Is there anybody out there with experience with this cartridge. I am thinking of having one built on a Rem 700 action. It would mostly be used for deer hunting. Is there any real performance advantage over a 6.5x55?

Yes, the 6.5/06 was my first wildcat rifle built for me in 1966 for a handsome sum of $125. I was impressed by the paper ballistics. It about parallels the 270 Win. and maybe a little more downrange performance with bullets of similar sectional density. Having to roll your own is the bonus if you enjoy reloading. The difference if any does not justify, at least in my mind, the convenience of readily available inexpensive factory ammo for the 270. The 6.5 bullet is a good performer and good killer for any given bullet weight. I would not use anything less than the 120 grain for small deer sized animals. The 140 grain is probably the best all around. The relatively high sectional density makes for good penetration even with non-premium bullets.

Compared to the 6.5 x 55, which I have also used extensively, the 6.5/06 is like a magnum load and will shoot very flat. Re-sizing 06 cases is merely running it thru the resizing die. The necks do not have to be reamed. For a number of years, I retired the 6.5/06 as the gun magazines convinced that the new hotrods were better and faster. I forgot that the oldies but goodies were better suited for what I hunted most, and eventually wentback to the 6.5/06, 6.5 x 55, and the 257 Roberts.

Geoff

One of the cartridges that John Dustin built for my swap barrel Sako is a standard 6.5/06 with a 30-inch long, 8-inch twist Pac-Nor select-match stainless-steel barrel.



Also have a similar 264 Win Mag barrel.



My 260 Remington and 6.5 x 55 Swedes have shorter barrels.



Hammer

My second wildcat built in the early '60s on an '03 Springfield action....go to deer rifle for a number of years but more power than I really needed. Only bullet I ever used was the Sierra 100gr HP. Don't do shoulder shots with this bullet...neck & lung shots only. The rifle is semi-retired now as a CZ550 American in 6.5x55 has taken its place. If you must use bullets of 129 grains or heavier the 6.5/06 will push them faster if you really want/need the speed. H-4831 or AA3100 are my powders of preference for all weights..85 to 140 grains.

Ol' John

The idea behind this rifle is to have a lightweight but reasonable recoil mountain rifle that still has enough punch should I decide to hunt something larger than whitetails at some point. I'm not real attracted to mundane things like .270's or .30-06's, even though they are great cartridges. It seems as if a 6.5-06 will give good performance at any reasonable range with reasonable recoil in a gun under 7 lbs. On the other hand a 6.5x55 is a real classic, the kind of cartridge I love...decisions, decisions, decisions!

My 6.5-06 was biult on Kimber 89 unit with a 25"pac-nor tube. My load right now-or until the windchill goes above -30 is 55 gr RL 22 and 125 gr Nosler Partition. Groups go aroung .5-.75 and velocity is 3100 f/s at -15 C. The 6.5-06 gives about 200 f/s advantage on a similar 6.5-55. I could not be happir with its first season as both kills were 1 shot and it is VERY flat shooting.You can expect about 2900 f/s with the 140 gr bullets.

If you're in to wildcats this is one of the finest yet to be made a factory cartridge.
It's everything the .25-06 is and more.

The 120g runs 50fps or so behind the 300 Winchester Magnum 165g load (same SD) so I'd say it definitely qualifies as a magnum. I have a soft spot for the 6.5 Swede, but in terms of ballistics, and if you're a handloader anyway, there IS a real improvement when you move to the '06 case.
The Swede is right there with the 30-06 as one of those incredibly "sensible" cartidges that many folks just yawn over. If different you like, and you enjoy the flat trajectory, go for it.
I think I'd hesitate to use it against more than thin-skinned game, but that's just me. If I was sharp with it, and found a quartering ekl under 200yd, I'd feel good about hitting it with a 140g premium bullet, but there's not a lot of room for the less-than-ideal shot in my book.
I guess what I'm saying is, buy the 6.5-06 'cause you like it, and be sure to have an elk gun when you go elk hunting. [Two not-necessarily mutually exclusive statements, mind you.]

Thanks for all the advise. I've told the gunsmith 6.5-06. The decision not build a 6.5x55 was difficult, but I already have a bunch of medium velocity cartridges; so the 6.5-06 makes more sense for me. I also helped that a friend of mine from Montana has invited me to hunt mule deer with him in 2005. I figure a flat shooter will be useful there.