.223 Factory Ammo Choice & stopping power

[ChiBears]

Here's the situation:
I sold my pistol I used for home defense to fund buying my new RRA Mid-length AR-15 and put an Eotech on the top.
My new home defense choice ever since I got rid of pistol has been my Double barrel 12 ga.
I would like to use my Ar-15 as well...I have both in the bed room.

Here is the question (2 parts)...
1 of 2.
I would like to use it (the AR) for range work, varmint hunting (like coyote), and home defense. I like to find ammo for a gun that shoots best out of it and then stick with it. I don't usually use a variety for one gun. I don't reload...so, is there a factory load out there that can fit the mold for everything I want to use it for???

2 of 2.
Is the .223 a good option for stopping power? I know this is a largely discussed topic...But, if it ever came down to it, I want to know I have the gun to stop someone in 1 or 2 shots...not 5 or 6.

Thanks for all the help! I don't post very often...but I love all of the information here!

Thanks,
Sam

 

[buzz_knox]

At the ranges you are likely to need it for "social purposes," the .223 will work fine if you aim straight . . . just like anything else.

Go to www.tacticalforums.com and do a search for .223/5.56 and DocGKR. You'll find his recommendations on what to use, and those recommendations carry a lot of weight. It can get expensive (but fun) testing loads for reliability and stocking up a bit (a few mags worth, mainly to provide for mag rotations if one goes down) but after you've paid the initial expense, you can train with cheaper practice ammo. Even this ammo will serve in a pinch at short range.

By the way, be sure you get quality training. ARs are easier to shoot well than pistols, but you absolutely need training to use them as effectively as you need to for such a serious role.

 

[earplug]

M193

The old GI load M193 is cheap reliable and will do what you want. It tends to hit tumble and fracture at the crimping grove. Both pieces cause more damage then many soft points.
What is your barrel length?

 

[mete]

The Federal 40 grain will penetrate less than some handgun rounds if you are interested in indoor use and it will do lots of damage to the BG !

 

[ctdonath]

Mk.262mod1. 77 grain match ammo, full power, 5.56 specs, cannelured (sp?). Apparently the preferred round in the sandbox. Optimized for reliable fragmentation at longer social ranges.
Needs a 1:7 twist.
If you can find it.

 

[buzz_knox]

the preferred round in the sandbox. Optimized for reliable fragmentation at longer social ranges.

It's the preferred round due to Hague Convention restrictions. So, it's the best land warfare legal round. As civilians, JHPs of various types are available, and they are apparently superior over all.

 

[Blackfork]

Sheesh.

First of all, you aren't going to shoot anybody, at home, (nor should you) or any other place. Even IF it ever happened, which statistically is a near impossibility, it's one of the worse options among many. Try lights first, then harsh language, throwing things, retreating, slamming doors.

Shooting people gets the police plotting, the lawyers salivating, the DA excited, et, et. You don't want the attention of any of those people.

That said you ought to be firing a thousand rounds a year just goofing off with an AR or variant. They are fun to shoot. Just a tool among many.

That said, Black Hills makes competition grade ammo in several variations. Winchester makes reliable stuff by the 100 round box at Walmart. I'd skip Wolf because of the laquer. Lots of mil-surp stuff at the gunshows.

If the stars ever did completely line up and you absolutely, positively, without option are FORCED to defend yourself with a firearm....then any old round you have laying around will do.

 

[buzz_knox]

First of all, you aren't going to shoot anybody, at home, (nor should you) or any other place. Even IF it ever happened, which statistically is a near impossibility, it's one of the worse options among many. Try lights first, then harsh language, throwing things, retreating, slamming doors.

If someone is breaking into an occupied residence, why do you think the "harsh language" is going to do anything? And what will retreating accomplish beyond catching rounds in your back, even assuming there's a duty to retreat in his state?

By the way, did you miss the fact that firearms are used defensivly more than 2 million times per year? Sort of puts a different look on "near impossibility" doesn't it?

 

[Zak Smith]

Hornady TAP 75gr.

The 75gr Hornady bullet has slightly better terminal ballistics than the 77gr SMK used in the Mk262 ammo.

Another cheaper alternative than TAP for the 75gr is Black Hills 75gr, either new or remanufactured. I have shot 10+ thousand of these rounds and they are as reliable as anything else.

 

[Mannlicher]

I use a Bushmaster shorty, currently with an EOTech mounted. Ammo is 55 grain WW Q3131. It won't let you down.

 

[TexasRifleman]

First of all, you aren't going to shoot anybody, at home, (nor should you) or any other place. Even IF it ever happened, which statistically is a near impossibility, it's one of the worse options among many. Try lights first, then harsh language, throwing things, retreating, slamming doors.

