I run 6.8 SPC out of a 14.5” pistol setup for MN whitetail. Did all kinds of research on the Grendel, 300BO, and others before coming across the 6.8 that’s apparently quite popular in the South for pigs. The combination of energy on target and range put it above the rest. It’s been great both years I’ve used it at 150 yds and just shy of 200 yds to comfortably take my deer
It has a lot to do with bullet make up. I bet they’re all pretty similar with the same style of bullet. We didn’t hear what bullets were being used for the test.
I have 2 AR-15s. First one was chambered in 6.8 SPC. My dad and I didn't know what we were buying or looking for and just wanted an AR-15. The gun is a beast. It's my emergency hunting rifle, or if I for some reason need a beefy round. The main home defense AR-15 is the 223/556, just because the ammo is relatively cheap and easy to find. I was thinking of selling the 6.8 SPC, but after I found out it could be used for hunting larger game than a 5.56, I decided to keep it. Ammo is a little expensive and kind of hard to find, but I have a decent stock of it, and it's not my main practice rifle, so ammo isn't really a problem. Thanks for the vid Banana!
The 6.8 spc is pretty amazing and horribly underrated. You can look up ballistic testing for it including auto glass and the 6.8 excels In a big way. 6.8 spc II, .338 spectre and .458 socom are IMHO the best conversion rounds for the AR-15 . 6.5 grendal is close . The 6.8 spc was originally designed for the 14.5 " m4 barrel and carbine gas system. The 16 " is standard as a commercial cartridge. A 115 grain Remington fmj should get in the area of 2800 fps In a 24" barrel and just over 2000 ft.lbs muzzle energy. There was for a long time 6.8 spc spec II " combat loads by a company called silver state armory. It was basically a +p version developed in tandem with Barrett using their m468 and gen 1 rec7. Unfortunately nosler bought the company out and immediately canceled the combat loads after selling their assets. In contrast to regular ammo, that 120 grain sst would get about 2850 fps from a 16 inch barrel. They and a 87 grain Barnes tac-x offering at 3100ish fps ,A 100 grainer at 3000ish fps and so forth. It's why we have a spec II chamber and 1/10 twist minimum with 1/11 being ideal . The downside of it is it's unusually sensitive to fast twist rates with standard 6 groove rifling. Even that was worked around when Bison and white oak made subsonic loads and a 1/7 twist barrel 2 (maybe it was 3 groove, its been years) groove barrel that could handle all loads. Sorry to rant, I'm a 6.8 spc fan man. Lol with my luck I'm sure if I lived the 6.5 grendal, .450 bushmaster and .300 whisper/blk ,they would all be on the fringes of extinction or proprietary and esoteric rounds .
I didn't expect the 6.8 to do so well. I have a 6.5 Grendel and love it. They are all so close though, not worth buying the others if you have one already.
I assembled a 6.5G with an 18" barrel. Factory ammo is expensive. My handloads make ~2366 fps with 123 gr match bullets. They group about MOA at 100 yds. I picked the Grendel over the 6.8 SPC because of the better long range ballistics for paper punching. If I were ever to use it for hunting (unlikely, I'm in my 70's now) I would probably restrict it to
@@Tony-om5kr I have a 20” barrel on mine. Using Hornady Black it’s around 2388 fps, I also chose it for better ballistic qualities. Not mad at it. Shoots great. But I don’t hunt with it. Like you said, paper puncher. Definitely 300 yds and in if you do hunt with it.
It's really best to go 10 inch or 16 inch. You're not getting much more velocity with 17-24 inches. Remember, accuracy is mechanical and has nothing to do with barrel length. That said I'm rocking a single shot Ruger American with the conversion sled mag. 22 inches.
@@FlannelOpossum I came close to building a 6.8 SPC Spec 2 rifle but chose a 6.5G instead; a little less hassle and the barrel was on sale at the time.
I bought a box of PPU to shoot my dad's mini with a 1.5-5 x Leupold. I was surprised with its accuracy. I easily hit a 6in plate at 200, and a 1' x 18" plate at 325. I can only imagine how accurate it is with handloads.
I jumped on the 6.8SPC bandwagon very early on when i saw it punch thru steel and explode water jugs. This is the 1st comparison video ive watched and i was on the edge of my seat at the end! Totally blown away that it beat the 6.5 Grendel!!🎉🎉 Thanks for this epic battle video!
I jumped early also. After I built mine and seen what it was capable of I built my twins was an AR in 6.8spc. I just wish Silver state armory made ammo, they made quality stuff. Can't find it anymore.
I'm another early adopter. I figured the 6.8 would do well, though. It's generally going to have the most muzzle energy, all else being equal. If you're punchin' paper at a thousand yards, as mentioned in the video, it's a whole different story... but it's the perfect semi-auto ranch rifle cartridge, IMHO.
Ever since 6.8 SPC came out I always wanted to have one even when it lost popularity as it failed to get adopted by our military. The fact that Jordan adopted this cartridge for their military makes it hard to beat. Your test confirms how good this cartridge is
The 6.8spc is my favorite ar round. It is so slept on for some reason. I'm so happy to see this video. I have a 16 inch 6.8 spc and just last year built a 11.3 inch 6.8 spc. I run 90 grain maker rex ammo going 3000fps out of my 16 inch barrel and 2800 out of my 11.3
My 20 inch AR-15 runs 90 to 100 gr close to 3000 fps as well. Compared it with my 243 winchester with the same bullet weight and barrel length and it was about the same.
It's slept on because it has no external ballistic advantage over .223, and way more recoil. A 90gr .277 projectile has a lower sectional density than a 62gr .224. A 90gr 6mm has the SD of a 117gr .277. More recoil than a .22 or 6mm, less sectional density, lower BC, and no gain in trajectory at all. And necking it down didn't help, the .224valk was a flop. The 30 remington is just not an efficient case
@@phillycheesetake 6.8 SPC does have some recoil for sure even out of my heavy AR. I was shocked at how much. Not hard, but more than I expected, but I would love to see someone with the ability to compare a 243 to the 6.8 on a video for comparison. I would still take my 243 over the 6.8 for a hunting gun any day.
