Rem 6.8mm SPC

Has anyone ever used a Rem 6.8mm SPC for Deer hunting? Thinking of getting my son a youth model to hunt with.

From what I've read its a good round, the only problem is the cost - and I wouldn't plan on that coming down.

They had a show on last night on Future weapons I believe talking about a submachine gun that some special forces were using, I think it was 6.8. Is this the same round?


Gene

The round is used by special forces in an "AR' style rifle. You can buy a civilian version in semi auto for $850 and up.


http://www.gunsandammomag.com/ammunition/rem117_071305/

The 6.8mm SPC was developed by members of the 5th Special Forces Group and the Army Marksmanship Unit for use in the M4 and Mk12 combat rifles. It's important to understand that this cartridge is not in existence due to a directive from military brass or some high-ranking government official. It did not come from the top down as do most military cartridges. Rather, its development came from the bottom up.



It was conceived, designed and tested by the men in the field, men who have been there, done that and likely will have to go do it again. To illustrate what I mean, the man who spearheaded the development of the cartridge--who walked into a local gun shop and bought the first 100-count bag of .30 Remington brass with his own cash to begin the initial loading and testing--holds the rank of Master Sergeant.

Seems like every time you open a new firearm magazine, someone has developed new calibres that everyone swears by.

I only need .45ACP, .44Magnum, .270 Remington, .30-.30 Winchester, and 12 guage. I have a bunch of others, but it seems those are the only ones I use.

For starting a kid out, you may want to consider a .243. I do my serious deer hunting with the .270, but I have adult buddies that swear by the .243 and they're luck is as good as mine.

A firearm without ammo is only a fancy golf club.
The new calibers maybe all well and good but can you find them at Billy Bob"s backwoods hardware store in the the middle of nowhere?
You will always be able to find military/police ammo, one way or another.......
.22, .223, .308, 30/06, 38/357, 9mm, 40S&W, and 12 gauge can always be found in stores or found after it falls off the back of a truck.
243, 270 & 300Win can usually be found too.

yes i believe that is the same round. it was built to replace another military round back in 2005.

Stick with time proven ammo that will be in stock 30 years from now when your child walks into any sporting goods store and walk out with a box. Keep the different cal. to about 3 or 4 kinds. This keeps the inventory fresh.

These replies are all good thoughts but i am looking to see if anyone has shot one at an animal. or do you know of a post where i can talk to someone like that.

I would look at the velocity of the round to see if the bullet will go through the deer. A good friend of mine has actually shot a deer with a 30-06 and the bullet went through the deer, My friend says a 30-30 bullet is better cause it doesnt go through. Try looking up the info on the NRA-ILA.org website. The NRA may have this info.

I kinda feel the same way. I have 3 of the ar 15's, all chambered in .223. I can get ammo anywhere, its cheap enough as well. The only place local to me that would sell the 6.8 would be Gander Mountain, and everything there is expensive. I'd stick with something more common like .243 or .270. Maybe the 6.8 will catch on, the US military will use it and prices will come down, or a few people will take interest in it and end up reloading 10 years down the road. My 2 cents.

There"s a topic that will never be settled. Exit or not?

#1 have the round dissipate all it"s energy inside the animal and not make an exit wound? Two thoughts here. Plus, doesn"t ruin a pelt on a fur bearing animal.Minus, no blood trail to follow.

#2 Use enough gun to push an expanded bullet all the way through the animal.
Plus, blood trail to follow. Minus , it makes a 2nd and larger hole in a fur bearer"s pelt. Plus, the animal will bleed out and/or drop from a collapsed lung much faster with an exit wound.

In any case. A too hard/too heavy/ too slow a bullet will not expand on light thin skinned game.
A too soft/too light/too fast a bullet will only wound heavy thick skinned, heavy muscle, heavy boned game.
In any case a perfectly aimed shot to the head , heart or lungs. Beats a wild buck fever shot(s) that miss(s) or strike(s) non vital area(s).

Have you tried the new Leverevolution ammo in your .30-30? Looks like it would give that old round an upgrade.

