AR Sponsor
Posted: 11/11/2010 7:49:32 AM EDT
| In the future, is Grendel ammo going to be generally available? At the current time it seems that it is a niche handloaders cartridge. |
| IMO if you reload it's the only way to go. Then availability is what you make it. I've been reloading my own since I built my rifle because every time I tried to order some ammo (wanted to try the Wolf) it was back ordered. All the other ammo I felt was to high priced and I could load my own for a cheaper price. I did switch from fire-forming my own to using AA brass and at $0.87 each they are expensive but figuring around 5 reloads the price is in the ball park. |
| I was wowed by the technical superiority of the cartridge, and bought a complete upper, and two AA barrel/bolt kits several months ago. The two kits are SS barrels so they were intended to be Precision builds, but the complete upper is just a shooter; I was going to shoot mostly Wolf ammo with it. So far I've fired one box out of it and havent even completed the kits. The only ammo I can find is AA, which is $30 for 20 rounds. |
|
AA is not the only people loading factory ammo. Hornady loads the 123 grain AMAX factory load for $20-22 for a box of $20. Also, Black Hills makes some 123 grain HP loads that are sold exclusively through Les Baer's website. You call for pricing. It is a little more than AA's price. Hornady is by far the cheapest way to go for match grade ammo.
If you want just plinking ammo (that you won't reload), get the Wolf brass cased MPT ammo. About $15 for 20 rounds. Don't reload the Wolf brass as it is soft and has been known to have case failure at times after reloading due to the softer brass. |
|
Quoted:
The Wolf MPT is what I was planning to mostly shoot, but its just so hard to find. Hornady is due to place a LARGE amount of Grendel in the market in the next 30 days, give or take a few weeks. A new, very large, offshore manufacturer will be starting Grendel production soon, with multiple different bullets, and the cost will be in the Wolf price range. That may or may not happen by the end of the year, with deliveries in early 2011. Reloading is still the most sure way to have enough ammo, but the market is responding, and Grendel ammunition is becoming more and more available. The low cost Wolf stuff comes and goes. Have you tried Alexander Arms directly? Bill |
|
If I lived and Commiefornia and didn't reload I'd either start reloading or buy every bit of Grendel ammo I could afford. Next year you'll have to go through a local shop to buy ammo and Grendel ammo will be even harder to find for you.
On Wolf, the wolf brass is reloadable and some on 65Grendel.com have reported no issues with multiple reloads using that brass. I've never used it but I wouldn't shy away from it if that's all I could get. |
|
Quoted:
In the future, is Grendel ammo going to be generally available? At the current time it seems that it is a niche handloaders cartridge. Hornady 123 6.5 Grendel here: http://www.palmettostatearmory.com/1299.php |
|
Quoted:
Quoted:
Next year you'll have to go through a local shop to buy ammo. Why? CA will require all handgun ammo to be sold FTF with fingerprints...how long until all ammo gets lumped into that law? I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of online vendors restrict ammo sales to CA to ease paperwork and compliance issues. |
|
Quoted:
I just got 5 boxes of the same from Midway, for the same $20.99/box, but shipping was only $12.01. I should have checked with them first. They have mags on sale ($1 off or so) as well if I remember correctly. I often forget/neglect to check Midway because they rarely have any ammo in stock. Depending on how this holiday season goes, I may pick up a few hundred Lapua cases and a few pounds of powder along with some primers and pills. Just a few bucks more /100rds than the Hornady factory stuff. |
|
Hornady 6.5 Grendel Unprimed Brass
Description: Manufacturer Product Number - 86283 Hornady produces brass with the same precision, attention to detail and focus on perfection that has made them a world leader in bullets. They measure their brass for consistent wall concentricity, tests pressure calibration to ensure uniform case expansion and hand-inspects each piece. This dedication to quality ensures proper seating of the bullet both in the case and in the chamber and consistent charges and pressures. The result is optimal velocity and repeatable accuracy from your cartridges. New, unprimed brass. This is not loaded ammunition. Technical Information • Caliber: 6.5 Grendel • Finish: Brass $35 for 50 + shipping |
|
Quoted:
Bill, Will this offshore produce be making reasonably priced reloading brass?  As I understand it, the brass will be reloadable, but only ammunition will be sold. They do not intend to produce brass simply for component sale. It will not be of Lapua or Hornady quality, (Hard to do that when the loaded ammo is likely to cost less than Lapua brass alone!) Bill |
|
Interesting about the 123g Hornady bullet, which is a new one to me. Palmetto may be making unwarranted assumptions about the "hunting" capability of the bullet, however, as all of Hornady's other A-MAX offerings are designed for target use only, even though some shooters still use them for hunting. In general, among the hunting/handloading crowd, Hornady hunting bullets are known as the "poor man's premium bullets," for their great combination of accuracy, penetration, and overall effectiveness on game. From the Hornady page, it looks as if Lapua had some input into the slug. FWIW, Lapua has long been my favorite brass maker for my favorite hunting caliber, the 6.5x55, and the 129g Hornady my favorite bullet. I may have to find a Grendel, myself.
If I do, I'll likely buy the Lapua brass, too. It costs more, but it's great brass. I've bought other brass for my 6.5x55, but I usually end up discarding 20% - 30% of it, anyway, due to neck thickness variations. (If the case neck varies in thickness, then the bullet cannot be started and set in straight, meaning it likely won't be as accurate.) Some people buy case turners if the neck thickness varies more than a certain amount, but I've always believed that variation there meant there were variations where I couldn't see them, also. All together, Winchester and Remington brass ended up costing me about the same as Lapua, so I figured I might as well start there and save myself the trouble. |
AR Sponsor