Thinking about 300 blackout

[Yrkoon9]

I'm about a month out from my SBR stamp and suppressor stamp on a 300 BLKOUT I built. I love it.

[northernxposure]

Not trying to play Devil's Advocate on this - honestly - but I thought Remington had the "30-30 performance in an AR" claim with their goofy 30Rem that they tried to shovel out. It's great that it fills a new niche, but is it ultimately a niche worth filling? We've had the 300 Whisper (granted yes, it was a locked up wildcat) and while it certainly had it's fan base, it never became a major player in the wildcat arena. Like multitudes of other AR wildcats.

It very well could have legs, but I'm not going to be an early adopter. I see the 300BO eventually becoming the 41Mag of the AR world.

NXP

[Regular Guy]

Not trying to play Devil's Advocate on this - honestly - but I thought Remington had the "30-30 performance in an AR" claim with their goofy 30Rem that they tried to shovel out. It's great that it fills a new niche, but is it ultimately a niche worth filling? We've had the 300 Whisper (granted yes, it was a locked up wildcat) and while it certainly had it's fan base, it never became a major player in the wildcat arena. Like multitudes of other AR wildcats.

It very well could have legs, but I'm not going to be an early adopter. I see the 300BO eventually becoming the 41Mag of the AR world.

NXP

Party pooper. I can see going better than 41 mag territory. 6.5 and 6.8 haven't died out.

[Browning 35]

This may be a stupid question (as I haven't followed the development of the .300 BO other than reading a few articles in gun rags, which always seem to say that the gun/caliber is the next best thing since sliced bread regardless of whether it sucks or not), but does the .300 BO really have THAT much industry support over calibers like the 6.5 Grendel or the 6.8 SPC?

I bought an AR in 6.8 SPC a couple years after they came out (to try and make sure the bugs were worked out of it) and it's pretty much relegated to the once or twice a year deer or hog hunt due to the fact that I'm paying roughly $1 to .75 cents a round.

My 6.8 gets nowhere near the use of my 5.56's simply due to ammo cost and availability.

Would a .300 BO AR just end up in roughly the same category (except better suited for use in suppressors and SBR's which I'm not really going to mess with right now)?

[Regular Guy]

B35, check out the 300 AAC site. The 300 has way more support than either of the 6s.

[Caenus]

I think B35 may be pretty close on track. The 300 will not replace the 5.56 for most users. 5.56 is just too cheap to shoot.

It does fill several niches that the 6's didn't do so well. Mainly suppression and SBR.

Out of a 9" barrel, it performs similarly to M855 from an M4...not that there is not better ammo available now for a 14.5" barrel, but running a 9" barrel means that those of us in AZ hiking in the desert can pack some serious firepower without carrying a full sized M4 carbine. That is the niche it fills for me.

[Browning 35]

B35, check out the 300 AAC site. The 300 has way more support than either of the 6s.

Okay, thanks. I'll check it out.

I think B35 may be pretty close on track. The 300 will not replace the 5.56 for most users. 5.56 is just too cheap to shoot.

It does fill several niches that the 6's didn't do so well. Mainly suppression and SBR.

Yeah, that's kind of what I was wondering/figuring.

Was curious if way more industry support just translated into more availability (meaning you could find it in Cabelas, Bass Pro, Academy, Gander Mountain and most other large gun stores) or if it also meant that it's less expensive than 6.5 or 6.8 SPC as well.

No way .300 BO ammo is going to be able compete with 5.56 price wise, just thought it might be somewhere in the middle.

[Regular Guy]

Remmy white box is $10-11. Not great but not bad.

[Browning 35]

Remmy white box is $10-11. Not great but not bad.

That's better than the 6.8 SPC if you can find it in a store and don't have to worry about shipping.

http://www.ssarmory.com/6.8ammunitionsales.aspx

[Bender711]

My only point of reference is the gunshow I went to this last week. most of the big ammo sellers had at least a couple of boxes of 300bo for ~.50-.75 a round and only one guy had any 6.8 at closer to a buck a bang. Didn't see any 6.5.

[Caenus]

My only point of reference is the gunshow I went to this last week. most of the big ammo sellers had at least a couple of boxes of 300bo for ~.50-.75 a round and only one guy had any 6.8 at closer to a buck a bang. Didn't see any 6.5.

This is what one of my buddies is telling me as well. He was one of those that bought a 6.8spc and got tired of spending $15-$25 a box for cheapish ammo so sold his 6.8. Of course he sold it in 2008 when everything was expensive-er.

