A few 6.8 spc upper questions

So I ordered an upper from a company that is known on this site to goof every once in a while. I won't share this companies name, but they recently ran a Middy Madness sale, so I order a CHF upper from them. So it arrived today, and in the box was a 6.8 SPC upper. I have no experience with 6.8 SPC, so I need to know, other than magazine and bolt, what other changes will I need to make to my gear to use this upper (i.e. buffer, spring, carrier, CH, etc)?

Topic Moved

First, you need to know if it is SPC II.
The only other thing is 6.8 mags.
Basically, barrel, bolt & mags (of course ammo). The rest of the parts areregular AR.
CONGRATS!

68forum is a good place for info?

EDt: I caught it....Yes, they are SPC II w/1:11 twist. It should serve you well.
Although, I'm not a chrome line fan since Melonite barrels came out.

Thank you, I'm not sure if i'm going to keep it yet, the ammo looks pretty pricey. So 6.8 SPC and 6.8 SPCII are different?

Magazine and Bolt.

Yes, A small chamber variation. Brass is the same.
Ammo is no different Price than other standard hunting ammo. No real cheap blasting ammo until next year. Whem Tula, Federal & PMC come on board.
So, if you have a 5.56 upper, keep it for blasting/ammo dumps.
SSA has good prices on bulk ammo. Around $.79.-.80 a round.

It's a fine round for to hunt Coyotes, deer, black bear, hogs & even small-medium Elk. Deer out to 350+\- yards. With a 16" barrel.

Thank you for the replies.

I'm gonna nit pick a little bit with your post. You're eluding in your post that you didn't order a 6.8 and this company(I can see who it is) sent you one by mistake! Is this what you are saying? If you're gonna accuse them of doing this then just say it. Or are you sure you didn't order the wrong upper by mistake and this is your way of not wanting to admit you didn't pay attention or are not sure?

As far as the 6.8 goes...did you get a complete upper or just a receiver? I would assume if they shipped you an upper with a barrel you'd also get a bolt and carrier but that may not have been part of the package. What is stamped in the barrel? SPC II or just SPC or 6.8 x 45

Is this the stainless lightweight deal they have?

Yes, they sent the wrong upper,as in not my fault, but I'm deciding whether to keep it or not, and seeing what I would need to do if I do decide to keep it since I have never dealt with a 6.8. The reason I explained how I got it is so that people don't wonder why I'd buy a 6.8 SPC II upper without doing any research first. It didn't come with a BCG or CH, and the barrel is stamped SPC II. I don't think it's the lightweight because it's stamped CHF on the barrel, and the lightweight is not CHF, butI cannot even find a 16" midlength CHF 6.8 SPC II on their site, so I'm not positive. CHF may mean something other than Cold Hammer Forged.

The one I was looking at was an 18" stainless middy –– my bad.

With all being said so far.

One big question we all missed:
What was your original purpose to do with it? (Hunting, target long or medium distance(how far), competition, Self defense, etc.)

It was for a rifle I was building for the wife for 50 yard fun at the range. I've decided to go ahead and keep the upper, and use it for hog hunting. I've got over a dozen ARs, but this will be the first in 6.8. I'm still confused about the SPC vs SPC II though. I can't find any ammo designated as SPC II.

spc2 can handle the hotter loads that many of us shoot. get a PRI mags if you are going to reload hot or just get barretts if you will shoot factory loads. join the 6.8forums for all the info you will ever need.

you just need a bolt and mags since you already have the upper

SPC I / SPC II - this is a chamber designation. The SPC II, as mentioned above, is designed to let some of the Hot to Really Hot loads fire safely. Since it is a safety tweak, and it lets you run hotter loads without overpressure issues, there is really no reason to purchase a new one that is not SPC II.

He is mostly right.
The SPC (SAAMI) was a flawed prototype sent to SAAMI from Remington.
SPC II is very close to the original design) The difference is the length of the freebore & cone angle. SPC II has the correct 45o angle & a longer freebore (to relieve pressure & allow longer COAL).

A SPC II barrel can shoot all 6.8 SPC ammo. Wilson Combat & SSA Tac ammo are designed for SPC II chamber (due to higher pressure & longer COAL). If you reload, the SPC II can be loaded hotter than the original SAAMI SPC. (With the Caveat; each barrel is different. So, load up in increments.)

