The Official 2nd Amendment Appreciation Thread

#9,204
#9,204
What would be considered quality HD ammo in 223/556? Assuming BTHP? Those same manufacturers? Plus the usuals federal, hornady, etc?
 
#9,205
#9,205
golfballs said:
What would be considered quality HD ammo in 223/556? Assuming BTHP? Those same manufacturers? Plus the usuals federal, hornady, etc?
Click to expand...

About all I’ve been able to find other than 55gr stuff are these. Well I did get a couple boxes of steel case 62gr stuff when I picked my gun up months ago.

FDE46831-FC99-46C5-B11F-E5C81ABFB020.jpegCF910F76-3D21-4B59-A0AA-FD809809BCCE.jpeg
 
  • Like
Reactions: golfballs
#9,206
#9,206
golfballs said:
What would be considered quality HD ammo in 223/556? Assuming BTHP? Those same manufacturers? Plus the usuals federal, hornady, etc?
Click to expand...

Softpoint is your best bet. Some HP ammo as well especially in a solid copper projectile. Your usual suspects of Winchester, Federal and Hornady along with Black Hills, Speer and Barnes make good "defensive" ammo.

Avoid the softpoints or JHP in Russian ammo for "defensive" work. They use a steel jacket and you don't get reliable expansion. it still pokes holes, but you aren't going to get the effects you desire.

M193 is a good "backup" defensive ammo. It's designed to fragment and cause a greater wounding potential. If all else fails, it still works just fine as a "can't get anything better" ammo.

Generally reputable brands that shouldn't give you any problems:

Federal, Winchester, Hornady, IMI, Prvi Partizan, RUAG/Geco/Ammotech (if you can find it), PMC, Black Hills, Remington (when they come back), Wolf, Brown/Silver/Gold Bear, American Eagle (made by Federal), Tulammo (though generally a bit underpowered), Barnaul, Lake City (actually made by Federal), Sellier Bellot, Magtech, Fiocchi, generally any surplus from a NATO (minus Greece) or "First World" nation is good to go.

Russian ammo tends to be steel cased. Don't buy into the hype it's "bad" for your carbine. It's dirty and not what we would consider accurate ammo, but it shoots okay and as long as you have a good cleaning schedule, it'll be fine. Good "training" ammo for a decent price.

Monarch ammo is made in Russia by Barnaul under contract for Academy. Haven't heard anything good or bad about it. Fired maybe 20 rounds once and it went bang every time.

Can't speak to Armscorp, Aguila or Red Army ammo, so won't opine. I have used Aguila .22 LR ammo and it works, so it should be okay in the .223/5.56 variety.

Brands to avoid:

Any surplus from a nation not NATO or "First world." I.E. Malaysian surplus. Basically, use the "would I drink the tap water in this nation?" standard as "would I shoot their ammo?" test. Doesn't always work (Aguila for example) but a good rule of thumb for surplus.
Reloads that don't come from a reputable source. I.E. Reloads you find at gun shows. Nothing says "I want to blow up my carbine!" more than picking up a hundred rounds from Billy Bob's Live Bait and Basement Reloading Shop in a Ziploc baggie at the gun show and find he's used pistol powder in a rifle case.
I generally avoid reloads period unless it's, again, a reputable source like Black Hills.
Ammo you can't verify how it was stored. If it wasn't in a sealed can, you have no idea whether or not it was stored properly.
 
  • Like
Reactions: golfballs
#9,207
#9,207
seems to be some stuff on the shelves today. I was at an Academy Sports over four hours after they opened and they still had stuff. Usually, if you're not there when they open you get nothing.
 
#9,212
#9,212
Keep an eye on Federal 's ammo site as well. It comes and goes quickly, but you can find stuff there if you keep an eye on it. Over the last few months I've been able to pick up from them several boxes of fusion .223 and .44mag for hunting along with other .44 hunting ammo and range ammo. It does pop up then disappear within hours.
 
  • Like
Reactions: golfballs
#9,213
#9,213
golfballs said:
I’ve been searching for 308 Marlin Express and 38 Express. Basically impossible to find
Click to expand...

