Just never interested me. Give me .270/7 mag/300wm/257wby/243/22-250 and I’m good. Hell I still like the 30-06 and everyone acts like it’s just some old man caliber.

I like 9mm and 308 so I guess that would probably be a no for me.

The trendy calibers aren’t necessarily built to replace those. They’re built more for shooting sports than hunting sports. It just so happens that in texas, the 6.5CM will do almost anything you need from a hunting standpoint as well. But if hunting is your thing, there is no reason to go out and buy a new rifle caliber.

I find the newer AR15 calibers very interesting like the 6.8 SPC and the Valkyrie. As for bolt guns, I have a lot of the old classics 257R, 6.5x55, 9.3x62, 350 Rem Mag. I also have a few 308s. The only newer loading I have is the 338 Federal which I really like for hunting.

I will hunt with just about any caliber but I tend to gravitate more towards the odd ball stuff. In the last couple of years I have actually hunted more with a 7Mag than anything else though. My favorites are still the big bore lever calibers, 35Whelen, 350 Rem Mag, and the red headed ugly step child 25WSSM. I would own a trendy caliber like the 6.5 Creed but only if I got a smoking deal on one. Its just not a caliber that really peaks my interest.

X2. I guess because these 2 will do all I need them to do. If i was hunting with a handgun or shooting antelope at 600yds I might need something else. For SD/HD and deer/hogs <400yds., I’m GTG with these 2. I like to keep lots of the same ammo as well.
I’ll probably get my daughter a 6.5 or 7/08 soon, though.

What do you define as “trendy”?

At one time every caliber was trendy, as it was new. My definition of trendy are those calibers that burst on the scene and then disappear. There are some newer calibers that I believe will stand the test of time (6.5 CM being one).

I've never been a trendy cartridge guy, but I did get a 6.5 Creedmoor and I absolutely love it. I'm normally on the other end of the spectrum. In fact, I'm about to order a rifle in .280 Rem and one of the reasons I like it is that most other people don't have one in that cartridge. Everything else I have is pretty boring, standard stuff.

Not me.

I just want stuff that works and doesn’t beat me up too much. .223, 308, 30-06, 44 mag and 7.62x39 are all the centerfire rifle calibers I have. Another thing that drives me to stick with certain calibers is that I handload almost everything. Changing to a new whiz-bang caliber means I need new dies, brass, bullets, and probably more powder. It’s just not worth it to me.

Here's the link to a report that might make you believe all the hype around the so-called trendy calibers is more the result of media attention and magazine hype than it is with total sales and product availability. So while that caliber may appear to be the one that everyone wants, it may be more of an allusion.

"The premise of the method is that ammunition manufacturers focus production and marketing efforts on the loads that are most in demand."

Most Prolific Rifle Cartridges in 2019

I think most American hunters put way too much thought into caliber selection.

Most European hunters use about 3 different cartridges across the board.

I like a .270 for most game. I bought a .257 wby to be in the cool kids club and I love it, but in all honesty it won’t do anything the .270 won’t do.

For bigger game I like the .300 win.

For small stuff I like my .22-250.


Nothing in the world ( save for dangerous game ) I cant kill with that 3 gun battery.

We’ve always agreed on that. Texas hunters in particular care WAY too much about what bullet they are putting into a deer underneath a feeder at 75 yards. If you’re not that type of Hunter, it probably matters more. But most of us are that type of Hunter.

I've killed enough animals to know that bullet construction is way more important than what case it was stuffed into.

It’s all over the board. I was listening to a hunting podcast the other day where the host was asking a guest about his recommendations for a lightweight mountain rig. He started out by touting this rifle and the 6.5 cm then shortly after admitted he hadn’t done much rifle hunting.

Well why in TF are you giving advice then?

It seems all across the board hunters are gravitating towards what’s trendy and not what’s tried and true. Of course the 6.5 cm fine for deer hunting but to recommend it without having shot animals with any other caliber I thought was foolish

It is and imo more people shoot game with too tough a bullet than too fragile. The Barnes line comes to mind. Way too tough for deer.

