6mm Arc for deer

I have two Grendel's and could not find enough difference between them and the ARC in an AR platform at AR pressures to justify purchasing one.
My brother bought an 6 ARC about a month ago after one of his guns was stolen and has killed 4 or 5 does at 200 yards with it using the 103 ELDX. They shot better than the 108 eldm in his rifle. He shoots mid to high shoulder shots and was getting golfball sized exits. The deer didn't travel far at all except for one that his son made a less than optimum hit on. She went 75 yards or so. The boy just doesn't shoot well. Never has. He shoots like he pitches. All over the place. My brother likes it but he said he would like to see more kills on heavier bodied bucks and hogs before passing judgement as to whether it kills as well as his Grendel. He has piled them up with his Grendel and a 123 SST over the past 8 years to the tune of about 20 a year between himself, his son, and his daughter. I'm sure he will gather a lot more evidence for the 6 ARC next year as he's prone to shoot something very few other people have and then call it the best thing since sliced bread.

The 6mm ARC is a very well designed round. Easy to load for and accurate. The argument that there are "better" options in a bolt action is true depending on your definition of better. Faster, more power? Pic a velocity, energy level, rifle weight, use etc. The availability of good factory ammunition is important to some although probably not as many on this site.

In a bolt action, the 6 ARC delivers a heavy for caliber 6mm bullet that can kill deer beyond 500 yards. Recoil is a tad more than a .223 and suppressed it's a little louder than a .22.

It's my new favorite cartridge for deer hunting. Killed 3 with it last season.

Well got the bug late this season but ordered a complete upper, took 2 deer with it. looking forward to some shooting when warm weather gets here. Been watching a field by the house as I have seen fox's recently and yotes in the past.

pdavitt said:

I think this thread has wondered off course. My original post was to discuss the AR15 platform as a long range varmint/coyote rifle utilizing the 6mm ARC cartridge.

Going to a 1000 yd range next week to see how it does out to 800 yds. So far it is still less than .5moa at my front yard 200yd range.
Pat

Click to expand...

Who wandered off which thread? let us know how the long rang shooting goes, going to be too cold for much around here.

Interesting that years ago most would've scoffed at 6mm BR for deer. The 6 ARC is a necked down 6.5 Grendel, netting about 4 gr less capacity vs the BR case.

A good late friend of mine shot a doe at 909 with his 6mm BR with 105 AMAX. Took 2 ribs out on the way in, 3 on the way out. Deer was DRT.

I like the 6 ARC for deer, especially under 4-500 yards. The main benefit is the low cost of reloading, and extremely low recoil, which encourages more practice/trigger time.

If 6mm is your legal minimum, and you like the idea of low recoil, go for it. If you can use 22, and might like to stretch to 500-800, I would consider the 22 creed. Similar recoil, but much higher velocity resulting in higher hit percentages at distance.

General RE LEE said:

I bought the 22" sporter barrel Howa Mini barreled action from Brownells and matched it up with a Bell and Carlson M40 stock. Settled on what I think will be a great whitetail load 26.5 grains Varget and the 108 ELD-M. 2625 FPS and sub MOA accurate.

For me, the reason I'm really up on this cartridge is the ability to spot hits while hunting. I watch impacts from 100-1000 yards with this gun. Makes shooting long range much easier. Also with a suppressor it's pretty quiet.

I look forward to hunting deer with it later this year.


View attachment 557411


View attachment 557412


View attachment 557413

Click to expand...

I recognize the scenery and know exactly where you're shooting from brother good job !

Deanocraft said:

I've had an AR chambered in 6 ARC for 4 years. In that time I've had great success, killing 4 deer and 4 hogs. It's an excellent hunting rifle.

Click to expand...

I've had one about the same length of time taking several deer, but it is mostly my coyote rifle.

1 thing I have seen very little of over the years is the reaction to the shot, Have been swinging the 300wm and the savage smokeless muzzle loader, a bit of lift with both makes you miss the finer details lol, seen both deer impact and must say a low shoulder shot drops them straight down, had hoped to recover a bullet but it went though the other shoulder and into the yonder. Double lung and a run on the other was a pass through also.

cajun said:

The Arc is kinda like the grendel. It makes sense in an AR. Outside of that there are plenty of 6mm options out there.

Click to expand...

