6.5 Creedmoor Aoudad factory ammo

[kipper09]

Getting ready to book an Aoudad hunt in West Texas. Wanted to see if anybody had input on using the 6.5 Creedmoor for this hunt? And also what factory ammo? I bought the rifle to be an all around rifle to use for about everything. Gun shoots lights out with 129 grain hornady whitetail, which is the only ammo I’ve shot through it.. I appreciate any input on both questions.
Thanks


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[mt100gr.]

....auto correct is awesome....

I will be in NM in 2 weeks and my buddy will be packing a 6.5. He handloads with 142 grain ABLR so I won't have a factory ammo report but hopefully I can provide a terminal performance report on that bullet that you could parallel for the factory offering as well as a report on that chambering for that specific use. I have no doubts on the latter.

 

[kipper09]

Hahaha. That was a world class auto correct. I appreciate a report when you have it.


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[JWP58]

Whatever your gun shoots the best. Dont over think it, they aren't too hard to kill. Put it where it counts and you'll have a dead sheep, be it an eldx, hornady wt, accubond, berger, whatever.

 

[MTGunner]

Took an Aoudad in 2011 with my 300WSM with handloaded 180 gr. accubonds. The range was approx. 250 yds. plus. One shot and he was down. I believe the 6.5 Creedmore with your accuracy load, shot placement being the most important issue, would suffice if at reasonable distance. You would know what distance you are comfortable to shoot. Do not own a Creedmore, but do have a 260AI that is a true tack driver and my go to rifle for deer sized animals. Go for it! MTG

 

[FlyGuy]

Getting ready to book an Aoudad hunt in West Texas. Wanted to see if anybody had input on using the 6.5 Creedmoor for this hunt? And also what factory ammo? I bought the rifle to be an all around rifle to use for about everything. Gun shoots lights out with 129 grain hornady whitetail, which is the only ammo I’ve shot through it.. I appreciate any input on both questions.
Thanks


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You might talk with your outfitter 1st. I just got back from an Aoudad hunt yesterday. All the outfitters I talked to when booking had a minimum requirement of 30 cal or greater so I'd make sure he's going to be ok with it.

This was my 1st experience with Aoudad and I am pretty impressed with these critters. I shot mine at 420 yards using a 300 WSM with 200 gr Hornady ammo. They want you to aim for a high shoulder impact to anchor them, not the typical double lung shot that I am used to taking. Anyway, mine was quartering away, so I put it through his back ribs with the intent of breaking the offside shoulder. He dropped right there pretty soon and my guide was convinced that he was dead. I fell victim to his optimism and we started walked up to recover him after only about 10 minutes (trust your guide, right?). Well, as we are making our way along I hear him yell, "Shoot that Ram!", and look up to see my ram bail off the side of a cliff. No blood. Doesn't even act hurt. We sneak around and eventually find him standing directly below us hiding under the cliff ledge. He makes a run for it and Then things got a little western.

I hit him again free handed at 100 yards out on a dead run. As I was well above him the Bullet impacted just behind the shoulders and right next to the spine. That one should have stopped him dead but it didn't phase him at all. Thinking that I'd missed, I lead him further out on the next shot at about 130 free handed, and did miss out in front. Now I'm thinking this thing is going to get away and I'm down to my last shell in the magazine so I better make this one count. I'm still shooting at a very steep downward angle, so I Sat down on a rock and got my front elbow rested on my knee. As he made a turn to the right at 150 yards I put one in his shoulder to finally roll him.

The crazy thing is, upon investigation All three rounds hit him in the boiler room, but Not a single round exited the chest cavity. I couldn't believe it. I'm confident that the 1st shot would have killed him if we'd just given him enough time, but the fact that he took that many rounds without a single exit wound really has me scratching my head. They have earned my respect for sure!

Anyway, I don't have a 6.5 so I don't know what it's capable of, but talk to your guide and see what he thinks. What I understand is that if you don't knock them down then the odds of recovery start dropping quickly as they will cover too much ground to find them before they bleed out.

