The 260 Rem is DEAD !!

F

fourbore

New member
Dang! I just purchased a per-owned Savage in 260 Rem. The shop did not stock the ammo. No problem. I stop at cabelas to peruse the 260 options and select a 'few' loads to test for accuracy. No choices at cabelas! It is A or B, take it or leave it.

There is a grand total of one box of Remington green box, corelock, I guess and that was $40. I dont like those. There was one choice for match shooting from Hornady, 30 gr eld for $30. I look on line and Hornady does not offer white tail in 260 and just two or three loads. I digress, back at cableas I ask if they normally carry other loads. The clerk says maybe one other load. Then he points out a whole shelf of 6.5 creedmore. I might guess 20 or 30 or more loads to choose from. He says the 260 is dead, the world has gone creedmore. Ok.

Now, I have a choice, reload 260 or rebarrel to 243. Not a big problem but a little surprise for me. And why am I surprised you ask? Seems I read some discussion around the 260 and no one actually came out and decalred the 260 dead. Well it is, they just did not have the funeral yet. I did read the 6.5 was very popular. I did not pick up on the flip side, the 260 was dead.

It kinda too bad, I like how the 243,260,7mm,308,358 all share the same case dimensions and go/nogo gauge. Life is what it is. perhaps, I could try setting back the barrel and reaming to creedmore. That would be something new for me. And if I screw it up, get a 243 barrel.
 
I would just reload for it. It's a great round but America seems to have a love/hate relationship with any 6.5 round even when it is named imperically.

At least you can use 308 brass. I feel sorry for the creedmoor crowd in a few years .
 
The 260 simply never caught on. It is a good enough round, but the 6.5 Creedmoor addresses all of the 260's shortcomings and will be the final nail in the coffin.

If you hand load and don't want or need bullets heavier than about 120-130 gr the 260 will do anything the 6.5 will do. Brass made from 308 is readily available as are 6.5 bullets.

If buying a rifle today I'd not touch a 260 with the 6.5 Creed available. But if I had one that I liked I'd probably not sell it either. The 260 was the inspiration for the 6.5 anyway. Long range target shooters discovered what the 260 could do, but to get best results required custom rifles and custom hand loads. The 6.5 Creed simply offers factory rifles and loads duplicating what the 260 target shooters were already doing.

Remington screwed up the 260's chances by not offering guns and ammo for their creation. Ruger, Savage and others have offered very accurate 6.5 Creed rifles at good prices from the beginning and Hornady flooded store shelves with match grade ammo selling at very good prices.
 
I have never even seen a 260 or a 6.5 Creedmore. Handload either one would be good but lot easier to get brass for the 260! What are the 260 fault's that the Creedmore address? I have the 6.5x55, 6.5x06 And if I got another, it would be the 260. Remington should have called it the 6.5 Express!
 
Jmr40,


I'm confused by your statement of the creedmoor being able to handle heavier bullets or that it is somehow superior. The Creedmoor is a great little round but it is simply the 6.5 dejour.

260, x55, and creedmoor are all ballistic brothers. The rifles differ much more than the rounds.
 
I think Magazine Writers are the reason for what is popular or what is out.
Such was the fate of the .220 Swift, still the best .22 going.
Remember the Creedmore Matches. Lets call the .6.5 the 6.5 Creedmore, everyone has vague image of a long range shoots and accurate rifles.
Take the .280 stick some rails on it and three or four sighting devices, on a bipod and stupid looking cut away stock and concentrate on making some 1000 yard shots. Never ind how many it takes.a
Get your shooting buddies to post online about how terrific the round is and the impossible shots, rinse and repeat over six months.The Magazine Writers typewriters will rediscover the magic .260. Wally or Wala, etc the stores will have all kinds of .260 rifles and rounds in six month to a year.
personally I'm thinking of shooting elephants with the .243 super duper magnum, at a thousand yards.
 
While you can get a longer bullet in the Creedmoor due to the shorter case, I have no problems loading the Berger 140vld to mag length in my Savage 260.

As mentioned, Remington screwed up when they introduced it, just like many of their other cartridges, 6mm Rem, 6.8spc, 30rar, etc.

While it was never hugely popular, the 260 is far from dead, and as long as 308 brass is available it's a simple neck down to get brass.

http://demigodllc.com/articles/6.5-shootout-260-6.5x47-6.5-creedmoor/
 
Break out the dead horse and the stick...

