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Thread: 6.5X55 in a new rifle

  1. #1
    Boolit Master




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    6.5X55 in a new rifle

    Does anybody make a rifle in this caliber anymore. I tried all of the American companies but didn't find anything. Even Reminton doesn't have their 260 listed which would be a close match. A friend is looking for a youth rifle for deer. The kid hunted with my Swede with a scout scope last weekend and really liked it recoil wise. Personally I think the 257 Roberts would be a good pick and I think Ruger still offers that chambering.

    Bob
    GUNFIRE! The sound of Freedom!

  2. #2
    Boolit Master
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    Ruger and Winchester used to list them.

    Probably need to check the gunshops and auction sites to find one. I had a WIn Featherweight that was sweet.

    Good luck.
    Knowledge I take to my grave is wasted.

    I prefer to use cartridges born before I was.

    Success doesn't make me happy, being happy is what allows me to be successful.

  3. #3
    Boolit Master Scrounger's Avatar
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    There is nothing the 6.5X55 can do that the .270 can't do better. And if you want to load it down to 6.5 ballistics, you can. Or make it an elk rifle with the right bullet. Every company makes one, and a Savage in that caliber would be a lot less expensive than any 6.5. If you're going to handload for it, there's little argument for wanting the rifle in a caliber to match another rifle. I've argued this case to myself for years; the .270 always wins...

  4. #4
    Boolit Buddy

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    Cz 550

    I am happy with the performance of my CZ550 American in 6.5x55.

  5. #5
    Boolit Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by practical_man View Post
    I am happy with the performance of my CZ550 American in 6.5x55.
    I have the CZ 550 FS, (full stock) in 6.5X55, and I am very pleased with it for the money. Especially accuracy wise.

  6. #6
    Boolit Master
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    +1 on Scrounger, I love the 6.5x55 and the CZ 550, but I think that rifle is too big for a youth.
    If you want a sweet one, and you don't mind a little pricy look at the Kimber 84, awesome, accurate, light, and available in 7mm-08, 260 and 257 Roberts, I'd love to have one in the Bob, mine is a 7mm-08 and weighs with a Weaver 3x9 classic and Talley one piece base/ring combo 6.25 lbs.
    Hard to beat a 270 though, and much more available.

  7. #7
    Boolit Master NHlever's Avatar
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    One of the big distributers has some exclusive 6.5x55 Ruger International (full stock) guns available.
    http://www.lipseys.com/itemdetail.as...ems=exclusives

    That is a slick gun.

  8. #8
    Boolit Master




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    All good points, but did you ever pick up a gun and fall into instant love, whatever cal. it was. We are talking a 15 year old kid here. A friend of mine has taken this kid under his wing and he doesn't reload and I don't have anything for a 270. I'm half tempted to give the kid the gun but I like it too much. I really like seeing the youngsters come into hunting though. His parents aren't hunters and neither were mine so I can relate and more power to my friend that is working with him.
    BTW thanks for the replys.

    Bob
    GUNFIRE! The sound of Freedom!

  9. #9
    Boolit Master
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    Nice to see him like walnut and blue too. Not that I don't have my share of stainless and synthetics, but I know what you mean. I took my 13 year old nephew to the gun store last spring and he oogled over a Winchester 1300 I bought for cheap with a walnut stock he just loved. I gave it too him later that night. Nice to see the younguns still like some real wood and blue sometimes, eh!

  10. #10
    Boolit Buddy
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    Finding another sporterized Swede and mounting a Scout scope on it all over is certainly the most economic choice. It may be tough to scrape one up in a hurry, but no tougher than finding a .257 Roberts in any configuration.

    If you want a factory sporter, the least expensive would be the CZ 550 . I recently bought one, used, but like new (in 6.5x55). It cost in the low $600's. The nice part is that it has integral scope bases. Not really a youth economy rifle though.

    It would probably be quickest, and most feasible, to look for a decent off name, used scoped bolt action hunting rifle in .243 Win or .270 Win.

    Good luck.

  11. #11
    Boolit Master
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    Kimber at one time took surplus 6.5 x 55 Mausers and sporterized them. They came in blued and nickel with an aftermarket stock. A guy I was in school with had one. I don't know if you could find one use or not, I have never seen one in a gun shop.

    Exile
    "There is not a single instance in history in which civil liberty was lost, and religious liberty preserved entire. If therefore we yield up our temporal property, we at the same time deliver the conscience into bondage." --John Witherspoon, The Dominion of Providence Over the Passions of Men. 1776

    "The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times." Psalm 12:6 (E.S.V.)

