AR 15 .22 conversion kit

[chuwee81]

i got a very stupid question here; The reason you get a conversion kit is to save money, training purposes, etc,etc. Basically encourages/ enables you to shoot more. Now, would thousands of .22 lr wear out the barrel faster than regular use with .223?

Let's say you shoot 100 rds of .223 per trip. With the cheap .22 you burn 400-500 rds. Would the rifling wear out faster ? anybody has the wear ratio down ? like how many .22 lr rounds fired equal to .223 rds fired in terms of wear ??

Now, let's say i'm an idiot and all these things don't matter and say i still got a bunch of .22lr left and HEAVILY persuaded to get a kit, which one would you recommend based on experience?

ps: I already had a 10/22, and not really looking for another whole different rifle.

Thanks !!

 

[Avenger29]

No, .22LR does not wear rifling from all the information I have read on the subject. You shouldn't have any problems above the normal bit of pickiness that these units have.

 

[Maverick223]

It doesn't have the velocity nor the large powder charge that make a good barrel eater. Of course some wear will occur, but shoot away, it will take a LOT of .22lr rounds to wear out that barrel. You can't put a real number on how many rounds (.22lr vs. .223/5.56) because it is variable, it will change due to the velocity of the ammunition (for both cartridges), the type of powder used, the weight of the projectiles, the type of projectiles (shape and metallurgy), the rate of fire, the barrel, and a whole slew of other variables...but I would say that you could easily fire 100 rounds of .22lr for every round of .223/5.56.

 

[WoofersInc]

Actually you won't get a lot of wear from 22LR. You will get some leading of the barrel. A 22LR bullet is actually .223 in diameter while the barrel of an AR is .224. So the 22LR bullet is not as firmly gripping the barrel walls and rifling as a 223 round would.

Also for some the accuracy will not be as good as it would from a dedicated 22 rifle. Most 22LR have a 1/16 twist ratio while most AR's will run 1/7-1/9 which is to fast of a rate for the 22's.

If you do go with a conversion unit be good about maintainence after using 22LR. The chamber can get gunked up leading to chambering and extraction issues. Also pay attention to the gas system which can be fouled by lead from the 22's.

A lot of people have and use conversion units without any problems but these were just a couple of things that I found while looking into them.

 

[wally]

At $0.03 per shot vs. $0.40+ it didn't take too long to pay for my Spikes Tactical dedicated .22LR upper. POA/POI differences (especially if you have an optic) between 5.56 and .22LR will be another thing to consider.

I've no regrets about spending the extra to go the dedicated upper route.

--wally.

 

[Maverick223]

POA/POI differences (especially if you have an optic) between 5.56 and .22LR will be another thing to consider.

If I were to purchase one, I would either have a dedicated upper, or quick detachable mounts with two optics (one for rimfire and one for centerfire) that can be swapped out as needed.

 

[twofourthree73]

At $0.03 per shot vs. $0.40+ it didn't take too long to pay for my Spikes Tactical dedicated .22LR upper. POA/POI differences (especially if you have an optic) between 5.56 and .22LR will be another thing to consider.

I've no regrets about spending the extra to go the dedicated upper route.

--wally.

Ditto