So I'm part of a group on Facebook and a ffl posted about having barrels avalibe for a 22 Grendel. Has anyone built one of these? If so did you have a custom barrel or did you find someone who has them? What kind of accuracy and velocity do you get with say 80s?
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22 Grendel
- Thread starter matleez
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I don't have a 22 but do have a 20" 6mm Grendel, with 95 grain bullets I can hit 2650 without pressure signs.
If it were me, I'd wait for the .224 Valkyrie, you'll have cheaper reloading die cost, factory ammo available in four flavors as of this moment and possibly cheaper brass. The only down side that I see is right now its just FC making brass & ammo, but the chamber has already been saami approved so we will likely be seeing other cartridge companies rolling out product shortly. And more than one barrel manufacturer is getting mid to high 2600's with FGMM with 90 grain bullets in a 20" barrel I'd see no reason why 2800 wouldn't be obtainable with 80's and very likely higher. As a data point my 21.75" long throated 223 bolt rifle will launch 80's at 2750 with ease.
If it were me, I'd wait for the .224 Valkyrie, you'll have cheaper reloading die cost, factory ammo available in four flavors as of this moment and possibly cheaper brass. The only down side that I see is right now its just FC making brass & ammo, but the chamber has already been saami approved so we will likely be seeing other cartridge companies rolling out product shortly. And more than one barrel manufacturer is getting mid to high 2600's with FGMM with 90 grain bullets in a 20" barrel I'd see no reason why 2800 wouldn't be obtainable with 80's and very likely higher. As a data point my 21.75" long throated 223 bolt rifle will launch 80's at 2750 with ease.
So he actually posted it in the 224 valkyrie group that he was offering barrels in 224, 223AI and 22 Grendel. So i started asking about it and it has my attention.
The 6.5G necked to .224 makes a heck of a lot more sense and is simply a better round than the 6.8SPC necked to .224 like the Valk. I'd highly recommend one, and you can always bump the shoulder if you want every last ounce of performance.
Don't forget that the case head on a 6.8 case is smaller then the Grendel so the Valk can be pushed harder then the 22 Grendel without the possibility of shearing off a bolt lug.
Those barrels look very close to what I've been looking for, especially the +2" gas system. I wouldn't mind if the twist was a bit faster though.
Can't help but daydream about the new 95 SMK in the 22G. I looked at the comments on the FB link and it says he'll have a batch of barrels with 7" twist. Now if I can find the length of the 95's to plug into the JBM stability calculator I can take my dreaming to the next level!
You're giving up a lot of velocity with that 6mm Grendel. 95gr bullets in that tube should be able to hit 2900 fps at least, if not 3000. What powder are you using?
Most of the reasons you list for recommending the Valkyrie instead don't pan out in my experience.
- The 6mm Grendel variants can use 6mm PPC dies. Same for the 22 G using 22 PPC dies.
- FC brass has been known to have a lot of issues being pushed hard in certain calibers. I wouldn't hang my hat on the Valkyrie for that one.
- The 22 Grendel has both more room for long heavy bullets, and more case capacity than the Valkyrie.
Don't forget the tendency for some 6.8 brass to not handle pressure as well as most 5.56 or Grendel brass. That puts the SPC and Grendel cases about even for horsepower capacity in my experience. Everything I read from people with experience in the matter indicates "shearing bolt lugs" is not really an issue any more like it was in the early days.
No shearing the lugs isn't much of a problem, especially with the JP Bolts, but you know there are people who always push the cartridge too far and then blame it on the cartridge.
Right now I'm getting 2780-2790 with 107gr SMK and about 2900 with the 95gr TMK in my FatRat. It's a very impressive Cartridge
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The Valk has its appeal, especially if you don't have a .223 Varmint Rifle yet, but for those of us who have a few it really doesn't make much sense.
I use my 20" .223 for everything from 50-500 yards, using the 77gr SMK or 75 ELD. After that My 22" Grendel and Fat Rat takes over for the purpose Hunting / Target to 800yrds.
When I get back from Australia, I'm gonna finish up my Falkor Build and give the Draco's Barrel a go. It may not be at the level of a Bartlein, but a life time barrel guarantee has my attention.
