Short barrel deer rifle - .300 blackout?

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Astute Observer

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Hey all - so here's a question for you.

I have a Ruger American Ranch in 5.56, and while I like the rifle and the cartridge it shoots, it's kind of long for moving through dense bush, and rather weak for deer. So that got me thinking. The hunting area is pretty thick, no shot would be more than 100m, I literally can't see any further than that given the trees - only a few clearings around 50-75m across.

Anyways, what about a .300 blackout with around a 12" barrel? Apparently it'll push a 110 grain out at around 2260 fps. That's 1250 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle. I figure it should retain at least 1000 foot pounds within 100m. Hornady makes GMX and SST in 110 grain .30 cal.

So for about the cost of a new rifle, I could get this one rebarreled. That would make it much shorter and lighter, and have a rifle with enough energy to ethically take deer at close range. Anyone have thoughts on a shorty .300 blackout barrel Ruger American Ranch for deer?
 
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The 7.62X39 works so why not .A buddies daughter tilted a calf moose and a couple deer with her dad's CZ 527 no problems.The minimum ft/lbs is horse feathers dead is dead.
 
.300 BO, you are looking at 1200 ft.lb at the muzzle, keep shots under 100 yards... or consider another cartridge withbablittle more pep... lots to choose from.
 
I have a very small sample size of one 300 AAC Blackout kill, on a coyote. End result was a dead coyote, but it didn't happen as quickly as it should. Range was 140 yards with 110gr Vmax
 
I shoot all my whitetail with .223/5.56. 300BO will be just fine. I've yet to see a deer that bullets bounce off of, not to mention I've never seen a deer survive a lethal shot placement, regardless of caliber.
 
I have one for the same purpose. Have a pretty good load with 125SST for deer. But this season i found myself always grabbing the 308 instead. Was always worried I would be undergunned with the 300BO.
 
Wasn’t 300 blackout kinda made for subsonic use against people in close quarters? Doesn’t really seem suited for deer. And .44. Ag is no comparison.
 
Unless you are going to change the bolt as well, you are stuck with the .223 (which works fine on deer if the appropriate projectile is used) or a cartridge with the same case (like a 300 BLK)

I've only shot a 300 BLK, never killed anything with it so no personal knowledge but it seems pretty popular with lots of southern hog and deer hunters. No doubt the silencer suitability is attractive to them as well.
 
The only reason the .300 Blackout was invented was for suppressor use... not gonna happen up here...

give me something more practical...
 
Gatehouse said:
Unless you are going to change the bolt as well, you are stuck with the .223 (which works fine on deer if the appropriate projectile is used)
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Yeah, with a 16" barrel I think I could just get away with .223 and heavy softpoint bullets. But from what I've read, you lose too much velocity (and thus energy) with a short barrel. I'd be at around 750-800 ft/lbs with a .223 in a 12" barrel. Then there's the risk that at the lower velocity the bullet (which was made for 2800fps) wouldn't reliably expand either.

Though I did think of changing the bolt - Ruger makes American Rifle bolts in 7.62x39 as well as .308 bolt faces, and even a .450 Bushmaster. So there's options. But my AR style mags will work with .300BO, so to deviate from those two calibres, now we're adding more and more to the project.

STEELCITYSLICKER said:
So In Ontario, you're fine.......
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mbogo3 said:
The 7.62X39 works so why not
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That was my thinking - in both cases. Eastern Ontario it's short distances, and 7.62x39 is a popular hunting cartridge.

mikeelliot said:
I have one for the same purpose. Have a pretty good load with 125SST for deer. But this season i found myself always grabbing the 308 instead. Was always worried I would be undergunned with the 300BO.
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I'd be curious about your 125SST load, if you don't mind sharing. I hadn't thought of 125s.
 
dilly said:
Wasn’t 300 blackout kinda made for subsonic use against people in close quarters?
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From the Advanced Armaments Corporation's (AAC) initial proposal presentation that I read, they actually intended it to be dual use. Just switch your ammo to supersonics and the infantryman could reach out to 300m. Use a mag of the subs for Special ops ninja stuff and roomclearing. They thought it could be a replacement for 5.56 entirely. Maybe didn't quite live up to their expectations but shooting supersonics was always part of Plan A.

gallen270 said:
7.62x40 wilson tactical.
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Hadn't heard of that, looks intriguing. I reload, so ammo availability isn't really an issue. Interesting.
 
gallen270 said:
7.62x40 wilson tactical.

/thread
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I think they changed it up very slightly and started remarketing it as the 300 HAMR. I thought about it once. But there are better options off the 223 case than anything in 30 cal. 6x45 will work with a 100gr Hornady BTSP at 2.26" OAL. And if you can stretch it out to 2.5"-ish it works very well. It's getting popular with the AR guys down south; it's been around a long time, actually.
 
Astute Observer said:
Yeah, with a 16" barrel I think I could just get away with .223 and heavy softpoint bullets. But from what I've read, you lose too much velocity (and thus energy) with a short barrel. I'd be at around 750-800 ft/lbs with a .223 in a 12" barrel. Then there's the risk that at the lower velocity the bullet (which was made for 2800fps) wouldn't reliably expand either.

