MD shooting update: Shell found in VA is a .223 caliber, shooting in DC now linked too

CNN

[newsperson999]

A shell was found near that shooting this afternoon in VA that was found to be a 223 cal fired from a high powered rifle..also test confirm that the man that died in DC last night also died from the same type of ammo..

[bonesmccoy]

Boy I agree with your analysis, but the TV media/police are not bending in their view...maybe the police are just in a bit of denial...

There is one solution...put national guard on the roads and lock the District of Columbia down...but that could be the motive of these guys. Perhaps we should start being more "vigilant" by having the right to bear arms.

[Robert_Paulson2]

I like reloading.
lots of adjustments can be made.

And I understand your preferences. But to each his own.
I am more interested in if you suspect these were custom loads? I read around today and gathered some found a rather LARGER exit wound than was expected...

I would suspect that terrorists, MIGHT prefer loading their own items, so as to NOT be detected immediately by law enforcement reviews of ammo purchases. And .223 components are rather easy to obtain.

I expect the antigunners crowd will try and turn this into another gun panick... of course if all guns were outlawed, only the military and the terrorists would be armed... and the citizenry would, or will be held hostage...

As long as we have a second amendment, best wishes for your continued, and happy reloading.

[Brett66]

Police were also still looking for a white cargo van, and had refined their description of the vehicle, but did not release the additional details

I think they have a general description of the suspects and they're deliberately not releasing it to the public.

[FatherTorque]

and it isn't really a hunting rifle either, because .223 isn't a good caliber for anything larger than varmints . . . marginal on deer and I think it may be a prohibited caliber for that use.

That depends on state to state laws.  I know when I lived in Ky. that ANY centerfire cartridge was legal to hunt deer with.  I think that's a little to lax though, .223, .222, .22-250, .25-06, etc are all a little too small to be hunting deer with.  IMO.

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

Another answer: Militia weapons!

Don't forget thinning out the pumpkin patch.

[bonesmccoy]

What's to prevent Maryland Freepers who know this stuff from going on a posse hunt themselves?

[AnAmericanMother]

Lord have mercy! 4350 for a .22-250? That's what I use in my .348 Winchester! (sometimes I feel like I should just invert the can over the shell and empty it . . . that caliber is a powder eater. One box of shells = one can of powder, more or less. . . 55 grains!)

[The KG9 Kid]

"... That is why I want to buy my very own bushmaster."

Better get one real soon.

[Redcloak]

I sure hope the liberal left doesn't use this incident to argue in favor of gun registration...

I noticed that the ATF listed as "possible suspect weapons" a wish-list of semi-autos the leftover Clintonistas would, no doubt, love to see outlawed. Never mind that no evidence has been presented to suggest that a semi-auto was used. Of course, that just might mean that they'll rail against deer Sniper rifles instead.

[philetus]

Ya but it's fun.

[AnAmericanMother]

I wouldn't expect this to be a reloader. (They are, by and large, happy people who ain't mad with nobody. :-D ) Seriously, reloading is an extension of the hobby of sport shooters and varminters, not Islamicists or stone cold killers. It takes a lot of time and dedication (and investment in equipment) to get good at it. My guess is that these are standard milspec .223 rounds from some surplus dealer or other, bought by the case. It's fairly common for surplus .223 rounds to "tumble" and that would produce a large exit wound. That's another reason to discount custom loads here . . .

[AnAmericanMother]

I'll bet it's fun.

But how's your barrel life? My dad used to be very fond of the old .22 Hornet, but he got tired of rebarreling his rifle . . .

[FatherTorque]

Hehe, don't ever buy a .50 BMG then.  How would you like to load this? 750 GR. HDY A-MAX! 

You talk about using powder in a hurry!!

[sigSEGV]

......shooting from the back of a truck.

A little hole in the back to shoot from maybe? Witnesses said there was damage to the back door.

[Robert_Paulson2]

"It's fairly common for surplus .223 rounds to "tumble""

and that is as good an explanation as any I have heard thus far. of course, sales at MOST stores would be sort of traceable.

[Atchafalaya]

I hope it's not a Mini 14; that will start the ban the "automatic weapons" screed again.

[Eva]

I was just saying to my husband that I thought I would go to the range tomorrow and start learning how to shoot. We have concealed carry here. When I went to the Republican caucus, every man in the room had a license to carry, it's about time that the women do too.

[Darnright]

"Prime suspects, according to the press,are those with military or police training and those that frequent gun clubs-ie: legal gun owners."

I really wanted to throw something at the TV when Greta came up with this supposition. Legal gun owners, sportsmen who belong to gun clubs, are not the ones going out felling these poor victims! I'm outraged at the insinuation that just because a person in involved in shooting sports, he's automatically a "danger to society".

Harumph.

[AnAmericanMother]

Ouch! I'll never complain about my .348 again!

All the loads I can find online for 50 BMG are Vihtavuori, a manufacturer I've never used. But the heaviest load calls for almost THREE HUNDRED grains of powder! Back up a Bobcat!

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

They're the same, I thought . . . 5.56mm = 0.223in, or something like that.

I'm not expert. Let's get this out of the way first.

However I've read, been told, and had confirmed from a Rock River Arms distributor that the .223 version is a civilian version round and the 5.56 version is the military version and the only difference is the 5.56 version (nato) runs at higher case pressures which is of no consequence if you have a barrel rated for NATO/5.56 round.

But if you have a .223 rated barrel and run 5.56 rounds through it,... well I can't say for sure your rifle will explode but overpressures aren't exactly optimum conditions and would tend to void any warranty.

You other fellas can correct me if I've been misinformed.