Featuring bullets selected to deliver "exceptional performance for hunting and long-range shooting applications," the .25 Creedmoor is now a factory-loaded round from Hornady.

The famed "quarter bore" has been popular with wildcatters for almost a decade. It essentially used modified 6.5 Creedmoor brass necked down to .257 and sleek 130-ish grain high B.C. bullets in that caliber to fill a niche that .25-06 just wasn't covering. The round caught on, and soon folks like Petersen started making .25 Creedmoor-marked cases while Berger and Hornady released a line of 128-to-135 grain bullets optimized for the "if you know, you know," crowd.

"The .25 Creedmoor is the end result of our constant pursuit of maximizing ballistic potential," said Jayden Quinlan, Senior Ballistician at Hornady. "This cartridge fills that competitive niche between 6mm and 6.5mm – providing shooters the absolute best blend of moderate recoil, flat trajectory, and superior wind resistance."

Hornady sponsored .25 Creedmoor for standardization by Sporting Arms & Ammunition Manufacturers' Institute, and SAAMI approved it and released specs on the cartridge in January – alongside the new .338 ARC and 7mm Backcountry. 

Now, ready for prime time, Hornady is marketing factory .25 CM loads in both 128-grain ELD-X Precision Hunter and 134-grain ELD Match. Naturally, they also have die sets for reloading. When it comes to performance, the ELD-X has a muzzle velocity of 2,850 fps (with 2,308 ft/lbs. of energy) and shoots flat with zero drop at 200 yards, where it is still moving at 2,563 fps and hitting with 1,868 ft/lbs.

SAAMI acceptance also opens the path for factory rifles, so stay tuned for PRS and light hunting rifles inbound to ride the "quarter horse."