Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

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Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Kel » 25 Mar 2019, 12:15 pm

I've put my deposit on a Tikka Tac A1 in 6.5 Creedmoor. Given that its an expensive round to shoot I've also gone ahead and purchased a reloading press to make the cost of ammo a bit cheaper. My plans for the Tac A1 include medium range (500m) target/gongs and some hunting. As a starting point for reloading and dialling it in I'm keen to hear from other shooters of this rifle what ammo has proved to deliver good results and maybe what to avoid.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Sergeant Hartman » 25 Mar 2019, 2:31 pm

Cheaper ammo...... rotfl... I thought the same once too.

Actually I have shot about s thousand centerfire rounds last year
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Flyer » 25 Mar 2019, 3:14 pm

If you're talking factory ammo, then the beauty of the "manbun" is it tends to shoot a lot of ammo well, as it has tighter tolerances than other SAAMI spec calibres. The cheapest factory ammo I found was Federal 140gr softpoint Power Shok, which was $30 a box (you may be able to find it cheaper). It shot fine out of my Sako, which should have a similar barrel to your TikTac.

Hornady makes some great (almost match grade) factory ammo for the 6.5CM, but it is obviously more expensive.

If you're talking reloading, a few of us on the forum picked up some cheap Hornady 143gr ELD-X projectiles when they were on special. Best load I've found so far is 41.8gr of 2209 powder in Lapua small primer brass.

The ELD-X has a great BC for distance shooting and doubles as a hunting round (as opposed to the ELD-M).

My go-to load is 123gr Lapua Scenars in the same brass with 43.2gr of 2209. But that's a target load that gets shot mostly out to 200m.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Kel » 25 Mar 2019, 3:35 pm

Thanks Flyer,

I'm keen to start reloading straight away in order to make the most of the investment in the reloading gear. I've got some of the ELD-X and SST sitting in the shopping cart along with Hornady brass already. I'd read the Lapua brass was good but not sure how good vs the extra premium for it. Is the brass quality or the small primer your main draw for the Lapua brass ?
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by brett1868 » 25 Mar 2019, 3:43 pm

Try the Hornady 147gr ELD-M factory ammo, it is brilliant in my Tic Tak. I've won comps at 600yds with it and the boy meddled in a 300m rapid fire event with it last year. Probably not ideal for hunting but good for ringing steel at distance.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Flyer » 25 Mar 2019, 3:50 pm

I bought the Lappy brass initially for the small primers, but also because it's quality brass and the extra cost pays for itself once you start reloading multiple times. There's a Youtube video of a couple of guys who reloaded a case more than 20 times with a fairly hot load without any issues.

Starline also makes SRP brass for the 6.5CM and I have some here. It has the same case volume as the Lappy brass, so is interchangeable once you have settled on a load. It's half the price of the Lappy brass and they guarantee at least five reloads, but the quality is not the same. It's the little things, like the flash holes (punched, not drilled) and rough case mouths that have to be cleaned up before you use it, whereas the Lappy brass can pretty much be loaded straight out of the box (I still resize the necks).

So it really comes down to how much you shoot. I use the Lappy brass at the range and reserve the Starline brass for the field, where it doesn't matter if a case gets lost.

The small primers have two main advantages: you can load to higher pressures, and the cases tend to last longer before the primer pockets get loose. I say that, but haven't gotten to that stage with my brass yet.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Kel » 25 Mar 2019, 4:57 pm

brett1868 wrote:Try the Hornady 147gr ELD-M factory ammo, it is brilliant in my Tic Tak. I've won comps at 600yds with it and the boy meddled in a 300m rapid fire event with it last year. Probably not ideal for hunting but good for ringing steel at distance.


Thanks Brett, Good to know. I'll give that a whirl for the steel.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Kel » 25 Mar 2019, 5:00 pm

Flyer wrote:I bought the Lappy brass initially for the small primers, but also because it's quality brass and the extra cost pays for itself once you start reloading multiple times. There's a Youtube video of a couple of guys who reloaded a case more than 20 times with a fairly hot load without any issues.

