View Full Version : Making a final decision on calibers/what are your's?
Let me say that first, I would own one of everything and 20,000 rounds to go with each rifle. Doesn't work for the average guy. Second, you have to know each rifle intimately (not like your wife, but almost) and that takes a lot of work training, ballistically, etc.
There is no right answer to this question (at least I think), but I made my decisions based on quality, useability, financial constraints, needs, interchangeability between parts, cost of ammo and the "fun factor."
My rifles are:
.223/5.56
HBAR MED BARREL 20"
M4 style 16" BARREL
6.5 GRENDEL
24" BULL BARREL
16" LIGHT BARREL
.22 MAG
INEXPENSIVE, ACCURATE (DID A LITTLE WORK ON TRIGGER AND FLOATED BARREL
5.7 IN 16"
I have ordered a dedicated .22LR upper for plinking and my son to use.
Not going into all the details, but these rifles, uppers meet my needs and are load of fun. Ammo is affordable except for the 5.7 and high end 6.5 Grendel.
What are your rifles?
JR TACTICAL
02-18-11, 09:09
I'm strictly a NATO caliber guy for alot of reasons.
My rifles are as follows,
1 DD ver5 with government profile barrel- 5.56
2 savage edge 22 inch ff barrel- 7.62x51
3 winchester m100 20 inch barrel-7.62x51
NATO work for me because its cheep and I can find it everywhere and the military spends lots of cake to find out what works the best so that speeks volumes in my book
Just my opinion
TacticalTaco
02-18-11, 09:13
5.45x39, for a couple of reasons.
7N6 is a nasty, nasty round.
It's cheap, for every 3 rounds I shoot at practice, I could only shoot 1 5.56.
Less recoil than 5.56
Mild steel core
The smell is awful, which for some reason I love. :confused:
For the price of ammo, you can't beat it. The 6.5 Grendel kinda fits that niche, but at a cost in ammo.
Would love an upper in the AK round for cost savings, but I am settling on certain calibers (for now) because of reasons listed.
I have a 6.8 with 16" lightweight barrel. Lovely gun that I can't afford to shoot much. My next purchase will be a 5.56 without a doubt.
I'm strictly a NATO caliber guy for alot of reasons.
My rifles are as follows,
1 DD ver5 with government profile barrel- 5.56
2 savage edge 22 inch ff barrel- 7.62x51
3 winchester m100 20 inch barrel-7.62x51
NATO work for me because its cheep and I can find it everywhere and the military spends lots of cake to find out what works the best so that speeks volumes in my book
Just my opinion
You hit on my one big "what to do." Nato rounds will be around for a long time. The cost is excellent. Even the Russian ammo works really well if you are not trying to drive tacks. I have a ton of the 7.62 ball and nothing to shoot it with. Also have Win Bal Tip. I may go in that direction eventually.
JeepDriver
02-18-11, 10:48
Handgun's I'm all over the place
22LR
9mm
10mm
40s&w
45 ACP
44 MAG
Rifle is simple
22LR
5.56
7.62x51
Right now...
Rifles: 300WM bolt gun and 5.56 ARs edit: forgot about my Garand...30.06
Want to add: .22lr AR and 300BK AR barrels for my MRP
I should get a 7.62X51 at some point, either bolt or the LMT MWS
Pistols: .22 & 9mm
Still have dies for 45ACP and 44 mag, need to get a pistol in each again!
Military type rifles
30-06
7.62x51
30 Carbine
5.56x45
If I add another caliber to the AR stable, I'm giving thought to the 300 Blackout & maybe a 5.7 FN upper. An AR in 22 LR would be fun
Other calibers include 280 Remington, 22-250, 45-70, 25-35, 45 Colt, 45 ACP, 357 magnum, 41 magnum and 22 LR. I have played around with and enjoyed shooting other calibers as well.
Strange thing is, I don't care for the 308 Winchester as a hunting round (not that there is anything wrong with it, just never warmed up to it) but the 308 and the 30-06 are my favorite military rifle calibers
Right now I'm easy. My shooters are in .22 LR, .223 Rem, and .45 ACP. My two collectors are in 9x18 and 8mm.
Near-future goals are centered around NATO calibers and 7.62x39; a couple ARs, couple AKs, and something .308-ish (FAL or somesuch). Past this it's anyone's guess. 10mm and 44 Special both appeal to me in handguns, and a .38 snubby is guaranteed. For rifles it's even more varied: a 7mm-08 deer gun, something for a VSBR, something for a suppressed VSBR, collector cals, and whatever wildcats I can dream up. :)
-B
Military type rifles
30-06
7.62x51
30 Carbine
5.56x45
If I add another caliber to the AR stable, I'm giving thought to the 300 Blackout & maybe a 5.7 FN upper. An AR in 22 LR would be fun
Other calibers include 280 Remington, 22-250, 45-70, 25-35, 45 Colt, 45 ACP, 357 magnum, 41 magnum and 22 LR. I have played around with and enjoyed shooting other calibers as well.