The Popular VLD line is another one that comes to mind. Watching their promo video they make it sound like they pioneered shooting deer in the shoulder with a lighter constructed bullet. It was almost comical. That bullet won’t do anything a ballistic tip or regular soft point hasn’t been doing for the last 25 years

I'd pizz off a bunch of people if they asked me that question, a 6.5 CM ain't going to be on that list, but a few 6.5's would make it.

My all time favorite for Texas game is a 30-06

Got my azz handed to me a few years ago for liking it so much on here

I’ve hunted with the .308 and .270 the last 10 years

I’m tricking it up this year with the 6mm

It was my dream gun as a kid I stumbled into a few months ago, Ruger M77 6mm

I used .270 for 20 years. Then started adding to my collection, 22-250, 223, 25-06, and 300 win mag. The .270 barrel got pitted, and didn’t want to re barrel. Got a model 700 .308 w/ 5R barrel. It became my favorite rifle to hunt with. And it’s extremely accurate out to 200 yards. Haven’t had the opportunity to bench shoot any further yet.

I gravitate to the more oddball calibers than most. I have used some of the more popular ones but many that are not so popular and some older ones. I look at the 6.5 Creed, 260 Rem and 6.5X55 as ballistic triplets. In the hunting fields the first 2 do not really do anything the 118 year old cannot do other than fit in a short action.

Some of my favorites to just shoot or hunt with. 17 Rem, 22 Hornet, 218 Bee, 22-243, 25-20, 256 Win Mag, 257 Wby, 257 Roberts, 6.5X54MS, 6.5 Grendel. 6.5-284, 264 Win Mag, 7-30 Waters, 7mm-08, 275 Rigby, 7mmSTW, 30 Carbine, 308, 338 Federal, 357 mag, 350 Rem Mag, 38-55, 375 Win, 44 Mag and 45-70. A few are popular several are not and some will probably have to look a few of them up to have an idea what they are. Use any of them for their intended purposes and they will all do their intended job plus in some cases.

I used to be into unusual calibers and then one day realized that for any caliber within reason, practical performance is about 95% identical. I don't tell other people how to hunt: if it's legal, and they're having fun, more power to them. I feel the same way about caliber selection: if you want to shoot a fast twist .22-250 or a .338-378 on a deer hunt, it's fine with me.

My Christmas present when I was 11 years old was a Ruger M77 Mk. II in 6.5x55mm. I've shot so much with that rifle. I now have 2 other 6.5 Swedes: a beautifully sporterized Swedish M96 and a CZ 550FS. I'm really digging the 550FS.

I've also got a lot of other odd balls: .284 Win, 6.5x06, .257 Roberts, 7.65x53mm, and 8x57mm.

Still want a 7x57mm. Quite frankly, I'm still shocked I don't have one yet. I'd really love it if my CZ 550FS was 7x57mm.

Same here. I have a lightweight 26 Nosler. I do respect the performance of a 6.5 Creedmoor in a short action, though. Especially after owning a 22.5" 6.5x55 in a long action, that makes less velocity than my son's 20" 6.5 Creedmoor in a short action. F the haters.

I’m not a trendy kind of guy either, I think the way this post is going it should have been called “who else hates the 6.5CM”. If you don’t like the the 6.5CM that means you don’t have one. Easiest cartridge I’ve ever loaded for. Been loading since 1985 and it don’t get easier that the 6.5CM.

I have two 6.5 Creedmoor's. This year, I am going to hunt with a cartridge that was developed in 1926, the .300 Savage. Ever hear of the .308 Winchester?? The 300 Savage is the parent cartridge for it..
Here's my 100 yard target out of my Savage 99. Trying to get it zeroed 2" high at 100..

.284’s & .308’s for me, no others.

280 Remington
280 Ackley Improved
7 RSAUM
7 Wby Magnum

308 Winchester
300 WSM