Recommendations on 6mm arc AR-15 build. Looking for barrel around $700 range or complete upper for around $1000.

[Candler5]

The build will be built around long distance shooting and I'll use it for coyote hunting, paper punching long range targets and my do all rifle. I'd like to stay around $1500-$1900 for the build if possible and I want a capable optic that will help me reach out to them long distances with a bdc radical and windage. Looking to start making my own precision ammo soon after I get the feel of things and so some more research on that as well. If someone has some tips on equipment to buy to start loading my own 5.56 and 6mm arc that would be nice to. Thanks to all in advance!

 

[RockAndSage]

6ARC is a great round, and I'm pretty excited personally about .22 ARC too. The best tip I can offer is to make sure you get the best bolt and extractor possible. In ARs, 6 ARC has a tendency to break extractors, and their bolt strength is lessened compared to 5.56 bolts - there's just less material in order to fit the cartridge head. This is why you see two sets of reloading data for the 6 ARC; one for ARs that are lower pressure to prevent bolt-lug breakage, and one for bolt guns that go to notably higher pressures. If you do go with 6 ARC build, I'd recommend the JP Enterprises bolt. It's the one place where you don't want any compromises on reliability, and it's worth the extra cost.

 

[Candler5]

6ARC is a great round, and I'm pretty excited personally about .22 ARC too. The best tip I can offer is to make sure you get the best bolt and extractor possible. In ARs, 6 ARC has a tendency to break extractors, and their bolt strength is lessened compared to 5.56 bolts - there's just less material in order to fit the cartridge head. This is why you see two sets of reloading data for the 6 ARC; one for ARs that are lower pressure to prevent bolt-lug breakage, and one for bolt guns that go to notably higher pressures. If you do go with 6 ARC build, I'd recommend the JP Enterprises bolt. It's the one place where you don't want any compromises on reliability, and it's worth the extra cost.

I've definitely been considering the new 22 arc as well. I'd like to deer hunt with whatever er I choose but it's not a must. I've got several other capable gums if needed. I just want a super enjoyable gun that is just comfortable to shoot and can reach out to them 800-1200 yard ranges when asked to do so. I was just looking at pre order barrels on the 22 arc and they are very reasonable price wise from several manufacturers that I've seen. If you was gonna choose your top 2 picks for barrel manufacturers for each who would you go with? I think I want to go around a 20-24 inch barrel. I love my 20 in wylde. Thaks for the advise on the BCG to man that actually gave me some info that I must have missed while researching about this cartridge. Which caliber would you roll with?

 

[RockAndSage]

I think you'd be fine either way, but if I had to choose one of the two I'd go with the .22 ARC. Keep in mind this is just conjecture and opinion, but it looks like you get a disproportional increase in velocity with the .22 ARC over 6 ARC. Something like 3300fps vs almost no loadings for 6 ARC getting above 2950, with an awful lot of them being around 2600 for the heavier grain weights.

Also, admittedly it's a bit voodoo, but I suspect there's an inflection point starting around 3000fps where terminal ballistics start working differently than with slower and heavier bullets. Things seem to get more explosive, rather than relying on blood loss from crushing and penetrating deep. A good example might be .243 - people seem to get better terminal effects on deer with bullets in the 58-70gr range than the 90-100gr range, especially with modern bullets. More bang-flops or just staggering a few yards, than the 100yd runs. But that seems to only start around 3000fps - Federal's 95gr Fusion load for the .243 is still right at 2950ish, but Hornady's 75gn is over 3500fps. Hornady's 58gr is just shy of 4000fps.

It also seems that some bullet construction mimics this explosive effect - 77gr Sierra TMKs in .223/5.56, for example, even though it's usually only going around 2600-2700 at the muzzle (be very careful with advertised muzzle velocities, especially with AR ammo - it's almost always tested out of a 24" barrel, so plan on subtracting about 25-50fps per inch of barrel loss). There's a long thread on here showing the effects of this bullet on deer and even elk. But I'm not aware of people getting the same devastating performance out of heavier grain soft-point .223 ammo going at the same velocities.

One of the things about the .22 ARC I'm particularly interested is their new ELD-VT bullet - it's got a pretty big hollow cavity at the front that, at least in theory so far, should lead to some pretty explosive terminal impacts.

So between the two, I think there's a better chance to get both a flatter shooting and harder hitting round with the .22 ARC over the 6 ARC - it seems you can get .22 ARC screamin' fast more easily than you can 6 ARC, especially when also trying to use high BC bullets. The velocity numbers between the two ARCs are pretty far apart from each other, in ways that probably make more of a difference than, say, the difference in terminal effects between .22 Creedmoor and 6mm Creed.