I'm learning more and more about reloading (and my, it really is a world all on its own) and I've been trying to find a general...... "consensus" on bullet grains vs maximum combat effectiveness (that is, tissue damage including intermediate barriers, like clothing). I have not really been able to find any sort of consensus, just various opinions.... and this thread will likely be more of the same. However, if anyone knows of an "official guide", please point me that way - I haven't been able to find anything like it.
Is a heavier bullet (like a 77gr, 75gr, etc) better and more effective at tissue damage, say, out to 100 yards, than a lighter grain (like 62gr or 55gr). Nevermind what the majority of our grunts use, the 62gr with steel core - is a heavier bullet's sacrifice in velocity worth its additional energy transfer?
A lot of people chide the 5.56/.223 as being an inferior combat round. Sure, we (the USA and most NATO countries) have used it and we make it work, but it sucks at light barrier penetration and wound channels aren't particularly impressive in most cases (that's likely very much up for debate, depending on who you ask). However, it's not really the cartridge itself that's to blame (some have said), it's the bullet itself, more specifically the bullet grain.
Is a heavier grain .223 bullet more effective at tissue damage AND intermediate barrier penetration, generally speaking?
Is a heavier bullet (like a 77gr, 75gr, etc) better and more effective at tissue damage, say, out to 100 yards, than a lighter grain (like 62gr or 55gr). Nevermind what the majority of our grunts use, the 62gr with steel core - is a heavier bullet's sacrifice in velocity worth its additional energy transfer?
A lot of people chide the 5.56/.223 as being an inferior combat round. Sure, we (the USA and most NATO countries) have used it and we make it work, but it sucks at light barrier penetration and wound channels aren't particularly impressive in most cases (that's likely very much up for debate, depending on who you ask). However, it's not really the cartridge itself that's to blame (some have said), it's the bullet itself, more specifically the bullet grain.
Is a heavier grain .223 bullet more effective at tissue damage AND intermediate barrier penetration, generally speaking?
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