Which 6.5 in an AR?

sandwarrior

June 16, 2008 07:55

This is kind of following the lines of the post by FrancF about the 6.5 Creedmoor vs. the 6.5-284. I'm thinking of getting a 6.5 in an AR platform. Either the 6.5 Grendel in the -15 or a 6.5 Creedmoor/.260 Rem in a -10 platform.
My first thought was to go with the Grendel because I'm impressed with what it can do overall in an AR platform vs. the .223. But then I thought why not go with the more powerful 6.5 rounds as what I want to do is shoot from {edit: 300}600 to 1k+ yards. The main criteria is simply that it's going to be in an AR platform. Do any of you that have more than a few hundred rounds of experience with these have any favorites over the others and why?

Edit:

The platform will also include at least a 20-24" barrel. And for those of you who have read any of my past posts regarding AR's...I'll tolerate cleaning it to get the mileage.

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  guntech59

  June 16, 2008 10:14

  I have been thinking about one in .260. Good platform and good cartridge. I don't see how you could go wrong. Personally, I would opt for the .260.

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  JustC

  June 16, 2008 10:24

  260rem. More power to get you there,..remember you are bleeding gas pressures so you need enough left over to stay supersonic to 1k.

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  nononsense

  June 17, 2008 08:38

  sandwarrior,
  
  I think the Grendel will be sufficient for mid-range yardage 300 - 600 yards but after that it loses significantly to the other two just on capacity alone. It's really a fun cartridge when loaded with the 123 gr. Lapua and the 120 gr. Sierra or Nosler BT. The 130 gr. Norma VLD is about the top end and there is a drop in performance when compared to the slightly lighter Match bullets. The most noticeable difference is the yardage where the transonic shift occurs.
  
  Between the other two, there isn't a dime's worth of difference when limited to the magazine length and the heaviest Match bullets. There is more variation in velocity when switching powders than between the cartridges themselves.
  
  The biggest difference is that the Creedmoor is proprietary so brass availability will be confined to Hornady only. Pricing will be significantly higher than the Remington or Winchester selections with quality and value not being up to the cost of the brass. Lapua has value as does Norma but to a lesser extent compared to Lapua. Unfortunately, Lapua and Norma are only bringing .243 Win. cases into the U.S. so you will have to neck them up and trim to get a .260 Rem. cases.
  
  I would look at the cost of a large buy of Win. or Rem. cases then going through the segregation and accurizing process for the cases. This will increase the value of even the less expensive brass.
  
  The .260 Rem. and a 24" barrel would make a very nice set up for 300 - 1,000 yard shooting either prone or from the bench. It could also be a great hunting rifle with the addition of lower capacity magazines.
  
  Best.

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  sandwarrior

  June 17, 2008 18:26

  All, thanks for the advice,
  
  nononsense,
  
  I pretty much thought I would like to work with the 6.5 Grendel as it seems like a fun cartridge. Even just to see what it will really do. My dilemma came when I thought, " Ya know, the 6.5 Grendel will get out to 1k but will it be competitive at 1k?" That's when the bigger 6.5's all came into mind. Do I want to be calling wind like a .308 when I could almost halve that? I started thinking of the -10 platform sized 6.5's and if the price diffeence was worth it. I really want to experiment with the Grendel but I'm holding off thinking of the limitations at the longer ranges. Maybe not limitations, just re-engaging rusty skills.
  
  So, I thought what I might do is take and load down my rounds to nearly duplicate the 6.5 Grendel out of my 6.5x55 and see what the bullets actually do. Kind of get an idea if whether or not I want to have a broad spectrum of calling the wind or not with the slower round.

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