Any 6.5 Grendel guru's out here?

[obieone]

I've been thinking about building an AR-10, but found only a couple of places that sell the lowers. I stumbled across a thread on a another forum, and they were discussing 6.5 grendels, and then I started to do some research.
Based on what I saw on a couple of different sources, the ballistics data 'appears' to show that the 6.5 is better than the 7.62, with less recoil, and better windage resistance. And I found that Sabre Defence actually has a nice selection of complete rifles, uppers, and barrels.
Which raises some questions:
1. Can any AR lower be used with this caliber?

2. What buffer tube components would be best?

3. Is there actually going to be any ammo available? (All the places I searched were b.o.'d)

Any feedback is appreciated.

[SRD]

6.5 is a nice round. You can use a standard AR15 lower. Ammo is hard to find and expensive. Personally i feel the 308 is a better round and cheaper, but the 6.5 is a lighter rifle. I used to have a 6.8but sold it for a m1a i just never shot it cause ammo was hard to find and stupid expensive.

[Ajcrash]

I was going to build one awhile back. The ammo situation is what kept me from doing it though.

[Hooz]

I have three ARs chambered in 6.5 Grendel.

1. Yes. Any lower works.

2. Just pick the buffer and receiver extension that work with the stock you want. I have both carbine and rifle length. Both work fine.

3. That's the sticking point for a lot of people. If you don't reload, ammo can be hard to find. That is changing a bit now that Hornady and a few other companies are in the game, but it's still not great.

As for the Grendel being "better" than the .308... It all depends on what you're using it for. The Grendel is a superior target round out to 1000 yards (with the right equipment), but it's not going to have the "oomph" at that range to be a better hunting round than the .308 is.

[obieone]

Thanks hooz. This is just bench rest. I know Hornady is coming out with A-MAX, but I don't think it's on the shelves yet. I'm thinking of matching a Sabre Defence 24" upper with a Spikes custom lower, then add the Magpul PRS stock.
I just had concerns over which buffer set up to get, so I don't have cycling issues.
My other concern is that IF this caliber doesn't catch on, then I could be investing in a boat anchor

[XD9OD]

After purchasing a 6.5 Grendel almost a year ago I'm going to tell you that if you do buy a Grendel upper plan on getting reloading equipment. Hornady will likely get this caliber on the shelf better than anyone. Initial cost of rounds will be approximately $1/ea, but reloading the brass can be done for $0.30/ea. I have mine because I got a steal of a deal on a complete unfired upper for $600. I haven't purchased more ammo for mine lately because I've been building ARs in other calibers. My last 2 are in 7.62x39---and 7.62x39 brass can be necked down to become 6.5G via fireform or hydroform. If Grendel ammo gets impossible to find anywhere but Gunbroker then I know I can make mine. I will also attest to the fact that CProd Grendel magazines operate very well. I have 12. Recommendation? Get a Grendel bolt and barrel. Get a stripped upper. Get the rail system you want. DIY. It makes life a little easier knowing you've built your own rifle and that you can work on it at any given point because you know how. Good luck in the journey. It'll be an enjoyable one.

[Reno82]

What happened to the 6.5 Grendel Forum? Website went down for a month now. Anybody know?

[Deadcenter]

Originally Posted by Reno82

What happened to the 6.5 Grendel Forum? Website went down for a month now. Anybody know?

The site was hacked by malicious @#$%^s. It was taken down for the investigation and they are hoping to get it back online soon.

source: Anyone know why the 65grendel.com is not working? - AR15.COM

[Reno82]

Thanks Deadcenter.

[Deadcenter]

I've been researching this round for a while, and am currently building a rifle around it. I plan to obtain a barrel/bolt combo chambered in .264LBC which has a slightly different chamber design. Here is a post I made on another site about the issue:

Right now, there is the 6.5 Grendel, the 6.5CSS, and the .264LBC (Les Baer Custom)

They all chamber and fire the same cartridge, use the same magazines etc. IMO it is better to obtain the bolt with the barrel to avoid the slight variation between them.

I don't know the whole stink that went down between Alexander Arms and Les Baer, but Les modified the chamber/throat area and released the design royalty free to the shooting community. Alexander Arms has a trademark on 6.5 Grendel, and not a patent on the cartridge or chamber. As I understand it, the 6.5G has a multi-angle throat designed for the widest possible selection of projectiles. The single angle design is more traditional and is what Les Baer used. Since the spec is freely available to anyone who wishes to manufacture it, you can expect to see a lot of .264LBC appearing on the market. Les Baer also ordered hundreds of thousands of brass for use with the .264LBC - which is dimensionally the same as the 6.5G round. He also got Hornady to produce factory ammo and start producing ammo under the 6.5G head stamp as well, something AA was working on but had not finalized. **

I hope this means the 6.5G / 6.5CSS / .264LBC will become widely available, and dare I hope MagPul start producing PMags for the round.

We shall see.

I am in the process of building a .264LBC as my next project, so I have been reading about the round and it's issues for a good while.

Hope this helps,

Ron

**not 100% sure of the details on this .. I'm sure someone may correct me on this

I am a reloader, so obtaining ammo is not a serious issue, aside from collecting the components!