SHTF: 5.56 or bust?
- Thread starter Shemp
- Start date
Well, that's the catch. It doesn't really work the same. Steel is going to require more cleaning in order to maintain 100% reliability.
That was my thought as well. If the world went to hell in a handbasket, I'd be throwing every gun I own and every round of ammo into the bed of my truck and heading for the hills!
That's the way I envision it going down.
I want to just go ahead and get a spot in the hills now so that I don't have to worry about heading there.
I want to as well...only the bank account is my limiting factor.
I'll likely grab my AK105 clone, 8 mags in my belt pouches, a tin of ammo and a "cleaning" bag.
I personally like the stuff I've gotten from SOTA better than the stuff I've gotten from PSA.
@DarthVader, question
I used to shoot mostly steel, and still shoot some, mostly when doing run and gun stuff where accuracy isn't an issue. I've always shot a mag of brass every few mags to help clean the chamber. I would always finish with bas while the gun was still hot. Wrong? Never had a single issue with steel beyond a few hard primers, but don't know if my "technique" does any good or not.
I don't see a world where ammo scavenging is a possibility, and if you are scavenging ammo you may as well take the guns too. Stack whatever gun that's reliable and you can shoot well. ARs are easier to shoot well because of the sights. But if running an optic or red dot, aks are fine out to about 300. I've seen plenty of steel .223 below .22/rd, and even reloaded brass is .30/rd.
I used to shoot mostly steel, and still shoot some, mostly when doing run and gun stuff where accuracy isn't an issue. I've always shot a mag of brass every few mags to help clean the chamber. I would always finish with bas while the gun was still hot. Wrong? Never had a single issue with steel beyond a few hard primers, but don't know if my "technique" does any good or not.
I don't see a world where ammo scavenging is a possibility, and if you are scavenging ammo you may as well take the guns too. Stack whatever gun that's reliable and you can shoot well. ARs are easier to shoot well because of the sights. But if running an optic or red dot, aks are fine out to about 300. I've seen plenty of steel .223 below .22/rd, and even reloaded brass is .30/rd.
I can't see many scenarios where shooting past 300 yards would be possible even in the suburbs where I live.
I get that. I'm finally getting to where I want to be financially and just am just not ready to walk away from the business opportunities to go live that quiet lifestyle just yet. It's kind of a catch 22.
Completely understand. But with the standard iron sights on both rifles, I would call an AK half as accurate as an AR, even though the inherent accuracy is closer. A 300 yard shot is at least as difficult as a 600 yard shot with an AR. The loadout is heavier and the recoil is worse.
If this advice is for a non shooter, then the AR hands down. If this someone already has an opinion, then they should do what they want.
Originally intended for a non-shooter but now this has morphed into something else....
I agree, standard AK sights are horrid. Tech sights help, but make the gun far more difficult to disassemble. I don't know if that trade off is worth while...being that tech sights replace a part of the fun that is integral to function I am leery of relying on them.
The equation becomes a bit more blurred when it is AK 74 vs AR. Still have crappy sights, but the terminal effectiveness of 5.45 is superior ( arguable) than 5.56 using standard ball rounds and the load out is on par weight wise...
Actually, shooting brass after steel can create issues because of how brass expands and seals against the chamber walls. Steel doesn't fire form like brass to seal the chamber and allows alot of crud into the chamber during firing. Shooting brass behind it often leads to a stuck brass case when the brass expands and sticks. As long as you use a chamber brush every few hundred rounds, you should be trouble free.
That was my thinking. But I infered most of the stuck case issues are from shooting steel, then shooting brass in the next session. My thinking was, by alternating together, the brass fireforms and removes the crud left behind from the steel. That doing both, while the gun is still hot, I can use the brass as a cleaning agent before it builds up too much and had a chance to set in and congeal in the chamber.
Does this also hold true when using a .22 conversion kit? I've heard you are supposed to run full 5.56 after a few hundred rounds of .22 conversion to clean out the gas tube, etc, but never thought about junk getting back in the chamber
Stuck cases are just a fact of life with steel. Sooner or later it's gonna happen unless you scrub the chamber every now and then.
That's more about blowing out all the lead and powder from the gas tube. If it accumulated over time, it could begin to restrict gas flow.
I get that, but does the .22 conversion allow for build up in the chamber and require a brush as you mentioned?
Honestly, I don't know. I've never used a conversion kit, just a dedicated upper. I would hope that the o-ring usually found on the conversion would keep the crud in the bore and out of the chamber.
I would tell him to get a AK. Simply because he can stockpile ammo for it rather cheaply.
gotcha (I'm too cheap for a decidated .22 upper for now); I tend to do a full clean after most shooting, but was honestly curious as to how much junk gets past the .22 conversion.