6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by in2anity » 12 Feb 2018, 5:44 pm

Lots of good points here - what I can’t help think, it’s an expensive projectile to shoot at mild velocities...
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by sungazer » 12 Feb 2018, 5:55 pm

No problem in taking out some pretty large game with a 95gr or 100gr Gameking out to 300. However of course shot placement is always key.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Midwestman » 21 Feb 2018, 1:34 pm

it's just a short action and cartridge for a 6.5/lets see in a hundred years even thou we won't be here how all these other short action 6.5s creedmoor,grendel,260R etc will be around.May be biast as owned a 6.5x55swede for most of my adult years 47 now and you can't beat perfection i've taken many a critter with it long range and short range and everything that get hits by it from fox wild dog,pigs,goats deer.horse even a buffalo at 75metres all just dropped dead straight away and it was invented in 1894 and still going strong if not now gaining in popularity now that's a great rifle cartridge.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Cooper » 02 Mar 2018, 11:37 am

in2anity wrote:Lots of good points here - what I can’t help think, it’s an expensive projectile to shoot at mild velocities...



Yeah kind of... I was getting the 95gr Vmax for $45 per hundred ( probably $52 now - that's my local) so a premium heavy .223 projectile will be in the $30-50 per 100 range? The Grendel uses approx 5gr more powder than the .223. At max loads the 95gr projectile can move at some what respectable velocities.

The thing that really stopped me for now... Was the price of brass and dies and limited factory ammo. If I buy a Grendel I will probably buy factory Hornady or Federal and then reload that brass. If I bought Lapua brass and then dies. I would have spent nearly $400 before even starting.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by marksman » 02 Mar 2018, 1:21 pm

I just had another thought about the 6.5 grendel

"get a 6.5x284" :lol: :lol: :thumbsup: :drinks: just do it :thumbsup:
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Gwion » 07 Mar 2018, 2:20 pm

marksman wrote:I just had another thought about the 6.5 grendel

"get a 6.5x284" :lol: :lol: :thumbsup: :drinks: just do it :thumbsup:


Don't bother cleaning the bore, just get a new barrel! :lol:
*joke
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by marksman » 08 Mar 2018, 7:12 am

Gwion wrote:
marksman wrote:I just had another thought about the 6.5 grendel

"get a 6.5x284" :lol: :lol: :thumbsup: :drinks: just do it :thumbsup:


Don't bother cleaning the bore, just get a new barrel! :lol:
*joke


so I have heard :allegedly: :lol: :lol:
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by BRNO_Bigot » 08 Mar 2018, 7:48 pm

Gamerancher wrote:The 6.5 Grendel is based on the 7.62 x 39 case, necked down to 6.5mm, blown out shoulder and the primer pocket changed to take small rifle primers. It was specifically designed for use in the AR platform as a long range performer. ( Sorry SCJ429 ). It is very similar to the PPC range of cases.
It has a smaller case capacity than the Creedmoor so it won't push the heavier projectiles as fast.
It now being available in relatively cheap, lightweight hunting rifles, ( think Howa ) , it would make a good choice for a walkabout hunting rifle. :thumbsup:


Think CZ 527 - now that's a nifty little rifle to carry around. And that's what I would want it for.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Cooper » 28 Apr 2018, 4:48 pm

I've bought a 6.5 Grendel....

I think I'll start another thread in rifle section.

I only have 40 shot or so through it... But I'm pretty impressed so far

I ended up with the Howa Mini with 22inch sporter barrel. I kind of wanted the 20inch varmint barrel but my local had the sporter in stock.

The highlights so far...

I have already put the Rifle in my MDT chassis.
ADI load data is pretty much smack on! It uses Lapua brass and so far I have achieved 2800fps with 95gr Vmax with 30gr of Benchmark 8208. That is pretty much where I hope it would be. To put that in perspective my Creedmoor with 26inch barrel does 3150fps with 10grs more powder. So the Grendel does pack a fair punch.


The only real drama I've had so far was finding a neck die. I bought a Hornady 6.5mm short neck die. But I really don't like it. Lee don't do a collet neck die. The Grendel is mainly in the AR plantform which requires full length resizing due to being Semi auto. So I ended up with a L.E Wilson neck die which takes bushings. I also bought a little Arbour press as the Wilson die isn't the screw in press style die. Anyway it's something different. I probably enjoy working up loads and trying something different as much as I do shooting.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by snag » 29 Apr 2018, 10:09 pm

I can see where you're coming from Cooper, I'm a 6.5 x 55 man myself, but I'm looking at building one last BR rifle and have been torn between going .260 rem or a 6.5. Honestly, I don't see the attraction for the 6.5 Creedmore - to me it doesn't do anything my 6.5 x 55 can't do with the right loads. The Grendel however, is a really interesting thing that appeals to my love of less popular calibres. I reckon that's the way I'm gunna go.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by duncan61 » 30 Apr 2018, 8:49 pm

