.223 & 5.56mm

Hey all,

I just brought a DTI-15. On the side it says 5.56. My question is, can it also fire .223?

I've heard different answers. Some say you can fire both, others say it will explode in the barrel.

thanks

 

Yes, you can go with 223 and 5.56 if it is marked 5.56. If I had more time, I could get into all the details and recommend hours or reading on the subject, but in short, it is fine. (Get ready for an age old debate to start if some of the other gun nuts chime in.)

FYI, I have built multiple AR's and have never had a problem shooting 223 out of a 5.56 weapon.

 

Wouldn't that be like shooting a 20 gauge shell in a 12 gauge shotgun?

Edit: nevermind..

 

you can safely shoot .223 in a rifle chambered 5.56 the reverse is not true. but .223 may not be as accurate in a 5.56 as it would be in a .223. hope that helps

 

ahhhhhhhh its the same

 

The .223 Remington is a sporting cartridge with the same external dimensions as the 5.56x45mm NATO military cartridge. (someone correct me if i am wrong) It is loaded with a .224" diameter, jacketed bullet, with weights ranging from 40 up to 90 grains, though the most common loadings by far are 55 grains.


The primary difference between .223 Remington and 5.56 x 45 mm is that .223 is loaded to lower pressures and velocities compared to 5.56 mm. .223 Remington ammunition can be safely fired in a 5.56 mm chambered gun, but the reverse can be an unsafe combination. The additional pressure created by 5.56 mm ammo will frequently cause over-pressure problems such as difficult extraction, flowing brass, or popped primers, but in extreme cases, could damage or destroy the rifle.

 

What he said. There are a few more details, but I'd say you hit the nail on the head.

Below: My latest build, chambered in 5.56, but mostly shot 223 out of it. Whatever ammo I can find the best price on. Mostly doing close quarter combat drills with it, so I'm not worried about 30+ meter accuracy.

 

http://www.winchester.com/lawenforcement/n...aspx?storyid=11
straight from the site;
223 Rem VS 5.56mm

There are a lot of questions about these two cartridges. Many people think they are identical - merely different designations for commercial and military. The truth is that, although somewhat similar, they are not the same and you should know the differences before buying either cartridge.

* The cartridge casings for both calibers have basically the same length and exterior dimensions.
* The 5.56 round, loaded to Military Specification, typically has higher velocity and chamber pressure than the .223 Rem.
* The 5.56 cartridge case may have thicker walls, and a thicker head, for extra strength. This better contains the higher chamber pressure. However, a thicker case reduces powder capacity, which is of concern to the reloader.
* The 5.56mm and .223 Rem chambers are nearly identical. The difference is in the "Leade". Leade is defined as the portion of the barrel directly in front of the chamber where the rifling has been conically removed to allow room for the seated bullet. It is also more commonly known as the throat. Leade in a .223 Rem chamber is usually .085". In a 5.56mm chamber the leade is typically .162", or almost twice as much as in the 223 Rem chamber.
* You can fire .223 Rem cartridges in 5.56mm chambers with this longer leade, but you will generally have a slight loss in accuracy and velocity over firing the .223 round in the chamber with the shorter leade it was designed for.
* Problems may occur when firing the higher-pressure 5.56mm cartridge in a .223 chamber with its much shorter leade. It is generally known that shortening the leade can dramatically increase chamber pressure. In some cases, this higher pressure could result in primer pocket gas leaks, blown cartridge case heads and gun functioning issues.
* The 5.56mm military cartridge fired in a .223 Rem chamber is considered by SAAMI (Small Arm and Ammunition Manufacturers Institute) to be an unsafe ammunition combination.

 

There is also the Wylde chamber that melds the two:

A Wylde chamber, which is a mix between .223 and 5.56. The 5.56x45 NATO is NOT exactly the same as a .223 Rem. The 5.56 spec allows for slightly longer chambers for higher pressures. The .223 has a tighter chamber around the neck and is shorter which allows for a bit better accuracy. You can shoot .223 ammo in a 5.56 chamber, but it is DANGEROUS to shoot 5.56 (surplus for instance) ammo in a .223 chamber. What the Wylde chamber does is allow for 5.56 ammo with slightly tighter chamber for better accuracy. So you can shoot both 5.56 and .223 safely with good accuracy.

 

Yes you can shoot .223 out of a 5.56 chambered AR, but not vise-versa. If your weapon was marked with .223, then it is not recommended that you shoot 5.56 due to higher cylinder pressures that could cause potential problems.

 

Thanks all, that helps a lot!

No wonder .223 ammo is always cheaper than 5.56 at Wallyworld. They also got this brand named Wolf, which I was told to stay away from...

 

Wolf=no good

 

^ this - dirty as fuck, cheap casings that can shave off when cycling, and overall garbage rounds...

 

lets see how many more times we can all say the same thing




Ive never shot wolf but I have used steel cased ammo in two different AR's with no problems. Ive used brown bear, monarch, and Hornady with zero issues. When running steel case ammo I run the gun pretty wet, idk if that helps but I know it wont hurt

 

lets see how many more times we can all say the same thing
lets see how many more times we can all say the same thing
lets see how many more times we can all say the same thing
lets see how many more times we can all say the same thing
lets see how many more times we can all say the same thing
lets see how many more times we can all say the same thing



I had to......

 

Hornady is manufactured/loaded right here in The Heartland in Grand Island, Nebraska - just down I-80 from me! Been by their plant a few times over the years. They make some high quality ammo.

 

The steel cased ammo has a coating on it that will gum up your AR. It is a PITA to clean out and will cause jams and misfires after a few mags. You can shoot it if you like, but you will have to clean the crap out of your AR immediately or you'll regret it!

 

To the OP, I'm not familiar with your particular gun. You say the gun is marked 5.56 on the side. The side of what? The lower receiver or the barrel? The markings on the barrel is what I'd go with. Lower receivers can handle multiple calibers.

In case nobody has explained the difference between 5.56 and .223...

 

No steel casings of any size by any manufacturer at any time in any American made gun I own. It's just not worth the trouble. Brass only.

You can, however, run anything that you can get to cycle in an AK 47 without it jamming or stopping until you run out of ammo.

 

The older stuff had the coating, the newer doesn't. There are tons of info on the steel case debate, mostly, the ones in the know, say it's fine to shoot the steel stuff.