Want to work up to 1000yd...need build advice on the reasonable for the rifle

[LRRPF52]

Bob,

My 2-cents worth...Get a caliber designed for 1,000-yard work. The Grendel is a short-medium range calibre.

The boiler room of the Grendel is too small to get the velocity needed to go that far, and buck the wind while you're at it. To eek out the ability to reach 1,000 shooters are buying long barrels which on an AR15 is almost weird. The receiver is light and the handguard usually circular that doesn't help steady the gun or help it track on the bench. With all of those handicaps it is just a poor excuse for a long range rifle. BUT, it is an efficient calibre and it shines at closer ranges, especially relative to other AR calibres.

I use a 6.5*47 bolt gun for serious long range shooting and have never shot the Grendel beyond 650M. One day I'll do it for giggles but I know what the bullet will be doing as it slows down. Even on a calm day the groups will be larger than the 6.5*47.

This is where I was at before I tried shooting my 16" Grendel out to 1200yds on a dare. I only considered my .260 Rem to be a true long-range cartridge, and looked at the Grendel more as a play thing that would reach 700yds no problem, but to let the bigger boys do the heavy lifting.

I was astonished how easy my hits were at 1200yds with the 16", granted I was at 4400ft with 80˚F temp, 123gr A-AMX factory load.

Switch to 123gr SMK or 123gr Scenar with .260/.263 G7, whereas 123gr ELD-M is in the .230-.245 region.

Even from my 17.6" Lilja barrel at 1000yds, I rapid-fired 6 rounds into 8" vertical, 4" horizontal with the 123gr A-MAX, which doesn't have anywhere near the boat tail length of the SMK or Scenar. This was at 6600ft elevation, so that played a big role in supersonic range.