6.5 Grendel vs 6.8spc

spook1

Member
I'm sure there is no definite answer to this but which would you choose for a hunting rig with max shots out to 300 yards. I will do a little paper punching too but Mostly for hunting. Let me know your real world opinions and best for accuracy
 
Do you handload? If yes, go 6.5. It can do everything the 6.8 can, but also shoot long range. If not, go 6.8. More factory ammo, suited for shorter barrels, and effective on deer sized game out to 300 yards. I love my 6.8 set up with a 1-4x scope for close range hunting.
 
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Originally Posted By: spook1I'm sure there is no definite answer to this but which would you choose for a hunting rig with max shots out to 300 yards. I will do a little paper punching too but Mostly for hunting. Let me know your real world opinions and best for accuracy

Sure there's an answer. You dance with the one you brung.
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Game killing at 300 not a whit of difference. The 6.5 has better BC than same same bullets of the 6.8. Given the case length difference the 6.5 will loose less capacity when you seat larger/longer bullets. The choice of loaded ammunition goes to the 6.8 in availability. I believe the shorter fatter 6.5 tends to offer more in accuracy based on my shooting both. Brass quality is better in the Grendel. Actual case volume is almost identical but the extra pressure usable in the 6.8 will be an advantage in lighter pills around 90-100 grains.

It ultimately comes down to a beauty contest for many. I know which one I grab the most has Grendel on the head stamp if I go with the orginal case.

Greg

 
I have both, they both shoot really well. I wouldn't get rid of either gun unless I was forced to. If I was... I would keep the 6.5, but honestly it would be the last gun I'd sell out of all my rifles.
 
Out to 300 there's not a lot of difference. I went with 6.8 early on, found an upper for a good price and bought it. You'd be fine with either.
 
Thanks guys. I ended up with a steal of a deal on a Grendel so the price kind of made my decision. Now to get some rounds down range.
 
Originally Posted By: spook1Thanks guys. I ended up with a steal of a deal on a Grendel so the price kind of made my decision. Now to get some rounds down range.

You made your decision too quickly. Sell me the upper, and think about it some more. I'll be in Ohio on Thursday.
 
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Price is as good as any reason to buy one over the other - as long as you considered the ownership cost too, not just the upper purchase cost. I've owned both, don't have a 6.5G any more, my next one will be a 6-6.8 (for mid-bore AR-15's at least).

It's really 6 of one, half dozen of the other. The difference in trajectory is really only obvious on paper - if you can shoot the Grendel at 600yrds effectively, you'll be able to shoot the SPC at 600yrds just as well.

I put this together somewhere 5-6yrs ago when I was debating building another one, but couldn't decide which (was my 2nd of either). Really, there's just not enough difference within the manageable range for either of them to really say one is better. It's basically a 7-08 vs. 270win debate, both are right answers to the same question.

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Originally Posted By: VarminterrorPrice is as good as any reason to buy one over the other - as long as you considered the ownership cost too, not just the upper purchase cost. I've owned both, don't have a 6.5G any more, my next one will be a 6-6.8 (for mid-bore AR-15's at least).

It's really 6 of one, half dozen of the other. The difference in trajectory is really only obvious on paper - if you can shoot the Grendel at 600yrds effectively, you'll be able to shoot the SPC at 600yrds just as well.

I put this together somewhere 5-6yrs ago when I was debating building another one, but couldn't decide which (was my 2nd of either). Really, there's just not enough difference within the manageable range for either of them to really say one is better. It's basically a 7-08 vs. 270win debate, both are right answers to the same question.

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This is why my most recent build started out with intentions of being a 6.5G, but ended up being a 204 Ruger, seeing as I had a 6.8 in the rack already.
 
Great minds think alike...

I did one for myself last year with matching uppers in 204R (22") and 6.8SPC (18"). I've since added a matching 20" upper in 223/5.56, and I have the majority of the parts on hand to do another matching 18" upper in .458Socom.

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I've got both, but in different configurations. My 6.8 SPII is a 16" carbine with a M4 type stock and my 6.5 Grendel is a 20" rifle with fixed A2. They both serve their intended purpose in different ways. The 6.8 is easy to carry and swings fast for pushing deer with blockers and the Grendel is for longer range percision when shooting prone or rested. I've killed deer on a run out of a creek bottem with the 6.8 and I dropped a doe at 468 yards with the Grendel. Would the Grendel have worked for both? Yes but not as well as the 6.8 with a lower power optic did on pushing deer. Would the 6.8 have worked at 468? Maybe... But the bullet's BC doesn't carry as much energy nearly as far as the .264 class of bullets does. I had a 6mm grendel/lbc and it was a very accurate rifle but lacked the down range authority of my Grendel and was harder on fur then the 5.56 or the 6x45. So I let it go down the road.
 
I like the 6.8 but would be happy with the 6.5G as well. I used to carry my 5.56 AR calling and it worked well but the 6.8 hits with more authority when the coyote hangs up out there a way. If I'm headed some place where I think we're going to be shooting beyond 300-350 I carry a Ruger American Predator in 6.5 Creed.
 
When I built my 6.8 SPC II I was looking for an AR platform carbine that approximated the energy of a 243 Winchester. I wasn't happy with how my 5.56 AR's performed on large coyotes so the 6.8 was a good choice for called coyotes at medium range. I handload, so am able to take advantage of the SPC II chamber my barrel came chambered with. 90 grain Speer and Sierra bullets at 2800 or slightly over FPS work great.
 
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