Crows are very smart. They've been known to stand over their dead in groups. For a long time scientist believed it was a form of sorrow. Recently they determined that the group was actually trying to determine what caused its death. These have now become known as Murder investigations.
6.8 SPC for the win boys! Run in an SPC II chamber which is standard now and handload to its full potential and you'll really be impressed. Cavity back bullets, Maker, and the Hornady 120 SST are all top notch. Druid Hill loads them to SPC II pressure too!
Enjoyed this video man, i been interested in possibly getting a 6.5 upper so i found this definitely interesting. Also i appreciate you posting the bullet weights and type of round you have been using past few videos. That has been one of my only issues or things i wished you did in the past, so thank you it makes for a more relatable or at least understanding what round actually achieved your results in the videos. Thks again!
AAC makes good cheap grendel ammo, overall grendel is the best for reloading too, followed by 6 arc, but 6 arc factory ammo costs twice as much and is only made by hornady. Both are great cartridges, the 6.5 and 6 are going to beat the 6.8 at range as the 6.8 is going to have lower bc bullets.
6.8 spc for the win, and it doesn't surprise me at all. It is a great round that works almost as well out of an 11" barrel as it does a 20". At a realistic engagement distance, it is awesome. If you really want to round for sniper distances, you'll step up to something much bigger than anything you tested that day anyway.
Glad to finally see someone acknowledge that box numbers on the 6.8 are from a 16" barrel while everything else is a 24". 6.8 is so underrated simply because it's not the best to shoot long range with, which It was never designed to. It was designed to increase lethality from short barrels at standard combat ranges and it does a great job at that. For a short, lightweight hunting rifle the 6.8 is superior out to 300 yards. Past that the other calibers overtake it but past 300 yards none of these are really good on large game.
If you read the internet the 6.5 Grendel is basically an ICBM and the 6.8 is weaker that a fire cracker.... more than likely due to the 6.5 box numbers being out of 24" and 6.8 box numbers being out of 16"
As a Grendel fanboy, I gotta point out that you used a match bullet for 6.5, but a SST for the 6.8, so that may explain some of the difference in performance.
For what it's worth, Hornady TAP uses the ELD-M in several of their offerings. I agree it would be nice to see more of an apples to apples comparison. An ELD-M doesn't exist for 6.8 from Hornady; however, there are a few SST bullets in .264". I'd be more interested in seeing these calibers compared in a loading, each with a CX bullet. As a 6.8 SPC fanboy, I'd imagine the 6.5G would eat the 6.8 SPC's lunch at a distance. Up close? I don't know...
The difference on steel was bullet construction. Arcs and grendel hornady black , match cup/core bullets vs sst for 6.8 which is a bonded bullet. At that range bullet construction would be the big difference between these cartridges. Cool video.
6.8 wins. Banana did a test on all those. Plus 7.62 x 39 breaks bolts because of the diameter of the case rim, and needs a banana shaped magazine like the AK. 300 BLK is slower than the 6.8, 300 BLK Shines above the rest when used subsonic with a suppressor.
The technical term for a group of crows is a "murder of crows." They are definitely plotting your demise! Great test, thanks! Please always list the bullets and loads used when you do these tests so that you're comparing, well, bananas to bananas. You've got Hornady's toughest SST hunting bullet against three target rounds. Differences in bullet construction make all the difference.
The 6.8 will still outperform the Grendel in terms of velocity and speed out to 300 yards. Check out Druid Hill Armory Ammo. He loads both calibers to max specs with chrono readings from 18” barrels.
And your Hornady 6.8 isn't even spec II pressure. Get an LWRC Six8 or build a New Frontier Armory with an ARP barrel. Either 😮will let you use the Six8 Pmags. Add some Druid Hill Armory SPC II ammo, and you're golden. All these other cartridges are nice, but they don't have a rifle platform developed for them like the 6.8 does. Good Shooting Banana. Thanks for putting the 6.8SPC out there.
I’m just waiting for Sig hybrid case for the 6.8 spc and then necked down to 6mm. Seems like it would drop right into the ecosystem you mentioned and basically dunk on anything shy of a large frame platform
That 6.8 SPC was developed as a replacement for the 5.56 in a military trial. If I remember correctly it was designed to increase the engagement zone for infantry from 500 to 800 meters on point targets out of a 14.5 inch barrel. It met all the requirements then the army decided it would cost too much so it was never officially adopted. So no wonder its a beast out of a 20 inch.
The OTM projectile designed for the 6.8 SPC, which made it so special, was deemed to violate the Hague. The 6.8's performance was less than spectacular with a FMJ. So, it died.
From what I understand the finds were that it did out preform the 5.56 but the army decided to just issue more 7.62 rifles as DMs so you see the increase in M14's being pushed out to line companies. Share ammo with the MGs less logistics
.22 ARC - Hornady Black 75gr ELD 20" BBL 2,953 FPS 1,452FT/LBS , 6mm ARC Hornady Match 108gr ELD Match 20" BBL 2,626 FPS 1,655 FT/LBS , 6.5 Grendel Hornady Black 123gr ELD Match 20" BBL 2,486 FPS 1,688 FT/LBS , 6.8 SPC Hornady Custom 120gr SST 20" BBL 2,661 FPS 1,869FT/LBS . The ELDs are supposedly a little more rigid than the SSTs, so that's even more impressive that the 6.8 SST outdid the others in their ELD loadings.
I've always liked the idea of the Grendel.. I just never can justify actually buying one; I've got the energy/distance niche pretty much covered by other rifles.
