is there a better SBR hunting caliber than 300 blackout?

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greyling22

greyling22

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out of an 8-10" barrel, is there a caliber, .357 diameter or smaller, that significantly outperforms the 300 blackout for hunting pigs/deer, without going with a wildcat exotic like 358 yeti?

I have a blackout SBR right now, and it's fine, but I keep wishing it hit a little harder. And the barnes tac-tx bullets I'm loading aren't cheap. Is there something out there that would significantly outperform the blackout? I've been eyeballing 6.8spc, 6.5 grendel, 300 hammer, 277 wolverine, 350 legend, but I don't see much out there on them for hunting as an sbr. I have a 16" grendel already. And the caliber diameter limit is imposed by the suppressor.
 
Put a longer barrel on it?

What ammo are you using? Do you want to be limited to subsonic? If so then the only way to get more performance is to go to a heavier bullet., that would entail a larger caliber.

Have you chronographed the ammo you're using?
 
I want to go supersonic. I'm using a 110 grn tac-tx at nearly 2000fps at the muzzle. I don't want a longer barrel. by the time I add an 8" suppressor to a 10" barrel it makes a long package to wield on the side by side. Thus, I'd like to stay with the SBR length.
 
If it were me, the .350 Legend would be my choice. Hits a lot harder than the .300 at the appropriate short ranges and is slightly more efficient in shorter tubes. Yeah, the bullet diameter is a miss-fire, but there are still plenty of decent bullets available. The Grendel and 6.8 shine at longer ranges but I am assuming that the OP isn’t interested in 300-yard shots....



.
 
I have a 12.5" 6.8 SPC II SBR that I handload 90 grain TNT bullets at 2600 FPS. I'm not pushing pressures either. If you lose 50 FPS per inch of shortening the barrel that means you're looking at 2500 FPS or thereabouts. I haven't actually tried it on live game yet, but it's accurate at the range at 100 yards.

It would be interesting to try my Hornady 120 SST out of that barrel. I've got those going 2460 out of my 16", so using the same assumption that would mean a theoretical 120 grain going about 2285 FPS out of a 12.5" barrel. I also doubt you'd lose 50 FPS per inch...I believe it'd be more like 25-30 FPS. I'm just duplicating the Hornady velocity of their factory ammo and not pushing pressures for that 120 grain load. Using the assumption of 30 FPS loss per inch that would mean about 2300 FPS out of a 10.5" barrel.
 
Even from a 10" barrel I'd rather have 223 than 300 BO. You should be able to get 2600-2700 fps+ with 50gr or 55gr Barnes TTSX's and get complete penetration on deer size game. Those are too expensive to play with at the range, but you can plink and practice with cheaper bullets and save the expensive ones for hunting. A conventional bullet around 75 gr should be good too. Either of the 6.5's or 6.8's would be even better.
 
greyling22 said:
out of an 8-10" barrel, is there a caliber, .357 diameter or smaller, that significantly outperforms the 300 blackout for hunting pigs/deer, without going with a wildcat exotic like 358 yeti?

I have a blackout SBR right now, and it's fine, but I keep wishing it hit a little harder. And the barnes tac-tx bullets I'm loading aren't cheap. Is there something out there that would significantly outperform the blackout? I've been eyeballing 6.8spc, 6.5 grendel, 300 hammer, 277 wolverine, 350 legend, but I don't see much out there on them for hunting as an sbr. I have a 16" grendel already. And the caliber diameter limit is imposed by the suppressor.
Click to expand...

LoonWulf said:
.350 legend running heavies sized down....i dont know if any heavies have been released yet. .357s dia bullets might work well.
Click to expand...
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1018229522?pid=609303
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1021205725?pid=551625
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1021525515?pid=524902
For the sbr, I'm partial to the ftx, let the bc help make up for lack of velocity.
Or bear with me here, a 125 Barnes!!!
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1010858688
Data shows fun for that 125 3 powders from hodgdon.
 
I was coming in to throw out 350 legend as well, but...

What's holding me up is a simple matter of economics. When I build an AR around anything, I tend to shoot it...a LOT. I'm still considering 300BO, just because you can get steel case ammo for it.
 
greyling22 said:
out of an 8-10" barrel, is there a caliber, .357 diameter or smaller, that significantly outperforms the 300 blackout for hunting pigs/deer, without going with a wildcat exotic like 358 yeti?

