First big game with my first 6.5!-WARNING graphic photos

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  • BoltConvert
    Unwashed
    • Oct 2017
    • 15

    First big game with my first 6.5!-WARNING graphic photos

    Slipped out of town for the winter opener of Caribou. Really wanted to take along my first ever home assembled rifle, and just barely qualified it last week with some
    "OK" handloads using Nosler 120gr. Ballsitic tip slugs. Brought along some Hornady 123gr SST ammo just in case.

    We left Anchorage early, a day before the opening, so of course, as we get to the hunt area, a group of about a dozen Caribou with some really nice big bulls casually walked across the highway in front of us!
    Encouraged, we started thinking very positively for our weekend hunt.
    Got up early Saturday, but as this was a family trip, Mom wanted to eat breakfast, so we went to the lodge and sat down at a table by the window. Before we could order, my son is telling me about the Caribou he has spotted out in the middle of a frozen lake! Sure enough, there is six or more of them out there, looking kind of hesitant, and also very far away -about 700yds. They had seen or smelled something they didn't like and reversed course and disappeared into the thick pine forest.
    Kiddo was a bit put off that I wouldn't agree to run out of the cafe and gear up for a stalk. I assured him there would be more coming along, and silently hoped the crazy, unpredictable animals would cooperate and not make me the bad guy. Finished a good breakfast and went back to our room to get suited up. Temps were low 20's daytime and low teens overnite, so a lot of layers and heavy boots!
    Made our way out along the edge of the lake and crossed a narrow inlet to a small hill overlooking another longer inlet, with enough elevation to see down the lake, where Kiddo had spotted the Caribou earlier.
    Not too long after getting settled, maybe half an hour, my wife whispered and pointed excitedly across the narrow inlet. The forest is pretty thick, with small openings about 10 or 20 feet wide to try to get a clear shot through. I spotted the group she had seen, moving at a trot from our right to the left. Raised my tested but unproven AR to my shoulder and saw them -a small group, maybe the ones seen earlier,- slipping silently through the trees. One unlucky yearling bull stopped long enough to get my crosshairs on his shoulder, so I let lead fly. He dropped instantly! Compliments of the excellent balance of power and recoil of the 6.5 Grendel I saw the hit and was able to verify a good anchoring shot. He struggled for just a second but never got to his feet.
    Checked the distance at 190 yds. Double lung shot, separated the spine as well! Not perfect by any measure, but he is headed to my dinner table and did not suffer.
    Entry:
    image1 (9).JPG
    Exit:
    image2 (7).JPG
    Lungs, viewed from rear, shot entered left and exited right:
    image3 (3).JPG
    Sorry, the pics are bit crude, pics were an afterthought. Hands freeze pretty quick in the low temps, quarters were already removed, backstraps just started.

    No surprise, now my teenage son thinks he needs to build his own 6.5 G.
    He also got a caribou, Sunday, as we were driving out of the hunt area. He used his 300WSM and made an excellent high shoulder shot. DRT, as is usual for him!
  • 1075 tech
    Warrior
    • Apr 2015
    • 681

    #2
    Nice!! Congratulations to you and your son.

    Comment

    • just_john
      Chieftain
      • Sep 2012
      • 1565

      #3
      BC - Very well done! Congratulations!

      Comment

      • Double Naught Spy
        Chieftain
        • Sep 2013
        • 2560

        #4
        Well done. So shot with the handloads?
        Kill a hog. Save the planet.
        My videos - https://www.youtube.com/user/HornHillRange

        Comment

        • BoltConvert
          Unwashed
          • Oct 2017
          • 15

          #5
          Used 120gr. Nosler Ballistic Tip, estimated velocity 2400 - 2450fps with AA2520 powder (29.9gr) in a 20" barrel.
          Still trying to find a sweet spot for the excellent 123gr. SST bullet.

          Thanks for the positive responses!
          My son is starting to take charge of his hunting, from choosing his shot, to gut and pack-out, he will be skinning and we will all butcher tonight.

          Comment

          • IceAxe
            Warrior
            • Jan 2014
            • 168

            #6
            I sure love these happy ending stories! Great job!

            Comment

            • rickt300
              Warrior
              • Jan 2017
              • 498

              #7
              Good shooting, wish I hunted where it was cold!

              Comment

              • Troutguide
                Warrior
                • Jan 2017
                • 380

                #8
                Very nice. That must be fun hunting like that. I have to get there extra early, sneak in watching the wind and sit guietly enough waiting on them to walk by within 50 yards where I hunt whitetail. Big open country with unpredictable game sounds extra fun. Good shooting with the new gun too!
                "I rarely give a definite answer" - TG

                Comment

                • VASCAR2
                  Chieftain
                  • Mar 2011
                  • 6219

                  #9
                  Originally posted by BoltConvert View Post
                  Used 120gr. Nosler Ballistic Tip, estimated velocity 2400 - 2450fps with AA2520 powder (29.9gr) in a 20" barrel.
                  Still trying to find a sweet spot for the excellent 123gr. SST bullet.

                  Thanks for the positive responses!
                  My son is starting to take charge of his hunting, from choosing his shot, to gut and pack-out, he will be skinning and we will all butcher tonight.

                  Comment

                  • LRRPF52
                    Super Moderator
                    • Sep 2014
                    • 8569

                    #10
                    Congrats! This is where I really like the balance of performance and recoil with 6.5 Grendel, which you summed up well:

                    He dropped instantly! Compliments of the excellent balance of power and recoil of the 6.5 Grendel I saw the hit and was able to verify a good anchoring shot. He struggled for just a second but never got to his feet.
                    Checked the distance at 190 yds. Double lung shot, separated the spine as well! Not perfect by any measure, but he is headed to my dinner table and did not suffer.
                    NRA Basic, Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun, RSO

                    CCW, CQM, DM, Long Range Rifle Instructor

                    6.5 Grendel Reloading Handbooks & chamber brushes can be found here:

                    www.AR15buildbox.com

                    Comment

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