I use my 20" .223 for everything from 50-500 yards, using the 77gr SMK or 75 ELD. After that My 22" Grendel and Fat Rat takes over for the purpose Hunting / Target to 800yrds.
When I get back from Australia, I'm gonna finish up my Falkor Build and give the Draco's Barrel a go. It may not be at the level of a Bartlein, but a life time barrel guarantee has my attention.
I'm the same way for the most part by using the 223 for 675Y and in, if the wind is reasonable.
Then get out the 6mmFatRat with 95's. I'm getting 2870 fps. Using it will extend the distance I can hit steel with in those same winds.
I don't think I can resist trying out a Valkyrie with a 95gr/.6BC!!! I wonder if Lee Wells will buy a reamer and have 6.5 twist barrels???
Then get out the 6mmFatRat with 95's. I'm getting 2870 fps. Using it will extend the distance I can hit steel with in those same winds.
I don't think I can resist trying out a Valkyrie with a 95gr/.6BC!!! I wonder if Lee Wells will buy a reamer and have 6.5 twist barrels???
I am well aware of FC brass having a history of not handling pressure well. But keep in mind neither the .224 Valkyrie nor Grendel was designed as a high pressure case and I have not seen any H2o comparisons to comfortably state which has more capacity. On to my 6mm Grendel, the powders that I have used to date are Varget, Ar-Comp and H4895, what powders do you recommend for velocity.
Very interesting little round. For me personally I will stick with my standard 6.5 Grendel. I haven't had the need to increase the speed, plus the barrel wear will be interesting. That's one thing I like about the 6.5 Grendel, lower pressures, longer barrel life
That's about what I'm getting in a 22" 243 LBC as well. Some others are reporting 3000 with 95's in the same barrel.
The SPC and Grendel cases have very similar capacity. If you shorten the SPC case to make the Valkyrie, it has less capacity.
Try CFE223 in the 6mm Grendel, great accuracy and velocity. Giving up 250+ fps sounds about right for Varget, but I haven't tried the other two in this round.
My buddy just told me about this post. I thought I'd chime in. My first test barrel I made on the 22 grendel was a $60 CM blank from Green Mountain. I made it for the purpose of seeing how the plus 2 gas system would work with the grendel case and how far it could be pushed. I only tried Varget and 8208 XBR with 75 eld and 80.5 Berger full bore bullets. With the freebore on my reamer the 75 ELD at 2.26 ar .008 of the rifling. I made the barrel 20" to see how the gas system would work with a shorter barrel. 8208 could be pushed close to 3200 with it just starting to get a slight ejector swipe. Varget was just below 3100. These loads were all with new brass and 450 primers. Keep in mind this was a $60 blank when I say groups were consistently 5/8-3/4" with the 80s being the exception at .5 or better.
My thoughts on the Valkyrie would be geared toward the guy that doesnt want to reload but wants the extra speed. My opinion might change once I try one. I just received my Valkyrie reamer and should have my first test barrel done this week.
Im using Wilson Arms 416 R stainless barrels for the rest. They are a modified SPR contour .875 under the hand guard, .750 gas block and .725 in front. My first batch of 22 barrels will be finished this week and shipping out. The 7 twist barrel should be within two weeks. If you have any questions send me a pm, email or text.
Bart (618)889-8765
[email protected]
My thoughts on the Valkyrie would be geared toward the guy that doesnt want to reload but wants the extra speed. My opinion might change once I try one. I just received my Valkyrie reamer and should have my first test barrel done this week.
Im using Wilson Arms 416 R stainless barrels for the rest. They are a modified SPR contour .875 under the hand guard, .750 gas block and .725 in front. My first batch of 22 barrels will be finished this week and shipping out. The 7 twist barrel should be within two weeks. If you have any questions send me a pm, email or text.