Shooting people gets the police plotting, the lawyers salivating, the DA excited, et, et. You don't want the attention of any of those people.

Are you SURE you live in Texas? Harsh language to someone that has just broken into your residence and by the law of the State where you have chosen to live are legal recipients of deadly force given by the homeowner?

Harsh language? Throwing things? I've seen lots of stuff on THR, but the last few days I'm thinking I'm in some weird episode of Twilight Zone........


As to the topic at hand, the Hornady 75gr TAP gets my vote as well. Even makes my 11" barrel effective at reasonable ranges.

 

[SomeKid]

I'd skip Wolf because of the laquer.

Black, just so you know, the new Wolf is not laquered anymore. Old laquery crap used to cause my AR to jam pretty bad, new stuff doesn't even cause a burp. Wolf is good stuff now. Cheap, and effective. Granted, for defensive purposes I use XM193.

 

[ChristopherG]

Here's a nice piece of reading for you, if you decide you want to spend a totally inordinate amount of time thinking about such things:

http://www.ammo-oracle.com/body.htm

 

[Lone_Gunman]

Zak Smith: I like TAP also, but why pick the 75g over 55 or 60g?

 

[TexasRifleman]

I like TAP also, but why pick the 75g over 55 or 60g?

The 75gr is a different bullet design than the lighter weights. It's the OTM bullet, the lighter weights are solid tipped.

The Open Tip Match bullet design has proven itself very well "over there" and in Police use.

 

[Holtzman]

.223 Factory Ammo Choice

Here is a review of the 75gr. Hornady TAP, which is supposed to be a good choice and here is a place to buy them at one half to one third what you would pay for the Hornady. Check out this forum for reviews of the ammo. The 5.56 is a little less accurate than the .223, with a little more power and range, so get the right one for your gun. Also, you might want to make sure your rifle can stabilize the bullet before investing in a case. A 1 in 7 twist is sure to work, but most people say their 1 in 9 works fine too. If your rifle will not stabilize 75gr., your best bet is the 68 or 69gr OTM.

I like TAP also, but why pick the 75g over 55 or 60g?

These rounds will fragment at MUCH lower velocities than standard M193 or M855 ammunition will, making them suitable for shorter barreled rifles, or for longer distance shots. Both faired very well, and are just about equals to each other, and definitely outperformed our previous M193 experiments and the M855 data that we've seen. However, we both think that the 77gr Nosler has a larger temporary wound cavity than the 75gr Hornady. However, this could have been due to the slightly increased velocity. However, given that the Nosler *slightly* outperformed the Hornady, we would choose the Hornady over the Nosler due to the possible setback issues inherent in non-cannelured rounds.

The 75gr will stabilize in more 1 in 9 rifles than the 77gr.

 

[TexasRifleman]

Holtzman is correct, my 1 in 9 barrel shoots the 75gr just fine, but not the 77's. Not sure why, doesn't seem like 2gr would make that much difference but perhaps it does. Might also be the flight characteristics of the OTM bullet, dunno.

I just know that the 77's keyhole.

 

[ChristopherG]

I've read that Hornady specifically (re)designed their 75 g. OTM (by redistributing weight foward) to stabilize in a 1/9 barrel--and that it's the only bullet over 69 that can be more or less counted on as an across-the-board match bullet (i.e., out to 600 yards) in guns of that twist rate. Other 75's, 77's & up, you need a 1/8.

That's what I read, though at this point it's pretty much pure hearsay.

 

[TexasRifleman]

That's what I read, though at this point it's pretty much pure he

Makes as much sense as anything. It does for a fact work where the others don't in my 1/9 so it's MAGIC

 

[ChiBears]

Excellent info. My barrel is 16". It's the RRA midlength A4 that's on their website.

I really like what i have read about the TAP ammo...but, I would like to use one type for everything (range, hunting, home)...and I think it would be get to be too expensive to pop those off all the time. I am thinking of a Black Hills Reman. type (those come in a box of 50 for same price as others come in boxes of 20 around here). Maybe their 68, 69, or 75 gr. hollow points. Still haven't settled on anything yet, though...hell, I haven't even shot the AR yet, and it's been 2 months since i got it :banghead:

Thanks for the info...

 

[YammyMonkey]

Another vote for the 75gr Black Hills or TAP rounds. Work great in my 1 in 9" Bushmaster. Haven't tried the 77gr in it because I haven't heard of anyone who has been able to get them stabilized out of a 1 in 9" bbl and they're more spendy.

BTW, part of the beauty of the AR platform is that you can get 5-6 rounds on target in very short order & still have plenty left in your mag.