Any reason NOT to build a 6.5 Grendel?

pukindog

pukindog

New member
I am thinking about building a 6.5 Grendel upper, for no particular reason - no specific critters to hunt or anything like that - just as another caliber in my collection.

It appears that factory ammo and reloading components have come down in price since a couple of years ago when I first saw it. And I have seen some fairly decent prices on barrels and mags.

I guess what I am asking - Is there any reason to skip this caliber? Anyone had bad experiences with it? Good experiences? Just trying to do a little research before I dive in.
 
I've been wanting to build one too, but decided to hold off.
First thing I asked myself is: Do I really need to be able to shoot 1,000 yds? Not likely, May even be more dangerous. Secondly, the start up costs for a new caliber were high, with the dies, and brass, though very good (Lapua) being available were way up there (like .80 per round).
 
The only reasons NOT to would be if...
you want a short bbl weapon.
you only plan on shooting it out to 300 yards.
You want easy to find cheap ammo.

People that have them like them.
 
Only one I can think of and that is to do a 264LBC instead!
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Only other thing I can think of is what ricky_arthur has said.

Waiting on my return and I will place my order with NFA for my 264LBC.
 
I think I have heard of the 264LBC. Is that the Les Baer version of the 6.5 Grendel? Advantages? Disadvantages?

Any links to dealers selling 264LBC barrels?
 
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It all depends on what you want, I use mine for deer hunting and predators. I love it. Its shoots 3/4 groups all day long and some better if I do my part. I have taken deer out to 230 yds. If you just want it for a plinker it can be expensive to shoot. I justify the cost by telling myself...I could either spent the money on powder and bullets or beer..I try to do both
 
Originally Posted By: TC_WYI had a tough time on deciding but after some research. I went with the 6.8 SPC II instead.

Ya most people do. Because out to 350 yards the 6.5 has nothing on the 6.8. After 400 the Grendel/.264 starts to pull ahead. So intended purpose is important when making the decision.
 
I thought about building one a year ago or so. Then I decided the 6mm WOA was more practical for me. Ended up getting a 6x45. Lots of fun still.
 
I was quick to jump on the 6.8SPC bandwagon! So I bought one. Stag Arms Hunter 7 Lefty! Shoots really nice. After about a year I did get board with it. One day I was going over the ballistics of it and got really upset. Crap! I don't like the way it drops off the charts. So with further review I have a 6.5 Grendel (264 LBC) upper from Precision Firearms. 24 inch bull barrel (it's called the Neptune 5)Topped it with my NightForce 3.5-15 scope, now I am feining to go sight the thing in. I plan on reloading it too. That is what started this whole thing. I was not going to waist my time reloading something that I didn't like the ballistics on. Not that the 6.8SPC is a bad round, Just wanted something that had longer capabilities!
 
The last 2 posts illustrate a possible reason for not getting the 6.5. The 24 inch BBl necessary to get the most from the round. But it's only a reason If you don't want to lug around a 24" bull BBL.
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Originally Posted By: ricky_arthurOriginally Posted By: TC_WYI had a tough time on deciding but after some research. I went with the 6.8 SPC II instead.

Ya most people do. Because out to 350 yards the 6.5 has nothing on the 6.8. After 400 the Grendel/.264 starts to pull ahead. So intended purpose is important when making the decision.

I don't really have an intended purpose, other than to experiment with another caliber in an AR. Not that I wouldn't use it to hunt if it shoots well, but I have plenty of other guns for that, including a 6.8 SPC II.

I guess what I am checking to see is if they are any real reasons to stay away from the caliber, for example; the only magazines available are poor and everyone has feeding problems, it's diffcult to find a load that will shoot well, the barrels burn up quick, brass doesn't last long or some other type of issue that makes it not worth getting into.

I am just trying to tap the experience here on this forum before I pull the trigger. So far it's looking like I will, and thank you all for your input.
 
I don't have any personal experience as I am waiting on my upper from Specialized Dynamics. But I did a bit of research before I chose my next upper and what I found was a round that offered bullets with good BC and SD. That is important to me if I want to stretch the range a bit out here. I can use 95 gr vmax for yotes and 123 gr for pronghorn and even 140 gr for muleys.
Mags are easy to come by now and I heard good things about Cmags products. They have a 5, 10 and 20 rd.
I went with Hornady brass instead of Lapua. About half the price. I didn't have any issues when loading this up, but still haven't fired any. Dies took a little shopping as price difference and availability was iffy. The newest Hornady book even has load data, although the test gun had a 14.5 inch barrel.....[beeep]
I went with an 18 inch barrel because I wanted something I could pack around with me in the field. A 24 inch barrel to me is a bench gun for paper and PD, I'm not lugging it with me hiking.

Overall it seemed to fit the bill for a few things I was looking for. Most importantly was the fact that I wanted one. There are so many cartridges available these days for the AR that you could never find a specific use to justify one from the next. If you want to get a Grendel then go for it.
 
Originally Posted By: bigsky_songdogsBuy two, then send me one
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Actually I am not planning to buy any at all. I am simply going to purchase a barrel (with bolt*) and some mags and convert one of my existing ARs. The gun itself should be a relatively inexpensive venture. I hope.
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Originally Posted By: pukindogOriginally Posted By: bigsky_songdogsBuy two, then send me one
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Actually I am not planning to buy any at all. I am simply going to purchase a barrel (with bolt*) and some mags and convert one of my existing ARs. The gun itself should be a relatively inexpensive venture. I hope.
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Famous last words.....

I bet you said that when you bought your first AR too, just like so many of the rest of us.
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