Bart (618)889-8765
[email protected]
May be a dumb question but I feel the need to ask anyways do think the variation in rim thickness between the two cases will affect anything in your soon to be 416r barrels ? Reliability, extraction, etc? Also are any of these barrels going to be in 1/6 or 1/6.5 twist? The new 95 grain SMK has my gears turning
In the past with the 6ar and 6 rat barrels I haven’t seen an issue switching between Lapua and Hornady brass other than case capacity being less on the lapua. I don’t think a magazine fed round out of an AR-15 will benefit from the 95 gr bullet. Due to the length of the bullet there will be a considerable amount down in the case. This is only an opinion on the 95s.
Anyone know how long the 95's are yet?
I've been doing some guessing based off the 90 SMK and if the 95's are around 1.25" and can pushed to 2800fps in a 7" twist JBM says all will be well.
I've been doing some guessing based off the 90 SMK and if the 95's are around 1.25" and can pushed to 2800fps in a 7" twist JBM says all will be well.
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If MidwayUSA's product photo is an actual photo of the 95 SMK, then the OAL will be pretty close to 1.335":
±105 pixels wide, ±626 pixels long, you know the diameter...
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±105 pixels wide, ±626 pixels long, you know the diameter...
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Exactly what I was thinking also, unless you wanted to use asc mags which allow for a max overall length just past 2.31 inches .Even then it would most likely only be a single feed option , and I find that a annoyance even when paper punching
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I currently use cut ASC's that allow 2.35 for 223 but I haven't looked to see if they have a Grendel equivalent.
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5.56, Grendel, and SPC versions of the stainless ASC mags are all available. I have some of each.
Been shooting Grendel variants for awhile now...
22 Grendel is a nice little cartridge especially with the current lot of high bc projectiles on the market.
Speeds shown are with 75 eld's. I've backed them down to 3080 with no pressure signs.
The new 95 smks will be loaded in my 22 creed.
22 Grendel is a nice little cartridge especially with the current lot of high bc projectiles on the market.
Speeds shown are with 75 eld's. I've backed them down to 3080 with no pressure signs.
The new 95 smks will be loaded in my 22 creed.
Attachments
Cut them myself. Takes about 3 minutes with an angle grinder. You can cut aluminum mags with aviation snips but they flex to much when cut. The 20 round SS ASC mags work perfect cut. I think I went .5" wide by 3.5" deep and it easily holds 15 rounds with no swelling.
Yes the 22G has been around for quite some time under many different names. Last I looked at 6mmAR the data was very dated though. No mention of any of the powders and many of the bullets that have become popular in the last 4 years.
Exactly what did you cut? You have any pictures of the mags? I’ve been looking into modifying a couple of mine, but have seen several different ways it’s done. Just curious how your turned out
I think the case with be best with the 75-80 gr group of bullets. The 90s and above should be left for the larger case like the 22-250 and 22 Creedmoor.
3000 fps range is easily obtained in a 20” barrel. Ideally a 22” or longer barrel would be best in my opinion.
After having the Valkyrie rounds in hand I don’t see how it will outperform the Grendel case .
3000 fps range is easily obtained in a 20” barrel. Ideally a 22” or longer barrel would be best in my opinion.
After having the Valkyrie rounds in hand I don’t see how it will outperform the Grendel case .
What are your thoughts on using the hornady 52gr ELD match in the 22 Grendel for a super speed varmint round? Thinking 52gr for coyotes and the 75s for longer range steel
6mmAR is way outdated in their information. So much has changed with XBR and CFE being widely available along with the ELDM line of bullets. Im really looking forward to getting this round. 5Xgr bullets at 3500+ will make for a hell of a varmint round then the heavy pills for long range days. We regularly shoot pdogs out to 1k so the extra speed over a 223 will be nice.
I have a 243LBC AR 40Deg which is basically a 6AR and my friend has a Fat Rat. We both shed a lug on a bolt. We were using recommended loads for a 107gr bullet. We both now have a JP bolt and now we use one grain less powder (29 gr of Varget)
Just a suggestion - try using a more appropriate powder than Varget. You'll get better velocity with less pressure using something like CFE223. Bolts tend to last longer when you don't have to push the pressure limits to get reasonable velocity, which Varget does require in these rounds.
Barrels mounted out of square to the upper will break bolts in just about anything at some point; post #30 in that thread shows that was the problem this time, once again.
