Is the 300 Blackout a round worth it?

After looking up more info on the 300 Blackout and seeing more of what the round is and what it can do I have been thinking of maybe starting to stock up on it. I made a comment on it in the past with no knowledge about the round and I found I was dead wrong on what I said. Since the time I said my comment I thought this round was going to be like the 6.8 a great round but a round that brass and other reloading components would be hard to find but being that I reload 223, 308 and 30-06 I find I have everything that I would need to reload this round it would just be a matter of cutting the 223 and resizing it with dies that are out on the market.

I’d just like to know has anyone heard anything about the use of this round in military. Is this going to be just another AR caliber that we are going to hear about for a few years then it’s going to go away and people will just go back using 556/223 due to the market being flooded with so much 556/223 ammo . I like what the round has to offer and that you are able to use everything that you have on your AR now but the barrel. What is the future of this caliber 10 years from now could it be the next military round or would it be another one of the calibers that was popular at the start but faded away because people did looked at it as a gimmick caliber? I ask this here because starting to stock up on a new caliber costs money and that money might be better off being placed into calibers you own right now! As we all know spending are money wisely is apart of survival.
Thanks for the help and advice.

I have only done about 10% of the research I should, but so far I like it. I think the ballistics are impressive, coupled with the (lack of) noise capabilities. Being that a dedicated upper is all you need to use this round it can mesh well with existing gun collections and not require too much of a cash investment to get into the 3000blk game (from a firearms aspect, ammo is another story). As you touched on, the thing that I want to see, as well as many others who have posted is what will the ammo do? Is it going to be available at a fair price, will it be sold at local sporting good venues, will it stay around?

Much of that will be determined my the demand we put on it. Unfortunately I think, if we all wait to see what happens the demand wont be there, we need enough of a segment of the community to jump in and get the demand rolling.

NO/Yes

Its a round of the month club. It has a unique purpose, but AFA the SHTF you would do better with "standardized" ammo.

If you want to use it as a range plinker w/ can to have a extra suppressed gun, sure go for it.

If you want to count on it as a one off "SHTF" gun, then stock ammo= $$$, or stock reloading supplies, becuase it will be super limited and their wont be much of a demand. Having a only 300 for SHTF takes away one of the biggest draws of the 223, is the 22lr conversion.


My biggest beef, is people think since they have a quiet gun they will turn ninja shtf and take headshots and be invisible just becuase their gun is quiet, like its a video game.

Using it as a extra tool sure it makes sense. Using it as your only one SHTF gun= bad news.

YMMV

Looks pretty good. Neat thing is that all you have to do is a barrel swap. Great ballistics and an excellent suppressed round. As has been noted, stock up on ammo and reloading supplies.

Gimmick caliber. No one will know it ever existed 5-10 years from now.

I happen to think it is an awesome round, but I am an admitted fan boy. I do not have nay idea if it is or ever will be considered or used by the military. Rumor all over the place. but nothing i have seen.

I use mine for hunting and have had great success with it. But one must know the limitations that it has. It is not a be all end all round.

here is a few confirmed kills
300 blackout confirmed kills

I think it would be good for tactical applications in SHTF scenario, but only if you were static and had a large supply of ammo or components.

It will still be around for a while. The 300 whisper has been around for 20 years or more. Now how much support will it have in another 20 years, who knows, but it will still be here.

Erm...

Considering wildcatters have been using it for 20-odd years already, you might want to think again ;-)

300 blk out is the 6.8 of a few years ago.

While the round has impressive capabilities, whether sub sonic for suppressed or super sonic. Its effective operational envelope is about 300 yards maximum.

The military will drive what you should be stocking up on because LE Agencies will shoot this as well because of cost of ammo. While the 5.56 has weaknesses, so does everything else. There is no "Magic Bullet". I don't care what your shooting, if your putting rounds on target, your being effective.

Latest fad.

With that said, I can certainly see the appeal for using it with a suppressor, but as a poster above said, don't count on it to be SHTF friendly.

