really need accurate info as to using 5.56 barrel is stamped 223 a friend at the range has same rifle and claims it can shoot either its a beefy gun and hehas had no issues just would like to know i keep getting different answers thankyou jon
Yes, it’s fine. They are the same thing. Just pay attention to any ammunition you use & look for signs of overpressure. Like the bolt very hard on primary extraction, a case stuck in the chamber, flattened primers, etc. If you find ammunition you’ve used exhibits any overpressure signs, cease using said ammunition.
JMO, I know some rifles are chambered to handle both the 223rem and the 5.56mm, but as a rule of thumb I would call Savage and ask them that question! some 223rem barrels are not designed to handle the pressures of the 5.56 cartridge, that's why it's marked 223rem just my thought's!
The 7,300 psi Pmax pressure of the .223 SAAMI spec (56,000) and 5.56x45 NATO spec (62,366) is well within the pressure limits of modern barrels. There is a .223 Remington pressure spec that is identical to the 5.56x45 spec. If your barrel is marked .223 Rem you probably aren't looking at any difference.
Ask Savage and I think you will find that it may even have a Wylde chamber which is bored to accommodate either cartridge length.
Exactly.
Here is the SAAMI answer.
It is safe to shoot 223 Remington ammunition in a 5.56 military specification chamber. The firearm manufacturer can verify whether the chamber in your firearm meets that definition.
However, due to the sizeable number of “wildcat” or non-military specification 5.56 chamber geometries in existence, SAAMI recommends that you consult the firearm owner’s manual or contact the firearm manufacturer for further guidance as to whether your firearm can safely shoot 223 Remington ammunition.
However, it is not safe to shoot “5.56,” “5.56 NATO,” or “5.56x45mm” ammunition in a barrel marked as being chambered in 223 Remington for a number of reasons. The main reason being that a barrel marked as chambered in 223 Remington will have a shorter throat into the rifling than a “5.56” barrel which may cause increased pressure if the “5.56” ammunition is fired in it. This can result in serious injury or death to the user and/or bystanders, as well as damage to the firearm
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Savage used to have a legal statement that you should not fire ANY surplus ammo in your gun unless it is marked for that ammunition. That would include 5.56, 7.62x51, and .30 Ball. They adhere to SAAMI specs and for legal reasons won't stray from that.
BUT...realistically it works. As noted above the pressure difference isn't that great. My experience with the .223 Axis is that the throat is longer than even the 5.56 spec. By the time I seated a bullet to touch the lands it would not fit in the magazine.
Where you might run into a problem is if you have a rifle made a few decades ago with the SAAMI spec throat.
Canalways just get a .223 wylde barrel. Thats what i did. And found this gun shoots the 223 factory gamechanger ammo to exact same poi as black hills 5.56 77tmk.
I posted previously about my experience with factory ammunition in a SAAMI chamber 223. I bought a can of bulk ammo marked 223 from a gunsmith. He said it would shoot in my rifle. Aguilla 55gr FMJ. Tight chambering, very heavy recoil, gas spray, and heavy bolt lift. Radar'd at 3230 fps. I think I fired maybe 5 rounds before stopping. Bulk ammunition could be 5.56. There are no absolutes.
Ok, for the Twenty-Eleventeenth Hundred time: The terms 223 & 5.56 refer to the Chamber. Just like Wylde. But the ammunition regardless, is all 223 ammunition! I’ve seen plenty of 223 ammunition that was very high pressure. Shot fine in some rifles; showed some pressure signs in others. The ammunition was the same. It was the chambers which differed I the rifles. People need to stop getting hung up on the name of individual ammunition & concentrate on their rifle’s chamber & what it likes/dislikes. Your modern, factory rifle is not going disintegrate because you shoot ammunition called 5.56. It’s a question of pressure. There will be pressure signs if your chamber is too tight for whatever ammunition you choose. Yes, SAAMI lists MAX at 55KPSI & 62KPSI respectively for 223 & 5.56, but that does not mean every ammunition call 5.56 will be over 55KPSI, the same as not every ammunition labeled 223Rem (DUH) will be under 62KPSI. And any rifle that can handle 55KPSI is not going to spontaneously go KABOOM because the ammunition is 62KPSI.
Now, all that said, the only ammunition this really matters for is True US LC M855 Green Tip, and perhaps some IMI ADI head stamp SS109, from Israel & Australia. And if anyone is looking to buy & use that ammunition in their Savage bolt actions, I would simply ask: Why on God’s green Earth would you want to use that stuff!?
To elaborate on Dave's statement that the chamber that makes the main difference, I provide the following experience - not with a .222/5.56x45 NATO, but with a 6.5mm CM.
I bought a new Savage 12 LRP in 6.5mm CM.
It shot great out of the box with factory ammo, but there were pressure signs with flattened primers and some flattening of headstamps.
I tried reloads using new Lapua brass with 130 to 147 grain bullets and different powders and they all showed similar pressure signs.
I varied my powder loads from 59K, 47 K and 39K chamber pressures and, amazingly, all the loads, even the really light loads, all showed the same pressure signs.
I sent an e-mail to Savage with pictures of factory cases, and the cases with the three different hand load pressures.
They responded with an e-mail to send the rifle back to them and even sent me a UPS shipping authorization.
They returned the rifle in about 3 weeks with a note that they bored out the chamber by a 'few thousandths".
The rifle shot just as accurately but without any pressure signs.
I even pushed a few loads up close to Pmax and saw no pressure signs.
Turns out that many target rifles have pretty tight chambers and tight chambers result in higher pressure.
I think my chamber being tight was more due to having the first chamber reamer close to the end of its useful life.
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