The old question 6.8 vs 6.5 for the TBH Brain Trust

[BowCrazy]

I trust the judgement of the TBH brain trust on firearms so I have a question for you all. If you were going to build an AR and possibly later on build a bolt gun which caliber would you use? I'll be doing mostly deer, pig and some yote hunting maybe some paper punching also and most likely won't shoot over 400 to 500 yds with it.

Just curious what y'alls thoughts are on the two calibers and what would be your preference?

Thanks ahead of time.

[cm12setx]

What I understand the 6.5 Creedmoor is built on ar-10 platform. And the 6.8 is built on ar-15 platform. That said I do like the Creedmoor for paper punching. And 6.8 for huniting. Wow not helpful, because I like them both.

[cbd10pt]

6.5 grendel is ar15. And the ballistics are much better on the 6.5

[cm12setx]

6.5 grendel is ar15. And the ballistics are much better on the 6.5

I forgot about that one.

[bbqfan5909]

Have a 6.8 barrel from ARP, absolute tack driver!

[SapperTitan]

I've killed pigs at 200 yds and shot steel at 500 yds with my 6.8 SPC shooting 120 SSTs

[Mike D]

The old question 6.8 vs 6.5 for the TBH Brain Trust

They are nearly identical to 250-300 yards and then the Grendel walks away.

Factory Ammo selection is better on the 6.8.

I wouldn't waste my $$ building either of them in a bolt action. There are much better choices in both 6.5 caliber and .277 caliber for a bolt rifle. A full size 6.5 bolt rifle really shines over the .277 counterparts. So many good 6.5 calibers to choose from in a bolt gun.


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[adam_p]

Grendel if you reload. The one I built for my brother shoots really good.

[Outbreaker]

I have 2 rifles in Grendel and am building 2 more.

You have to hand load or buy ammo on line.

6.8 is better if you only buy ammo.

[Slick8]

I would go with the 6.5 Grendel in a AR platform of the two listed.

Even that one assuming 2500 fps with a 130 Berger which is the highest bc you could get will run out steam around 400 or so yards for deer. That's based on needing 1800 fps and 1000 pounds of energy.

[APYnckel]

I run a 6.5 grendel, love the rifle. It's an amazingly precise and accurate round. One thing I can say is, if you're not into handloading, you might not want to walk down that avenue. It has taken me a LOT of work to find a handload with 123gr SST's that are in the precision range that I need. It's a tough and time demanding cartridge.

[cbd10pt]

Ammo is cheap for a 6.5 .enjoy lighten me on need to reload

[Colton]

I really like my 6.8. It's a sub moa gun and I've had great luck hunting with it. Ammo selection and availability is better than the Grendel. If you want to go past 300 then the Grendel shines. Also, the 6.8 does better in a shorter barrel which I like

[freestylest22]

I have a 6.8 SPC2 and love it. It's a Daniel Defense Ambush. The barrel wasn't great, 1.5" groups. I put a Wilson Combat barrel in in and its sub 1" @ 100yards. I killed many pigs with it and quickly at that. But on the other side I just picked up my action to build a 6.5 Creedmoor just because I want one. My opinion you can go wrong with either round. So build you a 6.8 in AR and 6.5 for your bolt.

[BowCrazy]

Sorry I was wanting to compare the 6.5 Grendal to the 6.8, the AR15 platform.

As mentioned ammo seems to be more available for the 6.8 & I don't reload (yet).

Is a 16" barrel good for the 6.8 or does it need to be longer?

I talked to the guy at ARF.com at Canton Saturday and they don't offer a 6.8 barrel there. He said that the 300 BLK would serve the same purpose and then he would graduate to the 6.5 G. I have a 300 but haven't shot it out to the 400 yds he said it would be capable of shooting. I've always understood that the 300 was a 200 to 250 yd gun and that would be max for it. This is confusing to me!

The reason for the original question is 'd like to reach out to 4 to 500 (that's all I think I can shoot) as economical as possible.