I see it as a novelty round. Depending on funds, I'm hoping to buy one for recreational purposes, but nothing more.

Yep, gimmick.............hehe.................................

I have a couple of uppers and 2k of ammo for them. I am officially "ON" the bandwagon.

Remington and AAC are full throttle on it. The only thing holding it back is the current price of ammo.

Eventually it will cost only slightly more than 5.56. They just need to start cranking more out. Typical supply/demand.

If I find the ammo cheap/cheaper, I stack it deep/deeper!!

Since the 300 Blackout mimic's the 7.62x39, I doubt that it will be a gimmick caliber. All aspects show, that this caliber will be around for a very long time. Remington now produces a model 700 rifle, and the ammo is now arriving at distributor's in mass quantities. Average price of $12 to $15 a box, might seem high now, but should come down in price as more quantities hit the open market. And since SAAMI approved the round, and not the whisper, it should be noted that this round is going to be tested by our military. Rifles, barrels, and ammo is being bought so quickly, that Midway and other distributors cannot keep up with demand. The statement that this is just a 300 yard round, is only half true. It's best terminal ballistic's out do the 556 with better stopping power within the 300 yard arena. AAC was bought by Remington, and since Remington has military contracts, the purchase of the rights to this round was a smart investment. And it will be easier for Remington to market it to our military. Shot Show marketer's were all showing future weapons in this caliber. So stock up guy's, this is a great round. And for you SHTF guy's, if you have to bug out, then by all means your equipment will just be in the hands of those that take it from you. Stand your ground, and defend yourself and your family. And have plenty of this ammo in stock. It's not just a suppressor type of gun. So do the research, and see that it makes sense to replace the HK MP family of guns with this round. If you can only afford 1 gun, then maybe this caliber is not for you. Stay with the 556, since there will be plenty of ammo that you can find. But remember, there are plenty of 30 caliber weapons out there as well. So only time and market demand will tell how this new caliber will do.

With only 3 posts under your belt, and being around since 2005, you've got a significantly-low signal-to-noise ratio, Thunder51, especially with great posts like the one above. Great info, and well-written, you provide a good example of what we need a lot more of in here. Well done, sir.

I want to see this.

If you're comparing the commercial 300 to the FMJ of the mil okay. Comparing them across the commercial offerings, nope.

There is no way a subsonic 200 gr round will do more damage than a 65-77 gr pill supersonic

I do the math. Remington, AAC, more powerful round in same footprint as 556.... ACR=Battle rilfe, Honeybadger= PDW, all same caliber, common mags, etc... PLUS....an AMERICAN company

There are many pushing to lower the percentage of .mil firearms that are provided by other countries.

I personally think Remington has positioned itself to win this RFP and become the American battle rifle of tomorrow.

The only math needed, is that unless its a mil adopted cartridge, with cheap surplus to back it up, it will NEVER be as popular as the 556/308/30.06


You guys saying the 300 will be the next mil cartridge are cracking me up. You sound like the 6.8 fanboys a few years ago. With the current downturn, the country on its ass economically, fighting in 3 AORs, you think we are going to get a new cartridge


Keep em coming

this shows just how full of FAIL you are. why would anyone in there right mind compare a subsonic rd to a supersonic one? OH, i know, because they want to blow smoke about something they dont know anything about. while the 5.56 is a faster rd the .300 has more energy and also suppresses much better and has better ballistics out of a short barrel. hard to beat the facts so because you dont believe others, here is the chart so you can see for yourself.

I could maybe see the military using this as it uses 223 brass trimmed and reshaped and 30 cal for the bullet all it take is a barrel change to make it work same bolt and mags. Now the 6.8 you needed a new barrel, bolt and mags. Not saying it is going to happen but it could happen. Part of what might keep this round alive is because of the calibers you talk about above because it uses the brass or bullets from them. I agree I don't feel this caliber will be really cheap until the military picks it up. As of now the ammo for the 300 Blackout is around the same amount as 308 ammo. $27.95 for 168gr V-max in 308 and $17.95 for 168gr A-max 300 Blackout.

