.223 or 5.56 Ammo How do you choose?

[BrandonQuixote]

Its not an easy answer I agree.
But I can say I shoot better with a nicer trigger. and it took me lots of money wasted on ammo to figure it out. Same for other upgrades to my rifles. I would hate to encourage someone to spend hundreds of dollars on ammo to learn the rifle could be improved or otherwise isnt gonna get any better than it is.

Well this would be an example of you out shooting your gear, wouldn't it? It seems like shooting someone else's rifle would have been cheaper to try than "wasting" thousands of rounds. Hopefully you garnered some kind of benefit from said rounds being shot and that they werent TRULY wasted.

 

[Koda]

Well this would be an example of you out shooting your gear, wouldn't it? It seems like shooting someone else's rifle would have been cheaper to try than "wasting" thousands of rounds. Hopefully you garnered some kind of benefit from said rounds being shot and that they werent TRULY wasted.

True, and yes I did learn something. Good point.

 

[Member 34319]

I'll say this, it took me probably 6 years shooting AR15s before I bought my first "upgraded" trigger. Now I don't have an AR without a nice trigger. I shot well before without them, but going back to milspec after knowing what a good trigger feels like would be like buying a Civic after years of driving a Mercedes.

 

[bsa1917hunter]

Its not an easy answer I agree.
But I can say I shoot better with a nicer trigger. and it took me lots of money wasted on ammo to figure it out. Same for other upgrades to my rifles. I would hate to encourage someone to spend hundreds of dollars on ammo to learn the rifle could be improved or otherwise isnt gonna get any better than it is.

Koda, some people don't get that my friend. What I see is some errant opinions in this thread. Hopefully the OP has enough wit about her to weed through the trash and take in the good suggestions. Let me just say this, it starts with good equipment, then good ammo. A good example of this is my daughter shooting my Noveseke the other day for the first time. The girl was drilling them in there and she has never even fired a rifle... Like I say, good equipment helps immensely. Proper training is crucial as well, but when you are using good stuff, your groups just fall into place... and by good, I don't necessarily mean expensive.... Also, anyone that can't figure out if the ammo is any good after 5 shots, needs more training... It doesn't take "boxes and boxes" of ammo to know if it's crap or not..

 

[titsonritz]

I'll say this, it took me probably 6 years shooting AR15s before I bought my first "upgraded" trigger. Now I don't have an AR without a nice trigger. I shot well before without them, but going back to milspec after knowing what a good trigger feels like would be like buying a Civic after years of driving a Mercedes.

BEWARE!!

Geissele trigger's will ruin you for life.

 

[WhyElKay]

It sounds like you guys all have a grip of rifles and guns. I have my first AR and I am just exploring it and learning so much from everyone. I can see that upgrades could be costly. I'm just getting comfortable with it. I realize training is probably a good Idea, and I'm sure that I will at some point, take the time, it is a comfort and trust thing. I think learning as much as I can by myself might get me to that spot to find official training.

 

[BrandonQuixote]

It sounds like you guys all have a grip of rifles and guns. I have my first AR and I am just exploring it and learning so much from everyone. I can see that upgrades could be costly. I'm just getting comfortable with it. I realize training is probably a good Idea, and I'm sure that I will at some point, take the time, it is a comfort and trust thing. I think learning as much as I can by myself might get me to that spot to find official training.

For me personally, I prefer having fewer, higher quality guns and more ammo/training. Shoot and listen as much as you can. Everyone's got an opinion and an anecdote to back it up. Nothing beats you figuring out what works best for you.

 

[Tony617]

Try Wolf Gold in .223. I find my ARs like these rounds. Not sure if you can Wolf Gold rounds locally in your area or not.

1000 Round Case - 223 Rem 55 Grain FMJ Brass Case Non-magnetic WOLF GOLD AR-15 Ammunition | SGAmmo.com

 

[BrandonQuixote]

Try Wolf Gold in .223. I find my ARs like these rounds. Not sure if you can Wolf Gold rounds locally in your area or not.

1000 Round Case - 223 Rem 55 Grain FMJ Brass Case Non-magnetic WOLF GOLD AR-15 Ammunition | SGAmmo.com

When i bought ammo, this was my go-to for training ammo. +1 on this recommendation.

 

[titsonritz]

Wolf is great for cheap training ammo, but it is loaded to or close to M193 5.56 NATO so it is pretty pipey. Since you seemed to be way over gassed, I'd try PCM Bronze or if you're OK with steel cased ammo, Tula.

 

[Flymph]

Wolf is great for cheap training ammo, but it is loaded to or close to M193 5.56 NATO so it is pretty pipey. Since you seemed to be way over gassed, I'd try PCM Bronze or if you're OK with steel cased ammo, Tula.

I couldn't even run PMC Bronze in my Ruger AR 556 for the first 300 rounds, but I guess the buffer spring isn't as tight as it used to be since it ate up all that I had left. However it ate M193 from the get go.
That's what makes sense to me anyway.

