School me on .223

[Quick_Draw_McGraw]

I'm a bit late to the AR-15 party.

I got my first AR-15 a few weeks ago (Colt 6920) and now I want to hear everyone's thoughts on the best ammo to feed it.

I've always been a 7.62 x 39 guy. AK's and SKS's rifles have long been my favorites. With those I just fed them a steady diet of WOLF, and Brown Bear and never thought much of it.

But with the AR-15 I know I have a LOT more options, and prices, so I'm looking to get the most out of my money. So what's the best and cheapest stuff to run through it for just going to the range. I don't mind buying in bulk if that saves me money.

I've heard that steel cased ammo is a no-no for AR-15s, and that I should shy away from Wolf since it runs so dirty. Anything else I should be avoiding?

 

[ignerntbend]

.223 is serious mouse medicine

 

[mightymouse]

.223 is serious mouse medicine

As a pint-sized, cheese-fueled, super hero of rodent extraction, I resent that remark! The .223 is a good poodle shooting cartridge, but serious mouse medicine starts with 7.62 x 51 mm.

 

[murphy j]

.223 is serious mouse medicine

As a pint-sized, cheese-fueled, super hero of rodent extraction, I resent that remark! The .223 is a good poodle shooting cartridge, but serious mouse medicine starts with 7.62 x 51 mm.

Plenty of dead enemy combatants might just disagree with you about .223/5.56..... If they could.

 

[ignerntbend]

I don't have any personal experience, but do a search in the fishing/hunting forum, and you'll hear several anecdotes from hunters who claim to have brought down mice with only a single shot from the .223.

 

[RickN]

Plenty of dead enemy combatants might just disagree with you about .223/5.56..... If they could.

And plenty of our guys wishing they had a bigger round.

 

[mightymouse]

To get back to the OP's question, I won't run steel-cased 5.56 mm ammo in my Mini-14, though I know people who do use it in their Minis. I'm sure you will find a similarly divided opinion on steel-cased ammo in the AR. I do have friends who use that stuff in their ARs.

 

[Shootin 4 Fun]

Modern steel cased ammo is polymer coated will run fine. If you have light/trigger hammer springs you might get a few failure to fires. Buy what you can afford and shoot the hell out of it.

 

[tran]

And plenty of our guys wishing they had a bigger round.

The only problem with a larger round is added weight. You can carry twice as much 5.56 as you can 7.63.... Weight is your enemy when it comes to having to hump your own firepower.

 

[Seedy]

As a pint-sized, cheese-fueled, super hero of rodent extraction, I resent that remark! The .223 is a good poodle shooting cartridge, but serious mouse medicine starts with 7.62 x 51 mm.

Thank you for the new Sig line!