spotnspook
AH member
Hello everyone, now that my big game season has ended and the weather is too nice to go fowling I think I'll pour a whisky and hammer the keys about my experiences hunting with the caliber over the past 5 years.
First of all, what is cool or new or novel about 6.5 Grendel you may ask? Well, it fits into a standard AR lower and magazine. Also, it fits, feeds, and functions in an AR lower. Did I mention it fits into a standard AR platform? Why is that cool you may ask? Well it ups your power to roughly 1900ft/lbs versus 1100-1300ft/lbs from .223/5.56 depending on some load and barrel length variables. What does that mean you may ask? Well it turns a 200m peashooter into something useful, all in the same size and weight package. Wounding characteristics of 5.56 generally depend on fragmentation, which rapidly decreases with velocity loss, thus most bullets/loadings in 5.56 are not suited to hunting game especially game at range. I have experience hunting with 5.56 as well, but that can be a post for another day as this post is relating to Grendel.
So why did I build mine? Well, I've always shot "military style" rifles, in the beginning because they were cheap and ammo was cheap and plentiful, meaning I have vastly more rounds down range with these style of mass produced run of the mill rifles and am more comfortable and more confident with them be it Mosin, Mauser, Arisaka, or Enfield. So the idea of a hunting-capable AR platform appealed to me. I first hunted big game as a child with conventional Remingtons and Winchesters chambered in 25-06 and 7mm Rem Mag, then took a decades hiatus and focused on bird hunting.
When a trusty but ailing retriever nudged me back to big game hunting, being the eccentric I am, I scoped a surplus K31 and hunted with that with moderate success. Around 2017 during some various astroturfed political turmoil one of my cousins of lesser political mind was parroting some of the talking points he had been fed with particular fervor, things along the lines of "we need gun control!", "how many more!", "my life is worth more than your gun!", "if I have to have liability insurance on my car you should have on your guns too!" Then, there, at that family gathering, he said one more thing, (and please excuse me for this reference) but it was like I was shot, shot with a diamond, a diamond bullet right through my forehead, "yOu DoN't NeEd aN aR-15 tO HuNt DeEr". A-HA! Light bulb moment! So another thing Grendel was good for, triggering libtards, and maybe purists, and exercising my rights. It was icing on the cake that this was before the Russia fiasco and Wolf 100gr ammo was selling for 27cpr, I was in!
So my build, it is a PSA (cheap) 18" 1/8 with their version of Stag Arms 2-stage trigger that breaks crisp at about 3.5lbs. Ammo I have always used on game is Hornadys 123gr SST. I am pushing about 2425fps at the muzzle with this barrel length for a meager 1639 ft/lbs at the muzzle. Optics wise I have exclusively used a Primary Arms ACSS fixed 5x prism scope. I prefer the simplicity of a fixed power scope and knowing my holds rather than dialing and this scope facilitates that well (as well as reticle ranging), this is not a target rifle but merely built for scoring adequate hits with the least fuss. I have always used a 200m zero and this rifle in this configuration will hold about 1.5 MOA. Some of this trade off can be appreciated in the handiness of the platform it is carried and stowed with ease and has never seen a guncase.
Now for the hunting meat and potatoes, I have now shot 5 deer with this, and not lost or wounded an animal, however not without some difficulty. Unfortunately I have not recoverd a projectile. Since I cannot spoiler imagines will post the necroscopic photos to another site with a link and if you want to see them you can click there. Also bear with that I hunt nearly exclusively public land as a meat hunter, it is not always that I can claim a trophy, and am often glad to harvest a deer at all.
I shot this buck at 130 yards off hand sitting on a steep slope. It is the only DRT I have had with this rifle, afterwards it appeared to be a brachial plexus hit (high forward center). What a great way to start my affair with this rifle.
At the time I wasn't incredibly interested in terminal performance and the DRT didn't help my curiosity to unfortunately this is all there is.
I thought this was a doe and shot him at 180 yards kneeling offhand as I had a bonus antlerless permit that year. He walked about 30 yards and then stood in place before keeling over dead. My shot was slightly less than ideal but I did not damage any meat. I hit him in both lungs, liver, and ruptured 2/4 chambers of his stomach.
I shot this mule deer under trying circumstances in high winds at 380 yards off of a fence wire. My first shot connected with him near the back of the fleeing herd going over a hillside with little time or thought. My shot was high rear lung. This is the part of the story where the cartridge/rifle inadequacies and my naivety enter the story. At that range my bullet was travelling near 1800fps, which is sub expansion range for an SST. Most peoples gripes with the SST is that they disintegrate because they try to drive them too fast, I had the opposite problem. Luck was in my favor and the deer turned back towards where he felt safe after he was hit, and away from the herd. I shot him again around 200 yards and this bullet had effect and he fell and I approached him but he remained alive in agonal breathing for another 2-3 minutes.
