Talk me out of a .300 BLK

[doofus47]

Hey, MarkCO, were you trying to build a lookalike Star Wars storm trooper rifle?

hopefully this doesn't take us into the weeds, but I have to ask.

I believe that TTAG did a SBR study of 7.62x39 in an AR platform and found that it kept a large portion of it's energy despite a really, really shortened barrel, so I think that a SBR in 300Blackout makes sense. However, I still think that a 6.8 SBR would have more energy than either. Has anyone seen well-documented stats on SBR 6.8 energy levels? maybe i'm making a bad assumption.

 

[Ritz]

My rationale for 300 AAC is that it's very easy to keep just a spare upper handy for a perfectly legal deer harvester (.223 is not legal to hunt deer with in my state...and I wouldn't do that even if it was). 6.8spc and 6.5grendel are also legal for deer, but that ammo is even more scarce than 300AAC and it involves more than a simple barrel change. I like having the ability to keep a common parts bin.

The end game for me is being able to have a light, low recoil rifle for my dad to use for hunting.

 

[MarkCO]

Hey, MarkCO, were you trying to build a lookalike Star Wars storm trooper rifle?

Nope, just functional, and it does that in spades.

 

[dean1818]

Ritz...... Your statement that 300blk is more available than 6.8 is just not true

Check Gunbot.

You will see:

Less availabilty of 300BLK

300blk is 10 to 50% more expensive than 6.8

And...... From what I see, the vast overwhelming majority of people keep a dedicated upper for 300blk....... Not switch barrels back and forth.


The 300blk is a decent choice, for where its intended and where it shines.

A guy was posting that the 300 blk was a "300 yard hunting round"

Its not


Its just frustrating to me to see people continue to make it more than it is.


I say pick a rifle for your best application, you will be happy.

If you want to run SBR and suppressed, are a reloader and / or hunt out to 130 ish yards, the 300 is a good choice

 

[Ritz]

Hit gunbroker.com and do two searches:

1. 6.8 SPC (you'll get about 2 pages of hits)
2. 300 blackout (you'll get about TWELVE pages of hits)

Even if you narrow it down to only ammunition, 300 BO is still significantly more abundant in terms of search results.

Must be my imagination about which one is more available. Prices for loaded ammo seem pretty similar to me and you've got the option of buying super or subsonic with the 300 BO.

I don't own either caliber yet, but will remedy that with a 300 BO upper/barrel assembly soon.

Best,

 

[tobnpr]

Since I'm not looking for a gun that's accurate out to more than 200-300 yards, it didn't seem like a drawback.

It's not accurate out to 200 yards. It drops over a foot compared to the 5.56.
Larry Vickers did a 3-gun comparison of the .300 BLK, 5.56 and 7.62 x 39...

The .300 BLK fared worse than the old AK round. He didn't even bother to shoot it at 300 yards, because he felt it would be pointless.

Try to find that episode of Tac TV before you decide the .300 BLK is the be-all, end-all of AR-15 chamberings

 

[dean1818]

Ritz. Again. Respectfully, I Hate to disagree. My comment is on ammo. I just went to gunbroker and looked at 6.8 there are 65 active ammo entries. I looked at 300 blk. There are 13...,,,

Check for yourself


The 300blk is a great round, but the promised extremely cheap and easily reliably available ammo hasnt matierialized. Not yet.

To me, if you go that way, get a reloading setup to make use of cheap and plentiful 233 brass.

I went 6.8, I HAD to reload, or I would be broke

 

[Ritz]

Disagree all you want. Your info isn't accurate. I went to gunbroker just now and simply typed "300 blackout" in the search box. Then I looked to the left and clicked on "rifle ammunition" to strip out all the parts/rifles. I get 3 pages of results (110 items). Happy to provide a screen shot if you don't believe me.

In any case, I'm already setup for reloading so I'm not stressed about it, even though it seems plentiful enough. A walk in the park compared to trying to get .38-55 ammo for my model 94.

Best,

 

[dean1818]

We are searching GB differently I guess

I chose "Ammo" from the left side on main page

I input 300blk in the search bar


Still 13

I did the search EXACTLY like you did...

Still 13


I will leave it there, its not a big point anyway

Good luck in your choice.

If you go 300blk, I am sure you will enjoy your weapon, many people seem to

Take care

 

[Ritz]

I'm still seeing the same result.

http://www.gunbroker.com

Input "300 blackout" in the "search for" box at the top. Hit the magnifying glass button. You'll get back pages of results. Now go to the left margin and click on "rifle ammunition" to narrow it down. I am seeing 109 results (which all appear to be 300 blackout ammo or reloading supplies for same). No real shortage.

You enjoy yours too.

Best,

 

[dean1818]

After searching 300 Blackout (not 300blk) I find 110 items.....

I am wrong, Ritz is right

(Man thats painful)

Maybe the humble pie will go down better with milk.......


Anyway....... Once again..... Good luck

..... Hides in closet........... Swears to never disagree with any 300blk guys
ever again

Scratch that..... 300 BLACKOUT guys.....

 

[Ritz]

Heh...it's all good.

 

[Bartholomew Roberts]

It's not accurate out to 200 yards. It drops over a foot compared to the 5.56.

Looking at my ballistics program, 55gr M193 @ 2989fps drops 0.44" at 200yds (50yd zero) and 110gr TSX @ 2200fps drops 5.5" at 200yds (50yd zero). Where are you getting a foot drop compared to 5.56? Are you comparing subsonics to supersonic 5.56?

 

[tobnpr]

All I can say is that I watched this episode, real-world test.
Here's a link to the trailer, perhaps someone can find it on you-tube or elsewhere.

It's a purpose-built, short-range round. For CQB, suppressed fire, or short range hunting it fits. I'd certainly never think of it as something for target shooting.

There's only so much boiler room in a cartridge compatible with the AR-15 platform, and it's very limited with what it can do with .30 cal bullets.

http://www.tac-tv.com/videos/tac-tv-season-2-ep.-13-300-blackout