[northernxposure]

RG - When I see it at Farm & Barn or Waldomart I'm in. Does that still make me a party pooper?

NXP

[Browning 35]

My only point of reference is the gunshow I went to this last week. most of the big ammo sellers had at least a couple of boxes of 300bo for ~.50-.75 a round and only one guy had any 6.8 at closer to a buck a bang. Didn't see any 6.5.

This is what one of my buddies is telling me as well. He was one of those that bought a 6.8spc and got tired of spending $15-$25 a box for cheapish ammo so sold his 6.8. Of course he sold it in 2008 when everything was expensive-er.

One thing my 6.8 does really well is kick the shit outa hogs and deer though.

Ammo for the 6.8 is a little too expensive to just blast a bunch of holes in targets, but it's about the same price wise as .243 Win. $15-$25 for 20 rds of hunting ammo is about average if you think about it. Plus since it's an AR it offers quick reliable follow up shots if you run into a bunch of hogs.

I wish cheaper ammo was available for plinking, not gonna happen (or so it seems).

Q : Anyone on here shot anything over 100 pounds with a .300 Blackout?

Q : If so what were the results? (if you can please give a comparable result with a well known cartridge and/or pics if you have them)

Just curious what the terminal results of this cartridge are.

[Caenus]

I think I've posted this before so Im sure youve seen it. It's my buddy's kill, not mine. He switched from 6.8 to 300 and is very happy.





Feel free to guess the size. He guessed around 275-300. He has shot plenty of deer as well.

Forgot the second Q.

This was his cartridge evolution:

He used to hunt with a Rem 700 in .270, switched to Rem Ultra Mag...realized after several seasons the farthest shot he's taken is 200 yards and usually ran into bunches of hogs and a bolt action was too slow. Switched to an AR in 6.8. Got tired of looking for ammo (doesn't reload) and buying mags that are expensive. It worked as well as the .270/7mm rum. Went to a 5.56 ar. Worked fine on hogs...didnt hunt deer with it. Found 300 bo, bought it, used it and hasn't looked back. Good on even large hogs at 150yds+.

[Regular Guy]

RG - When I see it at Farm & Barn or Waldomart I'm in. Does that still make me a party pooper?

NXP

Yes.

[brothaman]

Hunting here requires minimum .24 cal.

5.56/223 has a .224 bullet diameter....

0.240 > 0.224

Occasionally I both Herp and Derp,.... My bad. I still love hunting wiv mah 223 though..

[Browning 35]

Feel free to guess the size. He guessed around 275-300. He has shot plenty of deer as well.

From the size of the head and the tusks I'd say about 300.

(nothing else in the pic to judge for scale - hope he saved those tusks)

Forgot the second Q.

Just basically wondering if in anyone's hunting experience with the .300BO if the animal was DRT, if it ran away's (50-60 yards) before giving up the ghost or if someone only found the carcass cause of the flock of buzzards overhead.

He used to hunt with a Rem 700 in .270, switched to Rem Ultra Mag...realized after several seasons the farthest shot he's taken is 200 yards and usually ran into bunches of hogs and a bolt action was too slow. Switched to an AR in 6.8. Got tired of looking for ammo (doesn't reload) and buying mags that are expensive. It worked as well as the .270/7mm rum. Went to a 5.56 ar. Worked fine on hogs...didnt hunt deer with it. Found 300 bo, bought it, used it and hasn't looked back. Good on even large hogs at 150yds+.

Mine was .270 Win, switched to 5.56 for hogs cause they ran in bunches. It worked real well for a long time even though I was running light grain bullets (55-64 grain SP's).
Then lost one hog after a long 200 yard shot at dusk with dark brush in the background (he was dark brown/black). I hit him in the torso a little further behind the shoulder than I intended after holding on him forever to get a clean shot and he got back up and hit the fence-line as I was walking towards him before I could put another rd in him (next day saw a shitload of buzzards a few hundred yards over on this other guys property).
Bought a 6.8....still on the 6.8 although I occasionally still use the 5.56, use heavy grain bullets and keep it under 100 yards.

[Caenus]

Shot placement is still the important thing regardless of caliber. I think he's gotten much better at that as well as stalking closer. He has started now hunting on one of their smaller properties which I think has helped. It sounds like 6.8 works for you so if it ain't broke...

I only have a .270 bolt and a 14.5" 5.56. The 300 makes sense for me if I can get it in a smaller package.

He did keep those tusks. He turned that skull into a wall mount. Basically that pic was taken a month after he shot it and left it on an ant pile at the ranch.