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[JWP58]

Creedmoor's are capable of effectively killing elk, aoudad isnt a stretch i dont think. I killed a ram in 17 with the lowly and anemic 308win with 165gr accubonds.

My hunting partner dropped two in two shots at about 450 with a 7mag sshooting berger vld's.

 

[wind gypsy]

FlyGuy, were you using the Eldx and did you recover any of the bullets?

 

[LIWolverine]

Lots of guys here in TX use 22-250 and 243. 6.5 is plenty. If he doesn’t go down right away shoot again. They are tough but not bullet proof in any way. Factory ammo Id recommend ELDX


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[4IDARCHER]

I have taken 2 Aoudad, both with my bow. I am completely confident that if a rage broadhead can put an aoudad down so can a 6.5 Creedmore, just aim like you would with a whitetail and have fun they are a blast to get within 30 yards.

 

[kipper09]

A lot of different takes on these animals out there. I read a lot that a minimum of 30 caliber is suggested. I have several rifles I could take but just been loving the feel of the 6.5 Barrett fieldcraft. Thought I would get some other opinions.


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[V65Magna]

. Well, as we are making our way along I hear him yell, "Shoot that Ram!", and look up to see my ram bail off the side of a cliff. No blood. Doesn't even act hurt. We sneak around and eventually find him standing directly below us hiding under the cliff ledge. He makes a run for it and Then things got a little western.

I hit him again free handed at 100 yards out on a dead run. As I was well above him the Bullet impacted just behind the shoulders and right next to the spine. That one should have stopped him dead but it didn't phase him at all. Thinking that I'd missed, I lead him further out on the next shot at about 130 free handed, and did miss out in front. Now I'm thinking this thing is going to get away and I'm down to my last shell in the magazine so I better make this one count. I'm still shooting at a very steep downward angle, so I Sat down on a rock and got my front elbow rested on my knee. As he made a turn to the right at 150 yards I put one in his shoulder to finally roll him.

The crazy thing is, upon investigation All three rounds hit him in the boiler room, but Not a single round exited the chest cavity. I couldn't believe it. I'm confident that the 1st shot would have killed him if we'd just given him enough time, but the fact that he took that many rounds without a single exit wound really has me scratching my head. They have earned my respect for sure!

Anyway, I don't have a 6.5 so I don't know what it's capable of, but talk to your guide and see what he thinks. What I understand is that if you don't knock them down then the odds of recovery start dropping quickly as they will cover too much ground to find them before they bleed out.

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It seems that sometimes, no matter what we expect, the "will to live" prevails. I've never shot an Aoudad (actually had to Google them to find out what they hell they were) but have shot scores of whitetail at various ranges with all manner of caliber. On more than one occasion, I've had animals absorb a lot more lead than I would have thought possible before yielding up the ghost. Just this past Sunday, my son put a 100 grain Speer through the thoracic cavity of a whitetail at 220 yards (.243), 2" from her heart. No blood trail, no hair at the site.....nothing. We searched for 2 hrs that night, humping the briars with our head lamps, to no avail. We recovered her the next morning but she went one hell of a long way after crossing a pretty big stream. She had been hit in the lobes of both lungs. In retrospect, I think I have that Speer loaded too hot, as there was not much of an exit wound. I'm going back to a 95 grain partition for all my 6 mm's as a result.

Anyway, if Aoudad are relatively thin-skinned, I think a 6.5 would seal the deal with room to spare. I'm using a 123 grain SST in my 6.5 and the terminal performance has been devastating out to 400 yards. YMMV.

 

[Boreal]

Lots of guys here in TX use 22-250 and 243. 6.5 is plenty. If he doesn’t go down right away shoot again. They are tough but not bullet proof in any way. Factory ammo Id recommend ELDX


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My experience with the ELDX from a 6.5CM put me off those bullets. Five black tailed deer, separation on all five. Ranges from 50-200 yards. I’m not discounting anyone else’s experience, but I think those bullets are really designed for longer range shots and have a potential to fail at closer range, before the bullet slows down. I’m loading 130gr SledgeHammers from Hammer bullets and love the performance.


