Anyone else not a fan of .223?

We all have our likes and dislikes. I like the .223 for plinking and long range target. But not a fan of AR'S.

I am of somewhat the same opinion.

.243 is much better for deer, and .22 Hornet is more suited for varmints. .223 is, in my opinion, too much for self-protection in an urban setting - too much chance for over-penetration and the wounding of "friendlies".

The fact 5.56 is a military round accounts for it popularity, availability, and relatively low cost. Same with 7.62 and 9mm. 5.56 works well in its intended platform. No denying that - but it's not my favorite.

It's a real tack driver with 53-55 grain bullets in my ancient Savage bolt with a 14" twist. Hell, I don't even remember the model number of the rifle --my son is babysitting it now. I have thinned out many prairie dog colonies around Boulder Colorado with it, but housing and commercial development has actually eliminated more prairie dogs than I ever could.

My problem with it is the U.S. military refuses to admit its mistake in using it as a military cartridge and having to soup it up with heavier bullets, excessive pressures, stiffer cases with smaller volumes, and extremely rapid twists. Last I heard was 7" twist. OMG.

Colt must have spent a couple $M in promoting the ARs to the military. But the cartridges are lighter to carry and cheaper than .308s, I'll grant you that.

Terry, 230RN

was not a fan…. for like 10 years of my shooting life. Then I shot one with a cheap standard AR and was getting ping ping ping at 400 yards! Hooked!

CoalCrackerAl said:

We all have our likes and dislikes. I like the .223 for plinking and long range target. But not a fan of AR'S.

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I was late getting into the black rifle game, now I'm getting out of it. But I'm keeping my Ruger American Ranch 5.56

It isn't legal for big game in my state and I can load much more potent cartridges for the same cost. Not high on my list of cartridges. That said, the AR is a field expedient platform and mated to a better cartridge (350 Legend, 6.5, Grendel, etc.) is a really useful gun out in the wild.

CoalCrackerAl said:

We all have our likes and dislikes. I like the .223 for plinking and long range target. But not a fan of AR'S.

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not a fan??? why not make? yes it’s ugly and plastic but it really versatile. A2 to tactical cool

ARs and 223 are pretty darn boring because they pretty well grow on trees.

Guess what? I still have one or two.

However, ARs started getting a lot more interesting when all the new cartridges began being released for them. Of course, now that is back to boring because nearly all new cartridges are based around the AR.

Either way, 450 Bushmaster, 6.5 Grendel, and even 223 all have a place fore me.

Considering the range I shoot at (having attained a senior age), the ease, availability and cost of reloading components and the extensive aftermarket support, I find it a excellent target platform.

This from a “old school” guy who only hunts with various traditional calibers.

I agree to disagree. Less for you means more for me! I love the .223, and have ever since my Savage 110 GV introduced me to the cartridge back in 1989. Easy to handload, accurate, very effective out to 300 yards, and the ability to spot your own shots due to just enough less recoil than a 22-250, but still pushed a 50 gr Nosler Ballistic Tip to 3400 FPS and averaged 3/4” 5 shot groups at 100 yards from a rest with then Accurate 2015BR. Got a late start to AR’s, but loved my original S&W M&P-15 Sport with the 16” 1 in 8” twist 5R barrel. Capable sub MOA accuracy with bullets from 40 gr up through 69 gr.
Current rifles on hand include a Remington SPS Varmint with 26” heavy barrel with 1 in 12” twist, a Weatherby Varmint Special with 22” semi heavy barrel with 1 in 12” twist and 3 additional AR’s with 24” heavy, 20” H-Bar, and 18” light barrel. My favorite Varmint cartridge, though I miss the good old days when you could grab a box 20 Federal American Eagle Tipped Varmint ammo for $6.99 at Cabela’s or a 50 round box of Fiocchi V-Max ammo for $16.95 on line, (still have a good supply of both). For ground squirrels through rock chucks, my preferred cartridge.

I've got a Mini-14. Every once in a while I take it out and make sure it still works. Doubt I'll ever need if for anything, but one never knows. It's the only firearm I have that uses .223/5.56.

Generally I tend to feel that if I need a rifle, I probably need either a .22LR, or something .30 cal or larger. I suppose if I kept an AR for home defense, and an AR pistol in my car for....whatever... then I might feel differently.

evaluating current interest based on current actual cost seems reasonable.