A couple of years ago, I ordered a 6.5 Grendel Ruger Gen I Predator from Academy Sports. Since it has a 22 inch barrel it wrings more of the fps out of the powder. It is a tack driver, and not bad with the Wolf steel cased 100 grainers. The Wolf is getting very hard to find, but it was a very affordable buy. The US military should go with the Grendel when they replace the 5.56x45. The Grendel is an intermediate cartridge, but it brings more punch to the table, without the excesses of the new experimental .270. It is utterly ridiculous what those rounds cost. 😵💫MAGA 🥳
Man great video as always. Would love a comparison on 6.5x55 vs 6.5 creedmoore. Many thanks from sweden mr banana or as we say in sweden tack så mycket herr banan
Was very interested in this vid. New sub here. Have had a couple 6.8 SPCs in AR platforms. The best was a STAG 7. Took a coyote at 781 with it. It is NOT a distance cartridge, but speed isn't everything. Regularly took it to 5 & 600. Very fun cartridge, and easy to load for.
6.8 SPC II was sabotaged! The gun pimps pushed Valkyrie, 300 Blk, 6.5 Grendel when testing showed te 6.8 was the best all around cartridge. Even the new army round is 6.8. Different cartridge design but the caliber is the same. The 6.8 was simply not pimped because who designed it, and no former SOF guy was pimping the round, that is the only reason it never caught on.
That. And it didn't help that Nosler bought Silver State Armory and pretty much squashed all the great work they had done with the cartridge. Add in Remington screwing up the submitted specs as another negative. I still love the cartridge and have two rifles chambering it. Along with thousands of rounds in my stash. I do also have two Grendels and a Valkyrie. Don't need the ARCs.
@@WallyMerc06 Yeah, "they" just did NOT want this cartridge to succeed. Patent, profits etc, were not going to go to one of the big manufacturers. The did not find SOF types to pimp the cartridge.
Nothing to see here folks! Move along! Shhhhh! Stop making the 6.8 SPC look so good, I'll have too much competition for components and ammo for it 😉, only kidding, ha! I love hand loading for this cartridge in a short barrel. The results I'm getting are impressive. A lot of people sleep on the 6.8. It's a savvy pick for up close, but that's just my opinion. You've got a new sub and a like out of me sir 👍
6mm ARC is most likely going to be sunsetted. We just built the most reliable 22 ARC on the AR15 platform. It's almost done field testing now.. but 6mm is already probably done. 22 ARC, new hybrid round out there. Our barrel MFG is a hornady partner and perfected the chamber and has a beautiful rifling. Reach out if you want to do a review on the 22 ARC
Just as I thought: ARC's are awesome distance calibers, but 6.8 SPC smokes everything else in terms of real-life on target perfirnabce. Grendel is nice, but at the end it's a stop-gap cartrudge... For target shooting and fun 6mm ARC is great, but hot loaded 6.8 SPC, especially from 16-to-20 barrels slaps HARD. I cannot comprehend why it does't dethrone 5.56nn Nato at this point, SPC loaded in style of M855A1 green tip would frig so hard at any realistic battle distances!
11:43 : Lol his face!!! That's my feelings too. Probably too close to the others, though. 11:50 : Straight up, my face = Chris Pratt Shocked Smile. No. Freaking. Way. Have we been wrong about 6.8 SPC for over 10 years?
So from what I have heard 6arc was designed to hit harder than 223, but have similar range to 308. I would love to see a comparison with 223, 6arc, and 308
I have been with the 6.8 since the inception. Remington is the reason 6.8 didn't do as well as it should have. It was designed to kill stuff quickly out of the ar15 platform and it continues to deliver.
My first rifle I was going to build was a 6.8 Spc but at the time I couldn't afford the ammo so I did a 556 and later a 6.5G cause ammo was cheaper. I still want a 6.8spc though. Maybe this will be a good time to built one. :)
@@JimYeats I’ve got one as my coyote rifle and it dumps them out to 400+ yds. I’ve reloaded both the Valkyrie and 22ARC and speed wise, they’re closer than you think.
@@chasesantiago3176 I know, i’m just giving you a hard time because of how much people razz on it now. I’m sure it performs well, but it certainly took a hard nose dive in popularity.
It's interesting how similar these cartridges are. it seems to me that 6.8 came out just a bit ahead. I don't think it's enough of a difference to warrant switching but a new purchase is another matter.
6.8 SPC rules at close distance. Initial military fielding was very positive in urban areas, but out in the mountains was where it didn't do so well and that was probably what kept it from going further in the adoption process. 5.56 is adequate at the distances 6.8 was good for, provided you did your part as a shooter, and at significantly lower material cost and already in the production and supply chain. If you need more gun, 7.62 is also already available and not going to put additional strain on logistics.
Thing is, 556 is junk for fmj on human targets. Geneva renders is useless compared to other calibers. The 6.8 was great out to 3-500 yards then a massive fall off. But free standing and regular shooting is plenty. Like you said, you have bigger calibers for that, long range. I think the real issue is that the powers that be don't truly want any enemy soldiers getting killed in combat if it can be helped. Why choose a more deadly round when they don't want that? The current(and for over two decades) climate of warfare is a stupid game of chess where each side states it's moves before hand and where a military with superior weapons and tech will lose out from the game of red tape.
Idc what anyone says, the 6.8 spc beats the Grendel for hunting in anything shorter than a 22 inch barrel. Sure box velocity is higher for the 6.5 Grendel but it’s measured with a 24 inch, 6.8 box velocity is measured in a 16 inch. Im glad you pointed it out unlike most UA-camrs. I have nothing against the Grendel, I just prefer 6.8. I also love 6mm arc
Looking at the posted speeds, the 6.8 isn't nearly as affected by barrel length as the 6.5 grendel. It holds more kinetic energy out to 800 but the Grendel stays flatter to 1000
@@andrewcarlson2178 I have a 12.5 Faxon match build AR and just finished a 20" build. My go to 1000yd build. I can take repeat shots and stay on target the whole time. Recoil for the 6.5 is also a good bit lower than the 6.8 SPC. Also, WAY less than the .277 Fury (6.8 x 51). Plenty of ammo available just expensive.
