Can You Shoot 223 Out of a 556 Barrel
Are you trying to learn the difference between the .223 vs 5.56x45mm NATO cartridges so yous can use the right ammunition for your AR-xv? Here's what you need to know about their similarities and differences.
Even though many people treat the .223 Remington and 5.56x45mm NATO cartridges every bit interchangeable rounds, this can be a dangerous exercise under the incorrect circumstances. It is truthful that the two cartridges are very like to each other. Nonetheless, there are some very subtle, yet important differences between the 223 vs five.56mm cartridges that arrive beyond the differences in their names.
There is also a bunch of misinformation out in that location pertaining to this exact subject. So today, I'll become over some of the differences between the 5.56 vs 223 Remington cartridges and provide some practices to follow when using them.
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223 vs 5.56 NATO Differences
Every bit you lot can see in the photograph below, .223 and five.56mm rounds take nearly identical external case dimensions. This ways that the bulk of the time, it's possible to bedchamber and fire .223 ammunition in a 5.56mm sleeping room and vice versa.
Even so, v.56 NATO cases will often have thicker case walls. This is common with many military cartridges. Since the external dimensions of the two cartridges are almost identical, this means the 5.56 NATO cases will have less instance capacity. Called-for an identical powder charge in a smaller infinite volition event in college pressures.
Making an apples to apples comparison of the authorized pressure of the 2 rounds is hard because the .223 Remington cartridge is standardized by the Sporting Arms and Armament Manufacturers Found (SAAMI) while the 5.56x45mm cartridge is not. Even so, 5.56x45mm ammunition is still recognized as being loaded to a college force per unit area than the 55,000psi maximum average pressure level standardized by SAAMI for the .223 Remington.
Correspondingly, 5.56mm firearms are designed and built to withstand the increased pressure level, while .223 Remington chambers by and large are not.
The chamber dimensions of rifles chambered for the 2 cartridges are slightly different likewise.
Specifically, .223 Remington chambers are smaller overall and take a shorter leade or freebore (the distance between the example rima oris of the cartridge and the point where the rifling engages the bullet) with a steeper bending than 5.56mm chambers. Generally speaking, a shorter leade results in increased accurateness at the expense of increased pressure and decreased velocity while a longer leade produces increased velocity with lower pressures at the expense of reduced accuracy.
The 5.56x45mm NATO cartridge was originally designed for the U.S. Armed forces to use in the M-xvi rifle. Indeed, the M-16A1, M-16A2, and M-four rifles and carbines unremarkably used past the US Army and Marine Corps (equally well every bit the other branches of the military) over the by few decades are all chambered in 5.56 NATO. Notwithstanding, the G-16A1 has a slower rifling twist rate than the other two since information technology was designed to use dissimilar bullet weights.
Due to the war machine roots of the cartridge, the v.56mm NATO circular was designed for apply with a longer leade with a shallow angle. In addition to producing increased velocity and therefore better performance at long range, this likewise had the advantage of improving reliability by assuasive more build up of carbon and other "gunk" without adversely affecting the function of the rifle.
Since, all other things being equal, a shorter leade results in higher chamber pressure when compared to a longer leade, this means that firing 5.56mm ammunition (which is already loaded to a higher pressure) out of a .223 Remington chamber can produce dangerous amounts of chamber pressure.
This brings united states to our next betoken.
five.56 vs 223 Remington: What's Safe For Yous To Shoot In Your AR-15?
.223 ammunition may be shot safely in a .223 bedchamber. 5.56mm armament may be used safely in a rifle with a 5.56mm chamber. Indeed, not only is it condom to shoot 223 in a 223 chamber and five.56 in a 5.56 chamber, merely you lot'll probably likewise experience the all-time overall operation in those situations.
Tin you lot shoot 223 in a 5.56 chamber? Yep. .223 Remington ammunition may be shot safely in a 5.56mm chamber.
Can you shoot 5.56 in a 223 bedchamber? No.Practise non shoot 5.56mm armament in a rifle with a .223 Remington sleeping room or y'all are risking a potentially dangerous incident.
And then, while it's safe to shoot .223 Remington ammunition in a v.56x45mm chamber, the reverse is not true.
If you burn down 5.56mm ammo in a .223 chamber, you lot could potentially feel serious trouble from a pressure spike. The burglarize probably won't blow up, though it is possible.
