The 6.5×55 Cartridge

Bon Vivant

We used to drive around back country roads, ostensibly varmint hunting but mainly to talk guns and shooting. Sometimes we’d pull over to sit on the tailgate with coffee and sandwiches we had made. I remember how Barrie would relish a sandwich, savoring each bite (“Is this ever good!”) as though it was some great chef’s signature dish. Meanwhile I’d be thinking, “Good heavens, man! It’s baloney and cheese on store bought bread!” I guess I don’t have the gift.

Around 1966, when Barrie would have been about 21, a department store advertised the “new improved” model 70 for (as I recall) around $130. Previously, like most of us, he had owned military surplus rifles but this was his first opportunity to own a modern sporting rifle.

When he got to the store, he found the new rifles were sold out. A helpful clerk said he’d search in back and see if possibly one had been overlooked. After a long wait he emerged carrying a dusty box marked “Winchester.” The clerk apologized, saying all the new models were sold and all he could find was this discontinued model, tucked away and forgotten, a pre-’64 Featherweight in .270 Win. And, he offered to knock $20 off the price…

One hears a lot of talk about shot-out barrels. My experience has been most barrels die of neglect, not from overuse. Barrie was meticulous about cleaning the bore but after a decade or so accuracy began to fall off so he had the model 70 re-barreled to 6.5×55. Incidentally, the gunsmith asked permission to section the .270 barrel and found it worn smooth for about eight inches ahead of the chamber.

My friend died in 2012. The favorite Winchester 70 Featherweight 6.5×55, of course, went to his oldest son. I had some experience with 6.5mm cartridges including 6.5×54 Mannlicher-Schoenauer, a light Savage .260 Rem. and a model 70 Westerner in .264 Win. Mag. When it became obvious the 6.5 Creedmoor was not a passing fad, I bought one, a Weatherby Vanguard, and was impressed by the excellent accuracy, light recoil and highly efficient bullets.

The Creedmoor, so I’ve read, is a modern version of the old 6.5×55. Well, I like old things and old ways. A local dealer had a Tikka T3 in 6.5×55 on sale. It’s become a trusted and regularly used hunting rifle, maybe out of loyalty to my old friend and also because it is simply an excellent cartridge.