Based on the old 30 Remington case, the 6.8mm SPC (6.8mm Remington Special Purpose Cartridge) was developed in conjunction with Special Operations Command (SOCOM) and introduced by Remington in 2003 as a harder-hitting alternative to the 5.56X45mm NATO cartridge. Bullet diameter is .277-inch, same as the 270 Winchester, but the cartridge was developed to fit into the AR platform by switching out upper receivers, so shorter (lighter) bullets must be used. Standard is a 115-grain bullet at 2625 fps. Although the 6.8mm SPC has seen combat use in Southwest Asia with good results its wholesale adoption by the military seems unlikely. It has, however, found favor as a hunting cartridge in the AR platform; its many fans consider it an excellent deer cartridge out to perhaps 200 yards.