I purchased a 7mm Rem Mag to do F-class and the recoil is a problem.I use 168gn Sierra Match kings and 2213sc.The 100gn pills with 2208 are much more manageble.If I had my time over I would get a 6.5 Creedmoor for F-class and the Grendel for hunting
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by SCJ429 » 03 May 2018, 10:07 pm

If you have a soft spot for less popular calibers then the 7mm BR and the 30 BR are very efficient and super accurate. I take my hat off to Grendel hunters, so much cooler than hunting with a 308. Just got to use the right projectile and keep the distances reasonable.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by sungazer » 03 May 2018, 10:33 pm

The fad jokes about the Creedmoor are getting a little thin the cartridge has been around 10 years and it is performing well. On the range in F class it has always been the *47 the guys that are starting to shoot the Creedmoor just like in the PRS are proving its worth. I really think it has a lot going for it being based on a 308 case is also just one huge tick in the box for longevity as well.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by SCJ429 » 25 May 2018, 8:50 pm

People probably said the PPC was a fad in the 70s or that the 6mmBR would not amount to anything. Who in 1889 thought the 22LR would be the worlds most popular round 130 years later.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by duncan61 » 26 May 2018, 1:34 pm

Lets be honest we enjoy playing.I tried to build a subsonic hornet years ago and loaded 80 and 90 grain Sierra Matchkings on 4gns AP70N. I had a brand new H and R single shot and the same barrel is bored for 45/70 so with the tiny hole for hornet I figured it would be good to handle my testing.I pulled it with a piece of string 20 feet away behind cover anyway.The first load the bullet stayed in the barrel and I had to push it out.At 6.5 gn of powder the bullet hit the target and made a perfect sideways hole,It was quiet but useless.Now we have Trailboss all our problems are solved.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by duncan61 » 26 May 2018, 1:39 pm

I have a lot of .224 80 and 90 grain Matchkings if someone can use them
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Cal-ApeR » 29 Jul 2018, 10:49 am

So in the end, which way did you go? I've thought about the 6.5 debate and tossed Up between the creedmore, 6.5x55 and Grendel. In the end, something just kept pushing me to the Swede. Good brass in any is pricey though.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Bill » 04 Nov 2018, 9:05 am

Hey Cooper what sort of velocities did you end up getting with you 95gr Vmax 6.5 CM up to ?? from what I can see the Grendel is only 200-300fps behind the 6.5 CM which is not alot when you consider most game is shot under 200m

I've had a Grendel since it the Howa Mini was launched and its a sweet round. Am playing with the 123gr Hornady Black ammo at the moment and it reasonably accurate, thou not overly fast at around 2600fps.

Ive just bought some 100gr TTSX and a bottle of 8208 so pretty keen to see if I can stock it up to around 2900fps or so.....

And where the Grendel really shines is the lack of recoil, SWFA, Ive had 6.5 swede's and 260 rems and the Grendel is miles in front hen you stick it out the ute window.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Cooper » 04 Nov 2018, 3:10 pm

Bill wrote:Hey Cooper what sort of velocities did you end up getting with you 95gr Vmax 6.5 CM up to ?? from what I can see the Grendel is only 200-300fps behind the 6.5 CM which is not alot when you consider most game is shot under 200m

I've had a Grendel since it the Howa Mini was launched and its a sweet round. Am playing with the 123gr Hornady Black ammo at the moment and it reasonably accurate, thou not overly fast at around 2600fps.

Ive just bought some 100gr TTSX and a bottle of 8208 so pretty keen to see if I can stock it up to around 2900fps or so.....

And where the Grendel really shines is the lack of recoil, SWFA, Ive had 6.5 swede's and 260 rems and the Grendel is miles in front hen you stick it out the ute window.



Hi Bill

I don't think I actually chronographed the 95 Vmax out of the Creedmoor. I have kind of switch over to using the 90gr TNT Speer hollow point. Mainly because I can get them for 40 cents each. I have shoot a few out Grendel and Creedmoor.

My load for the Grendel was 31.0gr of 8208 in a Lapua case

Creedmoor was 42.5gr 2208 in Hornady case. I had been using 8208 with the lighter bullets. But I think 2208 seemed better for me. My Creedmoor does have 26inch barrel. I am really actually quite interested to see how fast the 90gr TNT are travelling I reckon they would be spinning quite fast with 1-8 twist.

Thanks for your post it has got me keen to get the Grendel out and do some shooting. I'll strap the chronograph on and post up some numbers.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Bill » 04 Nov 2018, 4:54 pm

Yeah good stuff mate.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Cooper » 11 Nov 2018, 6:00 pm

Hmmm the 90gr TNT weren't going as fast as I expected. The Creedmoor was doing 3180fps with 42.5gr Ar2208 and the Grendel was doing 2800fps with 31gr 8208. I was expecting the Creedmoor to be a bit faster and I was also expecting the Grendel to be closer to 2900fps. But the Grendel is still fairly impressive within 300 fps (nearly 400 in this case) but 10 grains less powder.

