Posted on 10/16/2001 11:19:38 PM PDT by Don Myers
This is a vanity post. Many of us have different types of firearms. But what do we really know about the effectiveness of various ammunition? There are diffent types of bullets, the part of the cartridge that comes out of the barrel to make sure we have the terminology right.
For instance, the 7.62 X 39 comes in Full Metal Jacket, Hollowpoint, softpoint, and Armor Piercing. How does each one compare in stopping power with themselves and other rounds?
The .45 comes in FMJ and various hollowpoints. How do they compare in stopping power with the .40 S&W round?
If anyone would like to answer these questions, please feel free. I would like to know.
That said, I like 5.56mm. It works from zero to several hundred yards, as far as I need. It goes through kevlar (oops!) With a quick finger it lays out close range lead like nobody's business. For its small size it makes a big wound. And you can carry twice as much 5.56mm as 7.62NATO/.308.
See post #15 - that's where I got that.
GUNS RULE on this site!!! lol! just keep watching and the firearms posts will come around. 'annie get your gun' is a crack pistol shot and a WA stater. many, many others too. we keep the socialist/libs 'dancing'! hahahaha
Given that, I figure the weight differential is of little consequence. (i.e.I can hit from futher away
than the other guy. Always a nice feeling.)
But I am new to 7.62 - so any insight would be welcome.
First let's look at full metal jacket. Just a lead core with (usually) a copper jacket surrounding it. Typical military ammo. It goes straight through the target in pretty much the same shape it entered. Its primary purpose is to wound. Why? Because a wounded guy needs more attention and resources than a dead guy. Dead guys just go to graves registration snd on to the cemetery. Wounded guys require medics, medevacs, surgery, physical therapy and rehabilitation. Manpower and money intensive; puts far more strain on the enemy's resources.
Next would come soft points; the tip of the bullet is not jacketed and expands on impact, thus making a bigger hole in the target.
Hollow points -- depending on configuration, they leave a much larger hole than their actual size. A Federal Hydra-Shock in .45 can leave a hole you could pass a watermelon through with ease. Not too long ago, I popped a gallon jug of water with a Hydra-Shock. The jug disappeared. The 2X10 plank it was sitting on was sheared by the shockwave like I had passed a circular saw through it -- note the round passed about six inches above the plank. Definitely evil and I buy them in bulk. Glasers are another good choice -- high velocity hollow points with the hollow filled with small shot -- they hit like a small grenade and doctors do not like them at all. (Don't get me started on the joys of nylon flechette rounds -- they don't show on x-rays.)
Armor piercing rounds are rare outside of military calibers. These usually have a hardened core (tungsten or depleted uranium) which defeats mild steel plate. Modern armor plate requires more sophisticated ammo.
My personal advice is a .40 or .45 sidearm with hollow points or Glasers. Match it up with a pump action shotgun loaded with alternating rounds of slug and 00 buck. The slug disrupts body armor and the buckshot sends the target off to the morgue -- or major reconstructive surgery and several months of jello as a dietary staple.
It will take some serious PR on their part to convince me.
Freegards,
connectthedots, a.k.a. "The pro se from hell". Mention my name at the Washington Supreme Court, and they will all know who I am. True story!
my friend the FNG! you'll change your mind soon on that statement! lol! here's one to look out for:
LLAN-DDEUSANT
you won't believe this america/israel hater. he usually pops up when israel or arafat is posted. tonight he was putting down the architecture of the WTC and called it hideous + called the architect a moron. no sympathy for the victims at all. jump in when you see his name and watch the reactions to him. i call him the 'eternal flamer'!! lol!
People use the rugers for caribou, wolves, ect; anything that they can hit good. (they also like them 30 round clips when the bou move thru)
Couldn't imagine replacin any of my ar's though, got some kinda karma with them.
Frightening to know the dollar value - but I'd still never sell.
When I was going through the Infantry Officer Basic COurse in 1975, we were shown a demonstration of what AK-47 7.62 mm round and M-16 5.56 mm rounds would do to ammo cans filled with water. the 7.62 round went straight through with clean entry and exit holes with no other distortion of the ammo can. The 5.56 round had a nice clean entry hole, but a very ragged exit hole which greatly distorted the ammo can. The reason for this is the much lighter weight of the 5.56 round which starts to become more unstable in flight after a certain distance. When it hits the target, it becomes much more unstable than the 7.62 round and "tumbles" a lot which causes much more significant damage to whatever is inside the fatigues of the target.
One of the funniest claims about the M-1911A1 .45 cal pistol, known for its tremendous stopping power at close range is that the entry hole is about the size of a quarter, but if you go around the back of the person shot, you can stick your head in, look around and not get your ears wet.
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