Upon cleaning him I realized my first bullet had failed to do much of anything, it left a nickel sized tract through the furthest lobe of each lung with no hydrostatic effects. It was mere good luck or fortune or chance that he turned back otherwise this story could have went an opposite direction. It was my second, nearer, better shot that was effective. (unfortunately I didn't take any photos of the necropsy)
I shot this deer at 180 yards during a drought year, he was 4 and a half but you'd never know it looking at his rack. My first shot was clean and nearly perfect, I heard a loud deep thump when my bullet connected but he ran off. I was alone and unsure so I shot again with him on the run and connected again, he had run about 100-150 yards, the second shot slowed him and he stumbled to a stop and fell over.
My first round was very clean mid lung rear heart. My second shot not so much, it was with lead but still slow, rear lung, liver, and once again 2 chambers of the stomach. Perhaps patience is something I am working on and need to learn.
the first bullet hole is visible in this image but realize it was uphill and the entry side was correct
This deer, the fifth deer, was unique to me, in that I shot her at about 25 yards. She just kept coming, I wanted her to flee or stop or something, but I shot her anyway. Once again my urge for clean shoulders was greater than my mind, hit her mid lung both sides. Later I saw that some fragments hit her heart. She lept, trotted, and then stood about 50 yards from where she was hit bleeding profusely from the exit side down her leg and drooling a stream of blood from her mouth. It was in ways hard to watch, regret for things that cannot be undone but at the same time without any regret, a moment I suppose.
Organ soup, but still less than ideal, the upper chamber of her stomach was ruptured and the liver hit.
fragments had some effect on the heart as well
An old hunter grows older I suppose, the more things change the more the stay the same.
In conclusion for Grendel...
Is it adequate? Yes I would say so.
Does it work? Yes I would say very much say so.
Is it perfect? No but is any caliber?
Is it forgiving? Within reason.
Is it cool? Absolutely but with its caveats
How can it be made better? (a whole can of worms) I don't care about long range bench rest BS, I want effective hunting bullets at effective ranges...this is my own fault for not loading them. HOWEVER, a good bonded expanding bullet in the 95-110 gr range that could achieve the magical 2700 fps is totally doable and would be adequate for any game mentioned in this post.
Have I had tons of fun with this? Absolutely
How much do I trust this rifle from here or there and inbetween? 9/10 within it's known limits.
It's not an elk gun, it's an AR15 stretched to it's maximum, and for that I like it and respect it. Where will I go from here? I am unsure. Will I cease hunting with light calibers? Doubtful. My brother hunts deer and everything with a 300 Win Mag and I've always wondered why one would carry all that gun, a miss is a miss, and a hit is a hit. No such thing as over kill? No replacement for displacement? Is it ego or experience or is it just attitude? I'm not really sure but I feel like maybe 6.5G is in a place I can leave it on a happy shelf and use it or come back to it as I see fit.
First of all, what is cool or new or novel about 6.5 Grendel you may ask? Well, it fits into a standard AR lower and magazine. Also, it fits, feeds, and functions in an AR lower. Did I mention it fits into a standard AR platform? Why is that cool you may ask? Well it ups your power to roughly 1900ft/lbs versus 1100-1300ft/lbs from .223/5.56 depending on some load and barrel length variables. What does that mean you may ask? Well it turns a 200m peashooter into something useful, all in the same size and weight package. Wounding characteristics of 5.56 generally depend on fragmentation, which rapidly decreases with velocity loss, thus most bullets/loadings in 5.56 are not suited to hunting game especially game at range. I have experience hunting with 5.56 as well, but that can be a post for another day as this post is relating to Grendel.
So why did I build mine? Well, I've always shot "military style" rifles, in the beginning because they were cheap and ammo was cheap and plentiful, meaning I have vastly more rounds down range with these style of mass produced run of the mill rifles and am more comfortable and more confident with them be it Mosin, Mauser, Arisaka, or Enfield. So the idea of a hunting-capable AR platform appealed to me. I first hunted big game as a child with conventional Remingtons and Winchesters chambered in 25-06 and 7mm Rem Mag, then took a decades hiatus and focused on bird hunting.
When a trusty but ailing retriever nudged me back to big game hunting, being the eccentric I am, I scoped a surplus K31 and hunted with that with moderate success. Around 2017 during some various astroturfed political turmoil one of my cousins of lesser political mind was parroting some of the talking points he had been fed with particular fervor, things along the lines of "we need gun control!", "how many more!", "my life is worth more than your gun!", "if I have to have liability insurance on my car you should have on your guns too!" Then, there, at that family gathering, he said one more thing, (and please excuse me for this reference) but it was like I was shot, shot with a diamond, a diamond bullet right through my forehead, "yOu DoN't NeEd aN aR-15 tO HuNt DeEr". A-HA! Light bulb moment! So another thing Grendel was good for, triggering libtards, and maybe purists, and exercising my rights. It was icing on the cake that this was before the Russia fiasco and Wolf 100gr ammo was selling for 27cpr, I was in!