To try something different I tried ar2207 in the Grendel (ADI manual has data) 25gr ar2207 doing 2700fps with respectable accuracy. Will test further.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Bill » 06 Feb 2019, 9:52 pm

hey mate Ive done of heaps load development lately just not with a chronograph, got some good groups with the 107gr SMK but loads were a little compressed, been trying 100gr Amaxs again and found a few sweet spots, best was at 30.6grs of 8208. Also just stocked up on some 100gr NBT and some 100gr ELD-Ms which i hope to get going in the next few weeks.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Cooper » 07 Feb 2019, 8:11 am

Bill wrote:hey mate Ive done of heaps load development lately just not with a chronograph, got some good groups with the 107gr SMK but loads were a little compressed, been trying 100gr Amaxs again and found a few sweet spots, best was at 30.6grs of 8208. Also just stocked up on some 100gr NBT and some 100gr ELD-Ms which i hope to get going in the next few weeks.



Good to hear. NBT? Noslar boat tail??? I haven't being doing much with the Grendel. I've put it in a Boyds at one stock and in installed a 2lbs trigger Spring kit. I've hit a couple boxes of 100 ELD-M to try and just bought a box of the 123 ELD-M to try.

I got got a little caught out with the 120 ELD-M. The projectile has a different profile. I just seated them to roughly mag length and they were well and truely stuffed into the lands.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Bill » 07 Feb 2019, 10:12 am

Yeah stuffing into lands is wee bit of a problem LOL.

Ive just shot off 5 boxes of the 123gr Hornady Black match ammo (123gr ELD-M) and had no trouble shooting 5 shot groups around 0.6-0.75 moa. So im hopping to replicate with the 100gr ELD-M which look exactly like the old 100gr Amax ( which shoot very small groups in my gun).

I also went with the 2lb trigger kit. great upgrade, just wish I had a decent stock....
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Bill » 07 Feb 2019, 10:34 am

best bit of the shortish 100gr ELD-M is the .385 BC, Ive been seating my projecties outl a little bit more than recommended but accuracy hasnt suffered. Im hoping to crack 3000fps ...... lol

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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Cal-ApeR » 07 Feb 2019, 7:48 pm

What sort of groups are you guys getting with the Howa at the range? I've got a heap of 129gr sst. Are they too heavy for Grendel?
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Bill » 07 Feb 2019, 9:07 pm

129gr are getting a bit on the heavy side of things and speeds would suffer I reckon. I only started reloading for my grendel recently but it seems finicking with the barnes 100gr TTSX, needs to have a dirty barrel before tight groups appear.

8208 is the go to powder for the Grendel and Ive found it tends to shoot good groups when the case is full or with a mildly compressed load. Pretty easy to get it to shoot 5 shot moa groups and it can go 0.6 to 0.75 if you do your job, Ive had a few freaky small groups but the factory Howa stock and plastic floor plate mean they arent as regular as Id like. Sweet phark all recoil means you shoot 30 plus rounds and you just dont notice it.
When a guy is digging his own grave, you don’t fight him for the shovel.

Success leaves clues, Fools follow failure !

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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Cooper » 08 Feb 2019, 7:52 am

Cal-ApeR wrote:What sort of groups are you guys getting with the Howa at the range? I've got a heap of 129gr sst. Are they too heavy for Grendel?


I tried some of the 129 soft point interlock projectiles early on. Just to see what they do. The velocity wasn't that impressive low 2000s but can't really remember. It might be possible to find a good load with 129gr SST. But the heavier bullet will be eating into the case capacity.

My Howa mini only has the 22 sporter barrel. It seems to throw the first cold bore shot out of the group more than my rifles. And the skinny barrel does seem to heat up pretty quick. The other problem is the stock. I shoot off a bi pod and it is pretty easy to make the stock touch the barrel. That's why I've fitted the Boyds At One stock and 2lbs trigger Spring kit.

To be fair I haven't done any real testing with the new stock and trigger Spring. I want to find a good load with 123gr protectiles either the 123 SST or ELD-M I'm hoping they are roughly the same. I've got a pretty good hunting load with 90gr TNT and I bought 800 or so. It is definelty capable of shooting under an 1 at 100 metres.
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Cal-ApeR » 08 Feb 2019, 6:22 pm

To buy or not to buy.....ha
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Re: 6.5 Grendel? Thoughts?

Post by Gaznazdiak » 08 Feb 2019, 8:35 pm

No mentions of 6.5 in the Nowell Codex!
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