by bladeracer » 24 May 2020, 12:27 am
I don't have the Creedmoor but I am a fan of the 6.5mm bullet, I have five other 6.5mm chamberings from 6.5x50mm to 6.5x58mm. I think the 6.5x55mm is the optimal cartridge for the bullet, and the 6.5mm is almost as versatile as the 7mm-08, shooting bullets from 90gn to 170gn.
No, you can't legally take the three larger deer species with it in Vic. 7mm-08 is a better choice for that.
It doesn't matter to me at all if a cartridge will be avaible in the future, or now, I load my own ammo. You could just buy a few thousand rounds now if you're concerned about future availability of factory ammo, or just learn to load your own. Some of the factory offerings seem very expensive to me.
Unless you are using an AR platform I don't see any benefit to the Creedmoor, other than it fits into a short action, the Swede is 8mm longer. But you are far more likely to find more choice in new rifles chambered for the Creedmoor than the Swede.
The 6.5's are closer to .243 than .308 in my opinion, but it depends on bullet choice. The .243 let's you shoot bullets from 50gn (4000fps+) to 117gn, the .308 gives you about 100gn to 240gn bullets, but at lower velocities, closer to 6.5mm velocities.
The Creedmoor, Swede, .243, 7mm-08 and .308 will all push a 110gn bullet into the 2900fps to 3200fps realm. The smaller bores will give you higher velocities with lighter bullets, the larger bores will let you use heavier bullets. If big deer are on the table though, with one rifle, you are limited in choice.
Practice Strict Gun Control - Precision Counts!