Yes you can get FMJ wolf and bear 308 and some brass 308 cheaper like $14.95 for 149gr FMJ . Now the 6.8 is $21.95 for 120gr SST.

Only if suppressed

"So full of fail" what are you, 12?

Oh I see you have a cool chart with numbers, let me retort.

1. The ammo I have seen commercial available is subsonic, hence my comparison. Yes you can run it full bore, but then you lose the most important aspect, the sound signature. So if you give than up for performance, then just get the 6.8 or a heavy 556 round. Also if you run that lighter ammo with the barrels designed for the heavy subsonic rounds, then you could run into problems with accuracy.

2. That chart is comparing the best a 300 can do to the SAAMI/factory published date of the other rounds. The 6.8 is shown to do a lot better than your comparison accounts for. I.E if you want to look at SBRs and the best round loaded to full potential, the 300 will lose to the 6.8

3. Dont be so butt hurt. Every few years a wildcat is released, that does so much better than 556. The 6.8 was better out of SBRs, the 6.5 does well at range, the 300 has the suppression going for it as well as parts communality. But the question does it do it better than the 556 in a survival forum. The answer is still "NO." You don't have the big plus of a 22lr conversion, ammo availability, and you still don't have the cheap ammo for training, which both of these are considered far more important than just a cool rifle, should you need one.

It does have a very specific role that it does better than many platforms, but for a overall platform, no its not the winner. If you start picking and choosing only certain points to argue, then yeah it is the bestest ever and you are right.

This is what I came to post. When I first started reading Arf in 2009, 6.5 was fading in popularity, and every fan boy was salivating at the US military replacing the 5.56 with the 6.8. Today, no one talks about the 6.5 much any more, the 6.8 is no longer the cool kid, and 300 blackout is going to replace the 5.56 in the military.

The cycle will repeat, and in a few years the 300 will still be lauded by a few die-hards while the newest magic do-it-all cartridge will be touted as the imminent 5.56-killer.

If you want to buy a 300 blackout because you enjoy shooting and reloading as hobbies, and because it outperforms 5.56 in some applications, and because you can cast some of the bullets for it, and because it's cool to be the guy at the range with the suppressed sbr firing an exotic caliber that the mouth-breathers have never heard of, then by all means, spend your money on what makes you happy.

If you're seriously looking at buying an AR for a survival gun to augment your preperations, then 300 blackout is lacking for a great many reasons, and betting on it now because you have faith that a lot of those deficiencies will be remedied in the future when everyone else sees the light, is not something I advocate.

As a one gun operation, no it doesnt' make much sence. As an additional upper? Well now you have another tool in the tool box.

Like everything else, everyone is gonna have their opinion on the matter. Myself, I like it. Its quiet, accurate and really...300 yards for 95% of the area I live in...300 yards is a LOOONG shot. Something like 85% of NH is undeveloped forest. A buddy/arfcomer/prepper and I are trying to find a range beyond 300 yards and having some trouble with that locally. So for me, the 300 BLK can make sence. And actually my goal this year is to take down a deer with my 300. (last years deer was done with the OBR at 127yds.)

In my opinion I believe the .300 Blackout is here to stay. It picks up where the 5.56 leaves off. A lot of SF and operators in the military world are using this caliber because it does enhance an ar-15 platform. This is the round that silenced Osama. When I get the money for another upper it will be in the .300 Blackout. It is also very easy to load for, I dont have to worry about buying $15 ammo.

[citation needed]

Firstly, chill, you two. Don't MAKE me pull this thread over!

Secondly, TaylorWSO, I think you might be making a mistake or two in your thinking. Not jumping down your throat or anything–– they're pretty common mistakes made in this survival forum.