I will testify to PMC Bronze producing less gas... lol

 

[2ndtimer]

Awhile back, I tested 4 different inexpensive 55 gr FMJ factory loads in my most accurate AR-15 (a Stag Model 6 Varmint, 24" bull barrel, 1 in 8" twist, competition 2 stage trigger) It consistently shoots most quality bullets into less than 1 inch at 100 yards from a rest.
The ammo was:
Norma TAC .223
IMI 5.56
Federal American Eagle
PMC Bronze
I expected it to group in that order and was quite surprised that the PMC went about 1.4", the Federal just under 2 inches, and the more expensive IMI and Norma both were around 2.50 inches. Bullets with exposed lead at the base just aren't as accurate as hollow points or tipped bullets, be they lead or plastic tips. At least in my experience. I shoot handloads 99% of the time and rarely bother loading 55 gr FMJ open based bullets.
My suggestion for affordable accurate factory ammo used to be the Federal American Eagle 50 gr Tipped varmint loads. They seemed to shoot well in all .223 rifles, regardless of twist rate or action. Sadly, Federal discontinued them a while back. My current suggestion would be the Fiocchi Extrema 50 gr Tipped Varmint loads. You should be able to find them in 50 round boxes for $20 or less, on line, if necessary. It is possible that Match ammo with 69gr Sierra Match King bullets might outshoot the Fiocchi, but you aren't going to find 50 round boxes for $20. If you are lucky, you might get a 20 round box for that price.

 

[User 1234]

The ammo I'd like to find more of is the open tipped match "not hollow point" series with the purple colored brass. There is a historical reason it was made that way, and it was accurate in all of my rifles.

 

[3MTA3]

PSA has been selling 1,000 rounds of XM193 for months for $280 with free shipping

American Eagle 5.56mm 55gr FMJBT Ammunition 1000rds Loose Pack - XM193BK

American Eagle 5.56mm ammo. With 55 grain and full metal jacket boat-tailed rounds, get precision in every shot. All XM193 products are the same regardless of SKU or part number. The difference is the

palmettostatearmory.com

Some deals they have even include PMags for little or no cost.

@Tony617 What is the advantage of Wolf Gold over XM193 at about the same price? Now clean does it run?

 

[Tony617]

PSA has been selling 1,000 rounds of XM193 for months for $280 with free shipping

American Eagle 5.56mm 55gr FMJBT Ammunition 1000rds Loose Pack - XM193BK

American Eagle 5.56mm ammo. With 55 grain and full metal jacket boat-tailed rounds, get precision in every shot. All XM193 products are the same regardless of SKU or part number. The difference is the

palmettostatearmory.com

Some deals they have even include PMags for little or no cost.

@Tony617 What is the advantage of Wolf Gold over XM193 at about the same price? Now clean does it run?

It is cleaner than the Federal XM193 but I have shot cases of XM193 as well with my ARs as well. Also have shot a few cases of XTAC 5.56 55gr rounds too. The cleanest Ammo that I have shot are these rounds:

1020 Rounds - 5.56mm M193 56 Grain FMJ Military Ammo Made by MEN in Germany - MEN556A | SGAmmo.com

 

[3MTA3]

It is cleaner than the Federal XM193 but I have shot cases of XM193 as well with my ARs as well. Also have shot a few cases of XTAC 5.56 55gr rounds as well. The cleanest Ammo that I have shot are these rounds:

1020 Rounds - 5.56mm M193 56 Grain FMJ Military Ammo Made by MEN in Germany - MEN556A | SGAmmo.com

Don't German WOMEN make ammo or is that a separate product?

 

[User 1234]

^^^Anyone know German words that begin with W and O which we can place in front of the M E N acronym? Preferably funny!

 

[dwaineshort]

I've been very random at choosing ammo because I don't really know what I'm supposed to look for. I'm shooting for accuracy. Is there an advantage to using one over the other? Is there generally a particular brand to stick with?

I have a membership at Tri-County gun club. I complete in multi gun and a few other rifles competitions. I've built 15+ AR's for friends, family, and myself. I be more then willing to meet their if you ever wanted to shoot out to 300yrd, and go over the ends and outs about the AR 15 class of rifles. I can have three guest at a time. Here's a build I'm working on now.

 

[Tony617]

It is cleaner than the Federal XM193 but I have shot cases of XM193 as well with my ARs as well. Also have shot a few cases of XTAC 5.56 55gr rounds too. The cleanest Ammo that I have shot are these rounds:

1020 Rounds - 5.56mm M193 56 Grain FMJ Military Ammo Made by MEN in Germany - MEN556A | SGAmmo.com

MEN stands for : Metallwerk Elisenhuette in Germany.

 

[3MTA3]

MEN stands for : Metallwerk Elisenhuette in Germany.

Hope I didn't offend - just thought it was funny when I read that.