I didn't fallow the ARC train pushed by Hornady . My opinion and we know what that's like 🫏🕳 😂lol . The 22-6 Creedmore are top dogs 🐕 . I really enjoy the 22&6mm creedmores . I have them with 25 & 26 inch barrels . The only caliber that rivels my 22 CM is my 22-250 Akley improved and my 220swift Akley improved both have 26 in varmint barrel. The main reason I went Akley improved I can still shoot factory ammo in them . The plus with that it fire forms my ammo from standard to Akley improved. You have nothing to loose everything to gain. Anyway Great vedio maybe in the future you can try wet magazines for a test we call it poor man's ballistics gel lol . Or use wood planks for penetration Test that's works good as well. God bless you and your family God-bless America 🇺🇸
I’ve shot it once and have been convinced since the NGSW went to sig. I believe we should ditch 5.56 and take up the main weapon for all branches would be the Sig MCX LT using 6.8 SPC3 which would be a custom load from Sig using the new case technology of the stainless steel case head and increasing pressure to 80k.
6.5 Grindal and 6.8 SPC dominated those test FYI the ARC is a Grindal necked down anyway. Great vedio. God bless you and your family God-bless America 🇺🇲
Ive taken 2 black bear around 50 yards for both with 6.8 spc using hornady 100 gr gmx factory loads. First bear front chest at collar bone exit at the back hip. Tested the ammo 20 in barrel 2672 average 6 shots 11SD
Lately my choice of firearm purchases is determined by ammo availability and price. Maybe do a video on a few handguns using one of the hot bear loads. See if you can stop old smokey from putting out your back yard camp fire before your beans, weenies and S'mores are all cooked
I'll take the 6mm ARC as the best all round. Basically the same energy as the Grendel, but it has has enough velocity to expand at 500 yards. Otherwise, the 6.8 is the best choice if you could still find it easily.
Great test! I appreciate you used the closest ammo comparison as possible! I wonder how much the 6.8SPC being a hunting bullet vs the match of the other 3 made the difference on the steel
I run 6.8 SPC out of a 14.5” pistol setup for MN whitetail. Did all kinds of research on the Grendel, 300BO, and others before coming across the 6.8 that’s apparently quite popular in the South for pigs. The combination of energy on target and range put it above the rest. It’s been great both years I’ve used it at 150 yds and just shy of 200 yds to comfortably take my deer
Also the 6.8 spc is probably my favorite super sonic round to suppress!
It has a lot to do with bullet make up. I bet they’re all pretty similar with the same style of bullet. We didn’t hear what bullets were being used for the test.
Weekly reminder for someone to loan this guy a 220 swift.
He would also need a loaner .222 or something to compare it with
@@adabsurdum5905 there is nothing to compare it to. Maybe a 22-250, but there isn’t anything pushing 4000 fps to have a fair comparison.
Winchester white box 45grain jhp
Hornady superformance 50 grain
WHOTEEWHO Adam is the only one I know of,but he's in Tennessee
I have 2 AR-15s. First one was chambered in 6.8 SPC. My dad and I didn't know what we were buying or looking for and just wanted an AR-15. The gun is a beast. It's my emergency hunting rifle, or if I for some reason need a beefy round. The main home defense AR-15 is the 223/556, just because the ammo is relatively cheap and easy to find. I was thinking of selling the 6.8 SPC, but after I found out it could be used for hunting larger game than a 5.56, I decided to keep it. Ammo is a little expensive and kind of hard to find, but I have a decent stock of it, and it's not my main practice rifle, so ammo isn't really a problem.
Thanks for the vid Banana!
I have 1,100 rounds stocked for a few years now.
The 6.8 spc is pretty amazing and horribly underrated. You can look up ballistic testing for it including auto glass and the 6.8 excels In a big way. 6.8 spc II, .338 spectre and .458 socom are IMHO the best conversion rounds for the AR-15 . 6.5 grendal is close . The 6.8 spc was originally designed for the 14.5 " m4 barrel and carbine gas system. The 16 " is standard as a commercial cartridge. A 115 grain Remington fmj should get in the area of 2800 fps In a 24" barrel and just over 2000 ft.lbs muzzle energy. There was for a long time 6.8 spc spec II " combat loads by a company called silver state armory. It was basically a +p version developed in tandem with Barrett using their m468 and gen 1 rec7. Unfortunately nosler bought the company out and immediately canceled the combat loads after selling their assets. In contrast to regular ammo, that 120 grain sst would get about 2850 fps from a 16 inch barrel. They and a 87 grain Barnes tac-x offering at 3100ish fps ,A 100 grainer at 3000ish fps and so forth. It's why we have a spec II chamber and 1/10 twist minimum with 1/11 being ideal . The downside of it is it's unusually sensitive to fast twist rates with standard 6 groove rifling. Even that was worked around when Bison and white oak made subsonic loads and a 1/7 twist barrel 2 (maybe it was 3 groove, its been years) groove barrel that could handle all loads. Sorry to rant, I'm a 6.8 spc fan man. Lol with my luck I'm sure if I lived the 6.5 grendal, .450 bushmaster and .300 whisper/blk ,they would all be on the fringes of extinction or proprietary and esoteric rounds .
Been whitetail hunting with 6.8 SPC for over ten years. I've tried other calibers but always come back to the 6.8. It just works.
Thanks for finally testing the 6.8spc! I've had one for years and love it
I didn't expect the 6.8 to do so well. I have a 6.5 Grendel and love it. They are all so close though, not worth buying the others if you have one already.
I assembled a 6.5G with an 18" barrel. Factory ammo is expensive. My handloads make ~2366 fps with 123 gr match bullets. They group about MOA at 100 yds. I picked the Grendel over the 6.8 SPC because of the better long range ballistics for paper punching. If I were ever to use it for hunting (unlikely, I'm in my 70's now) I would probably restrict it to
@@Tony-om5kr I have a 20” barrel on mine. Using Hornady Black it’s around 2388 fps, I also chose it for better ballistic qualities. Not mad at it. Shoots great. But I don’t hunt with it. Like you said, paper puncher. Definitely 300 yds and in if you do hunt with it.
