+- 6.5 Grendel Forum (https://65grendel.com)
+-- Forum: 6.5 GRENDEL DISCUSSION FORUMS (https://65grendel.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=3)
+--- Forum: 6.5 Grendel Build-It-Yourself & Custom Builds (https://65grendel.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=9)
+--- Thread: New Compass Lake 18" Douglas build (/showthread.php?tid=24367)
New Compass Lake 18" Douglas build - Bonas - 03-14-2022
My 5.56 was running out of steam at distance in a match I had been shooting, and I had always wanted to try a Compass Lake Engineering barrel, so I decided to order one in 6.5 Grendel. CLE didn't expect to have Bartlein blanks until October, and Kreiger wouldn't even say when they would send CLE blanks, so I went with the Douglas blank CLE had in the shop. CLE quoted 12 weeks for delivery. Right on time, they called me to tell me the barrel was shipping, and they were charging my card. They even verified headspace with my own bolt that I sent them. That's exactly how the good barrel finishers do business!
[ATTACH=CONFIG]18731[/ATTACH]
The barrel was nicely finished and the bore, chamber, and interior of the barrel extension were very clean. I used a Strike Industries collar adjustable gas block to see how those work. So far, I think it's a winner. The barrel is properly gassed (rifle length, btw), so the collar stays wide open. I'll have to try it suppressed to really test the block. The block is easily adjusted through the handguard with a punch or Allen wrench. CLE might be using oversized barrel extensions like White Oak will do because the extension was a press fit into the Aero Precision upper that took a couple whacks with a mallet to get it seated all the way (which is a good thing).
[ATTACH=CONFIG]18734[/ATTACH]
The picture of the targets shows the first 20 odd rounds down the barrel, all shot at 100 meters. Winds were gusty up to 25 mph. The shot to the top left is the first one down the bore. The center target is a group of Wolf Military Classic shot after adjusting the scope. That measured 1.58 moa, which is excellent for Wolf. Center right is a 7-shot group of Federal Premium with 130 grain Berger OTMs. That group measures 1.99 moa. The four shots touching measure .391" or .343 moa. Center left is five shots of Hornady Black ELDM 123 grain. It measures .806 moa. The bottom is another five shot group of Black ELDM after adjusting the scope. It measures 1.67 moa, with two shots on and two shots on the left edge of the 1" bull.
The Wolf averaged 2,623 fps, Federal 2,302, and Hornady 2,476.
All in all, I'm pleased with the CLE experience. That's probably the best I've had a barrel shoot out of the gate.
New Compass Lake 18" Douglas build - Dt219 - 03-15-2022
Good deal Ill make note of it
New Compass Lake 18" Douglas build - biodsl - 03-15-2022
Congratulations on your purchase. Looks like you made a great choice.
New Compass Lake 18" Douglas build - LRRPF52 - 03-15-2022
Are you going to develop some loads for it?
New Compass Lake 18" Douglas build - Bonas - 03-15-2022
LRRPF52 Wrote:Are you going to develop some loads for it?
Eventually. I'm making brass with factory ammo now and keeping a lookout for bullets and powder. What dies do you recommend? I load for precision with a single stage press.
New Compass Lake 18" Douglas build - LRRPF52 - 03-15-2022
Bonas Wrote:Eventually. I'm making brass with factory ammo now and keeping a lookout for bullets and powder. What dies do you recommend? I load for precision with a single stage press.
I started out with Hornady New Dimension dies and now have Redding Competition dies.
Ive always appreciated the higher quality of a good set of dies. I like Forster, Redding Type S, RCBS, standard Redding, and Hornady in that order.
You also might mix and match with seating dies you prefer, vs full-length sizing dies, vs universal de-capping dies.
Ive found that some dies were fine for full-length sizing, while I would use the Forster micrometer seating die for seating, and a cheap Lee universal de-capper for de-capping before initial cleaning.
The Hornady dies for Grendel are what I would consider the minimum standard for a reasonable price.
You need to polish the expander ball on the neck-sizing mandrel so that you dont introduce micro fractures into the neck. At least I do that on my expander balls if they arent a mirror polish texture.
New Compass Lake 18" Douglas build - Bonas - 03-29-2022
I started working up some handloads with Hornady 120 ELDMs, Nosler 120 ballistic tips, and Lapua 108 Scenars, and over H335 and Benchmark. The ELDMs and Noslers performed well. The Noslers showed great promise, but they're basically unobtainable. The Noslers and ELDMs both worked better over H335. The Benchmark was quite disappointing compared to the H335 (.74 moa versus 1.82 for the ELDMS and .73 moa versus 1.12 for the Noslers). I didn't bother with the Lapuas over Benchmark due to the showing with the Noslers and ELDMs along with some unpleasant stuck case issues described here:https://www.65grendel.com/forum/showthread.php?25330-Short-chamber-bad-resize-or-some-of-both
New Compass Lake 18" Douglas build - StoneHendge - 04-01-2022
OP, Benchmark's burn rate will work much better with 108's than 120s.
New Compass Lake 18" Douglas build - Bonas - 04-01-2022
StoneHendge Wrote:OP, Benchmark's burn rate will work much better with 108's than 120s.
I'll check it out, then. Benchmark is one of my two favorite powders for .223, Varget being the other. I use Benchmark exclusively for light .223 bullets, and Varget for heavies.
New Compass Lake 18" Douglas build - Bonas - 04-09-2022
The barrel seems to be coming along nicely. I got a .57 moa group at 100 meters with 123 ELDMs over H335 today at 2,395 fps. That's about 70 fps slower than factory Black ammo. The next step up the ladder had three shots in.41 moa (5 shots in 1.23 moa), but I think I undercharged 2 of the shots based on the speeds, the cluster of the holes in three and two, and some powder in my tray when from when I finished the loads.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]18788[/ATTACH]