5.56 NATO vs .223 Remington - What's the Difference?

If you truly want to have your channel grow, think of orginal stuff, and not ride the coat tail of others. People are going to scroll past as they see a new channel, with a beat to death topic.
 
.223 bullet in a 5.56 chamber=ok
5.56 bullet in a .223 chamber= not a good idea

7.62 bullet in a .308 chamber = don’t do it
.308 bullet in a 7.62 chamber = Ok

Differences being slight in head space and fairly substantial in barrel pressure
 
rajczak_kashka said:
.223 bullet in a 5.56 chamber=ok
5.56 bullet in a .223 chamber= not a good idea

7.62 bullet in a .308 chamber = don’t do it
.308 bullet in a 7.62 chamber = Ok

Differences being slight in head space and fairly substantial in barrel pressure
Click to expand...

You sure? Was always told 762 is safe in 308. As 308 is higher pressure.
 
rajczak_kashka said:
5.56 bullet in a .223 chamber= not a good idea
Click to expand...

Well if you listen to Ian M's explanation, you'll hear that at least in his opinion, from his rather extensive experience with firearms, this is unlikely to be an issue except in extremely rare cases. Such as a very old .223 model built with minimal safety margins, bad metallurgy, or some other issue where the barrel chamber might be excessively weak. He's never heard of a single case of a firearm 'blowing up' or otherwise significantly failing owing to 5.56 being shot in a .223 rated barrel. Perhaps it has happened. He just hasn't heard of it, and he's someone who has shot a LOT of both of these calibres and has paid a lot of attention to AR-15 history and modern models. The reason he states for his lengthy explanation is that there is a lot of 'fudd' out there regarding the alleged safety issue, and he's just not seeing it.
 
rajczak_kashka said:
.223 bullet in a 5.56 chamber=ok
5.56 bullet in a .223 chamber= not a good idea

7.62 bullet in a .308 chamber = don’t do it
.308 bullet in a 7.62 chamber = Ok

Differences being slight in head space and fairly substantial in barrel pressure
Click to expand...

Lol. Not only are you wrong, but you got the myth wrong to boot.
 
rajczak_kashka said:
.223 bullet in a 5.56 chamber=ok
5.56 bullet in a .223 chamber= not a good idea

7.62 bullet in a .308 chamber = don’t do it
.308 bullet in a 7.62 chamber = Ok

Differences being slight in head space and fairly substantial in barrel pressure
Click to expand...

Wrong.
The 7.62x51 and 308 is actually the other way around, compared to the 223/5.56
 
I know many 5.56 platforms were stamped .223 due to perception in the US I have read.

Never had any issues shooting 5.56 out of my Savage stamped .223 bolt action Model 10 with it's medium contoured barrel, it's pretty beefy. Presently I have a mix of .223 and 5.56 and don't really pay much attention when shooting.

Don't know much about .308 or 7.62 as I don't shoot past 500 yards while varmint hunting and found .223/5.56 just fine for plinking, paper punching, and varmints.
 
The myth of 5.56 having higher pressure gets old. They use a different measurement system.

As for whether its safe, Forgotten Weapons and Lucky Gunner have the best information. Personally I’d recommend chronographing a round before deciding. I’ve shot 55gn “Independent” 5.56 in a 18.5” CZ bolt action and got 3400+ fps. Definitely higher pressures.
 
You can shoot 3" out of a 2 3/4" chamber, too, and live to talk about it, but that doesn't mean that it is okay, or safe, or that it should be recommended.

In my experience, 5.56 out of a .223-marked Colt chamber was unremarkable, but 5.56 out of a .223-marked Savage resulted in unusually heavy bolt lift.

The old advice - to match data stamp and headstamp - is sound, because that is the best practice.
 
Thanks I will pay attention to the bolt lift. Is the heavy bolt lift on your Savage a concern of possible breach failure.
 
I have a Ruger American Standard .223 (ca 2015) and fire 5.56 often - mil & barnaul & ppu - no probs.
Same with a 1960s Rem 722 in .308.
Both rifles are as accurate as I am :rolleyes:
YMMV
 
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