.223 Ammo question? Brands, Projectiles for home defense?

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Kingofthehill

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So today i was at Bass Pro Shop and i was going to buy another couple boxes of Hornaday TAP that my AR loves and i Trust but they didn't have any???

They didn't have speer gold dot either 9my #2 choice.

What they did have were some different Hornaday like Super Varmint, Zombie (God im so sick of Zombie crap... cheesy) and on something like 6 other variants.

I know my pistols very well and I have tested all the big names in my own ways that I am satisfied with and TAP FPD was my favorite but then what?

I bought he zombie crap even though i hate the hype but curious one how well respected it is?

Im going to either look or TAP's or Gold Dots at other locations but the Barnes bullets are getting my attention looking at their specs and reviews.

Any advice here?

My AR is my home defense firearm (suppressed) and i know its not possible to keep a projectile in 1 room but if there is one out there that has a lot of respect in the military/leo world I would love to know about it.

Thanks guys :cool:
 
Most military and LEOs use barrier defeating ammunition which, by your description, is not what you are wanting. You can always order online, there are plenty of places that have TAP rounds in stock.

The zombie ammunition is just a v-max round and would do better at staying in a house than a barrier-blind round (though because of the zombie marketing I would not use them for defensive purposes). The Barnes rounds are good self defense rounds, but they are also good barrier defeating rounds, IIRC.

Sent from my HTC One X
 
I'm fairly certain that TAP, V-Max, and the zombie stuff are all the exact same Hornady bullets in .223..Rest easy.
As mentioned, online is usually the place to find what you want, when you want it.
 
how long will it be before people realize military semi automatics AKA assault rifles are NOT home defense firearms... not only are you likely to put a hole through the side of your own house and potentially shoot someone in another.. do you really want to bring that kind of attention to such rifles?
 
how long will it be before people realize military semi automatics AKA assault rifles are NOT home defense firearms...
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Maybe in a million years, or when pigs fly, whichever comes first.

Absolutely nothing wrong with a .223 for HD assuming you use the correct ammunition. I only keep a pistol by the bed so I can fight my way to a real gun (rifle/shotgun).
 
how long will it be before people realize military semi automatics AKA assault rifles are NOT home defense firearms...
Click to expand...
You must be the last person left who doesn't know that a .223 with a light frangible bullet like the V-Max, Tap, etc, is less likely to over-penetrate and kill your neighbor then a 9mm pistol!

Why do you think law enforcement SWAT entry teams all over the world are all using them now instead of 9mm sub-guns??

rc
 
Because there are some .223 rounds that have been listed in some studies as penetrating typical wall boards less than 9mm.
If I am grabbing a rifle in my home, the wheels have come ALL the way off!
 
how long will it be before people realize military semi automatics AKA assault rifles are NOT home defense firearms... not only are you likely to put a hole through the side of your own house and potentially shoot someone in another.. do you really want to bring that kind of attention to such rifles?
Click to expand...

How long will it take for some people to understand simple facts instead of spewing this false and blatantly ignorant junk?....

Please, jason, do some research before making a fool out of yourself any further...

Sent from my HTC One X
 
armoredman said:
Because there are some .223 rounds that have been listed in some studies as penetrating typical wall boards less than 9mm.
If I am grabbing a rifle in my home, the wheels have come ALL the way off!
Click to expand...
Some, not all. As RC said, V-max is a frangible that I'd not hesitate to use indoors.
 
with the ammo choices available to us as civilians, i'd much rather grab my ar than a pistol if i knw things were going to get heavy.

i also would urge the op to check online for what you want. i rarely buy ammo in local shops anymore.
 
Any reliable 55gn or better FMJ or better will do fine for my applications. Even that may be overkill. Keep in mind we're talking rifles here not weak pistols that absolutely need defense ammo.

As well as high end defense ammo? No. But my carbines are sighted in for the 55fmj Federal I train with. So that's what I have in my defense AR right now. Because it works.

My BCM MkII SPR Rifle has premium Hornady 70+gn OTM target ammo.
My weaker (apartment life) FN P90 uses SS195.
 
jason41987 said:
how long will it be before people realize military semi automatics AKA assault rifles are NOT home defense firearms... not only are you likely to put a hole through the side of your own house and potentially shoot someone in another.. do you really want to bring that kind of attention to such rifles?
Click to expand...

Wow! Super herp derp.

5.56mm is know to actually penetrate less than slow pistol rounds.

When a small soft metal bullet hits something at 3000 feet per second it get torn into shreds immediately. Light weight little shreds don't fly far after that.

Mean while a slow heavy pistol round may survive hitting drywall in one piece, thus it may continue on with enough momentum to still kill.

What is more likely to be drivable afterwards? A Ford F350 Superduty slamming through a regular house drywall at 30mph, or a Moto GP motorcycle hitting the same wall at 211mph?
 
Thanks for the heads up on the stupid zombie labeling. It looked and appeared the same other than the box and green tip. I emptied one out for comparison and it looked the same but wasn't positive.

When it comes to home defense ammunition i typically buy a box here and there at stores like cabela's, Bass Pro, Academy and use the internet for bulk.

Money is very tight with fighting a list of medical problems like cancer so i don't have the money to just buy in bulk like I wish i could. I just so happened to be there meeting a Dr. for lunch and thought I would take a look at whats available and how prices have changed in the last few months.

Good to know a little more truth on their .223 lineup. Im much more of a pistol guy.


As for the guy thinking using an AR is the worst thing you could do LOL.... Ive done my own ballistics testing, traveled the US attending academy's with some of the most respected instructors out there and have no kids or anything in an adjacent room that would risk over penetration. .223 is a fabulous choice for home defense, especially if its suppressed and on a short barrel.
JOe
 
I just acquired my Noveske Thunder Ranch, upon which I have an Aimpoint T1.

I prefer Hornady TAP. Zombie Max is Ill-advised and may reflect negatively in a jury of your peers. As much marketing as the round has, and the labelled use, it's a can of worms better left unopened.

I prefer 5.56/223 over my 12 gauge in the house.
 
The TAP I use is 60gr. I'd imagine the performance is quite similar to the more popular 55gr stuff. I went with 60gr Hornady TAP simply because it was on sale. Eventually, I'll run dry and plan on replacing it with 55gr TAP.

Personally, I wouldn't be overly concerned if all I had was M193 for defense. The 5.56 is a bit nastier than I had originally believed it to be. It really makes of mess of whatever it hits.
 
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