In your retort (good word, by the way, as opposed to reply)

Point 1. Yes, the .300's major draw (at least for me) is the efficacy with which it tosses big subsonics. But the developers went to some great lengths to ensure that supersonic performance would be up to par–– at least within the range of bullets they load/recommend. Sure, you "could" run into some accuracy problems, but until I see that, I'm inclined to accept the designers claims with less salt than you seem to. This means that the .300's draw isn't solely the quiet, but the versatility to be either quiet or quick. In a survival forum context, a single rifle that's multipurpose has some chops.

Point 2. Point yours, sort of. The 6.8 probably beats the .300 for raw power. Out to three or four hundred, it beats the 6.5, as I understand it, and in commercial loads. If that were the only criteria, your point would be made. It's not, though. Gotta take the whole package and compare it with the other whole packages, not just pick the point you want to emphasize and ignore the rest. Anyway, that's what I heard somewhere.

Point 3. I'll refrain from defending the 6.5 here–– there's plenty of other places for that. Let's just talk about the .300 v 5.56. in a survival forum aspect. I know, let's go down the list of requirements.

Does it go bang when you pull the trigger, and go more or less where you point? While this is largely a rifle question, both the .300 and the 5.56 will do it given the mechanical support of a decent rifle. The 5.56 will have more range by most accounts. So, if you think you might be dealing with ranges over 3-400 meters, point 5.56. Ranges below 3-400, point .300 for the greater power/mass of the projectile.

Will it take game? Every year, I'm hearing more and more about larger game being taken with 5.56, but at the moment, and taking into consideration that you probably don't want to waste money on a rifle that's ONLY GOOD AFTER TEOTWAWKI, many places won't let you hunt deer-sized game with a 5.56, while the .300 is good to go, just going on its base stats. Point .300

Is it cheap to feed? Point 5.56, at least so far. Of course, what is it you're feeding it? How useful in a survival forum situation is that ammo? Is your survival situation fighting hordes of MZB's? If so, cheap steel cased ball is a definite plus. For hunting ammo, the price of both the 5.56 and .300 seems a lot closer. Reloading either diminishes the difference even more.

How much practice do you really need for survival forum purposes, as opposed to 3 gun purposes or door kicker purposes? It's been a sticking point with me for quite awhile (YMMV, of course) that it's really not necessary to expend thousands of rounds of ammo a month to remain proficient with a rifle. Particularly if you've only got the one and can rely on muscle memory more readily than if you have twelve or thirteen all with different characteristics. If you're getting ready to fight a war, fine, ammo that's available cheaply by the thousands has definite appeal. Hell, if you just lurves to shoot, it has an appeal. But for survival forum purposes, not so much.

How readily will it be available when/after SHTF? Trick question. It won't. Neither of them. We saw how the SHTF just of a commie who looked like he was going to win the presidential election affected availability of common calibers like 5.56. During/after the genuine article? Guys will be stealing the stupid rare calibers to salvage the powder out of them. (and probably blowing themselves up for the not knowing of what it is) If you purchase and train with a survival rifle based on how much ammo you'll be able to scrounge AFTER the blades is brown, you don't really understand what a survival rifle really is. Prepping is based on the word PREPARE, right?

.22 conversion. Point 5.56. Not sure, really how much value can be squeezed out of one, though. I have one, and I'm not that impressed. 6-8MOA out of a 2MOA rifle. Again, I'm not (that I'll admit to) preparing for either war or 3 gun matches, so I probably don't shoot as many rounds as some of you guys. But the more experience I get with the drop in, the more I think that I'd be better served with a dedicated upper, in which case, it doesn't really matter if the basic rifle is 5.56 or .300. A suppressed pistol can serve many of the survival forum duties of the .22 insert as well, possibly performing them even better.

Overall platform. Is there even such a thing? The phrase "Jack of all trades–– master of none." pops to mind. I'm thinking that, since we, as Survival Forum types, aren't the military, with its gargantuan supply structure and glacial supply criteria, we can better tailor our gear to the specific AOs in which we will likely deploy.

