Choosing 5.56 Ammo

[HawkMan]

I keep hearing different things like, PMC is cheap, buy Federal, Wolf sucks, buy Winchester. This ammo is better than that, this is cleaner, this is more accurate, etc...
I'm trying to decide on a 5.56 round to buy and the price is the same on all except one.

What makes one brand better than the other?
What makes the Winchester worth $50 more than the PMC?

Winchester ($399.50)
PMC X-Tac ($349.50)
American Eagle ($349.50)
Independence ($349.50)


What 5.56 ammo brand do you use / recommend?

[Danodog]

Buy the Wolf Gold under $300 out the door. Good plinking ammo, which is mostly what I need. Hunting or competition is a different story.

[HawkMan]

Buy the Wolf Gold under $300 out the door. Good plinking ammo, which is mostly what I need. Hunting or competition is a different story.

Lol, I'm buying that too. But I'm also looking for a 5.56 round and information about the different brands.

[00Medic]

Winchester may be more for the name only. Personally I like PMC. It all really comes down to personal preference.YMMV. Choose wisely. Don't wear white after labor day. Etc.

[Brush Guard]

All the ammo you listed is decent stuff.

Most folks will purchase a few boxes of each and see what shoots best in their particular rifle.

Every rifle has its own personality or pet load. What shoots well in one AR may not shoot so well in the next AR, even if it is the exact same model.

Your assignment: Buy a few boxes of each, test at the 100 yard range, off the bench, preferably with a scope, supported by a rest up front and sand bag on the butt stock. Record the group sizes and report back to us.

We like pix and details.

Due in 4 weeks.

[Safra460]

Unless you are shooting matches or longer range these ammo will not make a difference at 100 yards or less. Shot a few thousand rounds of LC 5.56 and PMC and most recently only Wolf Gold. Not much difference felt in recoil or accuracy but the pocket sure felt better with Wolf Gold. LOL!

[GM4spd]

Try IMI,last case I bought was $340/1000 delivered,very accurate out
of my Colt M 4s,YMMV.

[hermosabeach]

It's all a trade off- i use to shoot wolf as it was $100-$150 per case cheaper...
The cost to replace the barrel is about $200

So after 5-10'cases, you have saved $500-$1500


Anything with a brass case and copper bullet is made to SAAMI specs and will run fine....

Unless you are shooting something specific- small animals, large animals, people in cars behind windshields, generic ammo is fine... specific tasks require specific ammo

Brass cartridges and copper jackets ammo will run fine.


Bullet weight-
If you have a short barrel - then 55 grain is good. If you have the 1:7 twist, the 62 grain is also good.

The 62 grain does a ton more damage in the human body over the 55 grain....

[Brush Guard]

Unless you are shooting matches or longer range these ammo will not make a difference at 100 yards or less. Shot a few thousand rounds of LC 5.56 and PMC and most recently only Wolf Gold. Not much difference felt in recoil or accuracy but the pocket sure felt better with Wolf Gold. LOL!

[HawkMan]

It's all a trade off- i use to shoot wolf as it was $100-$150 per case cheaper...
The cost to replace the barrel is about $200

So after 5-10'cases, you have saved $500-$1500


Anything with a brass case and copper bullet is made to SAAMI specs and will run fine....

Unless you are shooting something specific- small animals, large animals, people in cars behind windshields, generic ammo is fine... specific tasks require specific ammo

Brass cartridges and copper jackets ammo will run fine.


Bullet weight-
If you have a short barrel - then 55 grain is good. If you have the 1:7 twist, the 62 grain is also good.

The 62 grain does a ton more damage in the human body over the 55 grain....

I see most ammo's refer to them self as "Target" ammo... isn't anything a target when you're shooting at it?

I have a 1:9 twist and 16" barrel, I usually shoot 55 grain but is there a good range of bullet weight for my barrel?

You say specific tasks require specific ammo, what would be a good SHTF 5.56 ammo?

[WMG]

What makes the Winchester worth $50 more than the PMC?

Winchester ($399.50)
PMC X-Tac ($349.50)
American Eagle ($349.50)
Independence ($349.50)


What 5.56 ammo brand do you use / recommend?

The name , personally I like a lot of Federal products from primers to loaded ammo. I got off the winny train a long time ago "minus some 3 inch shot gun shells" and never looked back.

[SmallShark]

tulammo 223 is good too unless you are picking up the brasses.

[HawkMan]

tulammo 223 is good too unless you are picking up the brasses.

I keep getting told not to shoot steel cased ammo in my gun, I was actually thinking trying to build a super cheap AR specifically for steel case ammo.

[ProtectThe2nd]

Try different brands, bullet weights till you find what is most accurate for the money you're willing to pay...

I tried a single box of 14 different brand/weight combinations for our AR's
Of those there were a few that shot 1 MOA or better but the price per round wasn't worth it to me ($0.85 to over $1.00 per round)

The round I settled on provided 1.25 MOA or better (3.75@300 yards) at a cost of $0.35 per round
I expect to use our AR's at 300 yards or less for self defense based on where we live and our bug out location choices

My .223/556 bolt rifle costs $0.42 per round and only took 4 different boxes to find the .75 MOA I wanted to buy in bulk.

I do/did the same for all rifles and handguns. Find the best for what you're willing to spend in bulk.

What brands do I shoot? Doesn't matter, your rifle/pistol will be different...

[ProtectThe2nd]

I see most ammo's refer to them self as "Target" ammo... isn't anything a target when you're shooting at it?

I have a 1:9 twist and 16" barrel, I usually shoot 55 grain but is there a good range of bullet weight for my barrel?

You say specific tasks require specific ammo, what would be a good SHTF 5.56 ammo?

The military by convention is required to use ball ammo (FMJ) which in .556 will tumble after impact and create damaging wounds

Law enforcement and us civies can use soft point, open tip etc which expand on impact like hollow point pistol...but they tend to be expensive...except there are soft points to be had at reasonable cost

Find a soft point whose point of aim/point of impact is the same or pretty close to your practice FMJ ammo so you don't have to re zero your scope/red dot when changing bullet types...

Edit: Your 1:9 will likely shoot 50-55 really well for both types...and some heavier bullets as well if you can afford them
Don't rule out .223 for 556...I have yet to meet anyone willing to stand in front of either