I got this manual for Christmas and it has bugged me since then. I'm gonna climb up on my soapbox and I don't intend to offend anyone but Hornady, so try to let most of this roll off your back, so to speak.
First off is the cover, which their darling little 6.5 Creedmoor graces. I could have let this go until I dug deeper.
Being a 6.5-284 fan, that's the first place I went. Disappointment set in shortly after getting there. I feel like they did not give the round a fair enough shake and do it justice. The first paragraph seems intended to turn the average Joe shooter away from this cartridge toward another that's available in a factory rifle. (maybe another 6.5, like say their Creedmoor) Their 'scapegoat' is that their test rifle had a very short throat and a short barrel. Everyone knows what a 'very short throat' does to a cartridge. Especially one that uses long-for caliber bullets. Just look at the life of the parent .284 Winchester. If it initially had come out in a bolt gun, instead of a clip fed semi-auto and lever action, it would more than likely be more popular than it is now. Who knows. Bad marketing on Winchesters part.
Then the reloading data, that's a joke. 2700fps with a 140gn bullet! Flip back to the 6.5 CM and it's pushing that 140gn 2725fps. Not much of a difference to a seasoned shooter but to the newbies, IT'S FASTER! In the CM's write up (if you believe that) it's better than the .260 Rem and 6.5-284.
This my friends is bullship marketing at its best, BUT it's working 'cause there are a lot of them leaving the shelves.
I have a friend, right now, who has a Hornady 6.5 Creedmoor case stuck in his stock Savage chamber because he was trying to make his CM keep up with my 6.5-284. Head separated. That 's not Hornady's fault, or is it? Their manual says the CM is faster that the 6.5-284! So in real world it should be, right?
All this to say, the 6.5 Creedmoor is a nice little cartridge but in similar rifles it will not generate the velocity the 6.5-284 Norma does. If they had just given the 6.5-284 its due, I wouldn't be taking exception to their erroneous reloading manual. I understand though, bottom line, if they told the truth they wouldn't sell as many rifles. Rant over and I'm jumping down. JohnnyK.