Starline also makes SRP brass for the 6.5CM and I have some here. It has the same case volume as the Lappy brass, so is interchangeable once you have settled on a load. It's half the price of the Lappy brass and they guarantee at least five reloads, but the quality is not the same. It's the little things, like the flash holes (punched, not drilled) and rough case mouths that have to be cleaned up before you use it, whereas the Lappy brass can pretty much be loaded straight out of the box (I still resize the necks).

So it really comes down to how much you shoot. I use the Lappy brass at the range and reserve the Starline brass for the field, where it doesn't matter if a case gets lost.

The small primers have two main advantages: you can load to higher pressures, and the cases tend to last longer before the primer pockets get loose. I say that, but haven't gotten to that stage with my brass yet.


Thanks Flyer, I'll use that info as a guide to do a bit more research.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by SCJ429 » 25 Mar 2019, 8:12 pm

If reloading I would try Berger, Lapua or Sierra bullets. Leave the SST in the shopping cart.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Kel » 27 Mar 2019, 4:44 am

SCJ429 wrote:If reloading I would try Berger, Lapua or Sierra bullets. Leave the SST in the shopping cart.



Is there a general issue with the SST or some issue with it when it comes to the Tik Tac ?
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by SCJ429 » 27 Mar 2019, 6:45 am

Hornady make excellent hunting bullets which work very well when they hit something. Getting them to shoot accurately can be very frustrating.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by TassieTiger » 27 Mar 2019, 1:40 pm

Shot some SST’s in my 260.
47.5gns of AR2209 with oal of 70.7 yielded 3/4 moa at 190m.
I had much better results with nosler 120gn bt - 43.5gns of same powder, 71.9mm length.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by JimTom » 27 Mar 2019, 3:43 pm

Kel wrote:
SCJ429 wrote:If reloading I would try Berger, Lapua or Sierra bullets. Leave the SST in the shopping cart.



Is there a general issue with the SST or some issue with it when it comes to the Tik Tac ?



Mate at present I am reloading exclusively with Hornady projectiles for .223, 300AAC, 6.5ManBun, and .308.
All shoot 1/2” at 100m with the exception of the 300AAC, but it is still under an inch.
I haven’t had any issues with them whatsoever.

For the 6.5 ManBun I am using the 143ELD X with AR2209 out of a Sako A7 (Tikka with a Sako badge).
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by JimTom » 27 Mar 2019, 3:50 pm

Forgot to say I am also running the Lapua SRP brass like Flyer. It seems to be a good combo.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Apollo » 27 Mar 2019, 3:51 pm

Alright, I know I'm old and don't play social media etc BUT what is this "ManBun" story about the 6.5mm Creedmore.?? Where did this start and by who..??

I don't get the connection at all.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by JimTom » 27 Mar 2019, 3:57 pm

Mate the Creedmoor has a few haters and a certain few on this forum starting addressing the 6.5CM as the 6.5 ManBun. I am assuming it is a reference to being something new and trendy, even though it’s 10 plus years old, although no where near as old as the 6.5 Swede.
I love my Creedmoor and instead of arguing about 6.5x55 vs 6.5 CM ballistics, and which is better blah blah, I have just embraced the term.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Gamerancher » 27 Mar 2019, 4:17 pm

I built a 6.5 Creedmoor for metallic sihouette for various reasons, it fits the bill for me quite well. A couple of others did the same. One bloke, after having a couple of the 500m rams stay standing after being hit, christened it the 6.5 Need-more. :lol:
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Flyer » 27 Mar 2019, 6:33 pm

Kel wrote:
SCJ429 wrote:If reloading I would try Berger, Lapua or Sierra bullets. Leave the SST in the shopping cart.



Is there a general issue with the SST or some issue with it when it comes to the Tik Tac ?

