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6.5 Grendel Evolution

6.5 Grendel Evolution SEE PHOTO GALLERY

The 6.5 Grendel is a prevalent transitional power cartridge for the AR stage.

November 02, 2011

By David Fortier

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Considering its middle of the road size, the 6.5mm Grendel’s exhibition is hero like. Outside ballistics, held energy and held speed are every one of the a recognizable move forward from set up halfway cartridges, for example, the 5.56×45, 5.45×39, 6×45 and 7.62×39 in the residue. The Grendel dragsters a standard AR-15 stage, permitting it to hit more diligently as well as significantly expands its range.

I originally became mindful of the Grendel in late 2002 while chipping away at my very own 6.5mm venture. Anyway I retired my plan subsequent to talking with Bill Alexander, author of Alexander Arms and who fostered the .50 Beowulf cartridge and an AR-15 chambered for the Soviet 5.45×39 M74 cartridge.

In the long run the 6.5mm PPC grabbed his eye since it would 6.5 grendel accommodate his current high strength .50 Beowulf bolt. So he machined a strong metal 6.5mm PPC sham round to contemplate. It appeared as though an awesome cartridge that was sufficiently little to super load in an AR-15 size magazine.

To test the idea, he fabricated a rifle utilizing a free drifted 24-inch hardened steel coordinate barrel with a 1:9 inch wind. He took care of it utilizing changed USA brand 7.62×39 magazines.

Beginning testing uncovered the little cartridge to have incredible potential, however tragically there was nothing but bad business hotspot for the PPC case. Then, at that point, Alexander met Lapua engineer Janne Pohjoispaa, who gave him the thought for another cartridge, the 8.6×39 Lapua Tactical. It was fundamentally a .220 Russian case necked up to .338, and Pohjoispaa was searching for somebody to make a rifle for it. Alexander rather proposed necking the .220 Russian up to 6.5mm. At the point when Pohjoispaa gestured, the establishment for the Grendel was laid.

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6.5 Grendel Evolution

The initial step was to abbreviate the neck and increment case limit. With such a moderately little case, any expansion in limit was an or more. The last change was to thicken the case neck to .012 inch to extend case life in a self loading rifle.

Alexander Arms paid for the cartridge tooling and put in an underlying request for 50,000 metal cases in November 2003. Regarding this time I asked Alexander what he anticipated calling the new cartridge. “.26 Grendel,” he answered. Neutral, I recommended 6.5mm Grendel all things considered. He reflected on it finished, and the new cartridge was initiated.

The finished 6.5×38 Grendel cartridge has a .441-inch breadth case head and a case length of 1.524 inches. Edge thickness, at .059 inch, is altogether thicker than a 5.56×45. This guides unwavering quality. Shoulder point is 30 degrees, and a little rifle groundwork is used. Generally cartridge length runs from 2.200 to 2.265 inches.

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The Grendel will deal with 80-to 144-grain shots, yet it performs best with slugs in the 100-to 123-grain range. The outcome is an attractive little cartridge that fits perfectly into the limits directed by the AR-15’s magazine well.

Because of its humble size one would anticipate that the Grendel should be a simply short-range number like the outwardly comparable 7.62×39, yet regardless of working at low tensions and midrange speeds, it produces phenomenal execution because of its utilization of proficient shots with high ballistic coefficients, which shed speed and energy at a more slow rate and convey higher speeds at target distance.

The following assignment was getting the new cartridge to shoot. The main throat plans were seen as needing, so Alexander took a page from the Swedish Mauser book.

“The 6.5x55mm Swede is particular among the wide range of various 6.5mms in that it has a half-degree throat,” he says. “This begins right toward the finish of the chamber neck. The proof is the Swede will shoot pretty much anything you stuff in it while keeping a tactical chamber.

“Anyway the 6.5x55mm is a huge case intended for single-base expelled powder. The more modest Grendel has a penchant for twofold base ball type forces. The thing that matters is the twofold base fuels are more strain delicate.

“Because of this the half degree throat pilfered from the Mauser was not building pressure. This stressed me in regards to auxiliary explosion in outrageous virus conditions, like Alaska. So we tackled this issue by planning the chamber with the rear of the throat like a Swedish Mauser and the front like a stock SAMMI plan. It was then named a ‘compound point’ throat since it has two points, three in the event that you count the change from the neck to the throat.”

The new chamber configuration demonstrated extremely exact as well as exceptionally lenient. This last option direct is significant due toward the assorted weight, length and state of accessible .264 inch shots. All creation Alexander Arms 6.5mm Grendel rifles have used this compound point chamber plan. Conveyance started in late 2004.

At first Alexander Arms offered four burdens: 90-grain TNT, 120-grain Nosler Ballistic Tip, 123-grain Lapua Scenar and 129-grain Hornady SST. On account of its ultra high .547 BC and great precision, the 123-grain Scenar turned into the norm by which any remaining Grendel loads are judged. Resulting presentations incorporate a 130-grain Swift Scirocco, 120-grain Barnes TSX and a 100-grain Berger open-tip match. There’s additionally a military/law implementation just burden, a 125-grain shot with a tungsten center.

Wolf Performance likewise stacks the round, in spite of the fact that it utilizes Large Rifle groundworks. It offers a 123-grain softpoint and a 120-grain Multi-Purpose Tactical, a hollowpoint boattail.

The huge news, however, has been Hornady’s new arrival of 6.5mm Grendel ammo. The organization fostered an altogether new .264 inch width 123 grain A-MAX shot explicitly for this undertaking. This is honored with an exceptionally high .510 BC. Asserted gag speed is 2,620 fps from a 24-inch barrel.

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