I apologize if this has been asked before but what does everyone think about the new 6.8X51 cartridge that the U.S. Army is moving to. Will this be the new hotness in the sporting rifle world?
3000 fps out of a 16 inch barrel for a 140 gr bullet sounds very impressive. What would be the potential speed out of a 22 inch sporting rifle barrel? Maybe 3300 fps if you factor in approx 50 fps per inch of barrel.
External ballistics should be very good as well with high BC bullets.
Potential downsides for this would be the 80,000 PSI pressures that the Hybrid case is designed for. Would this be a reloading nightmare? What about barrel life? Would this round be insanely loud without a suppressor attached? What about factory cost per round given the hybrid construction of the case?
It seems odd that after 60 years of convincing the NATO allies of the benefits of the intermediate rifle cartridge that there is a shift back toward the full power cartridge. Seems like a step backwards.
Last edited by PSE; 05/21/22.