  12. #12
    Boolit Master

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    The 6.5 Cal. is one of the most efficient made. The 6.5X55 has killed almost every species of game there is. In Europe the 6.5 is the STANDARD
    big game caliber. I have several 6.5s in 6.5X55 and 260 Rem. also a 6.5X284.
    It is my favorite caliber. Killed my first deer with a 6.5X55 Swede many many
    years ago.
    If the boy likes it as you say then why not lone it to him for the season.
    This would buy time to find another before next year. The 260 Rem. is one sweet cartridge and I beleive it is available from Rem. A dealer should be able to help
    locate one.
    Larry

  13. #13
    Boolit Master Scrounger's Avatar
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    Boz, an older gun nut like myself brought a bunch of guns into my favorite little gun shop to sell for him. There were some good guns and some good prices. One of them was a Model 96 Swede that had the barrel shortened to 17 or 18 inches and fitted into a Mannlicher type stock, probably Fajen or Bishop. Fitting and finishing was perfectly done and it had a 3 to 9 scope on it. Really nice, so pretty it hurt my eyes. He wanted $250 if i remember correctly. That was 3 weeks ago. If it's still there Thursday, I'll take a picture and send you. Most of the guns were as issued military models. I'll try to get som pictures of some of them too. Another one was an older 1895 Marlin .45-70 in perfect condition for $375.

  14. #14
    Boolit Master Scrounger's Avatar
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    Take a look at this one, it ought to fill the bill well enough: http://www.auctionarms.com/search/di...temnum=8841319

    As a matter of fact, look down these lists of guns for sale at AuctionArms. They are two chains of pawnshops that do all their selling on the internet. They run about 200 guns a week through AuctionArms. It might be worthwhile to bookmark these sites and check them every Friday for things you might like. They list things Monday through Friday and for 7 days each.

    http://www.auctionarms.com/search/au...x?ad=CAF+Sales

    http://www.auctionarms.com/search/au...?&ad=SuperPawn

  15. #15
    Boolit Grand Master In Remembrance Four Fingers of Death's Avatar
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    Get him one of the Marlin XL7s in 270Win. It will do anything the 6.5 will and then some, cheap as chips and works good! Check out the test on gunblast:

    http://www.gunblast.com/Marlin-XL7.htm

    The 270s are sold out here, I'll be getting one asap.
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  16. #16
    Boolit Master
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    A vote for the 6.5x55

    I own a model 70 Fwt in this caliber have since 1984, and have killed a lot of game with this rifle over the years, from Muleys, antelope, Fox, Coyotes, P-Dogs the list goes on. Just sold a 550 american in this caliber to my brother for my nephew he took his first buck with this single set trigger rifle at 235 yrds lazed. Bullet was a 140 gr Game King.

    I was raised on 270's in the Fwt a pre 64 of my Dads used it until I was 22 years old. After buying my first 6.5 and finding that not a 270 made would shoot as accurately as this caliber will I was sold on them. Recoil is less with the 140 gr pill you have 4 more inches of drop at 400 yards then the 130 270 yet have 50 more foot lbs of energy and this is with 10 grains less powder the bullet is that much more efficent. The crosshairs of your scope cover more then 4 inches at 400 yards. I do however handload this caliber. In Swede actions its also an excellent rifle. Had one of the afore mentioned Kimbers made up for my other brother sadly his exwife pawned it in a fit of anger and it was lost in a fire in the pawn shop after the death of my Brother.

    In my Days of High Power Competition my fav 600-800-900-1000 yard bolt gun was a Swede Match Rifle I had imported, using 140 gr match bullets this rifle will shoot into 3/8 of an inch with irons at 100 yards. This is the only rifle I have ever fired Master with in Long Range.

    I also this past week replaced the 550 American that I sold to my youngest brother with a 550FS Lux. The High BC of the 6.5 bullets kill all kinds of out of perportion to its size a 140 has the same BC as a 190 30 cal at the same velocitys. My handloads have taken bull elk and with aplomb.

    My father is 71 years old, and was a 270 man most of his life, Dad was an expert rifleman in the Army and packed an M1D from 1958 to 61. The past 20 years he often grabs my Mod 70 fwt in 6.5x55. That is more testament to this Caliber then I could ever convey.

    Kenny Wasserburger

  17. #17
    Boolit Master
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    No moss grows on the Swede. Bob is a kind and sometimes peculiar fellow sometimes. I've a fondness for the 7X57. I read O'Conner in my youth but never cared for his baby. Mrs. O'Conner carried a mouser of the ordinary variety. Quite a woman and from what I've read, a better shot than Jack.

    Pressure is the root of many a ruint barrel lads.
    I have danced with the Devil. She had excellent attorneys.

  18. #18
    Boolit Master
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    WUT! KW shootin them things. True confessions of a BPCR man. I guess we all have our weeknesses. Dont worry we wont spread it arround.
    BIC/BS

  19. #19
    Boolit Master GabbyM's Avatar
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    6.5x57 is still strong in High power rifle competition. In a modern arm they run the pressure up to 52K for the long range match. But then you're just shooting another barrel burner. Less than 2K rounds per barrel. Any young boy/man can shoot that in a month.

    Get a 308 with 12 twist barrel and shoot boolits. The savage Scout Rifle would be ideal but it has a 10 twist barrel.

    I've a Seaco plain based 140 grain 30 caliber you can shoot over a few grains of Unique for the cost of pistol ammo. Great blasting fun for a yungun. Load the rifle up from their for whatever the hunt requires.
    Last edited by GabbyM; 10-15-2008 at 12:55 AM. Reason: sp

  20. #20
    Boolit Master twotrees's Avatar
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    Check out Tika/ Sako

    The Wife hunts with a Tika in 6.5X55 and it is a shooting son of a gun.
    TwoTrees

    "Hold my beer and watch this!!"

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