What rifle were you considering? The only rifles I'm aware of chambered in 6.8 SPC are autoloaders, typically ARs. Personally, I don't think they are the sort of rifle I would want my son to start hunting with; not if I wanted him to learn good habits. There are a number of suitable bolt and lever action rifles, and all of them are chambered in better hunting cartridges than 6.8 SPC.

The 6.8 SPC was intended to be a cartridge with better terminal ballistics than 5.56 NATO that could still be chambered in AR-15 type rifles. The 5.56 NATO/.223 Remington is a cartridge better suited to shooting woodchucks than our fellow human beings. (Humans, unlike woodchucks, have an unfortunate habit of shooting back.) Just because the 6.8 is more powerful than .223 does not make it a big game cartridge.

There are a number of cartridges with relatively light recoil that are suitable for deer-sized game. Consider the 6.5 Swedish Mauser: surplus rifles are available at very reasonable prices, as is ammunition. Other good cartridges include .248 Winchester, 6mm Remington, .257 Roberts, .25-06, .260 Remington, 7x57 Mauser, 7mm-08 and .30-30 and .308 Winchester. Even full-powered rounds like .270 Win, .280 Rem and .30-06 have manageable recoil if you stick to the lighter bullets.

Hornady has made a 125gr. flat-nosed hollow point to load in the .30-30 for several years. They perform quite well in even the old Winchester, but even better in the Marlin, or some of the old Savage bolt guns.

They seem to do VERY well in my old .300 Savage.

Dale(MO)

http://www.remington.com/products/firearms/centerfire_rifles/model_700/model_700_SPS.asp

Rem makes a bolt action with many of the calibers mentioned.

Cartridge (Wb@MV) Rifle Weight Recoil energy Recoil velocity
.17 HMR (17 at 2550) 7.5 0.2 n/a
.22 LR (40 at 1165) 4 0.2 n/a
.22 WMR (40 at 1910) 6.75 0.4 n/a
.22 Hornet (45 at 2800) 7.5 1.3 3.3
.204 Ruger (33 at 4225) 8.5 2.6 4.4
.222 Rem. (50 at 3200) 7.5 3 5.1
.223 Rem. (55 at 3200) 8 3.2 5.1
.30 Carbine (110 at 1990) 7 3.5 5.7
.223 Rem. (62 at 3025) 7 3.9 6
.45 Colt (255 at 1100) 8 4 5.6
.22-250 Rem. (55 at 3600) 8.5 4.7 6
.357 Mag. (158 at 1650) 7 4.7 6.6
.220 Swift (55 at 3800) 8.5 5.3 6.4
.223 WSSM (55 at 3850) 7.5 6.4 7.4
7.62x39 Soviet (125 at 2350) 7 6.9 8
.25-35 Win. (117 at 2230) 6.5 7 8.3
.243 Win. (75 at 3400) 8.5 7.2 7.4
.250 Savage (100 at 2900) 7.5 7.8 8.2
6.8mm Rem. SPC (115 at 2625) 7.5 8 8.3
.243 Win. (100 at 2960) 7.5 8.8 8.7
6mm Rem. (100 at 3100) 8 10 9
.243 WSSM (100 at 3100) 7.5 10.1 9.3
6.5x55 Swede (140 at 2650) 9 10.6 8.7
.30-30 Win. (150 at 2400) 7.5 10.6 9.5
.257 Roberts (120 at 2800) 8 10.7 9.3
.30-30 Win. (170 at 2200) 7.5 11 9.7
.44 Rem. Mag. (240 at 1760) 7.5 11.2 9.8
.32 Spec. (170 at 2250) 7 12.2 10.6
.25-06 Rem. (120 at 3000) 8 12.5 10
7mm-08 Rem. (140 at 2860) 8 12.6 10.1
8x57 Mauser (170 at 2360) 8 12.9 n/a
.260 Rem. (120 at 2860) 7.5 13 10.6
6.5mm Rem. Mag. (120 at 3100) 8 13.1 10.3
.308 Marlin Express (160 at 2660) 8 13.4 10.4
.35 Rem. (200 at 2050) 7.5 13.5 10.8