6.5-284 Norma Best All-Round Cartridge

[flatwater bill]

As the author said about the 6.5x284...................."It isn't a true short action cartridge"............and in fact, for most action makes, it will require a long action. The rebated rim means feeding requires a good mag follower and spring, and often a magazine block to shorten the mag of a long action so cartridges don't tilt. Don't let the spring get weak on this one. .....So if you need a long action anyway..... and especially if you want to reload..........choose a different round. The .264 bullets are the real deal so...........go with the 6.5 06AI. It out performs the Norma, can be made from 06 or 270 brass, needs no magazine block, and feeds slick as bacon fat.....FWB

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Its a fun round for sure but my 257 WBY "juiced" will certainly take care of most business....

@Gemsbok Gangsta
Its good to see that someone else likes a fast 25. A nice well constructed 120 grain like the the Sirroco or A Frame @3,300+ fps certainly shoots flat and hits hard enough for deer size and bigger game out to any SENSIBLE HUNTING range.
Bob

 

[Happy Myles]

During the past few years, I had read with interest articles extolling the virtues of the 6.5 Creedmoor and the 6.5x284 Norma cartridges. A few years ago I had a 6.5x284 crafted by a fine gun maker. It is a fine rifle and accurate under an inch at 100 yards. I am a hunter not a competitor but do spend a lot of time at the range. Two years ago I spent my 81 birthday on a 21 day Tanzania safari i took the 6.5 for plains game along with my 416 Remington for Cape buffalo.
Eight head of plains game fell with eight shots all well placed hits. I used 140 grains Swift A Frames on four animals and 140 grain Berger LR on four head. The animals varied from a bush pig to a Sable. The Sable ran a hundred yards and was standing with head down. Must confess I shot an extra unneeded shot and it collapsed. I felt the A Frames had better terminal impact over the Bergers. I had not used the 416 Rem often in past years, taking only two previous Cape buffalo with that caliber among the scores of Buff I have taken. This trip I shot four more with no problems.
My curriculum vitae of big game hunting includes using many different cartridges all over the world. Especially Africa where I believe have hunted most hunt-able countries several times over. Hasten to add, do not profess to know anything but have put in the time and effort. Did not make it to Africa this past year for the first time in fifty years because I had the Covid virus.
If I manage to make it this year will go back to using my 300 Win Mag, a proper hit and the animal knows its dead. Also I will go back to my 416 Rigby for Buff because, well, you cannot teach an old dog new tricks. Kindest Regards to all.

 

[C.W. Richter]

'Have a lot of experience with hot .264s and a good friend loves his standard .284. The factory ammo stats are rather bland. When handloaded, the .284 (in any form) becomes a short magnum. Pet loads in my .264 WSM and a friend's .264 RSAUM are in the 3,150 fps range (and will do 3,200-3,300 but accuracy drops off, and the extra V isn't necessary to maintain proper V and E for hunting out to <1,000 yds. As you can see below, the 6.5-284 is capable of a lot more than factory ammo specs! (Same V as a properly handloaded .284.) The difference is in the higher BC and SD of the 6.5 bullets. Grain for grain, it will perform a tad better, terminally-especially on the longer shots! I've used hot 6.5s for everything from dik-dik to giraffe to good effect (and of course same for antelope-deer-black bear in America.) It'll kill elk-caribou-moose-goat-sheep with no issue. The .284 case was before its time.... The above is just another article trying to sell something, but the big cased 6.5s are no slouches (they just get started at 300 yds!) Larger than 130 gr bullets are recommended (140-160 gr) as they will carry more V and E (and shoot flatter, outpenetrate the 7 with the higher SD) out far....

 

[Safari Dave]

Just give me a .30/06 and I'll be fine.

 

[Areaonereal]

The 6.5x284 is a very accurate, hard on barrels rifle, but does have modest recoil and a perfect long range Antelope gun. But..there are others as good. Choices, choices. Best suited to a long action to seat those 140 grainers, gives up a lot in a short action. Plenty of free bore and you are in business. A nice caliber with a few drawbacks.

 

[F. Vaccaro]

I have two friends who shoot the 6.5-06. If I wanted more steam than the Creedmoor & more blast & recoil, I’d get a 6.5-06 it’s an awesome ctg, any .30-06 action should work.

 

[Finprof]

I built a 6.5x284 after having 2 6.5x55 rifles- one for silhouette and one for hunting This was before the 6.5 PRC came out. Both the 6.5x284 and PRC fit between the Swede and 260 Nosler and are almost interchangeable. Ron Spomer didn’t talk a lot about the PRC in his story.
Short action magazines vary by caliber. The Remington 700 is 2.8 inches. The Savage is almost 3 inches - more like an intermediate action. The same is true of many of the custom actions like Mack. The 6.5x284 and PRC fit well in these actions, unlike the Remington.