.300 blackout

Jester84

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just doing some research thought id post to get some cgn'ers opinions
what advantages does 5.56 have over .300 bo?

Americans seem to love it for use with a suppressor, not an option for us Canadians.

I see it compared a lot to 7.62x39 ballistics often in that it has more barrier penetration.

The issue with M193/M855A1/SS109 isn't really prevalent at room clearing distances unless you're using a <10.5" bbl. I don't have hard data on terminal ballistics with the M855A1 projectile, but a significant amount of study was done on the M193. The finding was that below 2700FPS M193 projectiles would no longer fragment or tumble reliably, resulting in much smaller wound channels. Out of a 20" barrel M193 will stay above 2700FPS to a range of approximately 200m. With a 10.5" bbl the velocity at the muzzle sits right at the 2700FPS range. M855A1/SS109 was designed to enhance penetration of barriers, because of this it is less likely to deform on impact increasing the chance that it will fail to cause significant wounding.

I have no doubt that many reports of failure to stop the threat can be put down to poor marksmanship, but there is empirical data to support the idea that the wounding capability of the round is lacking.

When it comes down to it though the 5.56 is the best round for an AR in Canada, we can't use them for anything other than punching paper or doing 3-gun and other competitive shooting events and 223 is the most reliable and flattest shooting of the 3 options. If we could hunt with them or use them for anything away from the range then some of the other options make a lot more sense.

Is there/could a wild chamber like a .243 or .270 that uses a 5.56 case that would fit 5.56 ar magazines, that would out perform the 5.56 and .300bo from 300-500m(in a 18-20" barrel)? i'm guessing it was tried

why did they not use the 6.5 grendel to use 5.56 brass?powder load?
 
Well, the most significant Canadian advantage that 5.56 has is price and availability.

At SHOT show this year the 25-40 cartridge was announced. Guaranteed to piss off everyone, it uses a .25 inch diameter bullet, and the case is 40mm long. I forget if they included any performance information about it.


This is just my own personal beliefs, but I like 300blk because of these points:
•I can use my .223 brass to make it. I have a lifetime supply of .223 brass.

•Also, it is legal to hunt large game with it here in Alberta with our minimum caliber restriction.

•It does not suffer significant velocity losses if it has a barrel in the 9-13" range. Coupled with being allowed shorter barrels for manually operated firearms, as well as no magazine capacity restrictions, and it is well suited for a scout type rifle. That makes for a short and handy field rifle. I'm not currently a hunter, but when I start I don't imagine I'd ever shoot at an animal over 250 meters away, which means that with intelligent ammunition choices I'm not at a disadvantage. A 32" OAL hunting rifle that shoots a .308 bullet that does not produce massive fireballs and deafening muzzle blast, yes please.

Many people get hung up on the idea that it is an "AR only" cartridge. It was designed for the AR, but that doesn't mean it's not suitable for other platforms as well. Yes there are probably 287 other cartridges that work fantastically better, but there are none that suit me quite as well as 300blk. I'm pretty sure if I tried to shoot a 13" barrel .308 Win or 30-06 rifle I'd give myself a heart attack.
 
I agree with Steve. The Blackout is most often thought of as a secondary cartridge of choice for AR users and rightly so. The popularity of the platform is undeniable. However, the cartridge is equally at home in manual repeating firearms that place an emphasis on being compact or lighter in weight. With the right bullet selection the Blackout can be adequate for deer sized game.

As far as versatility in bullet selection goes you can shoot anything from 90gr. to 240gr. depending on intended usage and platform used.
 
The 300BLK is an awesome cartridge but is completely useless in Canada in an AR platform. It is fun and has a very nice recoil impulse but the time and money spent reloading just to only be able to make holes in paper seems like a waste.
I do own an AR in 300BLK and use it regularly but I am very excited to get my 300BLK barrel for my non restricted ACR. I will be using it for deer hunting. I also have a 6.8SPC barrel for my ACR but am still waiting for my bolt to show up so I can try it out.

Once you have a non restricted platform for the 300BLK it is a wonderful short range hunting cartridge and is also quite accurate at distance but I worry about how much energy is left beyond 200yds to make humane kills on animals like deer or anything larger.
Just because we can't have a supressor in Canada doesn't mean running heavy subsonics is pointless either. A 208gr subsonic is actually fairly quiet and is very comfortable to shoot. If I was hunting with it and didn't have time to put in my hearing protection I wouldn't worry about taking a shot or two, at the range I still wear it though since I have it in all the time anyway.
There is no need for a muzzle brake with 300BLK either, the recoil is very smooth and follow-up shots can be made quickly and accurately.
 
