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Wondering what I need to expect from practical hunting distances all the way out to at most 350 yards? Wanting to hear from someone with real world experience. Thanks in advance.
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Campfire Tracker
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I consider it a flatter shooting 30/30. That's the effect on game. The kids have been able to get within 100 yards of everything so far. So, no comment on stretching it out.
Living in a world of G17s and 700s, wishing for P7s and 202s
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Wondering what I need to expect from practical hunting distances all the way out to at most 350 yards? Wanting to hear from someone with real world experience. Thanks in advance. velocities are getting pretty low out that far. Why not use it where it works best, under 250 yards.
Dog I rescued in January ![[Linked Image from i.postimg.cc]](https://i.postimg.cc/yYDjsxrQ/IMG-0124.jpg)
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Have yet to take a poke at game with mine, but the bullets I have loaded and on hand, are designed to expand at lower velocities; Speer 120gr GDs and Nosler 129gr ABLRs. Pretty easy to check a ballistics chart or app to see how far out velocity and energy remain adequate. Don’t ever expect to stretch it past 200, given where I hunt, so a bullet that stays together on close-in hits is more important than LR numbers.
What fresh Hell is this?
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I've killed a truckload of deer and pigs with a 6.8 and lots of my hunting buddies use Grendels. As mentioned above, I think they are all pretty similar to a 243 (or maybe a 30-30) in terms of killing power: pretty reliable out to 100 yards, but even getting out to 200 yards you won't always get an exit or very impressive wounding. The Grendel carries energy better than a 6.8 or 300 BLK but none of those rounds with 28-30 grains of propellant capacity kill all that well at longer distances. I think we were all enamored of them for a while but except for pigs we've all since drifted back to cartridges that burn more powder.
Depends on what bullet you're running but at 350 yards, especially out of a 16-18" barrel (most of the published Grendel data is from a 24") I'd expect mild wounding, no exit, and a pretty long dead run.
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I've killed a truckload of deer and pigs with a 6.8 and lots of my hunting buddies use Grendels. As mentioned above, I think they are all pretty similar to a 243 (or maybe a 30-30) in terms of killing power: pretty reliable out to 100 yards, but even getting out to 200 yards you won't always get an exit or very impressive wounding. The Grendel carries energy better than a 6.8 or 300 BLK but none of those rounds with 28-30 grains of propellant capacity kill all that well at longer distances. I think we were all enamored of them for a while but except for pigs we've all since drifted back to cartridges that burn more powder.
Depends on what bullet you're running but at 350 yards, especially out of a 16-18" barrel (most of the published Grendel data is from a 24") I'd expect mild wounding, no exit, and a pretty long dead run.
This has been pretty much my experience with the 6.8. I've shot many pigs with it, making good hits, testing different bullets over the last two years. Found the 100gr Nosler AB to be the most reliable, but even then not so much that I'll deer hunt with it when i have other calibers better suited to the task.
Tolerance is the virtue of a man without convictions.
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Limited experience but I would agree that as yardages increase and velocity falls the kills are not spectacular. I am going to try the 100 Gr Nosler BT which I think should help in the velocity department and still hold together well enough for good performance, but I too would consider it a couple hundred yard deer rifle for optimum effect.
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Thanks for the replies & info.
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Mark LaRue took a bull elk at 405 yards with a 6.5 Grendel shooting a 120 grain Barnes TSX. https://www.ar15.com/forums/Industr...reat-American-Safari-/219-164444/?page=1So, this is not the end-all-be-all of tests, but those 120 grain Triple Shox did shoot clean through an elk side-to-side, standing 405 yards across the way. Don't know how much damage it did, but it sure did kill hell out of him. He was guartering slightly away, and I missed my wind guess by ~5", so I hit him just behind the diaghram, it then passed through the diaghram halfway through him, zipped through his left lung and exited behind his left foreleg. YMMV.A nice side benefit of hunting, all meat is hormone-free and organic, just the way my honey likes it.
