doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion German & Austrian Sporting Guns @ doublegunshop.com Drilling

I did a chamber cast and got a .264 bore > the gun came with some .264 lead round nosed 120 grain loads in new Bertrum brass cases. I got some new Bertrum brass loaded with 120 Sierra grain soft points and test fired them at the local Marine base range, the gun shot both pretty good but the Sierra 120 grain soft points were the clear winner .there are no scope bases on this Drilling so the open sight is the way I will shoot it. This is an excellent shooter and I plan on taking it this year on a Delmarva Sika Elk hunt my buddy and I do each year, I had been using a combination cape gun in 9.3x72R and 16 ga.

simicgunner,
I suggest you check the energy the 6.5x58R can transmit to the animal before you decide to use it. It is good for Roe, passable for Whitetail, but Sika?
Mike

Mike a large Sika Buck on the Chincoteague refuge is 90 pounds most go 50 to 80 pounds. These little deer are small due to their diet. They are outstanding eating. The hunt is a culling hunt each year to keep them in control on the refuge. I have killed them with a 16 gage shotgun and 1 oz #3 buck-shot hand loaded in low pressure 2 1/2 hulls. Shooting distance is usually 50 yards or less. I would not use a gun that cannot make an ethical kill. People have used a 25-35 Winchester, are they pretty close in ballistics?

simcgunner,
What threw me was them being called Sika Elk in the first post. At less than 90 pounds, they are smaller than even our small Alabama Whitetail. In that case, 6.5x58R will work with a careful shot. It is about equal to 6.5x52R, which is the 25-35 loaded to slightly lower pressure. Good luck, it seems like you have everything well in hand. Be sure and post a photo for us to get jealous over.
Mike

Most people call them sika deer but they are actually an elk just small. you get a pretty good intro to them at check in at the refuge center.