Strange thing is, I don't care for the 308 Winchester as a hunting round (not that there is anything wrong with it, just never warmed up to it) but the 308 and the 30-06 are my favorite military rifle calibers
This upper is kinda like shooting a .17 magnum, magnum, magnum with a little recoil. The upper I purchased was about 700. Can get ammo at .50 or less a round, so it is not like shooting a .22 in any way.
There is a minimal recoil that I did not think would exist, but, alas, I should have known there would be a small bip to my shoulder. That is all that there was.
This is a great little set up. The brass ejects out the mag well. The round is accurate as hell. Can't say enough. Hate getting the magazines loaded. The first round can be tricky. I will learn inn time.
SE_AK Hunter
02-20-11, 11:16
pistol
.22
9mm
38 special
357 mag
44mag
really need to get a 45...1911
rifle
.22
6.8
243
308.. actually the only 308 I have right now is a savage pistol.
30-06
300 h&h mag
338 rcm
338-06 AI
soon to add a savage..7mm-08 and 338 fed barrels
Been toying with the idea of making an AR10/variant in 7mm-08 too.
I did have plans to replace a 45/70 that got sold off...with a new Marlin guide gun...but Marlin quality control scares the crap out of me now...So that got put on hold...Unless i find a good older used one.
I like .338's =)...The 300H&H will probably get turned into a 338 wildcat someday too.
Nato ammo doesn't mean much to me... I reload everything... Store bought ammo in my town is rediculous expensive..even for surplus junk.
I have had a couple 223's and didn't care for them.. Had a couple 7.62x39 didn't care for them either.
As long as I have a healthy supply of bullets, brass, powder, primers...which I do, I am good to go.
Pistol:
.22
.32
9mm
.38 Super
.40 S&W
.45 ACP
Rifle:
.22
5.56
7.65x51
.30-30
.44 Magnum
Kimber High cap 1911 (of course) Ultra carry II
Kimber Pro carry (crimson sights)
Ruger .22 target
Bunch I would love to have!!!
I run or have run uppers/rifles in the following
5.56
6.8 SPC
6.5 CSS or 6.5 G (the version 6.5 G Arne did, from a CZ bolt action, accurate!)
300/221 FB
300 AAC blackout
22LR
762 NATO
Out of the aforementioned, I really am digging the 762 NATO and the 300 AAC blackout the most.
The 300 AAC Black is pretty nice due to the 223/5.56 brass benefit. So all the extra 223/5.56 brass I have can play double duty on the reloading press.
762/308 is just plan fun to shoot. No other way around it.
I've come full circle. Shortly after the silly '94 "assault weapons" ban, I bought a brand-spankin'-new Armalite pre-ban carbine that gave me nothing but headaches with frequent failures to extract. Even a new barrel failed to alleviate the extraction failures, so I traded the Armalite for an FAL and turned up my nose at every AR for years. If it was direct impingement, I wasn't interested. Had fun with FALs and AKs for years. Even had a Robarm M96 for a while.
About five years ago, I read something online about a mid-length gas system. Based on what I read, it sounded like that was the perfect solution to the kind of failures I had with the pre-ban Armalite carbine. On a lark, I picked up a used Bushmaster carbine mutt to convert it to mid-length gas. At worst I'd be out a barrel. However, I figured out what gas port size I needed, measured several times to make sure I didn't ruin the barrel, and I was the proud owner of a functioning Bushmaster middy. Darned if it didn't work pretty dang well.
Now, with a few exceptions, I'm standardizing on the AR15-style platform. I find it so much easier to shoot accurately with some sort of optic atop a flattop AR15 than the crappy iron sights of an AK, for example. I had a DPMS LR308 for long range stuff, but for what I do (plinking, punching paper, the occasional machine gun shoot), the power of the 308 was overkill. Sold that and I'm now assembling the parts for a 6.5 Grendel/264 LBC upper. So, there's 5.56, of course, and a 7.62x39 Armalite (mid-length) joined the gun safe a few months ago.
I have a 6.5 24" SS Bull upper for long range shooting, but the ballistics on the 6.5 Grendel are so superior that I went to that upper.
Upper just came in. Will post pics of finished product.
AR's
5.56 14.5 carbine with pinned brake 1:9
5.56 16" midlength 1:7
5.56 20" 1:8
sig 5.56 16" 1:7
.450 bushmaster 16"
.22 SW
7.62x51 20"
7.62x51 16"
ak47 16"
bullpups
7.62x51
5.56
5.7x28
bolt
300 winmag
7mm mag
lever
.44 mag
.22
revolver
.38
.357
.44 mag
semi auto pistol
.22
,25
.380
3-9mm's
.40
3-.45's
5.56
7.62x39
5.7x28
and a marlin model 60 .22 which is the first gun I ever bought.
Listing them all out like that makes me ashamed at my lack of self control and then there's some shotguns.
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