I'm a fan of the .223 Remington. I think it's a sweet-shooting round with the right amount of punch. And I like the fact that I was able to buy off the shelf a supply of a certain make and model of factory loads that shoot half-MOA or better in all three of my 1:12 twist CZ 527s. I have one gun that'll outshoot my best .223 caliber 527 (Varmint), and that's a 550 Varmint in .308 (another round that some like to hate on).

brewer12345 said:

the AR is a field expedient platform

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Field expedient? It took them over 50 years to replace it. I'd say that's more than "expedient." Longest serving service rifle in US military history. That says something.

I agree no 223! To get my fix I use 556.

Much better cartridge.

D.B. Cooper said:

Field expedient? It took them over 50 years to replace it. I'd say that's more than "expedient." Longest serving service rifle in US military history. That says something.

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I am not ever likely to be engaged in combat. I say field expedient to mean handy, reasonably robust, and good ergonomics.

skfullen said:

..........223 is, in my opinion, too much for self-protection in an urban setting - too much chance for over-penetration and the wounding of "friendlies".....

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Huh?

I don’t love it and I don’t hate it. It is a plenty capable round inside of 300 yards for anything deer or man-sized. Anybody who says otherwise either can’t shoot or hasn’t used it in the real world. It’s not ideal for Afghanistan or Montana, but it’s fine for Iraq and Mississippi. It was designed to fill a role while we were engaged in conflicts in Asia where the 30-06 and 308 were found to be too big, too heavy and incapable of controlled full auto fire. It has served it’s role pretty darn well for the past fifty years and even though our defense budgets grows every year, the lowly M16/M4 outlasted those great powerhouses by the names of M1 Garand and M14 by a couple decades in terms of service life.

Not a huge fan of ARs. Have several bolt actions that are all tack drivers. I kept the freezer full of Montana prairie dogs for years, with a careful head shot you lose very little meat.

All of my 5.56's are MSR's and all have a different primary upper, usually 6.5 Grendel but some 7.62x39 as well.

Mark_Mark said:

not a fan??? why not make? yes it’s ugly and plastic but it really versatile. A2 to tactical cool

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I had 4 of them at one time. They ended up being safe queens. I shoot them now and then when i zero in scopes for people. My Hi-point carbines i still like to shoot though. I love my 22 semi-autos too. Looking forward to a mini 14 also. That will be my AR lol.

It is a free country and you can like it or not like at your pleasure, but there is absolutely no denying the 5.56/.223 just has so much going for it.

- Cost per round is still way better than every other rifle cartridge. Maybe not $0.30 per round but everything else has gone up commensurate to the price rise on the .223

- It is plenty of cartridge for home defense. And properly outfitted, will be very effective past 300 yards.

- With the proper bullet and an accurate shooter, it is plenty of gun for deer and hogs. I’d not choose that round personally but there is no denying it works, regardless what your state laws require.

- It has a soft recoil and is accurate enough to help new rifle shooter learning to shoot center fire long guns. Maybe not sub MOA in most AR’s but most are capable of 2 MOA with a bullet the gun likes.

Again, like, dont like, no matter to me. But facts are facts. It is popular for a lot of reasons besides being a military round.

I don't really dislike .223, but I'm not an owner of a rifle chambered in it, either. The caliber has its place, I've shot it a fair amount, and qualified with it in the AF. The two AR's I have are purpose-built and I chose different chamberings for them. I do like AR's, they are the tinkertoys of firearms.

For my purposes it serves pretty well. It’s easy to find components to hand load. It uses small enough amounts of powder it is still economical to shoot. I have 2 or 3 loads that are MOA or less in my rifles. I can load them for about $0.50/round and can load FMJ for a little more than half that.

I use it for target shooting. I target shoot with 22LR as well but I like a centerfire I can hand load and stretch out to 300 yards when available.

I toyed with switching to a smaller round but the components were more difficult to find, to include a rifle.

If I were in a position where I had to have terminal effectiveness instead of shooting for fun I’d probably feel differently but it depends on the intended target. Coyotes vs deer vs hogs would have to be considered. I have a load that seems like it would be ideal for coyotes though it’s on the slow end for 223. It was a result of only being able to find 55 grain soft points for a while.