There's something to be said about buying a rifle in a common caliber. During ammo shortages like we're in, manufacturers tend to produce the ones in high demand first. Chances are, you won't find ammo for either of those for a long time.
 
#9,214
#9,214
Grand Vol said:
There's something to be said about buying a rifle in a common caliber. During ammo shortages like we're in, manufacturers tend to produce the ones in high demand first. Chances are, you won't find ammo for either of those for a long time.
Click to expand...
They quit making a gun in that caliber. Too bad I thought it was an excellent gun. Very versatile. Thought it might catch on more than it did.
 
#9,215
#9,215
Grand Vol said:
Most people are very happy with the Wolf Gold. I take it you found it on SGAmmo? It's marked .223, but supposedly it's loaded a bit hotter almost to the 5.56 level.

The PMC LAP is basically M855 spec. Don't expect a lot of accuracy out of it.

My go to for ammo (in normal times):

SGAmmo
Ammo 2 Go
Widners
AIM Surplus
J&G Sales
Ammoman
Palmetto State Armory (expect looooooooooooong shipping times)
Midway
Sportsmans Guide
The-Armory.com
US Armorment (yes, they misspelled Armament... anyway, they tend to stick to mil-spec rounds, but sometimes a good source though pricey)

Generally, if I can't find it on one of those websites, it can't be found.
Click to expand...

I would add natchez shooter supplies to that list. I keep any eye on Sig Sauer's and Federal's websites too.
 
  • Like
Reactions: golfballs
#9,218
#9,218
Bought myself a 300BLK pistol piece by piece for Christmas! 😊. Aero Precision Upper & Lower, BA 10.5” modern series barrel, Odin works tunable gas block, 9” Carbon fiber Hand guard, VG6 gamma muzzle brake, Vortex Spitfire 1x sight. All here but the gas block and the sight. They are stuck in USPS limbo. Can’t wait to put it together. Now for the suppressor!! I’m thinking about the Silencerco Omega because it will handle both my 556 & 300 AR’s. All other suggestions welcome.
 
#9,220
#9,220
golfballs said:
What would be considered quality HD ammo in 223/556? Assuming BTHP? Those same manufacturers? Plus the usuals federal, hornady, etc?
Click to expand...

Google "DocGKR Best AR-15 ammo". You might have to poke around a bit, but eventually you'll find a lengthy post on best barrier-blind AR-15 ammo. It's done by Dr. Gary K. Roberts (I think he's a dentist), who has done extensive and exhaustive testing of 5.56/.223 ammo. There's another poster who goes by the moniker "Molon" who does some impressive accuracy testing of AR-15 ammo. They have posted an encyclopedia of AR-15 (and other calibers) ammo testing online, and that's what I used to dial in on what worked best for me.

All that being said, my go-to round is the Federal 62 TBBC. It consistently ranks as among the best barrier blind rounds. So I run that in my 1/9's, and I've settled on the Hornady 75 TAP SBR for my shorty (1/7). Both of those are in the 1-2 MOA range in terms of accuracy. For longer range accuracy, I use the IMI 69 Sierra Match King. Tack driver out of both barrels.

There are a lot of choices, and many good choices, out there. Pick what you like, test it, and then load up on your preferred round(s). None of that ammo is cheap, but how much is your life, or the life of your family, worth? Now is a bad time to be buying AR ammo. The 62 TBBC I was buying a couple of years ago at $0.80/round is now well north of $1.50/round, if you can even find it.

I have some Speer 75 GDSP as well, and that's a really good round.

GV gave you some really good sources. I also use the AmmoSeek website. You can hunt the local big box stores as well, but I've had some luck hitting the smaller, off the beaten path gun stores in my area. They usually have a limit, but finding 3 boxes of 62 TBBC at Ace Hardware is better than not finding it at all online, right?

So, there's my two cents worth. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and keep safe out there!
 
  • Like
Reactions: 81Bubbavol and golfballs
New posts
You must log in or register to reply here.

VN Store



Back
Top