[gunsrexpensive]

for a 12" 5.56 rifle w/ a 1/7" twist which ammo would be better... a 62 grain soft point or 77 grain otm? range from 0-100 yrds. could use some help thanks.

 

[tbready]

The 62 gr will probably give you more velocity.

 

[paulosantos]

What are you shooting?

The 77 GR is better against soft tissue, while the soft point penetrates better.

 

[Clint]

for a 12" 5.56 rifle w/ a 1/7" twist which ammo would be better... a 62 grain soft point or 77 grain otm? range from 0-100 yrds. could use some help thanks.

Better for what?

In general it seems the lighter round is better in short barrels as you'll have more velocity and less blast.

Heavier rounds tend to use slower powders and need longer barrels.

Is this factory ammo or hand loads?

 

[gunsrexpensive]

im still waiting for my tax stamp for my lmt piston 12" defender and trying to stock up on some ssa ammo. i was just trying to get some info on a overall better round for the rifle. i just recently learned about rifles, a lot more than i new but still have yet to figure out ammo and how it works etc. hollow points open up i get that and soft points penetrate better but i dont know what soft points still do exactly to penetrate better. i google search about it then learned something like a shoter barrel loses terminal velocity, bullet drops faster and makes the bullet fragment less? so if i were in a position where my lmt was the rifle i had at the time and had to shoot someone or something at a 100 yrds. which round would hit the target most accurate and do the most damage?

 

[paulosantos]

im still waiting for my tax stamp for my lmt piston 12" defender and trying to stock up on some ssa ammo. i was just trying to get some info on a overall better round for the rifle. i just recently learned about rifles, a lot more than i new but still have yet to figure out ammo and how it works etc. hollow points open up i get that and soft points penetrate better but i dont know what soft points still do exactly to penetrate better. i google search about it then learned something like a shoter barrel loses terminal velocity, bullet drops faster and makes the bullet fragment less? so if i were in a position where my lmt was the rifle i had at the time and had to shoot someone or something at a 100 yrds. which round would hit the target most accurate and do the most damage?

In the 556, a Hollow Point bullets actually fragments from 2200-2300+ FPS.
The Soft Point bullets, if constructed well, will just expand from 2000+ FPS. The weaker soft point bullets, tend to fragment some and expand some at 2000+ FPS.

 

[Zippy]

Given the 12" barrel I'm guessing this will be a home defense / SHTF type gun. This article should be of use to you figuring out the best ammo.

 

[marinesg1012]

I prefere heavy OTM bullets for my 556 defense rifles but you will have to chrono and see how far out the frag range would be.

 

[MichiganMilitia]

Given the 12" barrel I'm guessing this will be a home defense / SHTF type gun. This article should be of use to you figuring out the best ammo.

Thanks for the great link Zippy. That is very helpful when trying to compare different calibers and bullets side by side.

 

[rcrandall]

Soft points in the 5.56's, especially SBR's. The soft point frags quickly but is tough enough to stay together for better penetration. The ballisitcs tests I've seen show the soft points expanding/fragmenting quickly, within the first inch, while the 77 OTM has a fairly long neck, 3 to 4 inches. Look at the Federal Tru line, they have a 55 and 64 grain soft points that have cannelures and the copper jacket runs to the tip pf the round stopping bare lead from contacting the feed ramps.

 

[Clint]

I prefere heavy OTM bullets for my 556 defense rifles but you will have to chrono and see how far out the frag range would be.

What do you like about the heavier otms and at what bbl length?

 

[gunsrexpensive]

thanks for the link and the input from everyone. still a little lost but better than before

 

[marinesg1012]

What do you like about the heavier otms and at what bbl length?

Ballistics gel has proven the 77/75 grain bullet to be very effective against man sized targets. This has been backed up by many reports from the field when guys have had a chance to use the 75 grain stuff.... the biggest thing with barrel length is how much velocity you lose, IIRC the frag range with a 14.5 inch barrel is only around 75 yards.

 

[Clint]

Ballistics gel has proven the 77/75 grain bullet to be very effective against man sized targets. This has been backed up by many reports from the field when guys have had a chance to use the 75 grain stuff.... the biggest thing with barrel length is how much velocity you lose, IIRC the frag range with a 14.5 inch barrel is only around 75 yards.

are the 77s still effective if they don't fragment?
I think out of a 12" bbl the vel would be so low that the frag range would be 0.0 yards.

 

[marinesg1012]

I am sure they are still effective but just like all rounds if they dont expand or frag your just puncching holes... I think Randall has some short barrelled 556's he may be able to answer better then I.

 

[paulosantos]

Even if the 77's don't fragment, they still tumble, which will still cause some damage.