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calebib
Senior MemberPosts: 1,701 Senior Member
Which 5.56 ammo for defense?
calebib
Senior MemberPosts: 1,701 Senior Member
I want to pick up some 5.56 ammo for home defense and would like some suggestions. I plan on buying a few different loads to evaluate for accuracy and function. I've used Hornady TAP 9mm in my CZ75 and it functions great and offers good accuracy so I want to try some of that for the AR as well.
Replies
The spare mag mounted on the butt is full of the 62gr Mk318 Mod 0.
I figure if 30 polymer tipped TAPS haven't resolved the situation, I probably need the enhanced barrier penetration the SOST round can give me
if you're looking to pick something up at the store purely for SD/HD, I would recommend Hornady TAPs...
:agree:
"Nothing is safe from stupid." - Zee
Seriously? Full Metal Jacket? My friend, I love you and idolize you most of the time but THAT right there is absurd! Full metal jacket SUCKs in terminal performance compared to other stuff out there!
FMJ may suck at pistol velocities, but at rifle velocities it will devastate and tumble taking that man out of the fight at least.
From a hunting perspective, bullet technology has made some big leaps.
"The Un-Tactical"
- George Orwell
:topic:What's absurd is 5.56 in place of 12 gauge for an HD round, but I figured I'd humor the lad.
"Nothing is safe from stupid." - Zee
This is similar to what I'm speaking of.
I don't argue that the FMJ can kill. But we are talking HD or closer instances. I don't want to eventually stop the threat. I want it to stop NOW. Proximity dictates that the effect be fast and decisive. We hope that all rounds be perfectly placed. That doesn't always happen. Especially if you are moving at the time.
Case in point. It took my team mate 9 rounds of FMJ to stop a bad guy at close range. The BG continued firing the entire time he was being hit and emptied a 6 shot revolver in the process. My team mate had to shoot and move the entire time he was placing shots as the BG was tracking him with the revolver and firing. The round that finally put the guy down was the one in the head.
Granted the impacts on the BG ranged from his thigh, accross his abdomen and chest, to his shoulder, and finally the head. Fine, I don't expect the thigh and shoulder to be instantly fatal. Or even the abdomen for that matter. But the several that perforated the thoracic cavity should have ended it but they didn't.
We were fortunate enough to see all the pictures and x-rays from the autopsy reporting. Saw the bullet paths and internal results. I was NOT impressed with the FMJ performance! Neither was my friend as he was being shot at the entire time wishing this guy would go down.
This instance helped lead the way to better ammo with better terminal performance. We have not had a recurrance of the above poor performance with the current load. Granted, it's not the TAP round, but it is one that expands.
For close in performance, such as a BG in your house in a life threatening situation.........I want something that expands fast and drastically disrupts the internal function of the threat.
Just my view and experience. Your's may vary.
Now we're talking! Make it a slug and I'll kiss ya. :jester:
The bullet checks in ... and the BG checks out!
- George Orwell
Where exactly did I say that this would be a replacement for my 870 or my 1300 Defender? The AR is primarily a defensive/offensive weapon so why not have the best ammo available to use the gun for it's intended purpose if the situation presents itself, however much one may pray that it never happens?
And if it happens, so be it, I will be prepared.
I don't want to change the subject, but what bullet is that? It looks like a BT TBBC with grooves. That is sexy!! Is the Pb bonded to the jacket? If so, that could become my new .224 cal hunting bullet.
As far as the thread goes, i like the TAP ammo as well. I live in an apartment, and I don't want the danger of over penetration. I want lots of expansion with a soft bullet. I am even tinkering with loads that use the new breed of powdered core bullets to further reduce the chance that an errant shot will get to the next apartment.
That being said, my primary HD tool is my Mossberg 590A1 12 ga. I've been shooting 00 buck, but I am looking to try some of Remington's HD loads that feature a mix of 4 and 2 shot to reduce over penetration. Along those same lines I would think a heavy turkey load would put a lot of steel on target, without shooting across the breeze way into my neighbor's apartment.
http://www.palmettostatearmory.com/1433.php
I still think it'd make a good hunting round for the 223. Loaded to the hotter 5.56 specs and that large sold base to ensure penetration
Keep in mind that I'm utterly bored with discussions of which HANDGUN round is best for defensive purposes - my stock answer being that if if penetrates deep enough, I'm pretty much good to go.
When it comes to rifles and their higher impact velocities, I look at the grisly effects caused by the "obey the letter of the law and ignore the spirit" design of the modern military FMJ, and then I apply Josef Stalin's words of wisdom - Quantity has a quality all it's own. We generally don't lock and load a rifle in response to everyday bumps in the night, and the only reason we typically HAVE a rifle is to address situations of lawlessness over and above those solved by the removal of one felon from the gene pool. For that kind of immediate action plan, CASES of ammunition are far more comforting than BOXES. If you can afford TAP by the case, more power to you, but at 3200fps, travelling sideways, and then in multiple directions, M193 should be a far more economical way to create the same result.
"Nothing is safe from stupid." - Zee
My AR is EXACTLY what I reach for when something goes "bump in the night". If something makes enough of a disturbance to attract my attention, I want something with me that I KNOW can handle whatever the situation is.
:agree:
:win:
Agreed!
-Mikhail Kalashnikov
Several other brands offer 55gr soft points too.
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/default.aspx?productNumber=1339173831
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/default.aspx?productNumber=366197
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/default.aspx?productNumber=1601177543
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/default.aspx?productNumber=2503181548
Thanks !
I tend to like anything that is fielded by a LEA, I agree that it is a better defense.
You are worrying over nothing.
Tanks? APCs? Oak Trees? Engine Blocks? Dude...it's a hot rod .22 not an artillery piece...
Maybe not, but the sound of the BCG in an AR slamming home will send the BG running like a Nancy boy.