There's a guy at my club who loads 123gr SSTs in his 6.5x47L and gets decent accuracy - he's actually one of our top shooters - but I get the 123gr Scenars for the same price or cheaper, and I can't imagine the SSTs would be more accurate than this 4-shot group at 100m. That's 43.2gr of 2209:

creed.jpg
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143 ELD-X left (Federal brass, dummy load), 123 Scenar right (loaded Lapua brass)
Creedmoor143ELDX123Scenar.jpg
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Flyer » 27 Mar 2019, 6:46 pm

Image



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You get the idea :D
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Flyer » 27 Mar 2019, 6:48 pm

Gamerancher wrote:I built a 6.5 Creedmoor for metallic sihouette for various reasons, it fits the bill for me quite well. A couple of others did the same. One bloke, after having a couple of the 500m rams stay standing after being hit, christened it the 6.5 Need-more. :lol:

Mate, what load do you use and what load was the other guy using that failed to knock down rams? I bought my 6.5 because my 243 wasn't doing the job at 500m either. I haven't shot the 6.5 in metallic silhouette yet.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Apollo » 27 Mar 2019, 6:52 pm

JimTom wrote:Mate the Creedmoor has a few haters and a certain few on this forum starting addressing the 6.5CM as the 6.5 ManBun. I am assuming it is a reference to being something new and trendy, even though it’s 10 plus years old, although no where near as old as the 6.5 Swede.
I love my Creedmoor and instead of arguing about 6.5x55 vs 6.5 CM ballistics, and which is better blah blah, I have just embraced the term.


Thanks for that. I love my 6.5 Calibre being a 6.5x47 Lapua of which I have three rifles chambered for target shooting.

I have seen a couple of comparisons done between the 260Rem, 6.5 Creedmore and the 6.5x47 Lapua and there isn't much between them velocity wise or accuracy wise.

If Sako made an 85 Varmint in 6.5 Creedmoor I'd find it very hard to resist.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by JimTom » 27 Mar 2019, 6:55 pm

Hahaha nice one Flyer. I had a few good chuckles reading those.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Apollo » 27 Mar 2019, 7:04 pm

JimTom wrote:Hahaha nice one Flyer. I had a few food chuckles reading those.


I must be getting really old and senile as I didn't see anything funny about any of them. Quite the opposite and a waste of space.

Sorry Flyer, must just be me.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Kel » 27 Mar 2019, 8:09 pm

Clearly I'm buying into a calibre which stirs emotions. I liked the analogies, including man bun ... that guy is cute and if he can make good coffee as well ... that would be a bonus. I liked the 'need more' quip as well, possibly a few more grains of lead and powder required from that reloader.

Jokes aside, there are obviously differing views on what works and what doesn't (no real surprises there). I would have liked to start by testing a bigger variety of projectiles, the issue I am finding is that suppliers are often not carrying the stock they advertise.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Flyer » 27 Mar 2019, 8:10 pm

Haha! Sorry Apollo, I just thought the memes would help explain why the 6.5CM is referred to as the "man bun", as it's been the butt of jokes since it was introduced.

The "man bun" monicker simply refers to the 6.5CM being the "latest trend" that its detractors say will soon die out.

I guess the main criticism is from 6.5x55 owners who point out their calibre has been around for over 100 years; 260 owners who point out there is no ballistic advantage; and 6.5x47 owners who point out there is no accuracy advantage.

But 6.5CM owners are in on the joke, too, as we know the cartridge is inherently accurate (=6.5x47), seats longer projectiles (>260), and has a short action (>6.5x55). Plus the more popular it becomes, the more choice of cheap ammo, projectiles, brass and firearms there are.

I do like the 6.5x47. I also like the 6.5 grendel. But the 6.5CM is a very good alround cartridge and is becoming more common. It has similar recoil to a 243 and similar energy to a 308 after 300m.

Apollo wrote:If Sako made an 85 Varmint in 6.5 Creedmoor I'd find it very hard to resist.

This is the closest you will get at the moment: https://www.sako.fi/rifles/sako-a7/a7-roughtech-range

Tom and I have the Roughtech Pro models, which have medium weight barrels and are a bit lighter. I tried both in the gun shop and settled on th Pro because it was better balanced for offhand shooting. If I was a bipod or bench shooter, I would have bought the Range model.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by SCJ429 » 27 Mar 2019, 8:24 pm

I have a problem with saying that a Creedmoor is inherently accurate. It is no more so than a 260 or the 6.5x55. It is not close to the PPC or the 6mmBR. It may get there if more successful shooter take it up but it has a long way to go. If Lapua didn't make brass for it, there was going to be real issues with it making traction. Lapua saved it at the expense of their own 6.5.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Flyer » 27 Mar 2019, 8:46 pm

Well I guess apples to apples, the 6mm Creedmoor is getting up there in popularity in national comps, so it must be doing something right.