It's really best to go 10 inch or 16 inch. You're not getting much more velocity with 17-24 inches.
Remember, accuracy is mechanical and has nothing to do with barrel length.
That said I'm rocking a single shot Ruger American with the conversion sled mag. 22 inches.
6.8 SPC when loaded properly (Remington fucked up so anything off shelf is downloaded) is very effective.
@@FlannelOpossum I came close to building a 6.8 SPC Spec 2 rifle but chose a 6.5G instead; a little less hassle and the barrel was on sale at the time.
My first custom caliber AR was a 6.8spc with a Bison 18" barrel. Great round!
I have a 16" BSP barrel and run handloaded 120 SSTs for supersonic and 200 Woodleighs for subsonic. The SSTs have taken 2 deer, 4 hogs and a coyote.
6.8 was my second one I’ve made
Some of these just came out and you got full builds for all of them. Let’s get some 8.6 blackout vs. .338 arc big money Banana😉
Yes, Sir!
Um, are you spying on me? I’m that 6.5 Grendel fan boy sitting on the toilet!😂
How did everything come out? 😅
@@dhardisonLike coal tumbling down a chute! Git Sum Grendel, Baby! 🥳
6mm Arc fan doing the same 😂
Same here
I've got 6.8 in 16" & 12.5" barrels, the MV and ME are very close. This round gets spicy real quick. Great hunting round.
6.8spc has been my hunting choice for a few years now
Same, I run it in my Mini 14 for whitetail.
I bought a box of PPU to shoot my dad's mini with a 1.5-5 x Leupold. I was surprised with its accuracy. I easily hit a 6in plate at 200, and a 1' x 18" plate at 325. I can only imagine how accurate it is with handloads.
Finally some love for the SPC! It deserves it.
I'm with Bathroom Banana. I like 6.5 GR, which is why I have 4 of them. But if I were to do it again; 6.8 SPC for sure.
6.8 spc for the win. Love the caliber! My 90gr handloads are about 2900fps out of 16" barrel.
I jumped on the 6.8SPC bandwagon very early on when i saw it punch thru steel and explode water jugs. This is the 1st comparison video ive watched and i was on the edge of my seat at the end! Totally blown away that it beat the 6.5 Grendel!!🎉🎉 Thanks for this epic battle video!
I jumped early also. After I built mine and seen what it was capable of I built my twins was an AR in 6.8spc. I just wish Silver state armory made ammo, they made quality stuff. Can't find it anymore.
I'm another early adopter. I figured the 6.8 would do well, though. It's generally going to have the most muzzle energy, all else being equal. If you're punchin' paper at a thousand yards, as mentioned in the video, it's a whole different story... but it's the perfect semi-auto ranch rifle cartridge, IMHO.
Ever since 6.8 SPC came out I always wanted to have one even when it lost popularity as it failed to get adopted by our military. The fact that Jordan adopted this cartridge for their military makes it hard to beat. Your test confirms how good this cartridge is
I’ve got you setup for the next one;
270, 280, 30-06, 35 Whelen.
Don't forget about 400 whelen.
The 6.8spc is my favorite ar round. It is so slept on for some reason. I'm so happy to see this video. I have a 16 inch 6.8 spc and just last year built a 11.3 inch 6.8 spc. I run 90 grain maker rex ammo going 3000fps out of my 16 inch barrel and 2800 out of my 11.3
270 Winchester's baby brother.
My 20 inch AR-15 runs 90 to 100 gr close to 3000 fps as well. Compared it with my 243 winchester with the same bullet weight and barrel length and it was about the same.
It's slept on because it has no external ballistic advantage over .223, and way more recoil. A 90gr .277 projectile has a lower sectional density than a 62gr .224. A 90gr 6mm has the SD of a 117gr .277.
More recoil than a .22 or 6mm, less sectional density, lower BC, and no gain in trajectory at all. And necking it down didn't help, the .224valk was a flop. The 30 remington is just not an efficient case
@@phillycheesetakeit’s more efficient than the grendel/arc case
@@phillycheesetake 6.8 SPC does have some recoil for sure even out of my heavy AR. I was shocked at how much. Not hard, but more than I expected, but I would love to see someone with the ability to compare a 243 to the 6.8 on a video for comparison. I would still take my 243 over the 6.8 for a hunting gun any day.
A group of crows is called a "murder"
Three or more crows. Two crows is attempted murder.
Crows are very smart. They've been known to stand over their dead in groups. For a long time scientist believed it was a form of sorrow. Recently they determined that the group was actually trying to determine what caused its death. These have now become known as Murder investigations.
@@PopeRocket nice!
What about a group of Ravens??????
A Kindness of Ravens
6.8 SPC for the win boys! Run in an SPC II chamber which is standard now and handload to its full potential and you'll really be impressed. Cavity back bullets, Maker, and the Hornady 120 SST are all top notch. Druid Hill loads them to SPC II pressure too!
Enjoyed this video man, i been interested in possibly getting a 6.5 upper so i found this definitely interesting. Also i appreciate you posting the bullet weights and type of round you have been using past few videos. That has been one of my only issues or things i wished you did in the past, so thank you it makes for a more relatable or at least understanding what round actually achieved your results in the videos. Thks again!
As a reloader, I agree LOL. I've also been looking at getting into the Grendel. Several options for bullets.
AAC makes good cheap grendel ammo, overall grendel is the best for reloading too, followed by 6 arc, but 6 arc factory ammo costs twice as much and is only made by hornady. Both are great cartridges, the 6.5 and 6 are going to beat the 6.8 at range as the 6.8 is going to have lower bc bullets.
6.8 spc for the win, and it doesn't surprise me at all. It is a great round that works almost as well out of an 11" barrel as it does a 20". At a realistic engagement distance, it is awesome. If you really want to round for sniper distances, you'll step up to something much bigger than anything you tested that day anyway.
