Soo just watching the youtube and noticed this realitively new caliber Nosler introduced, but from the chorno numbers they're showing, and what 25% more case capacity. Color me unimpressed? Just watched a promo video of theirs so I'd asume they're going to show numbers that favor them. 55gr ballistic tipped BT bullet 3350fps out of a 20" barrel... big wooptie do? 77gr match bullet a 2840.. doesn't seem like it's much faster than hot 5.56. Read something saying 300fps.. thinking I need to go back and look closer because they must be comparing it to .223 Rem or something.


Any opinions on .22 Nosler? Because to me it only looks (granted at a glance) like 100fps faster than 5.56.. and I'd think it's going to be much harder to find, more expensive as well, 25% more case capacity yay, but is it stuffed with powder? if so is all that extra powder going to cause more erosion and shorter barrel life for a whooping 100fps faster? Seems silly to me, but I wouldn't expect Nosler to be silly?

Oddly by their own load data a 55gr bullet with a max charge of 33 grains of CFE 223 should yeild 3518fps from a 20" AR (i'd assume that's the test barrel). So if that's true, why the fuck did they show a demo with a load that's barely any better than M193 from a 20"?

Basically they are pushing magnum calibers without the magnum term in their numbering schemes for each new caliber. I bet they kick like a mule as well.

LOL "kick like a mule"

If they were really smart they would have done it to a 6 or 6.5mm not 5.56mm and fit that in an AR.  Then flood the market.  The reason why the 6.5G is not catching on in every store is the marketing stinks.  Fill the stores with the brass, ammo and rifles and the gun nuts would flock to the caliber.

I was talking about the entire "new" caliber range, not just the 22. They are pretty much all pushing magnum speeds.

Oh, and screw the freaking 6.5G talk already...

They fucked up. If they had taken 1mm off of the neck you could use 75gr ELDs in a magazine.

The 55 grain round seems faster than .223, but the 77 grain round seems very comparable to 5.56mm. Not a big enough difference for me to change calibers though. And .223/5.56mm is so much more available. 

Exactly,

Is this maybe aimed at reloaders? Looking at the data, the demo numbers were pretty damn weak compared to what's in their load data.

I don't own a 6.5G.  Or a 6.8.  The brass is not to be found.

Maybe if someone was marketing to the 1980s, that approach would be valid.

6.5 Grendel is not catching on?  Then why are so many people building them?

Why are there 42 and growing factory loads?

Why did Federal just add 4 new factory 6.5 Grendel loads, including Gold Medal Match?

Why are cases of Wolf steel case selling as fast as they can ship them?

Why are 2 major bolt gun companies making 32 SKUs chambered in 6.5 Grendel?

Fill the market with brass and ammo (done years ago), and people will order it, as long as there is performance to be sold as well.  That ship sailed years ago.  The amount of traction built behind it reached critical inertai a while ago.

I'm a big fan of Nosler products, especially their ABLRs for hunting, and their affordable target bullets for trigger time.

They have great brass usually as well (often made by Norma).

I too don't understand why they didn't go with a shorter case length that would allow longer ogives, but like with the magnum line they just introduced over the past few years, they can do the same thing with the .22 Nolser.

I personally would like to see them offer a .257 in that case, and support it with modern target and hunting bullets.

.257 is the sweet spot between 6mm and 6.5mm, but has no real high BC bullets other than the 108gr Swampworks JLK.

I think they are going for the stockpiled .223 reloader for this cartridge. While the 6mm, .257 etc is far better in the wind, this round will find the most buyers with varmint hunters and guys looking to exploit their 77gr stockpiles. I will admit getting a cheap 77gr TMK or nosler 77gr up to 3000+fps from a light AR15 with decent barrel life is enticing. I would really like to see some exotic AP loads tested from this thing like 69gr RUAG and NAMMO 77gr LRAP bullets. I bet you would get good performance from it and a significant range increase over .223.  855a1 would be very nasty terminally at 3300fps.

Kind of hard to compare this.
Most of the load data is based on a 24 inch barrel for the 22 Nosler. But they never say what barrel length for 5.56mm.
M193 out of a 20 inch barrel is 3260 ish fps and the 22 Nosler out of a 24 inch is 3100 to 3600 (max) from a 24 inch. So are they comparing the standard 5.56 in a 20 inch barrel to the max possible from a longer barrel?

That add's to the confusion, but the demo rifle was a 20" AR, but then like I said with the cartridges in the demo, they just weren't all that impressive. As in, why tool up and make a whole new cartridge just for that very slight improvement and lower round count per magazine.  However, if the published numbers are from a 20" barrel and that CFE 223 load is safe and easily doable out of a 20" AR, then why the hell weren't they shooting THAT!? That would be a pretty big improvement and I could see justifying it and hell maybe building an AR in that caliber then, but... if not why???

Maybe I should write them an e-mail and ask a few questions.

You should be able to get 3050fps with a 77gr smk and a 20" barrel  no problem. I have seen that from 5.56x43mm and the cartridges are essentially the same. I am changing out the barrel in one of my DI Six8 receiver sets so I can use the 30rnd 6.8 pmags and load a little longer.

I'd really like to see a Six8 upper in a 6mm Nosler for launching 105gr VLD's @ 2700fps.

IMHO before I went the Nosler route, I would go .223 AI. .22/250 velocities and you only need to fireform the brass. As a side note, I get 3400 fps from my 25 inch kreiger barrel and 50 grain vmax. 1 in 13 twist. Standard .223.