6mm dasher 2.JPG
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6mm dasher.JPG
6mm dasher.JPG (67.6 KiB) Viewed 8005 times


On the 6.5 side of things, you could argue the 6.5CM has the potential to be more accurate than 6.5x55, as it has a stiffer short action and tighter chamber tolerances than both the Swede and 260. In practice, I know there have been tests showing little difference, but it remains the 6.5CM is far and away more popular than the other 6.5 cartridges (excluding 6.5x47) when it comes to competition, so again, there must be a reason for it.

I agree on the Lapua brass - that's one of the reasons I went 6.5CM and not 6.5x55 - but you could add to that Hornady's match-grade factory ammo. It allows those who don't reload to get good accuracy out of their Creedmoor, and as far as I am aware, there are no similar offerings for 260 or Swede. (EDIT: Hornady offers 130gr match ammo for 260, but 6.5CM has a choice of 120, 140 and 147gr ELD-M; nothing for the Swede)

Originally I was going to buy a Swede, but the short action and ammo/brass availability swayed me to the Creed. But that was just me.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by SCJ429 » 27 Mar 2019, 9:11 pm

The statistics are for PRS shooters, it is a small sample and PRS is less about pure accuracy and heavily weighted towards the shooters ability. In pure accuracy competitions the Creedmoor is under represented. In a head to head shoot off with a competitor who knows what they are doing, you can get cleaned up by a 223.

I was in a 500 metre comp and shared a bench with a guy shooting a 6.5x47 Lapua. At first he spoke to me like the voice of experience which I don't mind but he thought the straight 243 I was using was inferior to his Lapua. He was shocked that I beat him at the end but it wasn't that he had any advantage. I was using match grade projectiles and quality Lapua brass. It came down to the shooter and on this day I did better.
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by SCJ429 » 27 Mar 2019, 9:15 pm

Why would the Creedmoor have tighter chamber tolerances than a 260 or a 6.5x55? Are you talking about factory chamberings?
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Re: Tikka T3X Tac A1 6.5 Creedmoor ammo

Post by Apollo » 27 Mar 2019, 9:51 pm

Kel wrote:I've put my deposit on a Tikka Tac A1 in 6.5 Creedmoor. Given that its an expensive round to shoot I've also gone ahead and purchased a reloading press to make the cost of ammo a bit cheaper. My plans for the Tac A1 include medium range (500m) target/gongs and some hunting. As a starting point for reloading and dialling it in I'm keen to hear from other shooters of this rifle what ammo has proved to deliver good results and maybe what to avoid.


From all the discussion above but more on reloading. I'd go down the Lapua Brass path and for target I'd pick something like the 130gr Berger VLD using ADI2208 Powder. Then for hunting I'm not sure but something lighter like the 108/123gr Lapua Scenar which are also very good for target.

I know some will say perhaps the ADI2209 but in this size case I don't know if it's better. I'm basing this idea on being that the 6.5 Creedmoor is so close to the 6.5x47L. I'd be looking at loads around what I use in my 6.5x47L which are about 37.5gr of AR2208 which with a 130gr bullet gives around 1900 fps velocity.

I have read that factory Hornady ammo had problems with blown primers and I think they dropped the load down they were using and it may well now be fixed but I also know the reason in these high pressure cases for using match grade small primers so I think if it was me that's all I would be using. Already learnt to put my hand over the ejection port to catch fired cases so I don't loose any even at night.

I'd love to give this calibre a go. I have a spare new 31" Bartlein HV Barrel just waiting to be chambered but I doubt my local Gunsmith would have a Reamer.

Shooting at 500m to do very well is not only calibre but very much shooter skill and reading conditions then being on the detail that presents the better conditions. Every time I read through the 500m scores I look closely at which bench the top scores come from, which way the wind/mirage is traveling, which detail they are on, the skill of the shooter then lastly what calibre they are using.
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