Though I did think of changing the bolt - Ruger makes American Rifle bolts in 7.62x39 as well as .308 bolt faces, and even a .450 Bushmaster. So there's options. But my AR style mags will work with .300BO, so to deviate from those two calibres, now we're adding more and more to the project.





That was my thinking - in both cases. Eastern Ontario it's short distances, and 7.62x39 is a popular hunting cartridge.



I'd be curious about your 125SST load, if you don't mind sharing. I hadn't thought of 125s.
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The bolt face is identical. 300 BO is 223/556 brass necked up to .308. So you don't have to change the bolt. Interesting proposal on changing the barrel. I've been looking for a RAR in 300 BO for a while. Finding a short barrel for an existing rifle might be tough. You could build a rifle from one of the Maple Ridge Armories straight pull receiver sets and use any suitable length AR barrel you want.

A 12" barreled 223 would be obnoxiously loud. I like my 16", with heavy bullets. Use it for whitetail all the time. Despite what the magnumitis crowd thinks.

300 BO has plenty of punch for eastern whitetail at appropriate ranges. The big issue is bullet drop. The short .308 bullets don't fly so well, and id keep it to under 200 yards in most circumstances.
 
Astute Observer said:
Hey all - so here's a question for you.

I have a Ruger American Ranch in 5.56, and while I like the rifle and the cartridge it shoots, it's kind of long for moving through dense bush, and rather weak for deer. So that got me thinking. The hunting area is pretty thick, no shot would be more than 100m, I literally can't see any further than that given the trees - only a few clearings around 50-75m across.

Anyways, what about a .300 blackout with around a 12" barrel? Apparently it'll push a 110 grain out at around 2260 fps. That's 1250 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle. I figure it should retain at least 1000 foot pounds within 100m. Hornady makes GMX and SST in 110 grain .30 cal.

So for about the cost of a new rifle, I could get this one rebarreled. That would make it much shorter and lighter, and have a rifle with enough energy to ethically take deer at close range. Anyone have thoughts on a shorty .300 blackout barrel Ruger American Ranch for deer?
Click to expand...

If you are going through the trouble of buying a ranch and having someone make a shorter barrel for you and want to retain the AR mags and have more power, have the bolt face opened up and barrel chambered in Remington 30AR instead.

You can not just cut down the barrel on a ranch to 12" without making a prohib
 
Astute Observer said:
Hey all - so here's a question for you.

I have a Ruger American Ranch in 5.56, and while I like the rifle and the cartridge it shoots, it's kind of long for moving through dense bush, and rather weak for deer. So that got me thinking. The hunting area is pretty thick, no shot would be more than 100m, I literally can't see any further than that given the trees - only a few clearings around 50-75m across.

Anyways, what about a .300 blackout with around a 12" barrel? Apparently it'll push a 110 grain out at around 2260 fps. That's 1250 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle. I figure it should retain at least 1000 foot pounds within 100m. Hornady makes GMX and SST in 110 grain .30 cal.

So for about the cost of a new rifle, I could get this one rebarreled. That would make it much shorter and lighter, and have a rifle with enough energy to ethically take deer at close range. Anyone have thoughts on a shorty .300 blackout barrel Ruger American Ranch for deer?
Click to expand...

Another option if you’re looking to rebarrel is the 350 Legend.
 
jparent said:
The bolt face is identical. 300 BO is 223/556 brass necked up to .308. So you don't have to change the bolt. Interesting proposal on changing the barrel. I've been looking for a RAR in 300 BO for a while. Finding a short barrel for an existing rifle might be tough. You could build a rifle from one of the Maple Ridge Armories straight pull receiver sets and use any suitable length AR barrel you want.

A 12" barreled 223 would be obnoxiously loud. I like my 16", with heavy bullets. Use it for whitetail all the time. Despite what the magnumitis crowd thinks.

300 BO has plenty of punch for eastern whitetail at appropriate ranges. The big issue is bullet drop. The short .308 bullets don't fly so well, and id keep it to under 200 yards in most circumstances.
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Ageed. I'd go with 170 gr RN jacketed projectiles at around 1700 fps or 180 gr RNFP hardcast boolits at 1500. Shoulder shots or CNS shots only on standing game for me. The trick for me be how well the RAR in 300 BO feeds using these loads through the action for a fast second shot if needed. AR mags ain't too friendly with the more blunted bullets.
 
Brian46 said:
If you are going through the trouble of buying a ranch and having someone make a shorter barrel for you and want to retain the AR mags and have more power, have the bolt face opened up and barrel chambered in Remington 30AR instead.

You can not just cut down the barrel on a ranch to 12" without making a prohib
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Or just put a short barrel on a Savage 10 action if you don't mind the extra weight. I have a 14" 308 with mild reloads that run 2400 fps with a 150 gr. Reload with a powder on the faster side and muzzle blast isn't that bad. If you really wanted to get classy, a 358 Winchester :). Or 338 Federal, for that matter.
 
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