Glad to finally see someone acknowledge that box numbers on the 6.8 are from a 16" barrel while everything else is a 24". 6.8 is so underrated simply because it's not the best to shoot long range with, which It was never designed to. It was designed to increase lethality from short barrels at standard combat ranges and it does a great job at that. For a short, lightweight hunting rifle the 6.8 is superior out to 300 yards. Past that the other calibers overtake it but past 300 yards none of these are really good on large game.
If you read the internet the 6.5 Grendel is basically an ICBM and the 6.8 is weaker that a fire cracker.... more than likely due to the 6.5 box numbers being out of 24" and 6.8 box numbers being out of 16"
“Try it at a 1000 yards next time”
To be fair that is what the 6 ARC is designed for…
Bravo, Good Show!
I had no idea that Matt, the King of armor destruction, was here.
Surprising results. Thanks for the test.
Really?
Love my 6.5 Grendel, probably would go 6mm arc for better performance at range but ammo is way to pricey at the moment.
As a Grendel fanboy, I gotta point out that you used a match bullet for 6.5, but a SST for the 6.8, so that may explain some of the difference in performance.
Potentially. I do wish they were all the same bullet type
For what it's worth, Hornady TAP uses the ELD-M in several of their offerings. I agree it would be nice to see more of an apples to apples comparison. An ELD-M doesn't exist for 6.8 from Hornady; however, there are a few SST bullets in .264". I'd be more interested in seeing these calibers compared in a loading, each with a CX bullet. As a 6.8 SPC fanboy, I'd imagine the 6.5G would eat the 6.8 SPC's lunch at a distance. Up close? I don't know...
That slo-mo really shows what’s coming back at you, you got balls my friend👍 stay safe
I was literally about to comment how you should compare 6.8 spc. Nice video man.
I have always rated the 6.8 SPC.
It is a great concept for a round, and if executed well, will absolutely deliver.
The difference on steel was bullet construction. Arcs and grendel hornady black , match cup/core bullets vs sst for 6.8 which is a bonded bullet. At that range bullet construction would be the big difference between these cartridges. Cool video.
The 6.8 SPC never gets any attention. I’d love to see a match up between 6.8 SPC vs 7.62x39 vs 300 BLK where the winner gets a 1V1 against the 5.56!!
6.8 wins. Banana did a test on all those. Plus 7.62 x 39 breaks bolts because of the diameter of the case rim, and needs a banana shaped magazine like the AK. 300 BLK is slower than the 6.8, 300 BLK Shines above the rest when used subsonic with a suppressor.
@ Now we’ve got to speculate on had the 6.8 SPC had the hybrid case that the 6.8x51 has would it stand a chance at replacing the 5.56!
gotta love how dude is literally just getting into it within 15 SECONDS
Banana the guy with the best voice in the business!!!
The technical term for a group of crows is a "murder of crows." They are definitely plotting your demise! Great test, thanks!
Please always list the bullets and loads used when you do these tests so that you're comparing, well, bananas to bananas. You've got Hornady's toughest SST hunting bullet against three target rounds. Differences in bullet construction make all the difference.
Try 6.5 Grendel with a 90gr projectile, velocity of 3K fps. Hunters have used it to great effect. Good comparison and testing. 👍
The 6.8 will still outperform the Grendel in terms of velocity and speed out to 300 yards. Check out Druid Hill Armory Ammo. He loads both calibers to max specs with chrono readings from 18” barrels.
@@dariusbronner5866 Thanks appreciate it. Expensive though.
Based Banana Man.
This a genuinely interesting line up. Thanks BBM.
And your Hornady 6.8 isn't even spec II pressure. Get an LWRC Six8 or build a New Frontier Armory with an ARP barrel. Either 😮will let you use the Six8 Pmags. Add some Druid Hill Armory SPC II ammo, and you're golden. All these other cartridges are nice, but they don't have a rifle platform developed for them like the 6.8 does. Good Shooting Banana. Thanks for putting the 6.8SPC out there.
I’m just waiting for Sig hybrid case for the 6.8 spc and then necked down to 6mm. Seems like it would drop right into the ecosystem you mentioned and basically dunk on anything shy of a large frame platform
Had not heard of Druid Hill. Just ordered a couple of boxes for my ARP-barreled 6.8 SPC II.
LWRC Six8 is the best
I have always wanted a matching pair of Grendel and the Beowulf...
I have no explanation for why that "Damnit" cracked me up so much.
Another great video. I’d love to see TM uncle’s super secret recipe loads, especially what they do to mild steel.
That 6.8 SPC was developed as a replacement for the 5.56 in a military trial. If I remember correctly it was designed to increase the engagement zone for infantry from 500 to 800 meters on point targets out of a 14.5 inch barrel. It met all the requirements then the army decided it would cost too much so it was never officially adopted. So no wonder its a beast out of a 20 inch.
The OTM projectile designed for the 6.8 SPC, which made it so special, was deemed to violate the Hague. The 6.8's performance was less than spectacular with a FMJ. So, it died.
@@donwyoming1936 Fuddlore. The 6.8spc just didn't perform.
From what I understand the finds were that it did out preform the 5.56 but the army decided to just issue more 7.62 rifles as DMs so you see the increase in M14's being pushed out to line companies. Share ammo with the MGs less logistics
@@donwyoming1936the MK262 round which is widely used is an OTM 5.56.
There are tons of OTM rounds in military service.
Now take them to distance but you won't tho 😂
You should do a comparison with subsonic ammo. 8.6 vs 300 blk vs 338 arc. I would love to see what the differences are between the rounds.
.22 ARC - Hornady Black 75gr ELD 20" BBL 2,953 FPS 1,452FT/LBS ,
6mm ARC Hornady Match 108gr ELD Match 20" BBL 2,626 FPS 1,655 FT/LBS ,
6.5 Grendel Hornady Black 123gr ELD Match 20" BBL 2,486 FPS 1,688 FT/LBS ,
6.8 SPC Hornady Custom 120gr SST 20" BBL 2,661 FPS 1,869FT/LBS .
The ELDs are supposedly a little more rigid than the SSTs, so that's even more impressive that the 6.8 SST outdid the others in their ELD loadings.