I've been saying it ever since the man bun of a Creedmore was first drooled over on here.
The only reason the Creed exists is so the AR guys can load the long heavy bullets in 6.5mm and still fit in their magazine.

That's it! Nothing else!

For a bolt gun i'll take the 260 Rem anyday.
Or better yet..
The 6.5X57 Mauser. Not a 257-6.5. Not the 6mm Rem 6.5.
The original, not a wildcat, made in 1893 or there abouts.
 
Reload.

Then you'll find yourself in a free fall down the rabbit hole, one day wondering how you ever got to the point of buying $2+ per piece 6mm Lee Navy brass, or building a custom annealing fixture because .577-450 is one tenth the cost when made from 24 ga brass shot shells, rather than buying bespoke Bertram or Jamison brass at $8 per case.
 
shortcomings

jmr40

What exactly are the "shortcomings" of the .260 Rem? Not being sarcastic either. Without a lot of research, seems like on the surface the .260 delivers the same bullet weights as the 6.5 CRM (of course) but with slightly higher velocities across the board. For a hunter, with typical low round counts and strings of fire as opposed to a match shooter, isn't that a decided plus over the CRM? Too, wouldn't a hunter with a bolt rifle be little concerned about cartridge length?

Again, not being critical or sarcastic, just curious as to what I am missing.
 
Other than the variety of .264 projectiles, I havent found any good reason these 2 cartridges are any better than the .270 win.
The 6.506 comes closest, but it has only the bullet variety thing going for it.
I like the modest recoil of my 6.5 Creedmoor, but its advantage over anything 6.5 is minute really.
The 6.5x55 Swede is a better hunting cartidge with the history of taking moose for over a century, and I found that cartridge a pleasure to load and shoot.
 
The .260 Rem is having a resurgence, due to the AR10 platform, according to this month's Guns and Ammo magazine.

I don't have any experience with the cartridge.
 
It's not dead. It's not even sick. It's still very popular here in Wyoming for deer and antelope, and I know a few men and ladies using it for elk. The 6.5 CM works better in a NATO length detachable mag with heavy bullets than a 260 does in the same mag. But in standard bolt guns, the CM does nothing any better than the 250 and in some cases not as much. Not that it matters any, as the ballistics are so close it's irrelevant.

Personally I like the 6.5X55 better than either one. But I'd be happy with any of the 3.
 
Wyosmith said:
It's not dead. It's not even sick. It's still very popular here in Wyoming for deer and antelope, and I know a few men and ladies using it for elk. The 6.5 CM works better in a NATO length detachable mag with heavy bullets than a 260 does in the same mag. But in standard bolt guns, the CM does nothing any better than the 250 and in some cases not as much. Not that it matters any, as the ballistics are so close it's irrelevant.

Personally I like the 6.5X55 better than either one. But I'd be happy with any of the 3.
Click to expand...

Well that makes more sense to me. In a bolt action anything the CM can do the 260 might be able to do a bit better because of more case capacity? And that doesn't amount to much, difference amount's to about .745". Get your caliper out and open it .745" and that the difference! I think it was Hornady that brought out the CM? They did a great job of BSing shooter's! :-) I love Hornady bullet's, all I hunt with. If you look up the OLL of both, yu'll find them exactly the same 2.800". This great advantage is a case that is made shorter for a cartridge that is designed for a CM but the thing is the same. Onr the bullet is out of the case .745" more and one the bullet is seated .745" more. Some advantage!

I also like the 6.5x55 but maybe it's because I'm old. If the 260 had been around when I got my last 6.5x55, I'd maybe have got it, easy t make case's for!
 
bedlamite said:
While you can get a longer bullet in the Creedmoor due to the shorter case, I have no problems loading the Berger 140vld to mag length in my Savage 260.

As mentioned, Remington screwed up when they introduced it, just like many of their other cartridges, 6mm Rem, 6.8spc, 30rar, etc.

While it was never hugely popular, the 260 is far from dead, and as long as 308 brass is available it's a simple neck down to get brass.

http://demigodllc.com/articles/6.5-shootout-260-6.5x47-6.5-creedmoor/
Click to expand...

That is a good article! Pertty much say the way the 6.5 CM and 260 were introduced is the only real difference in them.
 
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