Thread: Is a 6.5x55 enough gun for Thar

I need to learn to read.
The partitions you mentioned should work as good as anything else.

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Originally Posted by 257weatherby

Look at it this way, if your current cartridge kills deer ok, then you are good to go. I'm killing big bodied Tahr with a .243 (95 VLD) and do not feel "undergunned" DO NOT USE THE DULEY MOB AS ANY KIND OF EXAMPLE. Shoot the rifle you are comfortable with, don't rush and it will be all good.

I think the Duleys set good examples with not peeling every bull under the sun just mature bulls and nanny's. Obviously they have rubbed you up the wrong way somehow as all my experiences with them have been pleasant.
Re the 6.5 being enough on tahr they definitely are, mate was shooting stonkers on the west coast with a 15.5" 6.5x55 bushpig. Your 243 sounds lethal 257!

Oh I see you have partitions, of you can get them shooting they will be epic on tahr!

Originally Posted by R93

I need to learn to read.


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So true... And dont eat the crayons....

Originally Posted by Beaker

So true... And dont eat the crayons....

Why? Glue is yummy too...

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6.5x55t swede, 120 to 140 (140AMAXs.!!) great shot placement, up to 4-500m, - nothing is living.
Its a great round.

Originally Posted by Beaker

So true... And dont eat the crayons....

Or eat the yellow snow

Originally Posted by imaca

Yeah I'm reloading 140gr Nosler Accubonds. Getting about 2800fps and cold bore shots exactly where I expect them to be

Then there's nothing to worry about. Past 500 M then I'd want more HP.

Originally Posted by superdiver

I think the Duleys set good examples with not peeling every bull under the sun just mature bulls and nanny's. Obviously they have rubbed you up the wrong way somehow as all my experiences with them have been pleasant.
Re the 6.5 being enough on tahr they definitely are, mate was shooting stonkers on the west coast with a 15.5" 6.5x55 bushpig. Your 243 sounds lethal 257!

The Duley's have an excellent hunting ethic, they go out of their way to make a top TV show from their adventures. And they are pretty switched on regarding game management, the whole hunting scene, the resource etc, and convey that well to both hunters and non hunters alike. But there are many of us out here that are not keen on continually portraying long range hunting as the b all and end all. The reality is that only a very small number of us are able to utilise a long range rig ethically, the majority of hunters still keep our shots within a realistic 300-350. And I think its the constant taking of long range shots, hence the encouragement of it, that rubs people up the wrong way.

Originally Posted by imaca

Have just raised the idea of a Thar / Chamois trip with Mrs Mac and she didn't hit the roof so as far as I'm concerned it's all on but is 6.5x55 enough gun do you think?
I've seen those Duley jokers shooting 700m + which might strain my barrel.
I was contemplating a 300 win mag or similar but maybe shooting what I am most familiar with might be better?
I'm not recoil sensitive but I am 70kgs soaking wet with my boots on so its a consideration.
I'm thinking November or February at this stage
Thoughts?

Mac

I’m pretty sure you definitely need at least a 338 edge, you might get away with a 300 win mag tho

Originally Posted by imaca

@Stocky do you mean they SHOULD be shot quite far forward because the shoulder is tough, or people incorrectly shoot them quite far forward because they don't know the anatomy?

No I don't kind of two separate points I failed to separate. The further forward(past the shoulder blades) the tougher and the less important stuff until your just skimming the sternum. I've seen a few shots go through just the mane no meat. Same as most animals though the actual shoulder and shoulder blade is good if your projectile is tough enough and you have enough energy to anchor it. Just be careful as some of the lighter constructed bullets don't like dense muscle and bone much. Otherwise behind the shoulder means less resistance for the bullet on lighter calibres.

Originally Posted by K95

I remember Derek Johnson wrote an article about tahr hunting for NZHunter. He reckoned verticle crosshair on the front leg and 1/3 of the way up the body if I remember correct. Should break the shoulder join.

This is 10x clearer advice than mine as to actual placement. Just remember the shoulders are like a overly top heavy body builder so projectile choice matters. I've broken shoulders of reds with the 162 amax but I'm not pushing high speeds and I'd be skeptical if the penetration is there. Anecdotally iv seen a 139 sst out of a rem mag mangle the muscle on the front shoulder and it didn't do much to the bone with a few bits of projectile tearing up the internals. The Tahr ran a long way and took about 6 hours to find.

Originally Posted by Husky1600

The Duley's have an excellent hunting ethic, they go out of their way to make a top TV show from their adventures. And they are pretty switched on regarding game management, the whole hunting scene, the resource etc, and convey that well to both hunters and non hunters alike. But there are many of us out here that are not keen on continually portraying long range hunting as the b all and end all. The reality is that only a very small number of us are able to utilise a long range rig ethically, the majority of hunters still keep our shots within a realistic 300-350. And I think its the constant taking of long range shots, hence the encouragement of it, that rubs people up the wrong way.

They do pretty well in the trees too. And invented "bush-pig-itis". So they are not one dimensional. They are a wonderful role model, but still human.

Its the environment for filming.
Most bush hunting is seeing antlers,part of a deer identify it and boom.
The filming is the same not as spectacular as the open country.

There is a good shot placement resource here: https://www.africahunting.com/community/shot-placement/

The entry for Tahr isn’t as comprehensive as some of the others but it is well worth looking at nonetheless. https://www.africahunting.com/thread...ng-tahr.49741/.

I am not a Tahr Hunter (yet) and cannot comment on the OP‘s question about the 6.5x55 being suitable or not. Obviously the bloke that wrote this entry in the shot placement thread would probably say “no it’s not”, but I would bet a dollar or two on him being a Magnum shooter and that tends to skew their perspective, that’s been my experience.

My view as a regular 300-600m 6.5mm deer shooter is that the bullet choice is the key, with the heavier 6.5 bullets having an undeniable benefit of a very high sectional density. So a good premium quality bullet in the 130-150gr range pushed hard at 2750-2900 ft/sec is unlikely to struggle with penetration. I guess I’m just reflecting on how I would prepare for my first Tahr hunt if I was determined to use my proven rifle - if it can knock over big heavy reds and 150lb++ pigs at those ranges I’d be pretty confident I could knock over a Tahr - as long as I selected a bullet tough enough for the job.

Several good quality bullet options stand out for me, the main bullet type that I would avoid full stop would be the A-Max / ELD-M, Tipped MatchKing types, they work very well at distance on our soft skinned deer and goats but would be a poor choice for Himalayan Tahr.

I would be keen to get my hands on some of the new Norma Bondstrike in 6.5 for Tahr, I hope it doesn’t take too long for them to arrive in New Zealand as projectiles only. I don’t much like the marketing though as they are pushing them as extreme long-range bullets, which doesn’t really make sense to me.