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Hello all,
Currently deployed to Romania but will be home soon. Looking to build my first Grendel. I have built 3 556 rifles 16, 14.5, 9. My goal is to get into distance shooting with the wife (shooter/spotter). Looking to build the shortest rig that can shoot out to 1000 yards. Open to any suggestions on barrel type, length, twist etc. thanks.
ATK
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Welcome to the forum AarontheKraken and thank you for your service. Unless your shooting at higher elevation your probably looking at least an 18 barrel but a 20 will give you a little more velocity. For barrels you can order and not have a long wait Id recommend Criterion, Lilja, JP Enterprise, Wilson Combat and maybe Alexander Arms or Odin Works. The barrels from Precision Firearms, Craddock, Les Baer, Shilen, Satern cut rifled and others get good reviews but your probably going to have to wait several weeks for delivery.
The heart of any accurate AR-15 is the barrel and to shoot long range you need a quality barrel. You might look at the new Hornady 6 MM ARC.
Hornady pushed the shoulder back .03 and necked the 6.5 Grendel case down to 6 MM and named it 6 MM ARC. If your wanting a target cartridge that will get to 1000 yards the 6 ARC has high BC bullets at good speed with less wind drift than the 6.5 Grendel. If your going to hunt more than shoot long range the 6.5 Grendel is probably a better option.
If your going to shoot long range I highly recommend a 20 MOA scope mount. A lot of scopes run out of elevation around 800 yards unless your going to always be shooting several thousand feet above sea level.
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Welcome to the forum Aaron. Your service to our country is greatly appreciated by this old vet. In addition to VASCAR2's advice, get the best possible scope you can afford for long range shooting. Noroc, Aaron!
I refuse to be victimized by notions of virtuous behavior.
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Aaron,
Hi, and that's a challenge. It's like saying, "I want to compete in Formula 1 in the smallest car, and I also want the smallest engine" - you will finish, but you're not going to win. Even a .223 can get to 1,000 but it requires a ridiculously long 30" barrel, heaviest bullet and overloaded above SAAMI. With Grendel you have a more ballistically efficient bullet but it still has the smallest boiler room of all the 6.5's, which encourages long barrels and hot loads to make up the difference. So, what's the point of going Grendel for long range in the first place?
In any case, you can't hot load an AR with its lightweight receiver and not expect something to break. A Grendel is a great short-medium range calibre, basically a .223 on steroids. But don't be fooled by a few threads here celebrating getting to 1,000 with a Grendel. It's like climbing Everest, an amazing and rare feat, which is why they post in the first place.
In your shoes, for a tactical long range rifle I would source a 6.5x284 bolt gun, or one of the milder 6.5's like x47Lapua, 6.5Swede. Once you get back to the US the equivalent is the Creedmore and 260Rem which if you don't reload will be heaps more ammo choice on the shelves. The 6mm are in there too like 6XC and 6PRS but they are lighter bullets, more for target shooting than flesh. Definitely a bolt gun, with a Blaser or Sako/Tikka action, if back in the US a Defiance or Surgeon action.
Long range rifles need long range scopes so a NF Beast, or March, or S&B. This will all be expensive, but if it's just one gun and not part of a stable then it will fill a capability.
The best way to see all this for yourself is to pair a Grendel with a larger 6.5 cartridge and shoot at the same target on the same day. The Grendel group sizes will be bigger because thew bullet is travelling slower, and there's nothing you can do about this. So, even before you start putting your gun together you have handicapped your goal in choice of calibre.
Don't know what the rules are in Romania but if you want a semi-auto you can build an AR10 in Creedmore or 260Rem. Make sure it's a decent length barrel, like the Lilja 24'. This will be heavier than an AR15 but on the upside it will dampen recoil and jump, which increases accuracy.
Or you can use your Grendel for short-medium range and not be wanting.
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Welcome to the horde sir.
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07-12-2020, 10:21 PM
(This post was last modified: 07-12-2020, 10:30 PM by FLshooter.)
Welcome from Floridas Space Coast
I agree with Klem.I always use the heaviest longest barrels that I can handle. And the best scope I can afford.A good trigger helps too.
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Welcome to the clan, ATK, from the great nation of Texas! I would be inclined to not go shorter than a 12-1/2" for 1k yd shots, but an 18" would be a far better choice. As per above, put your money on a good barrel, trigger, glass and put your build attention on fitting the barrel to the receiver.
