Getting the most out of your 5.56 SBR rifle with pricey .223 "hunting ammo"....

[ALCOAR]

Here's a small case I just conducted for why pricey .223 "hunting" helps significantly remove some of the traditional handicap that 5.56 SBR rifles have attributed to them.



TESTING:

Setup/procedure:

Host weapon: LMT MRP CQB w/ 10.5" 1/7 5.56 barrel

Distance to target: 25yds.

Ballistic test medium: 1gal. jugs of waters (3 jugs for both rounds)


Federal .223 62gr. Fusion

VS.

Barnes VOR-TX .223 55gr. TSX

Both rounds traveled completely through 2 jugs, where they both entered the third....and ultimately both actually pierced the third jug's back wall.

Final penetration depth for both using water as the medium....18"



The bullet pathway of both are displayed below, and if you'll note both rounds almost identically exploded the first jug, and then both rounds made very clean entrance/exit holes in the remaining 2 jugs.....



Below is a pic showing where the rounds ended up resting in the third and last jug after slightly piercing the jug's back wall, and then bouncing slightly forward.



Finally here are some pics of the two recovered projectiles....to the naked eye they both appear to have retained 99.9% of their original weight.





I got very lucky with those results I think, and the retained mass, combined with perfect textbook expansion on them both got me giddy as a damn kitty to see. A good expanding bullet is pretty damn cool if you ask me

What did I personally learn from this....

1.) My beloved TSX rounds that have been my mainstay for HD/PD purposes in conjunct with my MRP CQB 10.5" for some time now did exactly what I've seen them do in the past while testing them, as well as seen in others testing. I feel it's a game changing projectile on a variety of levels, but none more so than it's now familiar violent pedaled expansion ending with almost double it's original diameter expansion, and retaining almost 100% of the projectile's original weight.

I'm very confident in this round's ability to put down a threat all the way to roughly 300yds based on a 1800 FPS reliable expansion threshold, and my ballistic chart's MV that corresponds with that amount of FPS.....which lies between 250-300yds depending on one's own conditions.

Shown below is the actual ballistic chart for Barnes 55gr. TSX through the MRP CQB 10.5".......



2.) I still have two more important tests (accuracy eval/300yd jug test) for the Federal .223 62gr. Fusion before I start packing it in my HD/PD mags, however I'm flat out impressed as hell after the research I've done on them in regards to reliable expansion threshold numbers, and then the data from today when considering it for HD/PD purposes through 5.56 SBR length ARs. I thought recovered TSXs looked like pieces of fine art with that incredible pedaled expansion....but they don't have shit on what this fusion did. UNREAL perfect expansion and each of the little slivers has a perfect edge on it that like a knife.

[hotrodder636]

Man, what a beautiful rifle!

So I am guessing the Barnes is the all copper slug? Not too familiar with any hunting rounds.

[vaglocker]

Wouldn't a fragmenting round still be more desirable?

[TriumphRat675]

From my limited experience, the Fusion also has very good low-light characteristics. Shot out of an 11.5 in. Colt Commando at dusk there was very, very minimal flash, almost to the point of being nonexistent. Under the same conditions a 16 in. barreled Kalashnikov variant with a bare muzzle put out a pumpkin-sized and colored flash.

I had the same question about expansion vs. fragmentation and whether fragmentation would be a more effective wounding mechanism and started a thread some months ago in the terminal effectiveness section that DocGKR was kind enough to chime in on. IIRC, fragmenting ammo may be marginally more effective but in the SBR role barrier-blind expanding designs have more pros than cons. YMMV especially if your intended use is less than 25 yds/no barriers involved. Shot placement rules as always.

[ALCOAR]

hotrodder....I appreciate the kind words You are correct about the Barnes TSX line of bullets being all copper...minus the TTSX variety which just has a poly tip added to it to give it a better B.C.

They are very, very cool bullets to play around with...here is a .308 150gr. TTSX projectile after hitting a steel plate at roughly 825yds


And here are .223 55gr. TSXs (same ones as above) after hitting a steel plate @ 605yds....


And finally here is how I get so many damn ladies.....


vaglocker....I'm not sure there is a definitive answer in regards to a blanket statement on whether a fragmenting or expanding design is more desirable.

Personally I only have use for fragmenting rounds in my precision based ARs that are seeing the majority of time at distances over 600yds. To my knowledge there isn't any real uber accurate expanding pill for LR shooting. Every expanding designed round I've seen had horrible B.C.s in comparison to fragmenting designs, and you just can't escape that B.C. number when doing work at distance...it always plays.

So for LR targets, or unobstructed targets(wouldn't plan on that in a real world situation)....yes perhaps the fragmenting designed rounds like the MK262 Mod1 are more desired for those situations. By the way MK262 has notorious fragmenting issues that Ive personally even seen. Sometimes you'll get the round to fragment extensively into numerous pieces....other times you'll see the core body and maybe like one or two fragments.

