This debate will never truly end. Before I start getting hate mail and people yelling at me over social media I want to say right now, I’m not a scientist, nor do I have numerous ballistic tables. All I will speak of is personal experience and common knowledge. This debate has been around since the M16 replaced the M14 in the Vietnam War. Let’s state some obvious facts; the 7.62 has higher muzzle energy and is a larger round. The 5.56 is faster and is a smaller round. The 7.62 can penetrate hard targets much easier and more accurately. The 5.56 can cause collateral damage to a soft target (flesh) while the 7.62 will simply punch a hole.
5.56 NATO
The 5.56 is such a light round that is moves through soft targets very quickly however if it hits a hard target like bone it will tumble and cause great damage to the surrounding area. When the U.S. chose the 5.56 their stipulations were that it had to be light, and it had to penetrate a steel helmet at 500 yards (like the ones the soviets wore). Obviously the 5.56 met these standards, they liked this round so much because it had the capability to disable rather than kill. A casualty and a kill mean the same in the overall numbers game of warfare. There is a famous picture o JFK holding an M16A1 in the oval office alongside another man holding a cross bow, it really is a bad ass photo. It has been said that he had the final say and the only reason we use it today is because he liked it so much. People overly criticize the 5.56 saying it lacks “stopping power”, however if you take a 5.56 round to the pelvis you are out of the fight.
7.62x39
There’s only so much you can say about this bastard of a round. What? I’m not biased! You can find this round almost anywhere; it certainly is the round of our enemies. My AK will chew up any type of 7.62 I feed her, she’s not picky. You can find many varieties of this ammo from all over the world. I have Tula ammo stocked, made in Russia. The power of the 7.62 speaks for itself. The cartridge looks funny if you really look at it, large bullet, no neck, and a fat little short body. Anyone can go on Youtube and find 100 different comparison videos so we should all know that the 7.62 can make watermelons go boom better than a 5.56 big deal. What is important is: power, price, durability and effectiveness. The 7.62 is a better hard target penetrator all around but contrary to popular belief of all couch ninjas and manly men alike it does have heftier recoil.
Side by side
If you look at these two rounds side by side there is a noticeable difference. One is obviously bigger and bulkier, one is slim and streamlined. 7.62 rounds are cheaper, by like a lot! I can find it for about $5.50 for a box of 20 rounds. The cheapest I can find 5.56 is $11 a box of 20. I personally enjoy shooting both calibers because they are fun in their own ways. 5.56 is great for accuracy out of the box and a lighter recoil round. The 7.62 is great for dumping 30 rounds into the side of a dirt hill from the hip without feeling your wallet cry inside your back pocket. 5.56 is dead accurate at 500 yards taking the wind into account. I have never pushed a 7.62 to that distance so I can only say the 7.62 is accurate at 100 yards with a red dot on top of my AK. Honestly it was pleasantly surprising the level of accuracy I had with my AK. I have both rifles in each caliber for a reason; if I can’t find one caliber in a SHTF scenario I WILL find another. These are arguably the two most common battle rifle calibers in the U.S. the great thing about them is availability, even during the ammo shortage a couple years ago you could still find it. My personal favorite one of the two is 5.56 because it’s accurate and I like the AR platform more personally. If all else fails when North Korea decides to invade the U.S. we can share ammo!
Prepper101
5.56 NATO
The 5.56 is such a light round that is moves through soft targets very quickly however if it hits a hard target like bone it will tumble and cause great damage to the surrounding area. When the U.S. chose the 5.56 their stipulations were that it had to be light, and it had to penetrate a steel helmet at 500 yards (like the ones the soviets wore). Obviously the 5.56 met these standards, they liked this round so much because it had the capability to disable rather than kill. A casualty and a kill mean the same in the overall numbers game of warfare. There is a famous picture o JFK holding an M16A1 in the oval office alongside another man holding a cross bow, it really is a bad ass photo. It has been said that he had the final say and the only reason we use it today is because he liked it so much. People overly criticize the 5.56 saying it lacks “stopping power”, however if you take a 5.56 round to the pelvis you are out of the fight.
7.62x39
There’s only so much you can say about this bastard of a round. What? I’m not biased! You can find this round almost anywhere; it certainly is the round of our enemies. My AK will chew up any type of 7.62 I feed her, she’s not picky. You can find many varieties of this ammo from all over the world. I have Tula ammo stocked, made in Russia. The power of the 7.62 speaks for itself. The cartridge looks funny if you really look at it, large bullet, no neck, and a fat little short body. Anyone can go on Youtube and find 100 different comparison videos so we should all know that the 7.62 can make watermelons go boom better than a 5.56 big deal. What is important is: power, price, durability and effectiveness. The 7.62 is a better hard target penetrator all around but contrary to popular belief of all couch ninjas and manly men alike it does have heftier recoil.
Side by side
If you look at these two rounds side by side there is a noticeable difference. One is obviously bigger and bulkier, one is slim and streamlined. 7.62 rounds are cheaper, by like a lot! I can find it for about $5.50 for a box of 20 rounds. The cheapest I can find 5.56 is $11 a box of 20. I personally enjoy shooting both calibers because they are fun in their own ways. 5.56 is great for accuracy out of the box and a lighter recoil round. The 7.62 is great for dumping 30 rounds into the side of a dirt hill from the hip without feeling your wallet cry inside your back pocket. 5.56 is dead accurate at 500 yards taking the wind into account. I have never pushed a 7.62 to that distance so I can only say the 7.62 is accurate at 100 yards with a red dot on top of my AK. Honestly it was pleasantly surprising the level of accuracy I had with my AK. I have both rifles in each caliber for a reason; if I can’t find one caliber in a SHTF scenario I WILL find another. These are arguably the two most common battle rifle calibers in the U.S. the great thing about them is availability, even during the ammo shortage a couple years ago you could still find it. My personal favorite one of the two is 5.56 because it’s accurate and I like the AR platform more personally. If all else fails when North Korea decides to invade the U.S. we can share ammo!
Prepper101