That means that I, out here on the Wyoming prairies, with clear shots out to Fort Mudge, can rock a 6.5 that'll do everything a 5.56 will do up close, but will reach out much farther–– at the expense (until January, at least) of more expensive and slightly heavier ammo.

It also means that somebody down in the swamps of Louisiana can rock a .300 or a 7.62 that'll bust swamp grass better than 5.56, and not suffer from short range since there ain't no long range shots down there anyhow.

And, finally, it means that we can all stuff our safes full of different weapons that are optimal for different situations without having to worry about the logistics that governments have to worry about.

For my AO, .300blk probably isn't the best round I could concentrate on. So I went in another direction. Of course, 5.56 is also not the best round, and I went in another direction than that. Drop me in Downtown Denver or Chicago during the Zombie Apocalypse/Russian/Chinese invasion, and I'mma thinkin' that the .300 will look pretty tasty.

I spoke personally with someone in a position to know and he contradicted this information. From my source it was a 5.56 using brown tip ammo (70gr TSX) but I'm not going to provide a source so take that for what it's worth.

The 300BLK has its uses, but I would not recommend it as a solo caliber for survival. I have one, and have some ideas about how it may be useful for me, but it is an auxiliary weapon system for niche uses.

I'm not knocking it, I love that little rifle. I have a 10.5" Noveske barrel on an SBR that I use with a YHM suppressor. It is compact, light, effetive, reliable with subs and supers, and quiet when suppressed. I can make brass from the mountains of 5.56 spent cases I have but I don't find it is realistic to expect to use bullets that you also stock for other .308" caliber weapons. If you shoot the 300BLK with supersonics you'll need light for caliber bullets that are designed to work within its velocity range. They exist now, and some of the best are the Barnes bullets made for the BLK, but they will be overdriven in a .308 Win and standard .308 Win bullets will be going to slow to perform as expected in a 300BLK in most cases. The one exception is perhaps some of the 110gr "varmint" bullets for .308 Win. At BLK velocities they still expand and/or fragment but do so less violently.

I like the potential of the 300BLK with supersonics in an SBR for home defense type situations. A 300BLK with a 110gr TSX will outperform a 5.56 with a 50-70gr TSX and a 300BLK with a 110gr V-Max will outperform a 5.56 with a 50-60gr V-Max, especially in an SBR. As long as you compare like bullets and the range is within a couple hundred yards, I believe the BLK will perform better.

The BLK is also more of a viable hunting caliber than 5.56 at modest ranges with supersonics. It just has more potential than the 5.56 does to quickly kill a medium game animal. I'm not saying the 5.56 won't harvest game, it has been proven that it can, but I still think the BLK is a better option and should be less sensitive to perfect shot placement. I also like that some of the new expanding subsonic bullets, like the Outlaw State Bullets, may allow me to hunt quietly after an SHTF using my BLK and my suppressor. I can see some value in taking game without drawing attention.

The BLK with expanding subs and my NV makes a nice quiet little rifle for use in the dark, but this certainly isn't going to be the most common need for a firearm post SHTF. It is lots of fun, and alone is worth the money for the barrel and suppressor, but all the guys who think they're gonna play ninja after SHTF are not likely the ones you want to be hanging around with.

I think the chief advantage of the BLK is the versatility to go from subsonic suppressed use to having a decent power supersonic cartridge. Other posters are correct in that the 6.8 will outperform the BLK every time if you're looking at supersonic performance, and there are other subsonic offerings that work like pistol calibers or the .338 Specter, but the BLK rolls alot into one package. If that package suits what you feel your needs are, it can be useful. I would not choose it over 5.56 for general purpose due to the lack of cheap ammo and the amount of work necessary to create brass from 5.56. I've done it, there's lots of trimming.

I have lots of AR's and lots of AR ammo. I only have one 300BLK and I'm thinking about building a second for my wife. Embrace the strengths, but be realistic about the limitations, and you may find a good use for one.

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