More than likely, the excess pressure level levels volition damage the burglarize itself or blow the primer out of the primer pocket into the internal workings of the rifle. And so, if you observe whatsoever signs of excess pressure (similar blown, cratered, or flattened primers), end shooting that armament in your rifle immediately.
223 vs 5.56: What Kind Of Rifle Do I Take?
To avoid this, ensure that you simply burn down the appropriate ammunition in your rifle.
First, find out if your rifle (or handgun) is a .223 Remington or 5.56mm NATO. On AR-xv rifles or carbines, look on the top of the butt near the cage. On most other firearms (like bolt action rifles), look on the receiver or the side of the barrel near the sleeping accommodation. If it says ".223 Remington," and then you lot can be pretty sure that is what you have.
Rifles similar the Winchester XPR, Browning 10 Bolt, Ruger American Predator, and older versions of the Ruger Mini-14 (current product Mini-14s are chambered in five.56) are chambered in .223 Remington.
Still, if it says "5.56mm," that does non necessarily hateful you have a five.56mm NATO chamber that's safe to fire all variants of 5.56x45mm ammo out of. Unfortunately, not all v.56mm chambers are created equal and the just way to be 100% sure is to either measure the pharynx size yourself or get a reputable gunsmith to do it for you. Until then, information technology is best to only burn .223 Remington ammunition in the burglarize.
v.56 vs 223: What Kind Of Ammo Practise I Have?
So how do yous make up one's mind if a particular blazon of ammunition is .223 Remington or 5.56x45mm NATO?
Due to its roots as a armed forces cartridge, there is a lot of surplus military ammunition in 5.56x45mm NATO on the market. If the armament is packaged every bit M193, M855, SS109 (or a variant of those like XM193 or XM855), it is definitely 5.56mm. If yous don't take access to the packaging, or it doesn't say, wait at the headstamp on the base of the bullet.
If the headstamp says "5.56x45mm" or is 2-3 letters and 2-3 numbers (such as "LC 13" on the left in the photograph below), and/or has a cantankerous inside a circumvolve (which indicates it meets NATO mil-spec requirements), then it is military surplus full metallic jacket (FMJ) five.56mm NATO ammo.
If the headstamp says something like "Hornady 223 Rem," like the cartridge on the right to a higher place, so it is a .223 Remington circular. Too, hunting and cocky-defense armament made by noncombatant armament manufacturers like Winchester's Super-X, Hornady'southward Varmint Express, and Nosler'south Varmageddon product lines are usually (though non always) made to .223 SAAMI specifications.
If you are still not sure after looking at the headstamp, treat the ammunition every bit five.56mm just to exist on the prophylactic side.
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223 Remington vs five.56x45mm NATO Conclusions
If you're looking for a rifle to shoot the widest variety of ammunition, get ane chambered in 5.56x45mm (and verify that it does indeed have a 5.56mm sleeping room) equally this will let you shoot both cartridges safely.
What about .223 Wylde chambers? As long as it is built to the appropriate specifications using a practiced reamer and is in good overall condition, the 223 Wylde chambers originally designed by Bill Wylde are as well prophylactic to use both .223 Remington and five.56x45mm NATO ammunition in.
What about 5.56 Noveske chamberings? Only similar with the .223 Wylde chambering, yous tin safely use both .223 Remington and 5.56x45mm NATO ammunition in Noveske chambers.
To learn about some of the many cartridges designed to improve upon the .223 Remington and 5.56x45mm NATO and still function in an AR platform, bank check out these articles about the .224 Valkyrie, .300 Blackout, the 6.5 Grendel, the 6.8 SPC, the .450 Bushmaster, the .458 SOCOM, and the .50 Beowulf:
.300 Blackout vs 7.62×39: Everything You Demand To Know
223/5.56 vs 300 Coma vs 308 Winchester: Which Is Best?
6.5 Grendel vs 6.5 Creedmoor: Which vi.5 Is Right For You?
6.eight SPC vs half dozen.5 Grendel: What You lot Need To Know
224 Valkyrie: Should You Buy I?
450 Bushmaster vs 458 SOCOM vs fifty Beowulf: Battle of the Big Bore AR Cartridges
TheHornady 10th Edition (p160-178) reloading manual, The American Rifleman,and the Guns & Ammo Network were used as references for this article.
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