[Browning 35]

Shot placement is still the important thing regardless of caliber.

Yeah, I know.

Regardless of how good you are if you're hunting quite a bit eventually Mr. Murphy will rear his ugly head and you'll get a mediocre hit.

That's all I'm saying. :Shrug

5.56 is enough for hogs, I've shot enough of them to prove that to myself. A larger caliber just generally anchors them in place a little better for those occasional times where things go wrong and you get less than stellar shot placement (will still be a kill-shot, but they get into the brush and die there).

I think he's gotten much better at that as well as stalking closer. He has started now hunting on one of their smaller properties which I think has helped. It sounds like 6.8 works for you so if it ain't broke...

I only have a .270 bolt and a 14.5" 5.56. The 300 makes sense for me if I can get it in a smaller package.

I think I'll wait and see how it develops a couple years from now.

I don't usually do well with impulse buys (that's what it would be for me).

He did keep those tusks. He turned that skull into a wall mount. Basically that pic was taken a month after he shot it and left it on an ant pile at the ranch.

Good, would be a shame otherwise.

[docdredd]

Pretty neat PDF showing Gel penetration of various loads... http://300aacblackout.com/resources/300 ... CT2010.pdf

[JTNieman]

This may be a stupid question (as I haven't followed the development of the .300 BO other than reading a few articles in gun rags, which always seem to say that the gun/caliber is the next best thing since sliced bread regardless of whether it sucks or not), but does the .300 BO really have THAT much industry support over calibers like the 6.5 Grendel or the 6.8 SPC?

I bought an AR in 6.8 SPC a couple years after they came out (to try and make sure the bugs were worked out of it) and it's pretty much relegated to the once or twice a year deer or hog hunt due to the fact that I'm paying roughly $1 to .75 cents a round.

My 6.8 gets nowhere near the use of my 5.56's simply due to ammo cost and availability.

Would a .300 BO AR just end up in roughly the same category (except better suited for use in suppressors and SBR's which I'm not really going to mess with right now)?

Absolutely.

Some others are starting to run 300BLK in 3 gun matches (Industry Masters and stuff like that.. friendly comps, and stuff, rather than people winning big matches) and are starting to really push it. Suppressor mfrs are not even accepted if they don't make a 300BLK can, these days, or mention it in the 7.62 cans.

I mean it's still new, so it's not going to be as common in your brick and mortar stores as, say, .243, .270, 30-06, .308, and other cartridges based on 308 and 30-06. I don't see 6.8 or 6.5 in my stores either. However, 300BLK is really being pushed hard. It's the logical answer to every marketer who hates hearing "herp derp, .30 cal or go home" and everyone who is tired of old fashioned rifles, and everyone who likes tactical rifles. It. Does. Everything. From a marketer/sales standpoint. Everyone from the average hunter to the reloader to the tac rifle shooter and the mall ninja will get jollies from it.

It just needs time to get out there. I don't know about you but I don't really see advertising or pushes for 6.8SPC at all. I don't know a single person that shoots it. Dif crowds I guess. 6.5 Grendel has a little love from some guys I know, but not much, and half the guys I know who say they like it don't own a gun for it, lol.

300BLK is the only cartridge other than .22lr/5.56 I want in an AR.

When more people start owning it, I think the stores will follow suit. I think the stores, like Bass Pro, Cabelas, Academy, Gander Mountain, start carrying things after their marketing experts say there is demand. Manufacturers push what they want to sell. Stores only ask for things after they know it will sell, usually.

[Vicarious_Lee]

So, the 300 Blackout fits standard 5.56 mags, bolt, BCG, buffer assemblies, gas tube length, and gas port?

It's just the barrel that's different?

And the round was designed to be fired out of 12" and shorter barrels?

[Regular Guy]

So, the 300 Blackout fits standard 5.56 mags, bolt, BCG, buffer assemblies, gas tube length, and gas port? Yes.

It's just the barrel that's different? Yes.
And the round was designed to be fired out of 12" and shorter barrels?

Yes, the powder in all burnt at 12". A 16" is not helping but it doesn't hurt either.

[Vicarious_Lee]

So, the 300 Blackout fits standard 5.56 mags, bolt, BCG, buffer assemblies, gas tube length, and gas port? Yes.

It's just the barrel that's different? Yes.
And the round was designed to be fired out of 12" and shorter barrels?

Yes, the powder in all burnt at 12". A 16" is not helping but it doesn't hurt either.

That sounds delicious. I want me a 10" SBR made out of that!