So my build, it is a PSA (cheap) 18" 1/8 with their version of Stag Arms 2-stage trigger that breaks crisp at about 3.5lbs. Ammo I have always used on game is Hornadys 123gr SST. I am pushing about 2425fps at the muzzle with this barrel length for a meager 1639 ft/lbs at the muzzle. Optics wise I have exclusively used a Primary Arms ACSS fixed 5x prism scope. I prefer the simplicity of a fixed power scope and knowing my holds rather than dialing and this scope facilitates that well (as well as reticle ranging), this is not a target rifle but merely built for scoring adequate hits with the least fuss. I have always used a 200m zero and this rifle in this configuration will hold about 1.5 MOA. Some of this trade off can be appreciated in the handiness of the platform it is carried and stowed with ease and has never seen a guncase.
Now for the hunting meat and potatoes, I have now shot 5 deer with this, and not lost or wounded an animal, however not without some difficulty. Unfortunately I have not recoverd a projectile. Since I cannot spoiler imagines will post the necroscopic photos to another site with a link and if you want to see them you can click there. Also bear with that I hunt nearly exclusively public land as a meat hunter, it is not always that I can claim a trophy, and am often glad to harvest a deer at all.
I shot this buck at 130 yards off hand sitting on a steep slope. It is the only DRT I have had with this rifle, afterwards it appeared to be a brachial plexus hit (high forward center). What a great way to start my affair with this rifle.
At the time I wasn't incredibly interested in terminal performance and the DRT didn't help my curiosity to unfortunately this is all there is.
I thought this was a doe and shot him at 180 yards kneeling offhand as I had a bonus antlerless permit that year. He walked about 30 yards and then stood in place before keeling over dead. My shot was slightly less than ideal but I did not damage any meat. I hit him in both lungs, liver, and ruptured 2/4 chambers of his stomach.
I shot this mule deer under trying circumstances in high winds at 380 yards off of a fence wire. My first shot connected with him near the back of the fleeing herd going over a hillside with little time or thought. My shot was high rear lung. This is the part of the story where the cartridge/rifle inadequacies and my naivety enter the story. At that range my bullet was travelling near 1800fps, which is sub expansion range for an SST. Most peoples gripes with the SST is that they disintegrate because they try to drive them too fast, I had the opposite problem. Luck was in my favor and the deer turned back towards where he felt safe after he was hit, and away from the herd. I shot him again around 200 yards and this bullet had effect and he fell and I approached him but he remained alive in agonal breathing for another 2-3 minutes.
Upon cleaning him I realized my first bullet had failed to do much of anything, it left a nickel sized tract through the furthest lobe of each lung with no hydrostatic effects. It was mere good luck or fortune or chance that he turned back otherwise this story could have went an opposite direction. It was my second, nearer, better shot that was effective. (unfortunately I didn't take any photos of the necropsy)
I shot this deer at 180 yards during a drought year, he was 4 and a half but you'd never know it looking at his rack. My first shot was clean and nearly perfect, I heard a loud deep thump when my bullet connected but he ran off. I was alone and unsure so I shot again with him on the run and connected again, he had run about 100-150 yards, the second shot slowed him and he stumbled to a stop and fell over.
My first round was very clean mid lung rear heart. My second shot not so much, it was with lead but still slow, rear lung, liver, and once again 2 chambers of the stomach. Perhaps patience is something I am working on and need to learn.
This deer, the fifth deer, was unique to me, in that I shot her at about 25 yards. She just kept coming, I wanted her to flee or stop or something, but I shot her anyway. Once again my urge for clean shoulders was greater than my mind, hit her mid lung both sides. Later I saw that some fragments hit her heart. She lept, trotted, and then stood about 50 yards from where she was hit bleeding profusely from the exit side down her leg and drooling a stream of blood from her mouth. It was in ways hard to watch, regret for things that cannot be undone but at the same time without any regret, a moment I suppose.
Organ soup, but still less than ideal, the upper chamber of her stomach was ruptured and the liver hit.
An old hunter grows older I suppose, the more things change the more the stay the same.
In conclusion for Grendel...
Is it adequate? Yes I would say so.
Does it work? Yes I would say very much say so.
Is it perfect? No but is any caliber?
Is it forgiving? Within reason.
Is it cool? Absolutely but with its caveats
How can it be made better? (a whole can of worms) I don't care about long range bench rest BS, I want effective hunting bullets at effective ranges...this is my own fault for not loading them. HOWEVER, a good bonded expanding bullet in the 95-110 gr range that could achieve the magical 2700 fps is totally doable and would be adequate for any game mentioned in this post.
Have I had tons of fun with this? Absolutely
How much do I trust this rifle from here or there and inbetween? 9/10 within it's known limits.
It's not an elk gun, it's an AR15 stretched to it's maximum, and for that I like it and respect it. Where will I go from here? I am unsure. Will I cease hunting with light calibers? Doubtful. My brother hunts deer and everything with a 300 Win Mag and I've always wondered why one would carry all that gun, a miss is a miss, and a hit is a hit. No such thing as over kill? No replacement for displacement? Is it ego or experience or is it just attitude? I'm not really sure but I feel like maybe 6.5G is in a place I can leave it on a happy shelf and use it or come back to it as I see fit.
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I haven't much use for the AR "platform" in a hunting environment for anything but pigs in which case there might be multiple targets legitimately requiring relatively quick second or third shots. But, I also realize my prejudices are to some extent a generational thing. Glad it works for you.
