norma stuff, groups the same at just under 1" at 100yds, and no difference in performance. If you didn't look at the headstamp you wouldn't be able to tell which you were shooting.
 
the privvi gets my vote in both 139 and 156.
very accurate and also cheap.
had 100's of roe and munjac shot with these and no damage issues....ever.

John and I have both got Sako 75 Finnlights in 6.5x55, Privi shoot like sh1t through my rifle, I'm lucky to get a 1.5" group at 100yds.

I always rated Federal Powershok 140gn. i only started reloading when I could no longer source them regularly.
 
Was quoted around £45ish for Norma balistic tips so normas out of the question and i'd rather softpoints than plastic.
 
Well, much has been told about brands. I have used Winchester and Federal 140grs loadas. They are very "soft" loaded for this cal. but do wery good job on roe and red sized game. It is classic cup and core bullet. I prefer long, heavy for cal. loadas and one alternative is Lapua Mega 156grs. It is cheaper than Norma and do very good job on both targets(very accurate) and all game. In Norway and Scandinavia very poular round. Prvi is also good. Lapua Naturalis is hardest bullet and after my opinion best in this cal. if you are after heavy game. All of this I have tryed...
 
I shoot with 139 grain Prvi soft points out of my Tikka T3 Hunter with a ASE Jet-Z sound mod. I can get just less than 1 inch groupings at 100 yards with them and they cost me £12/20 rounds, so I'm very happy with them :)

Performance in deer is brilliant, I managed to recover one from a Fallow Buck and it had mushroomed like a dream. I'm going to bring it to a friend of mine who reloads to have it weighed to see how much remains of the original bullet.
 
Hi

I have been using RWS DK 140 grn rounds for a year now. They are giving me a 1/2" grouping at 100 yards so no need to re-load. I have been buying them from the Hunters Cabin, Steve is a member on here and he provides a great service. Last time I ordered it worked out roughly £32 a box.
 
Have used Federal 140gn Power Shoks from day one through my 6.5x55 Mannlicher, they group well under 1" @100yds & knock Roe down reliably.

About £30/20.

Cheers

Chris
 
As deepocean said i stock the RWS special import DK bullets .
through my off the shelf tikka T3 she clovers at 100 and thumbnail at 200

i have shoot foxes roe and reds with them and i havnt had a beast move more than 20yrds .
I think we have 400in at the moment .
steve
 
My rifle got a knock today when taking it out of the cabinet, so I went to the range to check zero.

This was the result using Prvi 139 grain Soft Points @ 100 yards

IMG_1849.jpg


IMG_1848.jpg
 
Colly,

Bravo, but for me the problem with PRVI-P ammo has been the variability of it.

I've tried them in my Tikka and the groups were saucer sized, but another batch might have been different. I've pulled PRVI-P apart in several calibres. The cases and load were pretty consistent, but the bullets weren't up to the same standard.

Having said that I think PRVI-P is just as good as standard U.S. ammo like Winchester and Federal PowerShok so if you don't handload you have to give it a thorough try. You can't afford not to, as it's a real bargain.
 
Cheers for the info guys. Currently awaiting some 139 Privi ammo. Out of interest, for those who reload whats the average cost for reloading an average SP 6.5x55 round?
 
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