6.5mm Creedmore loads

countershaft

anyone loading for the Creedmore ? any suggestions, examples etc. up to 1000 yds

nononsense

countershaft,

I feel bad that we've ignored your request for reloading data on the 6.5 Creedmoor but I think that there's a reason.

Hornady developed this cartridge for a specific performance aspect with two bullets at pressures which do not push the limits of either the brass or the rifle. These are mild loads but reasonably accurate and consistent given that they are factory produced. This is an effort to garner respect for factory ammunition and persuade folks to buy factory ammunition instead of reloading components only. They have succeeded to a great extent.

But part of the reasoning is not so apparent to the average shooter. Hornady brass has never been and probably never will be up to the quality of either Lapua or Norma. It is slightly soft and does not hold up well when subjected to the slightly higher limits of the pressure range used by competitive shooters. This upper range is NOT unsafe nor is it strictly the purview of competitive shooting but it has been successfully used with the Lapua, Norma, Remington and Winchester brass. I get more reloads from Lapua and Norma brass than Hornady. Anyway, the point being, Hornady loads their cartridge to lesser pressure limit which allows the brass to used a greater number of times. All of this is for naught if you choose to buy factory ammunition in the first place, foregoing the reloading.

Here are two powder companies that have lots of data for the 6.5 Creedmoor:

http://www.accuratepowder.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/accurate_load_data_3.5.pdf

http://data.hodgdon.com/cartridge_load.asp
(you will have to select a couple of categories for the cartridge of choice)

I'm shooting 130 gr. VLD bullets in my last Creedmore rifle. Powders of choice are Re-17, V V N-550 and Hodgdon Hybrid 100V. The factory chose H-4350 and I think they have changed to Varget for the light bullets. I could be wrong on this though.

Another consideration is the popularity of the .260 Rem. which has the same case capacity basically but a slightly shorter neck (0.045"). The brass from Remington is about $20/100 cheaper.

Best.