Choose my next rifle

[Kbhillhunter]

Looking for a companion rifle for my Tikka 308. Next rifle will also be a Tikka, and I'm partial to the compact for the 20" barrels. Primary decision is 223 vs 6.5 creedmoor.

The 308 has me pretty well set for almost all the hunting I do so the primary function of this rifle would be for target practice and then as my kids get older, ideally something they could learn to shoot on and possibly hunt with if they choose to. I'm in the north east so this is going to be a whitetail rifle for most of its useful life.

I'm partial to the 223 for low recoil and lower cost of ammo (I don't reload). Seems like the 6.5 might offer more flexibility from a hunting standpoint, though the ammo tends to be more expensive given its primary function as target shooting.

Am I missing anything?

 

[hereinaz]

Looking for a companion rifle for my Tikka 308. Next rifle will also be a Tikka, and I'm partial to the compact for the 20" barrels. Primary decision is 223 vs 6.5 creedmoor.

The 308 has me pretty well set for almost all the hunting I do so the primary function of this rifle would be for target practice and then as my kids get older, ideally something they could learn to shoot on and possibly hunt with if they choose to. I'm in the north east so this is going to be a whitetail rifle for most of its useful life.

I'm partial to the 223 for low recoil and lower cost of ammo (I don't reload). Seems like the 6.5 might offer more flexibility from a hunting standpoint, though the ammo tends to be more expensive given its primary function as target shooting.

Am I missing anything?

Have you read the .223 on bear, moose, and elk thread by @PNWGATOR?

If you don’t need better long range effectiveness than a .308, then you don’t need the 6.5. The .233 will be closer ballistically to the .308 as well for practice and learning.

 

[Kbhillhunter]

Have you read the .223 on bear, moose, and elk thread by @PNWGATOR?

If you don’t need better long range effectiveness than a .308, then you don’t need the 6.5. The .233 will be closer ballistically to the .308 as well for practice and learning.

Yeah I've been haunting that thread for a while now. That's kind of the direction was leaning too. I think like most I have ambitions to shoot longer range but the practical limitations of not having access to a range more than 400 yards means there's be too much redundancy with the 6.5, which is why I was also leaning towards 223.

 

[hereinaz]

Yeah I've been haunting that thread for a while now. That's kind of the direction was leaning too. I think like most I have ambitions to shoot longer range but the practical limitations of not having access to a range more than 400 yards means there's be too much redundancy with the 6.5, which is why I was also leaning towards 223.

You want the 6.5, but it’s the .223. Pull the trigger and you’ll be happy like so many others.

Especially with kids coming along. And, cost.

 

[keystone112]

No thoughts on a 243 Win?

 

[Kbhillhunter]

No thoughts on a 243 Win?

To be honest not really just because I assumed it's easier to get bulk ammo in the other two, although I know a lot of guys that hunt with the 243 with great success.

 

[Kbhillhunter]

You want the 6.5, but it’s the .223.

Yeah I feel like you cut right through the noise with that. The 223 seems like it will fit more of a gap.

 

[keystone112]

Ammo would be less available, I would agree.

I mentioned 243 as I think it offers a good companion for your 308. The 6.5 seems to do a lot of the same things. A good 6mm can be very effective and versatile.

 

[hereinaz]

Yeah I feel like you cut right through the noise with that. The 223 seems like it will fit more of a gap.

With kids and a 400 yard range, plus the cost and effectiveness of a .223 fit the bill perfectly. It’s hard to “feel” the decision up front, but it is highly unlikely you will regret getting a .223.

If you get a 6.5 or .243, they aren’t bad decisions but that .223 thread would bug you and you would second guess it.

Once you get the .223, you may still have the desire to get the 6.5 creed, but you won’t be fooling yourself that you are getting it for your kids and practice inside 400 yards…

The door to Guns Anonymous is open all day, lol. I only say that cause I fight my own justifications and then have gear I didn’t shoot and end up selling later. Usually my friends benefit from my impulses, lol.

 

[Kbhillhunter]

With kids and a 400 yard range, plus the cost and effectiveness of a .223 fit the bill perfectly. It’s hard to “feel” the decision up front, but it is highly unlikely you will regret getting a .223.

If you get a 6.5 or .243, they aren’t bad decisions but that .223 thread would bug you and you would second guess it.

Once you get the .223, you may still have the desire to get the 6.5 creed, but you won’t be fooling yourself that you are getting it for your kids and practice inside 400 yards…

The door to Guns Anonymous is open all day, lol. I only say that cause I fight my own justifications and then have gear I didn’t shoot and end up selling later. Usually my friends benefit from my impulses, lol.

Yeah this forum costs me so much damn money haha

 

[hereinaz]

Yeah this forum costs me so much damn money haha

No. Kidding.

 

[wind gypsy]

Agree, the 223 will be more enjoyed/used than a 6.5 likely would be. Mine is waiting on a new tube and I’ve been missing it!

 

[roosiebull]

Looking for a companion rifle for my Tikka 308. Next rifle will also be a Tikka, and I'm partial to the compact for the 20" barrels. Primary decision is 223 vs 6.5 creedmoor.

The 308 has me pretty well set for almost all the hunting I do so the primary function of this rifle would be for target practice and then as my kids get older, ideally something they could learn to shoot on and possibly hunt with if they choose to. I'm in the north east so this is going to be a whitetail rifle for most of its useful life.

I'm partial to the 223 for low recoil and lower cost of ammo (I don't reload). Seems like the 6.5 might offer more flexibility from a hunting standpoint, though the ammo tends to be more expensive given its primary function as target shooting.

Am I missing anything?

223, a 6.5 is not very different, and I don’t see the purpose vs a 223

If I had a 6.5c and a 308 in the same configuration I wouldn’t shoot both, I would favor one over the other and one would sit

223 is different enough to fill a different niche

And since I no longer have a 6.5c, I can make fun of my wife for shooting one and tell her flat brim or beard oil jokes that she doesn’t get, but makes me feel superior

 

[knale87]

My primary bolt guns a 6.5cm T3X. Just picked one up in 223 to use as a trainer and have a feeling it’ll become my primary.