FWIW-
Wilson Combat ammo claims 110gr bullet 2700fps out of a 16" barrel.
SSA Tac ammo 85gr TSX = 3000fps out of a 16" barrel
Premium price on both though.

You can use your 5.56 ARs/uppers for blasting.

The SPC and SPC II designation is only a chamber designation not ammo.

The SPC II is improved and has a longer freebore and slightly bigger neck area, like maybe 1-2 thou or so.
It helps reduce pressure so you can run hotter loads.

That said we have a mini 14 with a SPC chamber and I hand load for it, and hogs dont know the difference between the two.

Keep it.

Its one of the more versatile hunting rounds and great for normal size hogs.
SSA sells ammo and its about like any other premium ammo.
For hand loads I like the 110 gr prohunter for deer and the 95 gr TTSX for hogs.

To add what others have suggested if you're 223/5.56 savvy try and think of the 6.8 as the same thing. Think of 6.8 SPC II as equivalent to 5.56 hotter ammo vs 223/6.8 SPC. The only ammo you will find loaded "hot" for 6.8 is from Wilson Combat and SSA called "Tactical". The last I think I saw was only three manufacturers of 6.8 are still using the incorrect SAAMI specd barrels. All others are making SPCII. Somewhere along the way during the 6.8s evolution an incorrect reamer was made. This is the one that Remington ended up with as they were the major manufacturer who developed the cartridge for commercial use. Once they developed some loads they sent it in for SAAMI approval. It was not discovered that Remington had been using/testing rifles with incorrect chamber specs until after SAAMI approval. What the incorrect chamber did was to cause the cartridge to be slightly underloaded from the how it was originally designed. Once it was discovered the correct reamers were cut and the newer updated chambers began appearing allowing a higher chamber pressure, as originally designed, and allowed a higher muzzle velocity from the rifles. That is how we ended up with SPC vs SPC II designations similar to the 223 vs 5.56 chambers. Because of the costs involved it is not known if SAAMI will ever correctly certify the updated 6.8. It will take a major manufacturer to pay for and submit the data.

So if you want higher velocity loads you'll need to purchase from SSA or Wilson Tactical or reload. And it's not like the non SPC II loads are really all that weak. Just not quite as hot. You will find a good selection of great factory 6.8 loads out there with SSA offering the best selection.

Early in the 6.8 development is was hoped the round would eventually replace the 5.56 for the military. Thus driving the costs of ammo down. Looks like that will more than likely not happen now so we're stuck with costs and what they are compared to almost any other commercial ammo out there. Until we see more mass produced 6.8 ammo I'm afraid that's about as good as it gets.

Looks like their screw up ended in your favor. You have the right chamber so I'd roll with it. Be careful though, you might end up selling most of your 5.56 guns after running the 6.8.

The term you're looking for in ammunition is "Tactical Load." That will tell you that the ammo should be used in a Spec II chamber. Like 5.56 chambers, a Spec II chamber can handle all current factory-loaded ammunition.

The 6.8 SPC is a great round. Mags are a little pricey and it's a lot harder to find a chrome-lined barrel in various lengths, but it's an excellent intermediate round.

Thank you everyone for the information, I'm excited to roll with this. This shipping screw up may just be one of the best screw ups I've ever had. PSA has already spoken with me, and they are top notch folks.

You will like it.
IMO it is one of the best low recoil hard hitting hunting rounds there is.

If you save your brass and reload its as cheap as anything else.

I just ordered a lower/stock kit from them. I even had a few minor subs. Great folks!

Oh, your looking at a 300-350 +/-yard hog/deer/Black Bear upper. (possibly 400y (deer) with max or near max hot loads, but, it's push it. Especially with a 16".). Yotes a little farther.

a newbie shooting one of 14" arp15 rifles with a pinned ar15 12 port break and tactile loads

welcome to the 6.8 family.


visit 68forums.com for all the info you need.

i love my stag 6.8, but have picked up a 5.56 upper for blasting...the 6.8 gets a little pricey, cheaper ammo is coming!

6.8 has a huge hunting following!

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