[Chris M]

I just received this in my email. Being relatively new to shooting (and not familiar with alot of terms), I wondered if anyone had info on this stuff:

www.wholesalehunter.com/privatespecials/deals.htm

Federal Ammunition XM193 is back by popular demand!
Only $3.19 per box!

5.56mm 55 gr Metal Case Boat Tail Lot #11
20 Rounds/Box - 25 Boxes/Case
(Two case limit per customer)

Is this different from FMJ rounds?

Thanks,

Chris M

 

[bubba052698]

Nope, they are still full metal jacket. Boat tail means the rear of the bullet is slightly tapered (imagine a top-view of a row boat). XM 193 is the Nato spec for 5.56 55gr fmj bullets. Hope this helps

 

[Chris M]

thanks,

Looks like a great price then for plinking ammo.


Chris M

 

[bubba052698]

I have shot a couple boxes of that ammo, and flames shot 2 feet out the front of my barrel

It's decent stuff, hey, the military uses it. Just make sure your gun is chambered for 5.56 and not .223. I don't know how much of a risk it is to shoot 5.56 out of a .223 chambered gun, but just to be on the safe side...

 

[Chris M]

thanks for the reply. Looking at various threads, it appears ok to shoot nato 5.56 in a .223 mini-14. I have shot some lake city stuff a couple of weeks ago. I did have some ejection problems, but I attributed them to a too small of gas port bushing that I had installed along with a recoil buffer. I have since went with the larger of the gas ports that Mike Knifong has in his kit. My rifle is still pretty new.


So, it's back to the range :ar15: to see if I still have problems.

Chris M

:usa:

 

[Sniper]

223 and 5.56 are not exactly the same. Reamers for 5.56 are slightly larger than 223 in all diameters and have longer throats.
Milspec 5.56 is hotter than SAAMI 223. If you have a marginal rifle chambered in 223, I wouldn't run Milspec 5.56 through it. If you have a target rifle with a "match chamber" in 223, it will probably be too tight for 5.56 USGI ammo. Pressure becomes the real issue.




:sniper:

 

[bubba052698]

Hi Chris M,

If you got a Mini, don't worry, they are chambered for 5.56. Page 8 in the manual states that it is ok to shoot regular and military ammo.

BTW, what gas bushing were you using in combo with your recoil buffer? I installed the same kit and I haven't had a chance to take it out yet, too much snow

 

[Chris M]

Bubba,

I installed Mike Knifongs recoil buffer then installed the mid-sized gas bushing. This combination resulted in quite a few failures to:

1) extract the cartridge from the chamber, and 2) the brass would get caught in the rifle during the re-cycle, 3) fail to feed a new round. The spent cartridges that did extract properly went about 5 feet from the rifle (good!)

I installed the larger port and the initial results looked good (brass flew about 10 feet). I haven't shot enuf yet to say that the larger port is a keeper or whether I'll go back to the factory original port. I believe that I read somewhere that the recoil buffer pad could cause problems with extraction due to the thickness of the pad. I need to get out to the range again.

Bye the way, I was shooting 5.56 lake city ammo initially. With the larger port, I had switched over to PMC ammo.

 

[bubba052698]

I also heard that the buffer might be too thick and cause the op-rod not to go back far enough. I guess I'll find out when I take her out.

I haven't compared the lake city ammo to others for accuracy, but it's definitely fun to shoot

 

[Sniper]

Here's a link that shows the different 223 chambers available, shows about everything for that matter. There are 4 different 223 reamers then a little further down is 5.56. I'd figure since they're listed separately, there must be a difference in size.

Reamers

:sniper:

 

[Sniper]

All I can say is this, if you bought it on the street, in a store or at a show, it will probably shoot either-or with no problem. The difference is marginal and should only really be considered when talking match set-ups.

If you want to shoot long range, acurately, you'd better have the set-up and shoot what it's made for. Your average AR will not handle XM223M1 or any other larger shell, JLK's or Berger 80 grain bullets. These are for throated match rifles which will not like the 5.56 surplus ammo. The load is different and AOL seating is different, the pressure is much different. (AOL-Actual Overall Length.....not the intenet Nazi, America OnLine)


:sniper: