I'm doin' a 6.8

**AR-10** · 16 September 2012, 10:07

I spent half the day yesterday shooting a 16" 6.8 and made up my mind - I'm selling one of my 5.56 uppers and turning that rifle into a 6.8.

Hitting steel @ 300 yards with the 6.8 was enough to sell me on this cartridge, yeah I know I'm late to the party but I just don't shoot with many guys that are into the alternative calibers so this was my first real chance to play with one.

I have been wanting a compact .308 for a while, and even bought receivers to put one together but after shooting a 16" LMT MWS for a couple of days I decided against it.

So, after doing some research I have decided to order an upper from either Bison or AR Performance.

One thing that concerned me, on the AR Performance website it says "these uppers may short stroke with Remington ammo".

I assume this is because his chamber is cut different than the SAAMI spec?

I don't want an upper that is finicky about ammo, I don't reload so that means I'm plinking with the cheap stuff...

**Paulo_Santos** · 16 September 2012, 10:42

His chambers are high performance chambers. The Remington ammo is very underpowered so it may short stroke in his uppers. Kind of like shooting Tula or Wolf ammo in a 5.56 chamber. Trust me, Remington 6.8 ammo sucks anyway, so it is no big loss.

**AR-10** · 16 September 2012, 11:06

Got it.

What about ammo, any sources for bulk?

I really need to invest in some reloading equipment.

**Paulo_Santos** · 16 September 2012, 12:58

Originally Posted by AR-10

Got it.

What about ammo, any sources for bulk?

I really need to invest in some reloading equipment.

Your only real choice is the SSA (Silver State Armory)115 GR ammo. It isn't all that cheap, but it is very accurate.

**TangoSauce** · 16 September 2012, 22:58

The 6.8 round is an amazing compromise between 5.56 and .308. I was lucky enough to get an ARP stainless 18'' barrel. I've had problems with short stroking even with SSA 110 Pro Hunter. I had a green Sprinco with H buffer initially. I've since moved to a blue and standard buffer. You can always adjust your rig to be more forgiving with various ammo. I'm eager to test out Hornady BTHP this weekend to compare if it was my setup or ammo causing the issues.

It's an excellent round, you'll be very happy.

**AR-10** · 17 September 2012, 16:40

That is a nice rifle, what scope did you end up with?

I am doing a red dot, I think...

Talked to Bison today and was quoted 4 weeks, if ARP can get me an upper faster than that they will get my money cause I'm an impatient bastard.

**TangoSauce** · 17 September 2012, 22:35

I've heard good things about Bison, sure that would work out for you.

Still waiting on my SWFA 1-6 to ship. I think a little bit of magnification for hunting will be nice for longer shots and to ensure a clean kill.

**Jerry R** · 18 September 2012, 07:25

You're gonna love the 6.8. Wish I could help with info on the uppers, but I have a couple of LWRC rifles (16.1" and 10.5") and never had issues with Remington as far as functionality or accuracy. I know mine are piston and not D.I. but you can "tune" yours to work with available ammo. I really like the Hornady 120gr SST in this caliber - a great round.

Off Topic: Since you do not reload - save your brass. Reloaders will buy it and that will help recoup your ammo costs. Yes, I am a reloader.

**chazthebiker** · 19 September 2012, 14:09

Congrats! I love mine. I don't get to shoot much these days and I have been slowly buying ammo to stock up. Let's just all hope ammo prices will fall after November. As Far as ammunition goes: I use SSA. I have bought some Hornady, but have not tried it out yet. Everything I have tried from SSA has been great.

**AR-10** · 20 September 2012, 18:16

Originally Posted by TangoSauce

I've heard good things about Bison, sure that would work out for you.

Still waiting on my SWFA 1-6 to ship. I think a little bit of magnification for hunting will be nice for longer shots and to ensure a clean kill.

I've been waiting on that scope for 6 months, about to say screw it and buy the 1-4HD model.

Originally Posted by Jerry R

You're gonna love the 6.8. Wish I could help with info on the uppers, but I have a couple of LWRC rifles (16.1" and 10.5") and never had issues with Remington as far as functionality or accuracy. I know mine are piston and not D.I. but you can "tune" yours to work with available ammo. I really like the Hornady 120gr SST in this caliber - a great round.

Off Topic: Since you do not reload - save your brass. Reloaders will buy it and that will help recoup your ammo costs. Yes, I am a reloader.

I am buying a Dillon, which reloading manual do you recommend?

Originally Posted by chazthebiker

Congrats! I love mine. I don't get to shoot much these days and I have been slowly buying ammo to stock up. Let's just all hope ammo prices will fall after November. As Far as ammunition goes: I use SSA. I have bought some Hornady, but have not tried it out yet. Everything I have tried from SSA has been great.

Ammo prices and availability are exactly why I am buying reloading equipment.

Well, that and the fact that I've burned up almost ALL of my green tip over the past six months.

**GriffonSec** · 7 October 2012, 07:03

I've run just about all of SSA's and Hornady ammo through my Noveske barreled 8.5", including quite a bit of Remmy, and haven't had anything close to a short stroke issue. I do run the Vltor A5 setup in it, and I think it'd be an option to consider.

I did build a 14.5 for a friend based on the ARP barrel, it ran Hornady110 and 120, SSA 85, 110 and 115 fine through it as well (A5 used as well). I need to shoot him a note and see if he's run any Remington through it. After a year of him shooting it, I've not heard any issues aside from some mag issues.

IF you're concerned about short stroking, I'd consider the A5 over trying various spring/buffer setups, personally.

**Paulo_Santos** · 7 October 2012, 10:04

Originally Posted by AR-10

I am buying a Dillon, which reloading manual do you recommend?

Honestly, just get yourself some AA2200 powder and work up some loads. It is the most efficient off the shelf powder for the 6.8 SPC.

http://www.accuratepowder.com/wp-con...d_data_3.5.pdf

**AR-10** · 7 October 2012, 10:22

I ordered a 16" side charger from Bison and it should be here soon.

Ben gave me a killer deal on a barrel that had a piece of a drill bit broken off in the gas port - I didn't care, since I wanted a single-shot side charger anyway.

I also ordered a Dillon XL 650, so expect me to be back with questions.

Paulo, you recommended the Super Sniper 3-9x42 for one of my 5.56 uppers a while ago and I'm considering that scope for this upper.

Any thoughts? This will be a dedicated 300+ yard gun, I probably won't even put irons on it...

**Reno Sepulveda** · 31 March 2013, 04:43

I bought a RRA 6.8spc several years ago. I wasn't really interested in AR-15s until I heard about the 6.8spc. To my mind it is the best alternative chambering for the AR-15 and everybody that shoots mine wants to get one. In California we can't own suppressers so the popularity of .300 Blackout makes absolutely no sense to me. If I were to do it all over, I think I'd go 14.5" mid length with an 11" lightweight FF rail and just an optic. Noveske used to offer that setup but I think they've abandoned the 6.8spc.

Still waiting for cheap, bulk 6.8spc ammo though and I've long since quit holding my breath for that.

**VLODPG** · 2 May 2014, 05:22

Noveske has 6.8 barrels on their site again!

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