thinking of replacing 5.56mm as my go-to cartridge

[justin22885]

so then it is true.. the grendel had to be neutered to pander to the AR-15

 

[C-grunt]

It was made for the AR15 to give it better long range performance.

 

[Tirod]

Unless your every shot is a brain or spine shot, your rifle shots are actually HIGHLY reliant on the bullet's destructive power.

Destructive power is wasted when it's a miss. And hitting an area with little ability to soak up the power imparted means its about the same as a miss.

People have been hit with 8mm Mauser, .50 BMG, etc etc and all the destructive power did no good. They fought on and defeated the enemy shooting at them. Shot placement is critical, not power. Some took multiple hits with large caliber rounds and it did not stop them. They were not placed adequately.

One hit to the right component, tho, even if it's a .22, and they could be killed. The fallacy is thinking that high amounts of power are needed. The reality is that military small arms have been downsizing calibers for the last 100 years.

It's not about power, it's about hits. Smaller caliber, less recoil, more ammo, more hits. If you missed or inadequately hit the first time, shoot again. You can't do that when limited to a finite number of pounds of ammo and it's all large caliber, you run out. With smaller cartridges you are less likely to at the point where you exercise dominance on that battlefield.

That's what the Battle Staffs of most modern armies in the last 100 years have decided, and being their professional opinion I tend to give them some credit. They made anything larger than 7.62 x 39 obsolete. And they made that obsolete, too. The standard caliber for small arms in the world's armies is something smaller than .30, it's the civilian shooters mired in tradition and extreme conservatism who are stuck on them.

 

[Shawn Dodson]

M855 (and a couple other 5.56 rounds) vs. Windshield (scroll to slide #15): http://www.dtic.mil/ndia/2008Intl/Roberts.pdf

On a differnt note - I wish Federal would make the Mk318 SOST bullet available as a reloading component.

 

[Thermactor]

currently, the ammo i buy the most of, to stop up on is .223/5.56.. however, im thinking of replacing the 5.56 in this role.. i think its important of course to keep one rifle that is compatible with 5.56 ammo and AR-15 magazines and i have that rifle (my 5.56 cal AK-74) and will still get a couple others, but im looking at crowning something else as the one i will focus on the most, purchase the most ammo for, reloading supplies, do some load testing with, etc

7.62x39, 5.45x39, 6.5 grendel, 6.8SPC, and im sure there are others, 5.45x39 would probably take the most convincing for me.. ballistically its not really any different than 5.56 and with the 7N6 importation ban its even harder to convince me to get into it.. im leaning 7.62x39 or 6.5 grendel if theres even still a following for that anymore

My train of thought is that it makes more sense to field the most commonly available cartridges.
If 5.56 won't cut the mustard, go 308 Winchester.
Commie cartridges are fun but are subject to the whims of executive orders banning importation. 5.45x39 is nowhere near the bargain it used to be but Wolf plinking loads are still cheap at $0.20 for non corrosive stuff online. But it wont give you any advantage over 5.56.
6.5 grendel and 6.8 spc are specialist cartridges but you aren't going to find them at a hardware store. But you will find 308 there.

You said you have a commie rifle in 5.56 so you can get a VEPR or something similar in 308 if that's what floats your boat.

Always bet on what the police and military use.
That's my two cents.

 

[Johnny_B_Goode]

Destructive power is wasted when it's a miss. And hitting an area with little ability to soak up the power imparted means its about the same as a miss.

People have been hit with 8mm Mauser, .50 BMG, etc etc and all the destructive power did no good. They fought on and defeated the enemy shooting at them. Shot placement is critical, not power. Some took multiple hits with large caliber rounds and it did not stop them. They were not placed adequately.

One hit to the right component, tho, even if it's a .22, and they could be killed. The fallacy is thinking that high amounts of power are needed. The reality is that military small arms have been downsizing calibers for the last 100 years.

It's not about power, it's about hits. Smaller caliber, less recoil, more ammo, more hits. If you missed or inadequately hit the first time, shoot again. You can't do that when limited to a finite number of pounds of ammo and it's all large caliber, you run out. With smaller cartridges you are less likely to at the point where you exercise dominance on that battlefield.

That's what the Battle Staffs of most modern armies in the last 100 years have decided, and being their professional opinion I tend to give them some credit. They made anything larger than 7.62 x 39 obsolete. And they made that obsolete, too. The standard caliber for small arms in the world's armies is something smaller than .30, it's the civilian shooters mired in tradition and extreme conservatism who are stuck on them.

Military units from all over the world shoot FMJ or armor piercing ammunition. You have to shoot something alive like a deer to see why those soldiers were able to keep fighting despite being hit by a heavy caliber bullet. If they had been hit with soft point ammo anywhere in the torso with an expanding bullet they would not be able to carry on.

When I shoot a deer in the shoulder blade with a 30/06 or a 7.62x54r 180gr soft point bullet it destroys the deers lungs, heart and literally rips the deers shoulder off on the exit side. No man can keep fighting after suffering such a wound. A man would just drop dead, just like a deer does. Deer have denser, stronger bones than humans. There is not as much fat or liquids in deer flesh which means a deer's body is stronger per pound than ours. The same bullet if it hit a human would do even more damage due to the amount of liquid in our bodies.

 

[9mm+]

I'm sure I'm echoing a dozen or so of the previous opinions, but 7.62x39 is my go-to rifle cartridge. I have a heavily modified SKS (looks nothing like the original) and not an AK, but my experience with the cartridge has been very satisfying. It has good medium range punch and is plentiful and cheap.

To supplement for a defensive round, I'm likely going to the smaller end and will add 5.7x28 in a PS90 rifle. There's an appeal to having 50rd mags in such a small carbine. I don't own a .308 yet, but I will in the future. For long-range engagements, it's an excellent, well-proven cartridge.