Well, I haven't been on beyond556 in MANY months, I have enough to do!
However, Bill Alexander drew the .295 neck, and the .300 neck. What he found was that there was no significant improvement in accuracy with the .295 neck, and that it did not function as reliably in semi-auto and full auto as the .300 neck.
Arne was/is a target shooter. Tight neck rifles that are single fed are quite reliable, especially with proper brass prep. Those same rifles running factory ammo may not function at all, and that applies to every caliber, not just the Grendel!
For conscientious reloaders shooting competitively, (which are a miniscule portion of the people shooting AR's in America), a tight neck chamber MIGHT be beneficial. For the vast majority of shooters, it will significantly increase failures to feed and extraction issues.
Arne is like many competitive shooters, he will run on the ragged edge to have an advantage. Tight necks, hot loads, those are all part of the game. He does it well.
BUT...99.9% of shooters will never do what he does, and factory rifles have to function reliably with factory ammo. That .295 neck wouldn't and thus was discarded. The .291 neck will work, too, but not as reliably as the .300.
Side by side, I'm willing to bet that there is so little difference in accuracy that no one guy could tell. It would take hundreds of rifles to make a statistical sampling and get reliable differences, if they exist. When the Grendel chamber is getting sub .5 MOA groups from even cheap barrels, as Hoot reports here on the board, what is the chance that there will be much accuracy difference? With the standard Grendel chamber as accurate as it is, why would anyone choose to decrease feeding and extracting reliability?
In the long run, those with .295 necks probably won't want factory ammo anyways, since if they want ultimate accuracy, they will want and need to reload. Thus the neck issue is a moot point in regards to factory ammo.
If .295 neck rifles try to run cheaper ammo, especially steel case, they may very well run into issues. The steel case is designed specifically for the .300 neck chamber.
BUT...its America, and ain't it cool that we can choose, and take the responsibility on ourselves to get the results we want?
However, Bill Alexander drew the .295 neck, and the .300 neck. What he found was that there was no significant improvement in accuracy with the .295 neck, and that it did not function as reliably in semi-auto and full auto as the .300 neck.
Arne was/is a target shooter. Tight neck rifles that are single fed are quite reliable, especially with proper brass prep. Those same rifles running factory ammo may not function at all, and that applies to every caliber, not just the Grendel!
For conscientious reloaders shooting competitively, (which are a miniscule portion of the people shooting AR's in America), a tight neck chamber MIGHT be beneficial. For the vast majority of shooters, it will significantly increase failures to feed and extraction issues.
Arne is like many competitive shooters, he will run on the ragged edge to have an advantage. Tight necks, hot loads, those are all part of the game. He does it well.
BUT...99.9% of shooters will never do what he does, and factory rifles have to function reliably with factory ammo. That .295 neck wouldn't and thus was discarded. The .291 neck will work, too, but not as reliably as the .300.
Side by side, I'm willing to bet that there is so little difference in accuracy that no one guy could tell. It would take hundreds of rifles to make a statistical sampling and get reliable differences, if they exist. When the Grendel chamber is getting sub .5 MOA groups from even cheap barrels, as Hoot reports here on the board, what is the chance that there will be much accuracy difference? With the standard Grendel chamber as accurate as it is, why would anyone choose to decrease feeding and extracting reliability?
In the long run, those with .295 necks probably won't want factory ammo anyways, since if they want ultimate accuracy, they will want and need to reload. Thus the neck issue is a moot point in regards to factory ammo.
If .295 neck rifles try to run cheaper ammo, especially steel case, they may very well run into issues. The steel case is designed specifically for the .300 neck chamber.
BUT...its America, and ain't it cool that we can choose, and take the responsibility on ourselves to get the results we want?
You seek escape from pain. We seek the achievement of happiness. You exist for the sake of avoiding punishment. We exist for the sake of earning rewards. Threats will not make us function; fear is not our incentive. It is not death that we wish to avoid, but life that we wish to live. - John Galt