Now for this topic of 5.56 SBR ARs...I'm under the firm belief that a bonded/barrier blind expanding round is easily the best pick.

The other time that I would easily say that a expanding round is favored is anytime one expects to have obstructed targets around barriers....especially glass to deal with.

So I just ask myself the question, when I face a potential HD/PD threat, whats more likely to happen?

1. The threat will be in a wide ass open area with clear unobstructed shots possible....

or

2. The threat will be around cars, homes, woods, etc., and therefore in order to eliminate the threat I'll very likely have a shot that will be either partly or fully obstructed by some type of everyday barrier.

Quote from DocGKR's 5.56 duty loads sticky...

" In those situations where intermediate barrier penetration is not a critical requirement, for example LE urban entries or long range shots in open conditions, then OTM, JHP, and standard JSP loads can offer acceptable performance. For 1/7 twist barrels, the Hornady 75 gr OTM, Nosler 77 gr OTM, and Sierra 77 gr SMK OTM are all good choices. The experimental BH loaded 100 gr OTM exhibits impressive fragmentation, even at relatively low velocities, however while capable of shooting out to 600, it is optimized for 200 and under. If stuck with 1/9 twist barrels, the heavy 70+ gr loads are not universally accurate in all rifles and the 69 gr SMK OTM, the 68 gr Hornady OTM, the Winchester 64 gr JSP (RA223R2), the Federal 64 gr TRU (T223L) JSP, Hornady 60 gr JSP, are likely to run accurately in the majority of 1/9 twist rifles. Again it is critical to keep in mind that the above loads fail to offer adequate penetration through intermediate barriers. "

And one more informative quote reflecting the use of barrier blind/expanding rounds for 5.56 SBRs.....

" Short barreled 5.56 mm weapons, such as the Colt Commando, Mk18 CQBR, HK416, HK53, HK G36C, etc… offer advantages in confined spaces. With SBR’s it is best to stick with the barrier blind loads recommended above, although the heavy OTM's suggested for long distance shooting will also work. SBR's can run into rotational velocity issues with some loads, so it is generally best to select faster 1/7 twist barrels whenever possible. Remember, with SBR’s, effective engagement distances are significantly reduced compared to the longer barreled carbines."

[hotrodder636]

I didn't see any mention of the MK318 Mod 0....I was under the impression it is a noteworthy round.

I also have a KAC IWS (SR15) but really like the LMT MRP on top of yours!

[Clint]

Nice test Trident.

Those fusion look to be the equal of the TSX (at least in this one test).

[BC98]

One item of note is that the Fusion bullet is essentially a Gold Dot. Same essential construction.

[jr0xas]

Awesome test man!!! Just in time too, since I just bought a box of 75gr Hornady BTHP .223s yesterday and was wondering if they'd do well.

Many thanks for posting this!

Just a quick question though - what is your take on which bullet weight to use? I noticed that you used both a 55gr and 62gr.

[ALCOAR]

Thanks Clint....and to my surprise I'd agree totally with you in regards to the Federal Fusion being a true equal to the loaded 55gr. TSX. With some further testing of it, I think it has the potential for my uses to be quite a bit better round than the TSX.

The big pros for the Fusion I see are....

I think it will reliably expand well below the TSX's 1800 FPS threshold.

Should equal the abilities of the 55gr. TSX through all types of barriers, and in terms of auto glass it should be the clear winner.

As the gent above mentioned....it's been reported by a few that it has a significantly reduced amount of flash.

BC98...indeed, and thanks for pointing that out.

jr0xas....glad I could help out brother, here is a bit of info on just my own personal preferences as I'm certainly no Doc

I remember just a cpl. years ago when myself and the majority of other serious AR shooters I knew pretty much held Hornady's TAP 5.56 75gr. T2 round as the king of PD/HD/Duty type ammo. I still do love T2 because of it's outstanding accuracy in my Rock 5R barrels, but today none of my designated HD/PD mags contain T2 or any other heavy OTM round for that matter like MK262 Mod1.

Now all my HD/PD mags have barrier blind/bonded options in them, and by their nature they all do weigh b/t 50gr.-64gr. depending on which one you go with. This quote from Doc in his 5.56 Duty Loads sticky should shed a bit more light on that question....

" Keep in mind, that with non-fragmenting bullet designs, heavier bullet weights are not necessarily better, especially at closer ranges and from shorter barrels. As long as penetration and upset remain adequate, it is possible to use lighter weight non-fragmenting bullets and still have outstanding terminal performance. With fragmenting designs, a heavier bullet is ideal, as it provides more potential fragments and still allows the central core to have enough mass for adequate penetration. In addition, heavier bullets may have an advantage at longer ranges due to better BC and less wind drift."