Creedmoor or?

[flipper35]

So the Creedmoor is a fairly heavy hitting cartridge and would be fine in an AR for white tail. Is there a more economical choice in an AR platform for said game that is also widely available? I see the 6.8 is hard to find and the 6.5 Grendel is tough as well. Or just go to an AR10 in 7.62x51?

For myself I have a 30-06 with 150gr.

This would be for a young'un after passing hunter safety and really likes the AR platform.

[Eric Coffey]

For hunting the 6.8 is the better all-around cartridge, IMO. There really isn't any advantage to 6.5 until you get past 500+ yards. The 7.62 (.308) is great with readily available (and cheaper) ammo, but at the expense of a bigger/heavier package in the AR platform. YMMV...

[Jeff Higgins]

The 65. Creedmoor is a .308 length cartridge and will not fit an AR-15 length action. It would require an AR-10, same as the .308. The 6.5 Grendel and 6.8 SPC are both designed to fit a standard AR-15 length action.

Here are some size comparisons. 6.5 Grendel on the left, 6.5 Creedmoor on the right:



6.8 SPC on the left, 6.5 Grendel on the right:



The short AR-15 length cartridges are, at least in my opinion, pretty marginal for deer hunting. I know guys use them, but they do shoot kind of light for caliber bullets at pretty reduced velocities. Maybe good for young, recoil shy hunters for small deer at close range, but I honestly think there are better options, like a bolt action .243 or something. Or a bolt action in 6.5 Creedmoor.

[flipper35]

Where we hunt it may be 25' or 400 yards but he would most likely be in the woods where you can see to 150 yards. He like the AR platform either the AR10 or AR15.

He is not shy of recoil, yet. At 9 he helped a friend break in a new AR15 in .223. He went through over 100 rounds in it. He then asked to shoot the real battle rifle there, a Garand. My daughter shot it (16 at the time) but I did not let him shoot it. He shoots a .410 at clays and can shoot the 1911 with the .45 ACP barrel on it now instead of the .22. The largest centerfire he shot was 6mm Rem. That is a varmint gun with a bull barrel and Monte Carlo style stock. It probably has less recoil than the .223. He also has his own bolt action .22 so he is familiar with that style action. The daughter is the lever action freak. Her BB gun when she was little, her .22 and now 30-30.

If I talk him into a .308 we could use the same round, assuming it shoots the Nosler 150gr OK.

He is almost 5'2" now and a little over 100#. Stocky boy. He is old enough to take Hunters Safety this year.

[Wetwork]

Why the need for a such long range shooter? I personally have dropped my last two mulie bucks with my AR in .223/5.56? I have a 1in8 twist Wylde barrel I just used the heavier Barnes bullets with much success and pretty much zero meat loss. I'm kinda a shoulder buster sort of guy, don't like to have them run anywhere. So heavy Barnes bullets and I was fine.

The sole reason I use my AR is the weight, its light and my knees are shot. I lug around heavy rifles early in the season, then switch to the AR.

I also have a 6.5 Creed Bergara for longer range stuff and bigger critters (elk). Thats my lug around early season.

All my rambles is why bother with a serious long range round when a .223 would be fine? -WW

ps. I was raised on .270 but you're talking AR

[tabs]

Originally Posted by flipper35

Where we hunt it may be 25' or 400 yards but her would most likely be in the woods where you can see to 150 yards. He like the AR platform either the AR10 or AR15.

He is not shy of recoil, yet. At 9 he helped a friend break in a new AR15 in .223. He went through over 100 rounds in it. He then asked to shoot the real battle rifle there, a Garand. My daughter shot it (16 at the time) but I did not let him shoot it. He shoots a .410 at clays and can shoot the 1911 with the .45 ACP barrel on it now instead of the .22. The largest centerfire he shot was 6mm Rem. That is a varmint gun with a bull barrel and Monte Carlo style stock. It probably has less recoil than the .223. He also has his own bolt action .22 so he is familiar with that style action. The daughter is the lever action freak. Her BB gun when she was little, her .22 and now 30-30.

If I talk him into a .308 we could use the same round, assuming it shoots the Nosler 150gr OK.

He is almost 5'2" now and a little over 100#. Stocky boy. He is old enough to take Hunters Safety this year.

ALERT ALERT ALERT....We have gun nutz here...

[vash]

someone felt the 6.5 Creedmore wasnt fast enough.

they made the 6.5 PRC. just in case you really need to reach out there.

