Posted: 1/11/2022 5:53:20 PM EDT
| I am looking into building a night time upper for my ar and want a different caliber than .223, so I was wondering what some of your guys’ favorite caliber to use for coyotes is? |
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Do you reload? If no, what ammo are you able to source? Nothing wrong with a good .223 load, but if you insist on something bigger you have several choices that perform well. Among those are the 6.5 Grendel; 6.8 Rem SPC, and the 6mm ARC. Commercial ammo is available for these but expensive right now. I use all three with great success but I hand load so ammo expense, other than the initial cost to acquire some 6mm ARC ammo, is a non-issue. Right now, I'm loving the 6mm ARC. |
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Originally Posted By Bowhntr6pt: Do you reload? If no, what ammo are you able to source? Nothing wrong with a good .223 load, but if you insist on something bigger you have several choices that perform well. Among those are the 6.5 Grendel; 6.8 Rem SPC, and the 6mm ARC. Commercial ammo is available for these but expensive right now. I use all three with great success but I hand load so ammo expense, other than the initial cost to acquire some 6mm ARC ammo, is a non-issue. Right now, I'm loving the 6mm ARC. I’ve heard a lot of good things about the 6mm ARC, I’m actually thinking about making a 6mm ARC for hunting and then transitioning one of my .223 uppers to more of a night time use. Adding a thermal and suppressor type thing. I don’t reload anything, normally just use factory hornady .223. If I do get a 6mm ARC do you recommend reloading rather than buy factory? |
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Originally Posted By tanner_sinn04: I’ve heard a lot of good things about the 6mm ARC, I’m actually thinking about making a 6mm ARC for hunting and then transitioning one of my .223 uppers to more of a night time use. Adding a thermal and suppressor type thing. I don’t reload anything, normally just use factory hornady .223. If I do get a 6mm ARC do you recommend reloading rather than buy factory? If you decide on the 6mm ARC, commercial ammo from Hornady is your only option right now. The prices for a 20-round box are all over the places with the lowest I've seen in my local shop was about $35 a box. You can order a case off GunBroker for about that if you're lucky. Then again, even with the inflated cost, are you really going to shoot that much? I will tell you I'm more selective with my shots now I'm shooting more expensive ammo. I'm sure in time things will improve, but it is expensive right now. I want to reload because I have TONS of primers, powder, and bullets... just no supply of brass until I shoot the factory ammo I have. |
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Originally Posted By harrymank: I use a 6.8spc. It shoots pretty lights out and was just starting some load development with 90 grain Speer gold dots but didn’t get stocked up before things became unobtanium. I've had excellent success on deer out to 225 yards, hogs, and coyotes using the Hornady 120gr SST and AA2200 powder. I see AA2200 available often along with the SST's, I recommend you give that combo a try some day. |
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.223 shooting 50-55 grain VMAX or Blitz Kings drops yotes instantly. I keep going back and forth on building a new caliber but I just can't justify it considering the effectiveness and availability of .223 along with cheap and easy to find barrels, parts and magazines. If I did get a new caliber it would be .22-250. I don't hand load so ammo availability is a huge factor. |
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Originally Posted By Bowhntr6pt: Lots of flavors to choose from... absolutely i’ll throw one more out there, I use a mongoose (6mm in .223 casing) |
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Originally Posted By USSRangerSM: absolutely i’ll throw one more out there, I use a mongoose (6mm in .223 casing) I have a 6mmx45mm I suppose is generally the same? I just run .223 cases through a Hornady 6mmx45mm die to expand the neck and load away. |
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Originally Posted By Bowhntr6pt: I have a 6mmx45mm I suppose is generally the same? I just run .223 cases through a Hornady 6mmx45mm die to expand the neck and load away. same 
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Originally Posted By USSRangerSM: same Not exactly. The Mongoose is a shortened ackley-improved 223 case necked to 6mm, or in other words a shortened 6mm TCU. The Mongoose allows heavier/longer bullets to be used because of the shorter case, and gains case capacity and efficiency due to the “improved” case. It’s a very efficient cartridge. I clock 2730 with a 90gr BT out of a 16” suppressed barrel. I haven’t played with light weight bullets yet. |
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Originally Posted By chewbacca: Not exactly. The Mongoose is a shortened ackley-improved 223 case necked to 6mm, or in other words a shortened 6mm TCU. The Mongoose allows heavier/longer bullets to be used because of the shorter case, and gains case capacity and efficiency due to the “improved” case. It’s a very efficient cartridge. I clock 2730 with a 90gr BT out of a 16” suppressed barrel. I haven’t played with light weight bullets yet. you’re right I have to trim the brass a little bit.. that’s about it (but even while fire forming it, it is an accurate load) |
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Originally Posted By Smid: I have no complaints with my .224 Valkyrie. I'm shooting factory 60 grain vmax which is very easy to find. Blows shoulders apart, and haven't had any runners yet. 6arc looks appealing but factory varmint rounds are pretty limited it seems like |
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Originally Posted By SteelonSteel: I guess to answer the question I would want to know why you want to kill the coyotes. No I am not a bleeding hear liberal, are you saving the pelts and looking for the least damage? AR based I would stick to .223 Rem. |
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6.8 is the only secondary caliber I have in the AR platform. Light loads are fast and good for coyotes, heavier loads are good for deer and other small to medium game. You could use the heavier loads for coyotes as well 'cause they'll die regardless. My 20" 6.8 likes the 115gr Federal Fusion, very accurate and has taken game no problem. For me this rifle serves as a dual-purpose rifle and I enjoy it immensely. Like others have said though ammo is a bit more expensive and may be hard to find. If that doesn't matter, try it out.... or stick with some hot loads in .223 that are designed for light skinned / small game varmints like Nosler Ballistic Tip or the Hornady Superformance. |