Which 5.56/.223 ammo should I buy

The #1 community for Gun Owners in Indiana

Member Benefits:

  • Fewer Ads!
  • Discuss all aspects of firearm ownership
  • Discuss anti-gun legislation
  • Buy, sell, and trade in the classified section
  • Chat with Local gun shops, ranges, trainers & other businesses
  • Discover free outdoor shooting areas
  • View up to date on firearm-related events
  • Share photos & video with other members
  • ...and so much more!
  • Best overall .223/5.56 bulk ammo


    • Total voters
      0

    Mr Boomer

    Plinker
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Jan 2, 2013
    130
    18
    South Bend
    Just want a general opinion on which ammo I should get for my 3 gun AR-15:

    PMC X-TAC 5.56 XP193 (55gr)

    PMC .223 , 223A (55gr)

    Fiocchi .223 (55gr)

    Federal Ammunition .223, AE223BK (55gr)

    I am looking for consistent accuracy, clean ammo, just overall good value. Feel free to report personal experience or range reports
     

    cwillour

    Expert
    Rating - 100%
    90   0   0
    Dec 10, 2011
    1,144
    38
    Northern Indiana
    I have had good luck with the Federal and Fiocchi, but for some reason I trust the Federal slightly more.

    Accuracy with both has been OK and the Fiocchi might have been somewhat more accurate, but both were reasonably clean and neither had any issues.

    When I tested my upper in temps below 5F, the Federal cycled consistently and the brass ejection was consistent. Then again, even the Wolf and Colt steel-cased delivered similar results with the casing landing in the same general area as the Federal brass (although with somewhat more spread in terms of both downrange accuracy and the landing zone of the casings.)
     
    Last edited:

    lubemupski

    Plinker
    Rating - 100%
    2   0   0
    Nov 11, 2012
    53
    8
    Fishers
    I really like the Fiocchi, both the 55 gr and 77 gr match and typically shoot between 250 and 350 yd. This is out of a Remington 700 so i cant comment on cycling/ejection. I found them for less than $0.50/rd.
     

    Sheepdog Gear

    Expert
    Rating - 100%
    26   0   0
    Jan 2, 2014
    1,016
    48
    Jasper County

    M67

    Grandmaster
    Rating - 100%
    23   0   0
    Jan 15, 2011
    6,181
    63
    Southernish Indiana
    I like PMC bronze personally.

    Every dud I've ever had was with Federal XM193 in 20 count packs. A friend and I picked up a case of XM193BK each about 3 years ago, I've yet to fire any of mine, he's shot through 700 or so of his and he's had several duds in that
     

    bman940

    Plinker
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Jan 29, 2012
    27
    3
    N. Tx
    5.56 choices

    I have shot 1000's of rounds of Fiocchi fmj ammo and have no complaints. Does all I ask of it. When it comes time for extra accuracy or hunting I choose Winchester 55 gr. SilverTips. Great accuracy and expansion. Not cheap by any means but I only use them when I absolutely positively need to put one in the 10 ring.

    Just want a general opinion on which ammo I should get for my 3 gun AR-15:

    PMC X-TAC 5.56 XP193 (55gr)

    PMC .223 , 223A (55gr)

    Fiocchi .223 (55gr)

    Federal Ammunition .223, AE223BK (55gr)

    I am looking for consistent accuracy, clean ammo, just overall good value. Feel free to report personal experience or range reports
     

    rosejm

    Master
    Rating - 100%
    11   0   0
    Nov 28, 2013
    1,775
    129
    NWI
    Pretty much whatever your rifle shoots best. That said, I stockpile Lake City XM855.

    Not much more to say here, but I too like the Lake City bulk stuff.
    I've shot a few hundred of all but the Fiocchi. I found the PMC Bronze seemed like a noticeably lighter load than the others. I did find that my rifle prefers 5.56 over the .223 rounds.

    Of the 8 or so factory brands/loads I tried, both of the PMC's brass had a much higher rate of damage (couple split necks, some deformed after extraction, all had thinner case walls), but if you don't reload that might not be much consideration to you.
     

    indyblue

    Guns & Pool Shooter
    Site Supporter
    Rating - 100%
    4   0   0
    Aug 13, 2013
    3,592
    129
    Indy Northside `O=o-
    I've gone through 500 rnds of PMC .223 Bronze & 250 rnds of PMC X-TAC 5.56. None were duds and all the ejected cases look fine for reloading so far, though most have slight dimples on the sides from hitting the deflector.

