Bolt-Action .300 Blackout and 6.5 Grendel: Where Each One Stops Being Ethical
Short, quiet bolt guns are some of the nicest deer rifles to carry. Here's how far each cartridge really works.
Native Industries ·
Not long ago the .300 Blackout and 6.5 Grendel lived almost entirely in AR rifles. Now you can buy both in light, short bolt-action hunting rifles from Ruger, Howa and others. Put a suppressor on one and you get a deer rifle that's quiet, soft-shooting and easy to carry all day.
But they are not the same cartridge, and they don't reach the same distance.
The .300 Blackout. With supersonic hunting loads, 110 to 125 grain bullets leave a 16 inch barrel at about 2,200 to 2,350 feet per second, with roughly 1,350 foot-pounds at the muzzle. By 150 yards that drops to around 900. That's enough for a deer with a good expanding or monolithic bullet and a broadside shot. Past 150, the energy and drop make it a poor choice. Our honest limit with supers is 150 yards.
Subsonics are different. A 220 grain subsonic bullet at about 1,000 feet per second carries less than 500 foot-pounds. Most bullets won't expand at that speed. If you hunt with subs, use a bullet built to expand at about 1,000 feet per second and keep shots inside 75 yards. If you can't do both, use supers.
The 6.5 Grendel. The Grendel shoots a 120 to 123 grain bullet with a much better shape. From a 20 inch barrel it starts around 2,450 feet per second and still carries roughly 1,000 foot-pounds at 300 yards. That makes it a true 300 yard deer cartridge in good hands, with recoil that barely moves the rifle.
Which one fits you? If you hunt thick brush inside 150 yards and want the quietest rifle possible, the Blackout is a joy. If you hunt fields and senderos where shots can stretch to 250 or 300, the Grendel is the better rifle. If you only want one, get the Grendel.
Both need the same things. A threaded 16 to 20 inch barrel. A hunting bullet, not a target or varmint bullet. And a zero with your exact load, because Blackout supers and subs hit far apart on the target.
Small, short, quiet rifles make hunting easier. Just keep the shot inside what the cartridge can actually do.