M. LaRue
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I remember when that Larue story came out; it probably was part of the reason my buddies and I all started using ARs in those calibers. There was a 5 year period where just about everything I hunted in Texas I took with a 6.8. But once you've killed a lot of stuff with those little cartridges you start to see the problems. 30grains of powder just has its limits.
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I’ve hunted with the 6.5 Grendel in CZ-527 for a few seasons now and killed deer with it. Hunting where I hunt in Mississippi my shots are close - all less than 100 yards, most 40-60 due to the heavy brush/cover. Much as I love the little cartridge if I was planning to routinely take shots > 150 yards on a regular basis I’d probably pick up my 7mm-08. Much as I like it, I think it’s running out of gas when you stretch it out. I HATE losing deer after I shoot them. While I’ve had pass throughs on all I’ve shot I’m at close range...
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Wondering what I need to expect from practical hunting distances all the way out to at most 350 yards? Wanting to hear from someone with real world experience. Thanks in advance. Bolt action or AR? What 's your barrel length? Factory or reloaded ammo? What load do you have in mind.
love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control
& Proverbs 21:19
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Campfire 'Bwana
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No real world experience with the 6.5 Grendel, but most that I have read about claim performance in the 243 and 250-3000 neighborhood, depending on loads and barrel lengths. 350 yards seems like it might be stretch, but proper bullet type and placement are generally more important than impact velocity.
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I loaded up some 120g NBT for the kids to use. 2600 fps. According to the ballistic charts it drops below good expansion velocity just past 200 yards. My son killed a doe last year at 200 yards and it went down so fast I missed seeing it fall, but did see its legs sticking toward the sky. The exit hole was the size of a nickel so there was some expansion, but maybe not a lot. My daughter has killed 2 at from 100-150 yards and seemed there was more expansion and damage done. So with my load it is a 200 yard round to get expansion.
The nice thing about it is its light recoil and excellent accuracy in the Howa Mini action we use.
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Mule Deer did an article on it in the recent Handloader. It would be a good source to look up.
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Wondering what I need to expect from practical hunting distances all the way out to at most 350 yards? Wanting to hear from someone with real world experience. Thanks in advance. Bolt action or AR? What 's your barrel length? Factory or reloaded ammo? What load do you have in mind. Will be in a 20" AR. Will have reloaded ammo to run & not sure of the load yet. Like the 120 gr bullets. Any suggestions for loads would be appreciated.
Last edited by TN25BORE; 10/04/21.
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Watching.
No experience with mine yet. 20 inch with 123 grain horady sst's (only ammo available)
I sighted it in Sunday and it will accompany my 3006 for northern MN whitetails in November.
I figure its a 250 yard gun similar to my 24 inch barreled marlin 336A shooting hornady LE rounds.
Its funny though... As a kid, the 3030 was called an underpowered 150 yard gun and people didnt want to use them, but you put something similar or less powered than a 3030 in a AR15 and it becomes an incredible long range deer slayer... :-)
Other than that, How was the show Mrs. Lincoln?
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Watching.
Its funny though... As a kid, the 3030 was called an underpowered 150 yard gun and people didnt want to use them, but you put something similar or less powered than a 3030 in a AR15 and it becomes an incredible long range deer slayer... :-)
It is interesting how that works, huh?
Tolerance is the virtue of a man without convictions.
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The Cavity Back 105gr looks real interesting. The length overcomes SD concerns and .480 BC extends the range if able to get 2800fps.
It's almost enough to make me buy dies.
Living in a world of G17s and 700s, wishing for P7s and 202s
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Campfire Greenhorn
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I killed a 6 point whitetail at 80 yards with a 6.5 grendel 16 inch barrel 123 hornady sst. Buck went 20 yards and fell over dead.
If you can make an accurate shot. I would have no problem out to 300 yards. Bullet performed well
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