A Grendel at Thunder Ranch

[LR1955]

I took my 22” Black Hole Weaponry rifle to Thunder Ranch over the weekend for their two-day Long Range Scoped AR class. As the name implies, the course is designed around using a scoped AR in a designated marksman style application engaging targets between 100-to-700-yards. My local range doesn't have any facilities for this. I’m limited to paper at 300 yards. This class would be my first chance to engage steel at a mid-ranges.

The weather was great for late March in the high desert of Lakeview, OR. Overnight temperatures were in the high 20’s with afternoons in the high 50's. Sunshine. Wind was mild both days.

Of course, most students had 5.56s with 16- or 18-inch barrels. Ammo ranged from 55 to 62 to 77 grains. Even though wind wasn't a major factor, I got to see the limitation of the 5.56 at 500, 600 and 700 yards, even at a 5400-foot elevation. Some students had to have their shots walked in at extended ranges. Other weapons systems (the barrel, ammo and shooter) just weren’t providing consistent hits beyond 4 or 5 hundred yards. Green tip and a rack barrel aren’t the combination you want for this class.

That wasn’t an issue for me. The Grendel was superb. There were some misses, but Doc would give a good wind call ("Favor left") and we'd have a hit. I’m an average shooter but the Grendel made me look good. I started day 2 with a cold bore, first shot hit at 700 yards. That was followed up later in the day with a 700-yard head shot. Dial, aim, press, hit. One of the staff came and asked me what I was shooting and said he'd never seen a Grendel in class before. It even caught the attention of Clint Smith who commented on the performance of my 'zip gun' (his term for any non-military caliber). High praise coming from him.

The student just to my right was shooting a 6mm ARC. It was a new, untested build using a Ballistic Advantage barrel and shooting factory ammo. He had nothing but problems with consistency. Shots would land left and then they'd land right. Then they’d be high. It was so bad I suggested he check his scope mount screws. He never did get it sorted out. I suspect a bad barrel or bad trigger pull.

And the Grendel was the heavy hitter in class. There’s a resettable target at 200 yards. You shoot the head, which falls and then shoot a plate to reset the head. When my classmates couldn't reset it 5.56 or 6mm ARC rounds, I was called upon to use the Grendel. It hit hard.

I want to point out that my system is pretty affordable. The barrel cost me $280 five years ago. It’s an overachiever for its price. My scope is a 1st gen PST 2.5-10x SFP. It cost around $600 when it was the new hotness 8 years ago. Its nothing fancy by current standards. However, the turrets are repeatable and the reticle is fine enough for precision work. With my reloads it’s a consistent 1 MOA performer. That’s all you need to do this type of shooting.

A big part of my success was having used the system (rifle, scope, ammo) for the last four years. I’m familiar with it and it’s been reliable. I was just able to perform with it. Joe (with the new 6mm ARC) came to class with a new barrel and new scope. The bugs weren’t worked out. It showed.

I not gonna lie; this wasn’t cheap. $1000 for two days on the range, plus ammo, travel food, incidentals. I thought long and hard about spending the money. But besides the 700-yard range, you also get an expert calling the wind. This gives you the best chance to perform well. It was the best way I could think to test my rifle and myself. The Grendel performs.

BD:

A huge amount of money for two days of shooting. What did you get out of it that was worth what must have ended up being at least $1500.00?

LR55