Aptus, the main thing is to examine your use for a weapon, and decide from there. The 5.56 round that was gave it the reputation was the 55 grain M193 Ball round. It would yaw in the target, and most of the rounds would break in half at the cannelure. The M855 has had a dismal record for stopping people in the field, from Mogadishu to Baghdad. Part of it is the way we're trained to shoot center of mass, and the rest of it is the projectile itself. The center of mass shot at less than 100 yards produces a low hit, no vitals. Any deer hunter can tell you the result of that. The M4 with its short barrel makes the initial velocity lower, so there really is no range the M855 will yaw and break in half. Even the M193 with a muzzle velocity >3250 fps has a maximum range of about 175 yards where it will yaw and break in half. The 7.62 X 39 round is a 123 or 125 grain bullet at about 2400 fps. The closest round to it ballistically is the 30-30 Winchester, which has killed millions of deer in its history. It beats the 30-30 out to 200 yards, where it is still carrying 800 foot-pounds of energy. It is a better round if you would ever have to hunt with your weapon.
and dont forget that a deer is the closest you get to a human in mass and make up of any commonly hunted animal, so what works well on deer will work similarly if needed on unarmored humans. A .223 (5.56) will take deer but a 30-30 or 7.62 is somewhat more reliable at it.
Ghosty WTH are you talking about yawing and breaking in half at 100 yards? I shoot routinely at 200 and 300 yards and have perfect little .22 holes in paper. I dig rounds out of those berms and find bullets all the time that look like someone pulled them right out of the casings, ground some grooves in them and threw them on the ground! I think what you are meaning to say is that after the bullet makes contact with a object, they begin to yaw and come apart, but they don't just come apart in flight. AK bullets will begin to yaw and tumble when they hit a target as well. Matter of fact, at 100 yards, I find a lot of 7.62 X 39 bullets that are flat and pooped lead out the back end. That is common for a lot of rounds.
Roger, I meant they would yaw in the target. The maximum range is about 175 yards, farther than that, they will just drill little holes. Very true about the 7.62 lead core deforming in targets, I have shot them through steel, and wood, and they will shed a jacket in a heartbeat. The bi-metal jackets will alos expand in that first 100-150 yards.
Well, it if will make you feel better, I have some info on the 5.56 ballistics that you might enjoy. I shot a kevlar vest today with a little of everything. You might find the results interesting.
I read in an article on ballistics that Different had posted that the yaw and 'break up' was what made a round better once it hit the target. A clean small hole through flesh does less that that flopping around and breaking up. IIRC. I think the German 7.62 was one of the best as it routinely broke up in over 8 pieces and made sure to deliver it's energy into the target. If a round is still moving beyond the target, it still has energy that was not dumped where you wanted it. I'll dig up that article.
Couldn't find the other article but this one has more information than most will ever care to know. http://survivalmonkey.com/forum/postlink/19112.htm#19112 but this is my all time favorite: http://www.fen-net.de/norbert.arnoldi/army/wound.html
Man, you guys cranked out some info in my day away from the board. I will take it all into account. Some time this week I think a friend and I are going to go to a nearby gun shop / shooting range to go test fire their rental AR's and AK's to at least get a feel before buying. Well, Melbo, got any ideas??
hmm. You don't have an avatar on SLAP either. Have to think of something for you. Maybe we should wait until you decide on a Long Arm?
Yeah, my old avatar at SLAP was a cat w/ a melon on it's head - all the admins had it for a while as a joke. I don't see it working too well over here. I think you're right, Melbo, I can't go wrong w/ a gun avatar. I might take a pic of my airsoft rifle since it looks real along w/ some of my gear and use that until I get my real steel.
