RE: [HoE] Some Thoughts on Ammo

["Heivilin, Jim" <banzai@missouri.edu>]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Allan Seyberth [mailto:darious@darious.com]
> Subject: Re: [HoE] Some Thoughts on Ammo
> 
> 
<snip>
> Not true - I regularly hit a man sized silhouette at 300 yards (not
often
> enough, but regularly) with an M-16A2.
>
True and not really that difficult with a little practice.  I'm much
better with pistols and I can still hit the 250-300m target about 75% of
the time with a sixteen.  
 
> One primary difference between the AK-47 and the M16 is that the M16's
5.56
> round is a tumbler.  That means that instead of hitting you and going
> through, the 5.56 will spin in your body, theoretically creating a
higher
> chance of wounding instead of killing a man.
> 
If you get a chance take a look at the rounds (not the bullets, the
bullet is just the part that comes out the end - boy that sounds bad!).
IIRC a 7.62mm round is only slightly longer than a 5.56mm round.  Of
course it's diameter is larger.  Which means it will hold more powder
and theoretically (assuming the same grade of powder) have a higher
velocity.  Of course this is influenced by the fact that the bullet is
heavier (don't know how much).  I haven't had the chance to see civilian
rifle rounds but I would suspect that there is at *least* as much powder
in an assault rifle round as in a civilian hunting rifle round.  If I
remember I'll look in my reloading manual when I get home tonight.  

The M-16 round is 5.56mm which is .223 caliber.  Slight larger than a
.22.  However, the round is much larger.  I'm guessing that a 30-30
round is about the same size as a 7.62mm round.  

I don't know for certain if the tumbling of the 5.56 round is military
myth or not but I suspect it's entirely possible for such a light bullet
to tumble after impact.  As an aside in the AK-74, rumor had it that the
bullet had traces of arsenic (sp?) or cyanide.  

Jim H.