Just saw 25 CM was SAAMI approved a couple months ago. Ballistics data still seems pretty lite on data. What are everyone’s thoughts? 22 CM or 25 CM?
Good question. I know 25 Creed is gonna be popular this summer when Hornady announces more factory loaded ammo for it. I need to run the ballistics. This sounds like a video idea…
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I think the 25 CM will be popular with:
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People with nostalgia who love the quarter bore, and want it to get the "modern cartridge design " treatment.
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People who live in states which don’t allow hunting big game with 22 caliber.
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Those are interesting points. I am not familiar with the quarter bore at all. I am just trying to decide if I should hold off on building a 22 CM if the 25 CM is going to be like a night and day difference. I would hate to pull the trigger on the 22 CM ( pun intended 
) and then regret it when more data comes out on the 25 that seems to make the 22 CM like it is a bad choice 
I’m curious to see how they market the 25 CM. To me, it’s kind of a weird in-between cartridge. 22CM can shoot the heavier for caliber bullets and should work well for varmints up to deer. If you live in a state that requires a 6mm+, I’m not sure it’s going to beat out the 6 CM because you can get a shorter barrel shooting a bit lighter bullet and it will keep your velocities up and still kill deer.
So let’s say you go with the 25 CM, what do you gain besides a bit more recoil? You’re likely still not going to use it for elk or anything bigger or else you’d jump to a 6.5+
You guys will have to let me know if you’re viewing the 25 CM differently. I could just have new cartridge blinders on.
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There are some new 130-135 grain projectiles for .257 that make it a compelling alternative to 6 and 6.5 mm; it is very much a case of splitting hairs, but if you’re already building a custom rifle and reloading there’s no reason not to. I shoot a 25x47L for PRS stuff which is a slightly shorter version of the same thing.
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It seems there has been so much cartridge proliferation over the last 5-10 years. I don’t shoot PRS, so maybe cartridge selection matters more in that application, but for the hunting application, it seems much of it is splitting hairs. In the end, I think people gravitate toward personal preference or something new, neither of which is bad.
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Agreed Mark, for PRS or other professional shooting disciplines at distance it matters…for hunting the .223, 308, 30-06, and 300 Win Mag cover all the bases, especially with the advent of new bullets that have extended the capabilities of all the traditional cartridges. Run the velocity / numbers on a 30-06 with a 185 Berger and see what it says…more than enough is the answer.
It ‘matters’ but I’m not getting any massive advantages over a 6 dasher or optimized 6.5 creedmoor. But at the same time there’s no reason not to split those hairs and get the best possible cartridge if you’re buying into it for the first time.
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Its why I went 7PRC over 7RM when I was looking at 7mm. And if it were today, I would likely go 7BC. That said, I couldn’t buy a 25Creed becuase I have a great .243. I don’t have a 6mm or 6.5mm so a 6.5 PRC that could barrel swap to a 300WSM is pretty sweet. Or a 6.5 Creed to a 22 Creed.
While we get a lot of new cartridges, we really aren’t seeing a lot of new bolt faces, so the 30-06 could be a 7BC or a 308 could be a 22 Creed. Makes the old new and fun without completely giving up on the old.
Agreed, no reason not to split the hairs. I am not advocating for or against buying any a rifle in any cartridge. If money were no object, I’d own a bunch more rifles shooting various different cartridges. For the hunting application, however, just making a philosophical observation about what “the best” means. In this case we are considering 22CM vs 25CM and for up to deer sized game, I don’t think the animal will know the difference at reasonable hunting distances.
Well, I haven’t seen much on the 25, but the numbers on the 22 are pretty neat, especially for shooting varmints up to a whitetail…
the 25 is almost a 6.5mm, I don’t know why you’d compare it to a 22 cm in the first place. If you look at the creedmoor family of cases you have 6, 25, and 6.5 kind of in the long range target and hunting category and 22 cm is a barrel burning varmint cartridge.
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OH NO I did not know the 22 CM had such terrible barrel life Man I sure wish Tikka made a T3X Lite in 6MM CM Anyone know of a “cost effective” way to convert a Tikka T3X Lite into a 6MM CM?
Barrel blank and a gunsmith…
I would add many barrel manufacturers make Tikka prefits.
I’m good friends with the guy who pioneered the 22 Creedmoor and pushed for SAAMI approval. He says he’s getting 2500 shots on a barrel.
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Jim, do you think the 25 Creedmoor is going to be a “modernized” Roberts or Weatherby… or is it going to be a new take on the quarter bore?
Most people are loading the 25 CM with the heavier 130 ish bullets, which can’t be loaded in the WBY or Bob, so it’s difficult to compare velocities.
But a quick look at Hammer’s load data shows the 25 CM getting about 3150 with a 100 gn bullet, while the WBY gets 3600 with the same. And the Bob is pushing 100gn at 3000-3200.
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Thanks guys. So can a 6.5 CM barrel be re-chambered to a 6 CM? Or would it require a whole new barrel?