    I just received 1K of PMC 5.56 NATO green tip 69gr. We'll see how those do in a few weeks.

    My Colt LE6920 (5.56 chamber) definitely shoots tighter groups with the 5.56 vs .223. At least at 100yds I'm getting 1.5MOA and I'm a very novice shooter (only shot a rifle 6 times so far).

    If prices were a little better (or I could find a good supply), I'd opt for the American Eagle (Federal??) 5.56. My Browning loves the Eagle 9mm and is very consistent.
     

    zoglog

    Expert
    Rating - 100%
    55   0   0
    Sep 20, 2009
    1,324
    48
    Hendricks Co
    Tula .223 is a great for building a stockpile. If your firearm likes it, great! However, if your firearm will not cycle it, all you will have is a stockpile.

    One of my buddy's ARs hates steel ammo. It doesn't matter what brand. My 556 and a different buddy's will eat it all day long. My AR 10 hates steel.

    Moral of the story, test it out before you stockpile it.
     
    Last edited:

    rhino

    Grandmaster
    Rating - 100%
    24   0   0
    Mar 18, 2008
    30,906
    113
    Indiana
    Of the choices listed, as long as it is actually M193-spec, I'd go with the PMC X-TAC 5.56 55 GR.


    ​rhino out!
     

    M67

    Grandmaster
    Rating - 100%
    23   0   0
    Jan 15, 2011
    6,181
    63
    Southernish Indiana
    What are people's thoughts and experiences with Tula .223 as a way to quickly build a stockpile in today's market??

    Prices aren't going to get any lower so if you just want to have it because it goes boom and for SHTF purposes, go for it.

    But as others have said, make sure it will actually function in your rifle before you stock up.

    One thing worth mentioning is this though

    http://www.luckygunner.com/labs/brass-vs-steel-cased-ammo/

    Also, some companies' warranties are void if you use steel through it. If SHTF then warranty kind of goes out the window but if you use it for heavy plinking purposes... Then some companies like POF encourage the use of steel in their rifles. A lot of is has to do with the barrel treatment.
     

    sethr

    Plinker
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Apr 5, 2017
    63
    8
    Putnam County
    I have always liked Fiocchi. Clean and excellent quality.
    It was too expensive at the time so I bought 1000 rounds of M193 made by IMI. IMI production is always QC'd. This stuff is incredibly clean. It shoots consistantly too.
     

    spencer rifle

    Grandmaster
    Rating - 100%
    66   0   0
    Apr 15, 2011
    6,544
    149
    Scrounging brass
    it-lives.jpg
     

    Fordtough25

    Grandmaster
    Rating - 99.1%
    110   1   0
    Apr 14, 2010
    6,898
    63
    Jefferson County
    I usually buy what's on sale, but that's usually the pmc 223 or federal. I will echo that the federal has had more issues for me than the others, not enough for me to not buy it but. I would try some of each then buy the cheapest you can that works. 55 grain works great, m855 is superb for certain things but doesn't fragment like 55 grain does. IMO
     

    injb

    Sharpshooter
    Rating - 100%
    6   0   0
    Jul 17, 2014
    389
    28
    Indiana
    I recently bought some of everything I could find in Cabela's, which included most of these, then tried them all back-to-back at the range. Same day, same rifle etc.

    The best that I tried was definitely Hornady Steel Match 55gr. From my tests, I think I can see 3 levels of accuracy with the brands I tried, although sometimes the differences are small and I'm not a very experienced rifle shooter. But I would break them down like this:

    #1 Hornady Steel Match
    #2 Remington, Norma Tac
    #3 PMC Bronze, PMC X-Tac, Tula, IMI (I didn't see much difference between any of these 4).

    I'm very confident about the differences between #1 and everything else. I've switched back and forth a lot and my groups are always noticeably better with this. I'm less certain of the differences between #2 and #3 but that's how it seemed to me.
     
    Top Bottom