03-14-2012, 12:18 AM
LRRPF52, From what I have seen is the 5.56 lethality can be traced to the thickness of the jacket. The 77 grain SMK has been doing a good job in this area but it doesn't seems to perform well with barrier penetration. And vice verse when 5.56 rounds penetrate well the lethality drops off. It seems everyone wants the best caliber for CQ and long range engagements. I personally can't complain about the recoil or blast of the 6.5 Grendel compared to the 5.56, unlike the 308, thus the reason the world chose it over a heaver cartridge The 5.56 does have an advantage over the Grendel in CQ , but I find it's not enough advantage to supersede it for a universal combat round when all the factors are weighed in. The M855A1 round seems to be another multimillion dollar boondoggle trying to fix yet another real or non real problem with the 5.56 round. It would seem to me the 6.5 Grendel round would be a more cost efficient way to obtain lethality, range, CQ work, and penetration than the 5.56. We have discussed this topic before on this forum but I would like to know your main reason for not using the 6.5 Grendel over the 5.56 as a main combat round.