223 load

B

bungiex88

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If you were going to reload thousands of rounds of 223 for end of civilization what bullet would you choose and why. Would you reload fmj or a hunting tip. And would primarily be used in the ar platform.
 
Yea I would go cheap too nothing expensive. But something that would benefit in the long run would you want a fmj for hunting and self defense or a jacketed hollow point or a tipped bullet.
 
I’d go with the Hornady 55gr soft point. Great accuracy and that soft lead tip is more multi-purpose than the FMJ.


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556 and 223 are the same cartridge but different chambers. 556 have more leade, or throat, for longer bullets, and are loaded to higher pressure. No company makes 556 reloading dies. They are all "223".
Personally, I would use 65 hr Sierra game kings, but the Hornady soft points would be cheaper. Anyway, I buy and have a number of different bullets, some are all copper. There is no one perfect bullet for all purposes.
 
Xtreme 55gr....cheap, shoots well in my rifle. Most shots will be 0-50 yards in these types of scenarios. They are also continuously available, so I know I can buy 1000 this month, 1000 next month and so on for stocking up.
 
Buy ammo for long term storage. Period.
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1. Factory ammo is a currency. Reloaded ammo is not.
Reloaded ammo *Might* be a currency in some apocalyptic future, but right now it's just stored.
As your situation changes, you may need cash more than ammo.
Reloaded ammo won't sell for the component price, if you can find anyone to buy generic reloaded ammo at all... I won't buy generic reloaded ammo unless I want the bullets, cases & maybe primers and I would break any generic reloaded ammo.
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2. You just don't dig a hole and dump ammo in it for later...
YOU serve anything sitting around, secure storage, cool-dry storage.
You pay taxes or rent, you pay insurance, you pay upkeep on the storage.
People buy this stuff, but don't think about ammo cans, safes, climate control, etc.
If it doesn't do something to serve YOU... YOU serve it.

3. IF THERE WERE an 'End Of The World' event... (And that's a HUGE *IF*)
You have to consider HOW you will move thousands of rounds of ammo.
Dig in, and you are a stationary target.
Move, and you have to consider lodgistics. The average battle load out is 300 rounds simply because of weight. Ounces equal pounds and pounds equal pain.
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As for what specific bullet, a soft point, no question.
Hollows destroy small game and fragment in large game.
FMJ isn't the best choice for hunting.

*IF* I we're going to stockpile for some apocalyptic future, I would buy a viriety of bullet types, it's not like you aren't going to have several storage cans, so this one hollow, that one FMJ, the next soft point, etc.
 
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My two favorites are the Hornady 75grbthp and the 64gr bonded btsp that rmr sells in bulk. They don't say so but they are nothing more than Speer gold dots. Either will work for game, targets or the occasional zombie.
 
By all the once fired 5.56 brass you want. Deprime, remove primer crimp, clean, resize, trim to length, clean again, and put them in zip lock bags in an old ammo can for long term storage, In the zip lock bags they will stay nice and shiny. Personally I like 55 grain HPs, watch ales at Midway and you can get bulk buys of Dogtown bullets pretty cheap, and they work well. I like to have plenty of components around. I generally don't keep a lot loaded up ahead of time though as I like to expirament with different combinations.
 
I would stick with domestic military ammo for long-term storage for several reasons. One is the sealants they have. Water is a small and determined little molecule, and Norma points out that any conventionally loaded cartridge (without sealant) will see its powder equilibrate with outside RH over about a year. Going from 80% RH to 0% RH, as when your SHTF caravan moves from Olympia, Washington to Death Valley, Norma says will raise the powder burn rate about 12%.

The military stuff is designed for all seasons and tested in temperature extremes a handloader may not know how to allow for.

The military stuff (except some sniper ammo) is normally loaded with bulk powder and not a powder that has been blended with faster or slower held back lots, as canister grades are, to adjust its burn rate. So, being 100% fresh powder, they have the potential to last longer in a stockpile situation.
 
well, I have a 1:8 twist barrel that LOVES 77 grain bullets. I would load BOTH. However, if I had to pick ONE, it would be a hunting round. I've been in combat, FMJ's go through your target and he, she, it can still fight, Hunting rounds kill or main severely. Good for food gathering and/or stopping enemy combatants.
 
My AR seems to like the 62gr best out to about 150 yards. My Mini-14 is iron sights and my eyes are only good out to about 100 yards - anything 52-75gr works. I have not needed to take a shot off the range for more than 85 yards in quite a few years.

I have an ample supply of 62gr Spitzer BT that will probably last for the next 10-15 years that I got at a good deal 18 years ago. I have used almost 2/3 of them. I don't even know if they are still in production.
 
There are lots of 62 grain spitzer BT's out there, I think because the military AP M855 bullets fit that description. In addition to the military style, Hornady makes an FMJ in that weight, for example. If you like premium hunting bullets, Swift makes one in their Scirocco line and Barnes makes three (TAC-X, TSX and TTSX lines).
 
The bullets I have are close to the Swift Scirocco but the color of the tip is a bit off. The Swift had a black tip and the bullets I have use a light gray tip. I picked up 2 large ammo boxes almost full of these at a gun show for some cheap price back in 99. It has turned out to be one of my best gun show buys.
 
I have a large bag full of some 62 grain white box specials and most of a 8 pound jug of TAC, perfect for a afternoon of zombie eradication
 
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