What type of 5.56mm ammo do you have on hand?

[Ki6vsm]

Anyone out there have a 1:9 twist barrel on their rifle? If so, in here it says that the much maligned M855 and the newer M855A1 ammunition actually shoot really well out of 1:9 barrels, which the M855 was actually designed to be used in. That is, if this discussion includes barrier penetration as part of self defense.

https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2014/5/21/testing-the-army-s-m855a1-standard-ball-cartridge/

Still, either of these bullets are only 62 gr in weight and don't expand at all. So maybe not worth thinking about.

[dozer wright]

I should think nearly unnoticeable.

That's pretty much my point. Ar 15 is 7 plus lbs depending on accessories a Ar10 is 9ish lbs I'd bet many here have Ar15/10s that are much heavier, a M1a is 9.5 to 10 lbs. If your so concerned about the ineffectiveness of 223/5.56 maybe time to step up. To a different caliber.
Just for Jiggles my Ar15 with Franklin billet upper/lower 1x6 heavy 16 inch barrel , Magpul stock and A Troy Handguard , back up sights and Pws cqb is just shy of 10 lbs unloaded.
My M1a Socom is 10 lbs unloaded. My M1a Socom in a Chassi with a 1x6 mount and magpul stock is 12.5 lbs

[Ki6vsm]

The combat medic who wrote that article talked about shooting people in the chest and watching them still in the fight - so the idea I had that his logs were supplying information that was being studied incorrectly - seems to be wrong.

I was thinking of those aircraft that came back from missions in WW2 with lots of damage to certain parts - leading people to believe those parts of the plane needed to be reinforced - instead of realizing that aircraft hit in other parts weren't coming back - so they were considering reinforcing the wrong parts of the planes. https://www.trevorbragdon.com/blog/w...wrong-solution

Great observation and great article. Thanks! We don't know that the medic-author logged every single KIA and wounded in his area, or just the ones he personally observed or were brought to his base of operation. Might have been a lot of one-shot kills that never met his notice. We can't say.

Did anyone else read through the comments? I thought some of those were thought provoking as well.

[HooYah]

Black Hills 70gr TSX is my go to ammo in 5.56

[smle-man]

lol, i don't think the .22lr has enough gas to cross the battlefield,

.223 ain't all that much bigger, but has a lot more behind it.

Saying any military force has wounding the enemy as its main objective is about as silly a notion as I can imagine. This isn't paintball where a hit soldier is out of the game and stops playing when hit.

[Transient]

And not on a tablet either. But on a LT/Windows screen, you have to scroll for about 2 minutes to even know what it's a picture of.

I just take the picture and post it. Computer code is beyond my capabilities.

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[Transient]

The combat medic who wrote that article talked about shooting people in the chest and watching them still in the fight - so the idea I had that his logs were supplying information that was being studied incorrectly - seems to be wrong.

I was thinking of those aircraft that came back from missions in WW2 with lots of damage to certain parts - leading people to believe those parts of the plane needed to be reinforced - instead of realizing that aircraft hit in other parts weren't coming back - so they were considering reinforcing the wrong parts of the planes. https://www.trevorbragdon.com/blog/w...wrong-solution

Taking a 223 square in the head at short range and surviving? Fired at an angle and deflected off the skull - ? Too bad more information was not provided on that part of his story.

Any ammunition choices recommended - ?

I didn't catch on to this until I saw your comment, then it clicked. A combat medic is a noncombatant. Why is a noncombatant talking about engaging in offensive activities? They are issued firearms for defensive purposes only. I'm starting to wonder about the credibility of this whole thing.


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[Transient]

Then the military should be using .22 LR weapons. Lots of wound potential.

Wound potential =/= wound guarantee

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[Barang]

the take away from the author's perspective is that when you miss the vital organs, the heavier grain sp/hp will inflict greater damage and bleed faster.

[nodnarb77]

Interesting article. But like what was said in the articles last paragraph, it's not so much the "caliber" as it is the "bullet".
*Disclaimer; I've never used 5.56 on humans and I hope that I never have to. So the following are my opinions based on shooting, reloading, and popping the occasional coyote with various 223 loads over the years.
FMJ/ball rounds are far less lethal than anything that expands, whether that means soft, hollow, ballistic, whatever.
It's pretty common knowledge that the 62gr M855 is not an ideal round for soft targets. The steel penetrator, that was designed to pop Ivans body armor, over stabilizes the round and negates the tumbling. Making through and through wounds more common.
The 55gr XM193 was designed for 20" 1/12 twist barrels moving at ~3000+fps in order to induce yaw. But, when fired out of the more common 16" 1/7,8,or 9 twist barrels it becomes over stabilized, and again, negates tumbling.
The MK262 77gr OTM has a cult-like following and has a solid reputation as to it's lethality downrange.

Me personally, I try to stay stocked up on Hornady 75gr bthp bullets. With 8208 XBR powder they fly around 2600ish fps from my 16" 1/7 rifles. Accurate, and heavy enough to be a great do-all round for this caliber. They're moderately priced enough (~$75/500. Way cheaper than 77smk) so that I can load up on them and actually shoot them without feeling too guilty about the cost.
I also like Hornady's 55gr cannelured soft point bullets. Loaded with H335 powder these fly around 2800ish fps and are even cheaper (~$75/1000) to reload. This is a great plinking round that packs enough *** to be considered for HD.
*Disclaimer; democrats being considered human is a debatable topic.
*Disclaimer; I'm only joking about the dems.

[Transient]

[sigstroker]

I'd bet a Ar 10 vs M1a is Very close in weight. Ar 15 depending on accessories is 7 to 10 lbs M1a Socom is 9.5 lbs with a empty mag.

Empty mag isn't much good unless you're in a parade. If you're realistic compare them with a full load.

[Rogerbutthead]

I didn't catch on to this until I saw your comment, then it clicked. A combat medic is a noncombatant. Why is a noncombatant talking about engaging in offensive activities? They are issued firearms for defensive purposes only. I'm starting to wonder about the credibility of this whole thing.


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I am pretty sure those medically trained members of those small teams are armed. They were in the Vietnam War and I would think the same is still true.

[M1XdColt]

I have a mixed of 223/556 mix inside a 50 cal can. Since I have 4 types of upper complete, the barrel 3 are 1:7 and other is 1:8 Most are from Wal-Mart and gun show so most of you guys know 223\556 theirs only a few type of Gr out so I'm not going to say what gr I currently used because I'm currently using what you guys are using. since I don't reload like some and I just buy ammo only. These three type fmj, hp, spj all these are currently in one 50 cal can. Most of my mags are load with SPJ and HP. However I load two mags of fmj... One in 30 and 20, The other three mags I load SPJ-Hp, SPJ-fmj and HP-fmj. Don't ask why but I just do it and most of The Gr are pretty close to one another.

[Mayor McRifle]

I mainly have 55 and 62, but I was looking at this article and wondered what others here have with their AR 15s.

https://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/medics-advice-shoot-heaviest-rifle-round-shoot-can-hit-shoot/

*conus - Continental United States - oconus - Outside Continental United States

*Contiguous, not continental.