What ammo?

[hammerhead]

Ok, not sure if this is the best place to post this but nonetheless.

What ammo are most of you guys using in your AR at a three gun match...I realize that bullet weight and powder grain and such are all factors here. My main question is...steel case or no steel case ? Are you using steel case for practice only or what ?

Thanks, Hadley Owens

 

[jtischauser]

I moved this to the ammo section.

I run a lot of steel cases Brown Bear and Academy brand Monarch ammo in practical and local matches. I will usually use brass cases ammo 100% of the time in bigger matches. I will run precision brass cases ammo for any shots over 100 yards.

 

[Matt1911]

I've been having really good results with American Eagle/Federal 55 grain FMJ brass cased.

 

[argyle64]

I've been having really good results with American Eagle/Federal 55 grain FMJ brass cased.

This right here. I have been using the American Eagle/Federal 55 gr FMJ for years without any problems. I have also been shooting Brown Bear and Monarch steel case ammo for a number of years without any problems. I say shoot whatever you can afford. If you have a good quality AR it should have no problem handling the Russian stuff.

 

[drmitchgibson]

Some of us have gotten Federal XM193 from group buys. It's been great for me, personally, and I may end up getting a huge quantity again instead of reloading, just to save time and hassle.

 

[hammerhead]

Thanks guys...good info...I will probably run steel case stuff in practice and some reloaded brass case stuff for competition. I'll run really nice stuff for distanced shots...

 

[John LTD]

I love Federal LC XM193. It's reliable and flat shooting; 3124 fps average out of my 16in 1/8.

 

[jtischauser]

PMC is a great cheap brass cased ammo. Check it out too.

 

[hammerhead]

Yeppers I just bought a case the other day ... local shop had them on sale for 300 a case...

 

[dennishoddy]

You certainly won't have any problem with primer set back using pmc ammo.
When I'm reloading, I can always tell when a piece of pmc brass comes through. It almost breaks the deprimimg rod they are seated so tight.

 

[Scott Hearn]

You certainly won't have any problem with primer set back using pmc ammo.
When I'm reloading, I can always tell when a piece of pmc brass comes through. It almost breaks the deprimimg rod they are seated so tight.

I heard that! I bought a case awhile back. I bought a couple of packages of the RCBS decapping pins but while I was waiting I found that the Hornady and RCBS headed decapping pins are practically identical and the Hornady is a little softer and lasts longer.

If you guys are going to buy factory ammo you might get about it while it's available. From Brownells:

Dear Folks,
We made a couple of predictions last month about how to prepare for 2012. If you missed it, we suggested you focus on Ammunition, which we are going to concentrate on in this article.

So, for a quick update: specifically, over the last 30 days, while we were following our own advice and preparing for 2012, we have observed that the ammunition manufacturers productions are at an all-time high and that the customer demand for ammunition is going to more than likely supersede the 2008-2009 “Election-Year Bubble”.

I checked in with one of our bright kids here to find out just what he was getting from his contacts in the industry â€" what he was hearing â€" and here is a condensation of what he told me.

General Industry Sentiment â€"
During the SHOT Show we began to hear rumblings that ammunition was heating up and that scarcity would likely be a concern as the year progressed. This has begun to manifest itself in major ways already. A few examples:

A great friend of ours reported: “Just returned from all the buyer-group shows and they were crazy busy. It’s starting to look like 2009 over again; we’ve been overwhelmed since December 1st. If it continues at this pace, we are going to see some major holes in inventory. The ammo guys are talking about shortages in .223 already . . . here we go again.”

Additionally, we have heard directly from one of the most prominent ammunition manufacturers who is reporting that they are a minimum of 60 to 90 days out on new purchase orders as of today.

Quantities of .223 and 5.56 that seemed to manufacturers at the SHOT Show like they should be plenty for the year are depleted already. Another great friend of ours had an entire warehouse of 5.56 go out in ONE purchase order!


....snipped the advertising out

 

[jtischauser]

I want to know where the 5.56 is going to go? It's not Iraq or Afghanistan.

 

[Jefpainthorse]

It's going to pre-election hoarders and speculators.
We saw panic buying pre-Obama.... I fear we will see it again.

 

[dennishoddy]

It's going to pre-election hoarders and speculators.

We saw panic buying pre-Obama.... I fear we will see it again.

Yup! One guy at work just ordered 10K rounds of 5.56, and others are ordering lowers and uppers in anticipation.

 

[jtischauser]

10k. How many years will that last him if the zombies never come?

 

[argyle64]

10k. How many years will that last him if the zombies never come?

Blasphemy!!!!!

 

[dennishoddy]

10k. How many years will that last him if the zombies never come?

Yeah, some of these guys are going to stuck with a lot of product If things don't go their way.

 

[Swavy00]

But. Are they really stuck with it? I consider buying ammo a much better use of your money than buying DVD's or XBox games. Ammo will always be a commodity, whether the zombies come or not. I bet a year or two from now, even if nothing changes politically, he can get his money back plus 30%. Doesn't sound like a bad investment to me.

 

[jtischauser]

There is no such thing as being stuck with ammo. My point was that people panic and buy more than they need which drives the cost up for those of us that actually shoot not hoard. The crap we went through when obama was elected is a big waste of all our time and money.

 

[Swavy00]

Very true, Jesse. But that's just a sign of the strange times we live in. For people to think, on a level that affects supply and demand, that there is a reason to hoard ammo shows the uncertainty and fear there is in the climate we live in.

I don't like it either. But I can't say I blame guys for having some ammo put away for a rainy day. I wish I had bought a lifetime supply of ammo 20 yrs ago.