I agree generally on the muzzle break comment except for when talking about linear muzzle breaks. They do a great job of redirecting noise away from the shooter when using short barrel lengths. On barrels 12" and lower I would invest in one.
 
Just because we can't have a supressor in Canada doesn't mean running heavy subsonics is pointless either. A 208gr subsonic is actually fairly quiet and is very comfortable to shoot. If I was hunting with it and didn't have time to put in my hearing protection I wouldn't worry about taking a shot or two, at the range I still wear it though since I have it in all the time anyway.

I have shot a short barrelled BLK without hearing protection. The rifle was wearing a SPEX brake and was reasonably comfortable on the ears. I can tell you this configuration is not hearing safe but it is not overly hard on the ears for a few rounds. At the range people come up to me and ask what the hell I am shooting because they expect a short carbine to be super loud and this is exactly the opposite.
 
For me it's that I can shoot the sub sonic stuff at my indoor range. Full size AR full sized loads indoors was a bit of a dream until my recent build
 
Never shot one but IMO 7.62x39 is close (more powerful IIRC) and much cheaper to shoot. I'll stick with 5.56 for AR's personally.
 
Never shot one but IMO 7.62x39 is close (more powerful IIRC) and much cheaper to shoot. I'll stick with 5.56 for AR's personally.

762x39 is not as good for the subsonics because the case is just a wee bit too big. 762x39 uses .311 bullets of which there is a much smaller variety to choose from. 762x39 is nearly universally chambered in ####ty, carpy, combloc rifles. 762x39 in an AR is a compromise that generally ends up in a broken bolt. Finding reloadable cases for 762x39 is very difficult.

The 300 BLK suffers from none of those problems. All it requires is a barrel change and it works very well in both an AR and a bolt gun.

If "cheap" is the only criterion by which you judge firearms then we are not on the same page and 300 BLK is clearly not for you.



For me it's that I can shoot the sub sonic stuff at my indoor range. Full size AR full sized loads indoors was a bit of a dream until my recent build

Full power 556 out of a short barrel while indoors is just ignorant. I have to step back from the firing line every time someone lets loose with one of those and I am double plugged. The BLK is sooooooooooo much more civilized for indoor shooting from short barrels.
 
I'm just plugging paper so ballistics for my home range under 200yrd isn't critical for me. I love the AR15 platform and I reload 223 and 308 so making a 300BLK AR was a no-brainer. :)
 
I have shot a short barrelled BLK without hearing protection. The rifle was wearing a SPEX brake and was reasonably comfortable on the ears. I can tell you this configuration is not hearing safe but it is not overly hard on the ears for a few rounds. At the range people come up to me and ask what the hell I am shooting because they expect a short carbine to be super loud and this is exactly the opposite.

Exactly :)
I have a PWS triad flash hider on my 9.75 inch 300BLK and find it very comfortable to shoot with 110gr supersonic all the way through 208gr subsonic. My 12 inch 223 AR also has a PWS triad and it is much louder and gives more concussion.
 
Was in Wholesale Sports Calgary today and blow me down, they actually had a stock of Lee Factory Crimp dies in 300 BLK. They also had complete 300 BLK die sets. Couldn't believe it.

WSS Edmonton south commons, and I believe the northside as well has them. I mentioned it in one of the other threads that promptly got buried.

P&D even got a shipment of 300blk cases...a whopping 2 boxes of 50, but it's the most I've ever seen. I think it was like $44 for 50 or something obnoxious like that, not blaming P&D for that, so I got two bags of Winchester .223 for $37/100. I've got them chopped off at the shoulder, just waiting for some free time to eventually size and final trim them.

Everything is happening all at once, and it is entirely the RCMP's fault. They're messing with my schedule.
 
WSS Edmonton south commons, and I believe the northside as well has them. I mentioned it in one of the other threads that promptly got buried.

P&D even got a shipment of 300blk cases...a whopping 2 boxes of 50, but it's the most I've ever seen. I think it was like $44 for 50 or something obnoxious like that, not blaming P&D for that, so I got two bags of Winchester .223 for $37/100. I've got them chopped off at the shoulder, just waiting for some free time to eventually size and final trim them.

Everything is happening all at once, and it is entirely the RCMP's fault. They're messing with my schedule.

Was it Hornady brand brass? Remington only sells primed cases in lots of 2,000 pieces per box.
 
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