The scenes on the toilet always get me lol. Keep thoses up 👍
I've always liked the idea of the Grendel.. I just never can justify actually buying one; I've got the energy/distance niche pretty much covered by other rifles.
A couple of years ago, I ordered a 6.5 Grendel Ruger Gen I Predator from Academy Sports. Since it has a 22 inch barrel it wrings more of the fps out of the powder. It is a tack driver, and not bad with the Wolf steel cased 100 grainers. The Wolf is getting very hard to find, but it was a very affordable buy. The US military should go with the Grendel when they replace the 5.56x45. The Grendel is an intermediate cartridge, but it brings more punch to the table, without the excesses of the new experimental .270. It is utterly ridiculous what those rounds cost. 😵💫MAGA 🥳
Very nice! I'll have to consider getting one of those 6.8 SPC uppers someday...
My fave in this ballpark is my .270 WSM. She's a thumper! Shoots better than I am capable of anymore.
Your moms a thumper
I have a couple 6.8 spc and they are great on deer. For most normal deer hunters at regular ranges it performs well.
I’ve been hunting with the 6.8 for many years. I believe out to 300 yards you cannot beat it for small to medium game.
Man great video as always. Would love a comparison on 6.5x55 vs 6.5 creedmoore. Many thanks from sweden mr banana or as we say in sweden tack så mycket herr banan
As a new barrier you should try sand or dirt. You could put it in a 6 or 8 inch box
🤨really?? Don’t go there, just don’t. We all just talked BB out of using the sand box and here you are . . 😆😆
The troll is strong with this one 👍
Was very interested in this vid. New sub here.
Have had a couple 6.8 SPCs in AR platforms. The best was a STAG 7.
Took a coyote at 781 with it. It is NOT a distance cartridge, but speed isn't everything. Regularly took it to 5 & 600. Very fun cartridge, and easy to load for.
It was closer than expected 👍
6.5 Grendel for my next build, LFG!
Thank you. I’ve been waiting for this
I've been very happy with Hornady's 110gr V-Max for my 6.8spc LWRC Razorback.
(Had to delete some comments as you included the ammo used at the end)
6.8 SPC II was sabotaged! The gun pimps pushed Valkyrie, 300 Blk, 6.5 Grendel when testing showed te 6.8 was the best all around cartridge. Even the new army round is 6.8. Different cartridge design but the caliber is the same. The 6.8 was simply not pimped because who designed it, and no former SOF guy was pimping the round, that is the only reason it never caught on.
That. And it didn't help that Nosler bought Silver State Armory and pretty much squashed all the great work they had done with the cartridge. Add in Remington screwing up the submitted specs as another negative. I still love the cartridge and have two rifles chambering it. Along with thousands of rounds in my stash. I do also have two Grendels and a Valkyrie. Don't need the ARCs.
I'll always say that the 6.8 spc is the best modern military cartridge design.
@@WallyMerc06 Yeah, "they" just did NOT want this cartridge to succeed. Patent, profits etc, were not going to go to one of the big manufacturers. The did not find SOF types to pimp the cartridge.
Toilet guy was a masterful addition to the video! Great job.
Nothing to see here folks! Move along! Shhhhh! Stop making the 6.8 SPC look so good, I'll have too much competition for components and ammo for it 😉, only kidding, ha! I love hand loading for this cartridge in a short barrel. The results I'm getting are impressive. A lot of people sleep on the 6.8. It's a savvy pick for up close, but that's just my opinion. You've got a new sub and a like out of me sir 👍
6mm ARC is most likely going to be sunsetted.
We just built the most reliable 22 ARC on the AR15 platform.
It's almost done field testing now.. but 6mm is already probably done.
22 ARC, new hybrid round out there. Our barrel MFG is a hornady partner and perfected the chamber and has a beautiful rifling.
Reach out if you want to do a review on the 22 ARC
The 6.8 is an amazing round. Sadly just never super widely adopted. I have a few rifles chambered in it.
Just as I thought: ARC's are awesome distance calibers, but 6.8 SPC smokes everything else in terms of real-life on target perfirnabce. Grendel is nice, but at the end it's a stop-gap cartrudge... For target shooting and fun 6mm ARC is great, but hot loaded 6.8 SPC, especially from 16-to-20 barrels slaps HARD. I cannot comprehend why it does't dethrone 5.56nn Nato at this point, SPC loaded in style of M855A1 green tip would frig so hard at any realistic battle distances!
Excellent as always!
Going to need to see the new 338 ARC eventually
Absolutely. I am very interested in this new cartridge. Within moderate ranges, it should be very good when applied to the right sized critter.
11:43 : Lol his face!!! That's my feelings too. Probably too close to the others, though.
11:50 : Straight up, my face = Chris Pratt Shocked Smile.
No. Freaking. Way.
Have we been wrong about 6.8 SPC for over 10 years?
I love my 6.8 SPC. Best AR-15 round. LWRC also makes a rifle that was designed on this round
So from what I have heard 6arc was designed to hit harder than 223, but have similar range to 308. I would love to see a comparison with 223, 6arc, and 308
Yes. I like the Grendel.
To honor Paul Harrell , you should use ORANGE soda jugs...thank you for testing out 6.8 SPC...
Ive also lost a hat to the ocean. I bring backups now. Aint getting sunburned on my bald head 😂
I have been with the 6.8 since the inception. Remington is the reason 6.8 didn't do as well as it should have. It was designed to kill stuff quickly out of the ar15 platform and it continues to deliver.
I'm a 6.5 Grendel fan boy, so this was cool, but I'm not ditching my favorite long range gun
Grendel Forever. I finally subscribed. Great Vids ✌🏻
My first rifle I was going to build was a 6.8 Spc but at the time I couldn't afford the ammo so I did a 556 and later a 6.5G cause ammo was cheaper. I still want a 6.8spc though. Maybe this will be a good time to built one. :)
Definitely would like to see the 22ARC vs the 224Valkyrie
Does anyone still have the 224 Valkyrie? There’s a lead balloon.
