History
Hornady introduced the 6.5 Creedmoor in 2007. The idea took shape at the 2005 National Matches at Camp Perry, where Hornady ballistician Dave Emary and Dennis DeMille of Creedmoor Sports sketched a cartridge that would feed long, high-ballistic coefficient 6.5mm bullets from a short action without the compromises shooters lived with at the time.1
The brief was specific. It had to fit a short-action magazine, recoil softly enough for rapid fire, use nothing proprietary, resist throat erosion, and cost about what a box of .308 cost. Emary held the shoulder to 30 degrees to ease manufacture and built it on the .30 TC case, which was just short enough to leave room for those long ogives. The goal, in his words, was one cartridge for anything out to 1,000 yards.1
It worked. The 6.5 Creedmoor became the cartridge that taught a generation of shooters to dial and read wind, and it now anchors factory precision rifles the way the .308 once did.
Lineage
The 6.5 Creedmoor is the .30 TC case necked down to 6.5mm with a 30 degree shoulder, and the .30 TC itself descends from the .308 Winchester family.1 It pushes a .264 inch (6.5mm) bullet, the same bore shared by the .260 Remington, the 6.5x55 Swede, and the later 6.5 PRC. Necked down one more step to 6mm, the same case becomes the 6mm Creedmoor.
Specifications
| Spec | Value |
|---|---|
| Case type | Rimless, bottlenecked |
| Bullet diameter | 6.71 mm (.264 in) |
| Neck diameter | 7.49 mm (.2949 in) |
| Base diameter | 11.95 mm (.4705 in) |
| Rim diameter | 11.99 mm (.4720 in) |
| Case length | 48.77 mm (1.920 in) |
| Overall length | 71.76 mm (2.825 in) |
| Case capacity | ~52.5 gr H2O (nominal; varies by brand) |
| Primer size | Large rifle |
| Belted | No |
| Rifling twist | 1 in 8 in (203 mm, SAAMI and C.I.P. standard)2 |
| Max pressure | 62,000 psi (SAAMI); 4,350 bar / 435 MPa (C.I.P.)2 |
| Recommended barrel | 26 in, 1:8 twist |
Barrel Design
The 6.5 Creedmoor is efficient, and the 1:8 twist is the whole point. Hornady specified it to SAAMI so every factory rifle would stabilize the long 140 to 147 grain match bullets the cartridge was built around, and that is what makes a box of factory ammo shoot like a handload.
For barrel length, 24 to 26 inches is the working range. A 24 inch barrel handles well and gives up little; 26 inches squeezes out the last bit of velocity that keeps the bullet supersonic and the wind drift down at distance. For the long-range mission this site is built around I put the baseline at 26 inches, and the tables below are computed there.
Range Ammo Performance
Winchester Deer Season XP · 125 gr Extreme Point $0.95/rd
| Range (yd) | Velocity (fps) | Elevation (mil) | Energy (ft-lb) | Windage (mil) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 2900 | -0.4 | 2334 | 0.3 |
| 100 | 2742 | 0.0 | 2086 | 0.2 |
| 200 | 2588 | -0.4 | 1859 | 0.3 |
| 300 | 2440 | -1.0 | 1653 | 0.5 |
| 400 | 2297 | -1.7 | 1465 | 0.7 |
| 500 | 2159 | -2.5 | 1293 | 0.9 |
| 600 | 2025 | -3.4 | 1138 | 1.1 |
| 700 | 1897 | -4.4 | 998 | 1.4 |
| 800 | 1774 | -5.5 | 873 | 1.6 |
| 900 | 1657 | -6.7 | 762 | 1.9 |
| 1000 | 1547 | -8.0 | 664 | 2.2 |
| 1100 | 1445 | -9.4 | 579 | 2.5 |
| 1200 | 1351 | -11.0 | 507 | 2.8 |
| 1300 | 1267 | -12.8 | 446 | 3.1 |
| 1400 | 1195 | -14.7 | 396 | 3.5 |
| 1500 | 1133 | -16.9 | 357 | 3.9 |
| 1600 | 1083 | -19.2 | 326 | 4.2 |
| 1700 | 1041 | -21.8 | 301 | 4.6 |
Muzzle velocity 2900 fps is estimated at 26 in from the 24 in factory figure of 2850 fps at about 25 fps per inch. Expect your own barrel to read a little differently. Velocity is color coded green supersonic, yellow transonic, red subsonic; treat transonic and subsonic rows as approximate.
Match Ammo Performance
Hornady Match · 147 gr ELD Match $1.66/rd
| Range (yd) | Velocity (fps) | Elevation (mil) | Energy (ft-lb) | Windage (mil) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 2745 | -0.4 | 2459 | 0.3 |
| 100 | 2622 | 0.0 | 2244 | 0.1 |
| 200 | 2502 | -0.4 | 2043 | 0.3 |
| 300 | 2385 | -1.1 | 1857 | 0.5 |
| 400 | 2271 | -1.9 | 1684 | 0.6 |
| 500 | 2161 | -2.7 | 1524 | 0.8 |
| 600 | 2054 | -3.6 | 1377 | 1.0 |
| 700 | 1950 | -4.6 | 1241 | 1.2 |
| 800 | 1848 | -5.7 | 1115 | 1.4 |
| 900 | 1749 | -6.8 | 998 | 1.6 |
| 1000 | 1652 | -8.1 | 891 | 1.8 |
| 1100 | 1558 | -9.4 | 792 | 2.0 |
| 1200 | 1466 | -10.9 | 701 | 2.3 |
| 1300 | 1376 | -12.5 | 618 | 2.6 |
| 1400 | 1290 | -14.2 | 543 | 2.8 |
| 1500 | 1207 | -16.1 | 476 | 3.2 |
| 1600 | 1131 | -18.2 | 417 | 3.5 |
| 1700 | 1081 | -20.5 | 381 | 3.8 |
Muzzle velocity 2745 fps is estimated at 26 in from the 24 in factory figure of 2695 fps at about 25 fps per inch. Expect your own barrel to read a little differently. Velocity is color coded green supersonic, yellow transonic, red subsonic; treat transonic and subsonic rows as approximate.
Trajectory
FAQ
What twist rate does the 6.5 Creedmoor need?
One turn in 8 inches. It is the SAAMI and C.I.P. standard,2 and it stabilizes the heavy, high-BC 140 to 147 grain bullets that make the cartridge worth shooting at distance.
Is the 6.5 Creedmoor the same as the .260 Remington?
No, though both fire .264 inch bullets. The .260 is a .308 necked to 6.5mm with a longer body that crowds magazine length, while the Creedmoor uses the shorter .30 TC case and a sharper 30 degree shoulder, leaving room to seat long bullets in a short action.1
How far does it stay supersonic?
With match ammo from a 26 inch barrel it holds supersonic velocity to roughly 1,300 to 1,400 yards under typical conditions, which is why it built its reputation as a 1,000 yard cartridge that anyone can shoot.
Why pick the 6.5 Creedmoor over the 6.5 PRC?
The Creedmoor recoils less, burns less powder, and lasts longer in the barrel. The PRC pushes the same bullets faster and reaches farther, but with more recoil and shorter barrel life.
Citations
- (2017). The 6.5 Creedmoor: An Interview with Dave Emary. Hornady. accessed 2026-05-30.
- (2020). C.I.P. TDCC Datasheet — 6.5 Creedmoor. Commission Internationale Permanente (C.I.P.). accessed 2026-05-30.