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[4IDARCHER]

I certainly wouldn’t advocate the common love Texas has for shooting big game with varmint cartridges, but I agree most any flavor of 6.5 should get it done nicely. The difference between the different 6.5’s being range. I much, much prefer to get within 30 yards and shoot them with my bow but if I ever choose to take a rifle after them it very well could be one of the 6.5’s. In factory ammo I would lean towards a bonded bullet or one of the various monolithic choices but that is mostly because I prefer to stalk in close and enjoy the “hunt” part of the hunting. At a little longer range I have seen excellent acccuracy from 2 different 6.5 with the SST Hornady bullet.

 

[luke moffat]

My experience with the ELDX from a 6.5CM put me off those bullets. Five black tailed deer, separation on all five. Ranges from 50-200 yards. I’m not discounting anyone else’s experience, but I think those bullets are really designed for longer range shots and have a potential to fail at closer range, before the bullet slows down. I’m loading 130gr SledgeHammers from Hammer bullets and love the performance.


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That sucks you lost 5 deer from that bullet. I used the same bullet on 9 deer and 6 caribou and a grizzly bear this year with great results and didn’t lose a single animal due to them. I would shy away from them as well if it wasn’t killing game for me or exiting even at close range like that.

 

[FlyGuy]

FlyGuy, were you using the Eldx and did you recover any of the bullets?

Yes, it was their factory 200 gr Precision Hunter ammo (I don't reload).

No, I did not recover any of them. Wish I would have. Thought one would be close to the surface and easy to retrieve, but I rolled him around after the hide was off and couldn't find one anywhere. It was getting late so I said screw it and left without digging around in there for one.

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[Boreal]

I should make it clear that all five deer were recovered. So from the harvest standpoint, the bullets delivered. I simply did not expect such separation from the ELDX, and since I don't shoot at animals at longer ranges, such that the bullet velocity is reduced significantly, I don't think the ELDX is the right bullet for my application. That's probably the better way to state what I intended. The bullets clearly work for some, like Luke, and since I reload it's easy for me to trade the remaining ELDX bullets I have for the Cutting Edge bullets he's got (I know I still owe that story and beer!). In any event, there are a number of good factory ammo choices for the 6.5CM, including the ELDX, SST, Nosler AB, and Barnes TTSX. I'm sure the OP will be able to find the right ammunition for that hunt. Just make sure you post pictures!

 

[Cdpp880]

I used to guide aoudad hunt and have seen many killed. The bigger rams are tough animals but not crazy tough. They do have pretty thick shoulder blade so a fragile bullet may not get much penitration if hit in the middle of the shoulder. I witnessed 2shot with nosler ballistic tips (one 130gr 270 the other in 180gr 30-06). Both did not get much penetration but did kill both animals, they just ran a long way before they died with very little blood trail. I would recommend a bonded bullet like a partition, accubond, Barnes.... I killed a few with a 25-06 120gr partition with no problem.

 

[kipper09]

Looking at factory ammo there doesn’t appear to be a ton of bonded bullets. Found some accubonds. Not sure what else is out there?? Is the eldx a bonded bullet? Found some 120 grain trophy copper tip. Not sure if that’s a bonded bullet?.?. Hate to sound ignorant but I’m not positive I know exactly what bullets are bonded.


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[Boreal]

Bonded bullets simply have the lead core chemically bonded to the jacket. The Accubond is a good example. It's designed to keep the core from separating from the jacket. The ELDX is not bonded, but contains what Hornady calls an "interlock ring" to keep the core and jacket together. I got separation of the core from the jacket using factory ELDX on blacktailed deer in Kodiak. Still made the harvest, so who knows if the separation is problematic. You could also consider monolithic, brass bullets like the Barnes TTSX. They are one piece of metal, so nothing to separate. I like them, others feel like they don't expand enough. YMMV.