@@JimYeats I’ve got one as my coyote rifle and it dumps them out to 400+ yds. I’ve reloaded both the Valkyrie and 22ARC and speed wise, they’re closer than you think.
@@chasesantiago3176 I know, i’m just giving you a hard time because of how much people razz on it now. I’m sure it performs well, but it certainly took a hard nose dive in popularity.
i'm here for the stories to enhance my shooting experience at the range.
It's interesting how similar these cartridges are. it seems to me that 6.8 came out just a bit ahead. I don't think it's enough of a difference to warrant switching but a new purchase is another matter.
"just a bit ahead" ? Did you not watch until the end? Holy smokes.
@@Renrondog Close up, the 6.8 rules. When stretching out the distance, the 6 and 6.5 will perform better. It all depends on application.
Add a few drops of dawn dishwashing detergent to the water target
6.8 SPC rules at close distance. Initial military fielding was very positive in urban areas, but out in the mountains was where it didn't do so well and that was probably what kept it from going further in the adoption process.
5.56 is adequate at the distances 6.8 was good for, provided you did your part as a shooter, and at significantly lower material cost and already in the production and supply chain. If you need more gun, 7.62 is also already available and not going to put additional strain on logistics.
Thing is, 556 is junk for fmj on human targets. Geneva renders is useless compared to other calibers. The 6.8 was great out to 3-500 yards then a massive fall off. But free standing and regular shooting is plenty. Like you said, you have bigger calibers for that, long range.
I think the real issue is that the powers that be don't truly want any enemy soldiers getting killed in combat if it can be helped. Why choose a more deadly round when they don't want that? The current(and for over two decades) climate of warfare is a stupid game of chess where each side states it's moves before hand and where a military with superior weapons and tech will lose out from the game of red tape.
Idc what anyone says, the 6.8 spc beats the Grendel for hunting in anything shorter than a 22 inch barrel. Sure box velocity is higher for the 6.5 Grendel but it’s measured with a 24 inch, 6.8 box velocity is measured in a 16 inch. Im glad you pointed it out unlike most UA-camrs. I have nothing against the Grendel, I just prefer 6.8. I also love 6mm arc
Looking at the posted speeds, the 6.8 isn't nearly as affected by barrel length as the 6.5 grendel. It holds more kinetic energy out to 800 but the Grendel stays flatter to 1000
@@andrewcarlson2178 yep
@@andrewcarlson2178
I have a 12.5 Faxon match build AR and just finished a 20" build. My go to 1000yd build. I can take repeat shots and stay on target the whole time. Recoil for the 6.5 is also a good bit lower than the 6.8 SPC. Also, WAY less than the .277 Fury (6.8 x 51). Plenty of ammo available just expensive.
👍 like this comparison. Thanks
I didn't fallow the ARC train pushed by Hornady . My opinion and we know what that's like 🫏🕳 😂lol . The 22-6 Creedmore are top dogs 🐕 . I really enjoy the 22&6mm creedmores . I have them with 25 & 26 inch barrels . The only caliber that rivels my 22 CM is my 22-250 Akley improved and my 220swift Akley improved both have 26 in varmint barrel. The main reason I went Akley improved I can still shoot factory ammo in them . The plus with that it fire forms my ammo from standard to Akley improved. You have nothing to loose everything to gain. Anyway Great vedio maybe in the future you can try wet magazines for a test we call it poor man's ballistics gel lol . Or use wood planks for penetration Test that's works good as well. God bless you and your family God-bless America 🇺🇸
Creedmoores are AR 10/308 platforms. This was an AR-15 comparison.
Missed the 6.8, built 6.5 & 6mm. I just don't think I'm going after a 22arc. Great comparison though!
Thank you for the 6.8 SPC Reveal. I've been a fan since inception. I'm wet as well. More flattering than your Crocs.
5:09
that defeated "...damnit."
I’ve shot it once and have been convinced since the NGSW went to sig. I believe we should ditch 5.56 and take up the main weapon for all branches would be the Sig MCX LT using 6.8 SPC3 which would be a custom load from Sig using the new case technology of the stainless steel case head and increasing pressure to 80k.
I like 6.8 SPC.
We need the Boomer Ballistic BlowOut!
30-30 vs 45-70 vs 30-06
6.5 Grendel guy here: did someone say to try these at 1,000yds next time yet?
saw a 6.8 SPC upper for sale on Tac Swap. Might have to see about snagging it.
6.5 Grindal and 6.8 SPC dominated those test FYI the ARC is a Grindal necked down anyway. Great vedio. God bless you and your family God-bless America 🇺🇲
You need the Swede! 6.5 Swede
@@misterbreakit2006 the Swede doesn't fit in an AR-15 rifle. That's the point of all of these cartridges...to maximize the AR-15.
@@AaronBell-vx4pl That's the AR-15's fault, not the Swedes's 😁
Ive taken 2 black bear around 50 yards for both with 6.8 spc using hornady 100 gr gmx factory loads. First bear front chest at collar bone exit at the back hip. Tested the ammo 20 in barrel 2672 average 6 shots 11SD
Lately my choice of firearm purchases is determined by ammo availability and price. Maybe do a video on a few handguns using one of the hot bear loads. See if you can stop old smokey from putting out your back yard camp fire before your beans, weenies and S'mores are all cooked
The 6.5 Grendel is my favorite since it's the only one of these that I have...
I'll take the 6mm ARC as the best all round. Basically the same energy as the Grendel, but it has has enough velocity to expand at 500 yards. Otherwise, the 6.8 is the best choice if you could still find it easily.
Great test! I appreciate you used the closest ammo comparison as possible! I wonder how much the 6.8SPC being a hunting bullet vs the match of the other 3 made the difference on the steel