I posted the other night about this, then remembered I had made a similar thread once before. So, I deleted it and went back and re read all the replies from that first post. Turns out it was nearly one year ago. Anyway, I’m still bouncing the idea around of a 6.5 AR15. My searches are revealing that there still is not just a super lot to choose from. Sorta reminds me of 6.8’s early days. Do y’all see it becoming more mainstream in the near future? At least more so than now? If I had my druthers, I’d just buy an upper and a bunch of mags and call it a day. I don’t see a whole lot to choose from though. Thoughts? Btw, I’m no hunter.. just really dig certain types of firearms and something that the Grendel offers is attractive.

If you really like the caliber, then why not? Good paper puncher. The .224 Valkyrie seems to be getting all the attention lately. And if all the promises of the .224 Valkyrie pans out, it will be a slightly better paper puncher compared to the Grendel. But that caliber has its growing pains. If a 6mm Valkyrie follows the .224 Valkyrie and I'm betting it will, then it has the potential to be even better than both of those cartridges IMO.

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Originally posted by ed308:
If you really like the caliber, then why not? Good paper puncher. The .224 Valkyrie seems to be getting all the attention lately. And if all the promises of the .224 Valkyrie pans out, it will be a slightly better paper puncher compared to the Grendel. But that caliber has its growing pains. If a 6mm Valkyrie comes out, it will be even better than both of those cartridges IMO.

The .224 I know even less about!

For me, I already have a bunch of 6.8 and even a 270AR. So the Grendel can't do anything those calibers can already do. Good caliber though.

Just did some quick reading on the .224, looks pretty sweet.

I'd wait a while on the .224 Valkyrie. Or be very careful with a barrel selection. Lot of hit or miss barrels out there, some with a long free bores. If you reload, not as much of a problem. Some of the new Hornady bullets seem to be working better for the caliber.

I’m sure I need to think more on the subject, hell.. it’s only been a year since I brought it up the first time! I’ve been down the 6.8 road once and .300Blk twice. They didn’t stick with me for some reason.

Incidentally, I see that Aero Precision makes complete Grendel uppers. That may be the way to go

I'm as happy as a cat chewing on a mouse with my 6.5 Grendel. Nice shooter and as accurate as I can make myself be. Going to try it on deer this year. Although I'm not going to try to hard to find a deer, but if one walks by and raises a hoof, I will have an answer.

Ive had a 6.5G a few years now. Ive found it to be a very accurate and soft shooting caliber. Mostly shooting targets but a couple years ago I killed a doe at 100-ish yards or so. The doe was quartering away and the bullet entered middle of the ribs and exited through the right shoulder, leaving a fair size hole.

I load my own with 123gr Hornady SST bullets. The Black Hole Weaponry barrel is heavy and 18" long. I use XBR 8208 powder from Imr.

There are lots of choices if your inclined to put together your own upper.

Hornady Black factory ammo is supposed to work quite well also if you don't load your own.

OK, so not a hunter, only punching paper and ringing steel. I have competed against a number of AR-15 calibers in steel/precision matches, and have been evaluating their performance against my 20" barrel 223. I still shoot my 223 in competition.

Inside 300-400 yards, the Grendel doesn't have much advantage over a 223 with a 73-77 grain match bullet. The Grendel bullet will drift a little less, punch a .4" bigger hole in paper, and swing steel a little more. Pure accuracy can be similar in both 223 and Grendel.

For 400-500 yards and beyond, the Grendel bullet's 100 point G1 B.C. advantage allows it to buck wind better than any 223. The downside is that the Grendel's muzzle velocity is relatively slow, and target distances must be measured very accurately. Range the bush in front of the steel or the hill behind the steel -- you'll get a better wind call than a 223, but could miss the target high or low.

You've dropped previous 6.8 SPC and 300 blackout AR-15 variants. Understand that 6.5 Grendel is another AR-15 variant. If you shoot in conditions which the Grendel offers no advantage over the 223, expect similar results -- bye bye Grendel. Same thing for the other AR-15 calibers developed for long-distance target shooting -- 224 Valkyrie, 22 Nosler, and the 6mm chambers based on SPC/Grendel cases.

So...still want a Grendel with a performance advantage over a quality 223? Start with a long barrel, fairly heavy profile, from a good manufacturer. Figure $300 to $500, with JP's pricing at the top of that range. You need a quality Grendel-specific bolt, which likely must be purchased with a quality bolt carrier. Staying with the accuracy-at-distance concept, look for a quality billet upper. In other words, a Grendel upper that truly has an advantage over a 223 won't be cheap. This is why complete Grendel uppers used in competitions often cost $1200 to $1300. Not including optics.

Thanks for that dose of reality, Fritz. It’s always good to hear both sides of the coin. I’m still contemplating this whole thing.

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You need a quality Grendel-specific bolt, which likely must be purchased with a quality bolt carrier

One piece of advice I got here when I asked about 20" ARs really stuck with me - the best move may simply be to get the bolt and barrel from Alexander Arms.

FWIW, Bill Alexander (the designer himself) seems to think of the AR bolt as being the biggest limiting factor in terms of getting the most performance out of the cartridge. See posts #54 and #70 in particular.

http://www.65grendel.com/forum...+alexander+gunwriter

I seem to remember Alexander having posted that the difference amounts to about 8,000 PSI, but I can't find the post so I could be wrong. FWIW, "Gunwriter" is (our own?) David Fortier, discussing an article published some time ago in Shotgun News. If you have the time and the inclination, the thread makes for some interesting reading.

^^ Very good, thanks for that!

Are you planning to build or buy a completed upper? If building, take a look a ARP's 20" Grendel barrels and bolts. He has 20" barrels and the 750 bolts in stock. ARP barrels tend to be very accurate. And his 750 bolt is beefer than a standard Grendel bolt. I'm thinking the 750 bolt requires a special barrel extension. So that could lock you in on only a 750 bolt if you break a bolt. But not likely with the 750 bolt. You might want to call ARP inquire about the 750 bolt before you buy. All of my ARP barrels shoot .5 MOA with my reloads. I got a lot of them with no complaints.