[flipper35]

Originally Posted by Wetwork

Why the need for a such long range shooter? I personally have dropped my last two mulie bucks with my AR in .223/5.56? I have a 1in8 twist Wylde barrel I just used the heavier Barnes bullets with much success and pretty much zero meat loss. I'm kinda a shoulder buster sort of guy, don't like to have them run anywhere. So heavy Barnes bullets and I was fine.

The sole reason I use my AR is the weight, its light and my knees are shot. I lug around heavy rifles early in the season, then switch to the AR.

I also have a 6.5 Creed Bergara for longer range stuff and bigger critters (elk). Thats my lug around early season.

All my rambles is why bother with a serious long range round when a .223 would be fine? -WW

ps. I was raised on .270 but you're talking AR

We don't need the distance, but having a little extra knockdown power is a good thing. A .22 will bring a white tail down with proper shot placement. Young'uns don't always have that so I really didn't want something marginal for him.

He likes the AR platform, I happen to like a 760 Carbine in 30-06.

We have a .270 on hand as well.

Tabs, my daughter is very vocal about her being able to vote or join the military but not carry a hand spoon to be able to defend herself for three more years.

[pwd72s]

Little whitetail? Old school...winchester 30-30

[Arizona_928]

Originally Posted by flipper35

Tabs, my daughter is very vocal about her being able to vote or join the military but not carry a hand spoon to be able to defend herself for three more years.

Move to a free state then.....

[HardDrive]

I personally find the idea of hunting with an AR distasteful, but that is my own personal bias. I don't really see the need for a semi-auto for hunting, regardless of the platform.

Frankly, I'm also skeptical of the need for all of these newfangled calibers. Unless you are hunting in the West, not really sure what a 6.5 if doing for you that a .308 won't.

(Get off my lawn!

[HardDrive]

And yes, I hunt with a .30-06 bolt.

[flipper35]

A .308 may be just fine. As mentioned earlier, if the .308 round shoots well we can use the same Nosler bullet to reload both. If not, oh well. I was not sure if the CM could be chambered in a 15 or a 10. Jeff says 10 and I believe him. In the original post I did mention .308 (7.62x51).

On a side note, I have a 742 in 30-06 which is semi auto. It is really no different than a pump as it takes time to recover from the recoil. A .223 does give faster follow up shots but that is a Coyote cartridge.

The AR platform is very accurate in general so I see no problems with it. It is no different to me than a 760 Carbine with a factory 10 round mag. Now, if I could only find one in good shape.

[flipper35]

Originally Posted by Arizona_928

Move to a free state then.....

Which state would that be that allows an 18 year old to CC a handgun?

[flipper35]

Originally Posted by Arizona_928

Move to a free state then.....

Originally Posted by pwd72s

Little whitetail? Old school...winchester 30-30

Sorry, no. I am a Marlin guy!

[vash]

AR hunting rifles seem just so heavy to me. my bolt rifles are heavy enough.

[cabmandone]

.450 bushmaster?? I like my bolt action. Seems to have good accuracy out to 200. Makes a BIG hole at 50 yards.

[tabs]

All the new fangled 6.5's are off shoots of the original 6.5 X 55 Swede and the 6.5 X 54 Austrian Manlicher..both date from around 1900. Extremely accurate and flat shooting cartridges. Ostensibly the best Mauser Sniper was the 1896 Swede 6.5 X 55..The Ivory hunter in Africa would use the 1903 Manlicher Schoneaur in 6.5 X 54...the section density of the bullet had deep penetrating capability for brain shots on Elephants.

[Jeff Higgins]

Both of my boys began hunting at age 12. The older started with a Model 70 Featherweight in 6.5 Swede, the younger with a Ruger #1 Light Sporter in .30-'06. They had both grown up shooting, so adapting to the recoil was not that big of an issue for them. They actually thought it was kind of fun.

Sounds like your boy is in much the same boat. I would not worry in the least about starting him off with a .308. That sure opens up the choices in firearms as well, certainly more so than the other options you have mentioned. There is no shortage of lightweight "mountain guns" and the like on short actions that a young man would have no trouble carrying in the field. Plus, as he grows, they will remain wonderful hunting rifles, well into adulthood. My boys are now 30-ish, and still hunt with those two "little" rifles given to them at 12 years old.

[Arizona_928]

Originally Posted by flipper35

Which state would that be that allows an 18 year old to CC a handgun?

az....