I have a blackout SBR right now, and it's fine, but I keep wishing it hit a little harder. And the barnes tac-tx bullets I'm loading aren't cheap. Is there something out there that would significantly outperform the blackout? I've been eyeballing 6.8spc, 6.5 grendel, 300 hammer, 277 wolverine, 350 legend, but I don't see much out there on them for hunting as an sbr. I have a 16" grendel already. And the caliber diameter limit is imposed by the suppressor.
Click to expand...
I'll throw in one of the speedster .22s like the nosler of Valkyrie.
 
horsey300 said:
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1018229522?pid=609303
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1021205725?pid=551625
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1021525515?pid=524902
For the sbr, I'm partial to the ftx, let the bc help make up for lack of velocity.
Or bear with me here, a 125 Barnes!!!
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1010858688
Data shows fun for that 125 3 powders from hodgdon.
Click to expand...
I was thinking 220-250 range for use with the
suppressor. Ive got some of the 170 and 180s and can get them to 2200 from my 16, probably be close to 2 k even with the barrel reduction to 8"
 
The 6.8 SPC II was my answer to the “SBR deer/hog rifle” question a handful of years ago. Today, that would be a 6.5 Grendel instead.

The 300 with supers doesn’t keep up with these two - poor SD’s and BC’s, the 300 hits hard enough up close, but in reality, a 10.5” AR in 6.5 or 6.8 is a 400 deer rifle - that can’t be as easily said for the 300blk.
 
Just curious what the point in the suppressor is on anything super in an AR? 223 is insanely loud and blackout is really loud. Are you just taking a shot or 2 and it just keeps the majority of the hearing damage at bay?
 
MCFLYFYTER said:
Just curious what the point in the suppressor is on anything super in an AR? 223 is insanely loud and blackout is really loud. Are you just taking a shot or 2 and it just keeps the majority of the hearing damage at bay?
Click to expand...

Even if you aren’t able to achieve hearing safe levels, it does take the edge off - no ringing even from repeated firing. I fired a suppressor only night match last year, my squad and I would have fired 1600+ rounds over two nights without hearing protection, with 8x more fired by the squads at the other stages. Even talking quietly all night, we were able to hear normally. At one point, a few heifers found their way into the line of fire, Black and concealed by the dark of the night, but I could hear them walking in the boot length grass. So my hearing wasn’t diminished at all, despite hundreds of rounds of suppressed short action cartridges firing all around me - including my own. I’m sure my doctor would promote otherwise, but I would challenge that suppressed rifles can be fired even at quite high volume without significant hearing loss. I do wear earmuffs and/or plugs when mowing my lawn, and always double protection when running a chainsaw, or firing unsuppressed firearms. My ears ring more after an hour of running a 50cc chainsaw WITH protection than firing a couple hundred rounds of suppressed rifle WITHOUT protection.

Uniquely, also, it’s common for game to run TOWARD the shooter after one of their compatriots is felled by a suppressed rifle. My only assumption is they must hear the bullet striking the dirt and the sonic boom passing them, such they assume the danger is in the opposite direction. That confusion leads to more shot opportunities on game - a suppressed AR is the ONLY way I have ever laid down 3 or more coyotes in a single set.
 
MCFLYFYTER said:
Just curious what the point in the suppressor is on anything super in an AR? 223 is insanely loud and blackout is really loud. Are you just taking a shot or 2 and it just keeps the majority of the hearing damage at bay?
Click to expand...
I have deafness coming at me from all aides of the family, and yes, hearing damage at bay if of utmost importance. Also, it makes a much more pleasant experience. No concussive blast making you flinch, a pair of foam earplugs is entirely adequate hearing protection rather than hot bulky muffs, it's really nice. The experience is a lot like shooting a 22 mag rather than a 223, blackout, grendel or other larger round.

as a side note, the loudest part of a suppresed ar is the noise coming out of the ejection port. I have not found supersonic blackout to be meaningfully quieter to the shooter than subs. Both make me want hearing protection if I am doing anything other than taking a single snap shot at a pig.
 
6.8 SPC and 6.5 Grendel are both better choices, honestly. 300 BLK is good for one thing and that is being extremely quiet. It was designed to be a better option than a 9mm submachinegun. It’s better than that, but it is not a great round overall. I have one and it’s fun, but it would never be my first choice as a hunting cartridge. I have 6.8s and 6.5 Grendels available for that.
 
Since you limited it I will say 350 Legend, but my real answer would be 458 SOCOM. A 500 grain bullet doesn’t need to be moving very fast to punch a significant hole completely through a very large animal.
 
Sorry for getting off topic, but you made me realize I had only shot supers under an awning at the range. Out in the open, 223 and super blackout might be bearable. Thanks
 
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