223 ammo for home defense?

L

lastchancebaby

New member
Hello,
After much research it appears that varmint rounds VMAX, etc would be good home defense rounds. For instance a 55g bullet would basically disintegrate and transfer entire energy to close range target? Moreover, you will probably have no over-penetration; however, I have also read that you should never use varmint rounds (i.e. VMAX) for defense?
:confused: thanks:D
 
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In the situation of Home defense I'd choose Hornady's TAP...

Its resoanably the same thing as VMAX (polymer ballistic tip), but made for use on 'bigger' animals.
 
Rarely will a 223 over penetrate an attacker its the misses you should worry about. For that reason I dont think the heavier loadings of TAP are the best choice for general home defense. A 45gr hp will lose its penetration potential much faster than a nato spec 75gr fmj after passing through light barriers. For rural home defense by all means go with the TAP but if in town with close neighbors I'd recomend the Vmax. Good luck
 
The TAP is offered in 55, 60, and 75 gr varieties. I have the 60gr.

In my case, the .223 isn't my first (or 2nd) choice for in the home defense, but rather I keep a couple mags loaded in case a more serious event were to occur (this being storm season in New Orleans).

If I did need to step up to that level of firepower, the TAP is what I would trust.
 
.223/5.56 For home defense? Sorry for my noob question but how many actual use the .223/5.56 for home defense? I keep mine in the safe and have the Mossberg 500 Cruiser at hand. I am not saying its wrong cause I dont know enough. But the misses would go through several rooms ??
 
But the misses would go through several rooms ??
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Several magazine "home gunfire" articles have shown that 9mm and .45ACP FMJ will actaully penetrate more interior walls than 7.62x39 and 5.56 FMJ.

The loads we're discussing here are a 'hollow point' rifle bullet with a polymer tip to force it to expand. The idea being that a VMAX bullet hitting a stud or intruder will surely not penetrate HOWEVER: NO HOLLOW POINT OF ANYKIND THAT I'VE YET TO SEE WILL EXPAND AND 'STOP' WHEN FIRED INTO SHEETROCK WALLS OR PANEL WALLS...

So in most cases... ANY MISS inside a home with any defense load will produce some degree of overpenetration.
 
Several magazine "home gunfire" articles have shown that 9mm and .45ACP FMJ will actaully penetrate more interior walls than 7.62x39 and 5.56 FMJ.
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That is frequently mis-stated, as it is here. SOME 9mm rounds and such will penetrate more than SOME 5.56 and such. All depends on bullet selection.
 
.223 is not my ideal home defense round since it is most often fired out of a rifle. That makes clearing the house much harder and much more susceptible to a gun grab. There is also the noise consideration since .223 is much louder than most handgun rounds. If your idea of home defense is to barricade yourself in a safe room and blast anyone that comes through, a shotgun works great (probably buck shot). If you need to clear your house, get a good handgun.
 
the 50 grain hollow point that fed sells was devolped for LE. bobn
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These are good performers and a lot cheaper alternative to the TAP ammo (I do really like the TAP, though). They worked great this summer out of my Bushy XM-15 - absolutely shredded up some prairie dogs. No bullets recovered... a little overkill on a PD... I think they would put a hurtin' on a bad guy. If you hit what you're aiming at, I don't think it will matter much.

I still use a shotgun for HD.
 
223 is not my ideal home defense round since it is most often fired out of a rifle. That makes clearing the house much harder and much more susceptible to a gun grab
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That's why I like the Steyr AUG so much. A very short rifle with a 20" barrel. :D

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That's why I like the Steyr AUG so much. A very short rifle with a 20" barrel.
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Your Steyr UGLY... er I mean AUG still has much more to grab on than ANY pistol. A gun is only dangerous in a single vector. As long as I am not in front of the barrel when the bullet comes out, I am safe. A knife on the other hand is dangerous in an arc, but lacks the range. Maybe you should slap a bayonet on it and some spikes on it. :p

SteyrUGLY.jpg
 
".223 is not my ideal home defense round since it is most often fired out of a rifle. That makes clearing the house much harder and much more susceptible to a gun grab."

Home defense is not about 'clearing the house'. HD is about protecting the occupants until the cops arrive. No matter what you are carrying if you go looking for the intruders you risk being ambushed. Find as safe a place as possible where you can cover the approaches and let them come to you.
 
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