Ok I have to ask. I really like the CZ 527 Mini bolt action rifles (sadly no longer offered) in everything from 17 Hornet to 6.5 Grendel. So here is the question.

What would be wrong with a CZ527 Mini bolt action chambered in 6mm ARC? How many chambering would be more, suitable than the 6mm ARC in the little Mauser action for a midwest deer hunting rifle?

Think we can agree that the CZ527 is not a AR rifle, yet for the action size we may be hard pressed to find a more versatile round for the little Mauser action for hunting deer.

sdakotaguy said:

Ok I have to ask. I really like the CZ 527 Mini bolt action rifles (sadly no longer offered) in everything from 17 Hornet to 6.5 Grendel. So here is the question.

What would be wrong with a CZ527 Mini bolt action chambered in 6mm ARC? How many chambering would be more, suitable than the 6mm ARC in the little Mauser action for a midwest deer hunting rifle?

Think we can agree that the CZ527 is not a AR rifle, yet for the action size we may be hard pressed to find a more versatile round for the little Mauser action for hunting deer.

Click to expand...

I hear often there are "better 6mm options" in a bolt gun. Often the 6mm Creedmoor and 243 are mentioned, but both cartridges have 1/4 of the 6 ARCs barrel life. For someone that shoots a lot like myself, barrel life is a major consideration.

The 6 BR/Dasher/GT flavors are niche cartridges with a little more speed than 6 ARC, but brass and factory ammo offerings are iffy.

A mini action rifle with a 1:7.5 twist barrel that sends108 ELDMs 2650-2850 FPS is a great deer cartridge. Add to that the recoil is slightly more than a .223, the report when shot suppressed is a little bit more than a .22lr and the barrel life is close to 308.

The 6 ARC is my favorite bolt action cartridge right now.

Has anyone had any luck with the Rainier Arms ultra match 6 arc barrels? Thought about rebarreling my Valkyrie and trying one of the 18".

sdakotaguy said:

6mm Arc has not been out there for very long in the big picture. Yet I am interested how this chambering is being received as a deer hunting option. I have been utilizing the cartridge in a 22" barrel CZ 527 for 3 years now. Five deer taken from 100 yards to 254 yards with none traveling over 80 yards after the shot & the average being a bit less than 50 yards. First deer was taken with a 108 grain cup & core Elite Hunter. Second & third deer were taken with 87 grain Absolute Hammer. Fourth & Fifth deer the 90 Grain Hornady CX was put to use.

My findings is like anything, shot placement has everything to do with distance covered after the shot. Two of these deer were dead on the spot with a CNS system shot placement. The remaining 3 were taken with a broadside heart, lung shot & they covered closer to 80 yards before piling up after the shot.

Near as I can tell most deer are still taken inside of 120 yards. Seems to me the the 6mm ARC is up to the task of harvesting deer for most of our scenarios. Anyone else here using or considering the 6mm ARC for deer hunting?

Click to expand...

I just bought a Howa Mini for this exact purpose. The 527s have always been a little rifle I've loved too. Too bad they're kit made anymore. I just started my 10 business day waiting period for my rifle to get out of jail while my government bribe is processed here in Washington.
Sounds like you've had quite a bit of success with your rifle already! Makes me even more excited to get mine dialed in this year

Given the history we have with the various 6mm cartridges there's no doubt a 6 ARC will be effective on deer. My question is, why would one choose it over, say, the 6 Creed or .243?

One answer might be action length/design. If I want to use the AR chassis or a mini-length bolt action, the ARC is the answer. If I'm using a short action bolt (.308) then why not choose something better suited, for the action and the application?

Given the same bullets what separates the various 6mms is mostly velocity... some cartridges may be slightly more inherently accurate but for 99% of deer hunting it doesn't matter. With 50% more case capacity the .243 will have higher muzzle velocities and flatter trajectories, and will have sufficient energy out to longer range. Within 300 yards it won't matter, past that it increasingly matters.

I have friends who go on their yearly whitetail hunt to a 160 acre property that is well-established with blinds and food plots. Typical ranges are known (under 200 yards) and max opportunities are not much further. A less powerful cartridge that is yet fully adequate makes a fine choice. I hunt deer and hopefully elk on public property in the mountain PNW, in the mid-South and Southeast hardwood forests, and across fields in the Deep South. I like bolt actions for big game hunting. For my purposes I want something more than the ARC. My 6mm hunting cartridge of choice is the .243.