Diff. ammo for diff. purposes: plinking/defense/SHTF: .223 and 7.62x39

[the naked prophet]

I see a lot of different discussion about where the cheapest ammo is, what's good and what's not, etc. But not a lot about what ammo is best for what.

My wife has a bushmaster AR15 and I have a Romanian AK. We shoot a lot, and we keep them loaded in the house (no kids), and we try to keep a bit back in case of some unspecified S that might H yet another unspecified F.

For plinking, most agree that Wolf is fine. Smelly, dirty, and maybe less reliable than the good stuff, but in general OK, at least for an AK. Other plinking ammo would be what? For plinking, the motivating factor would be low cost - safety is a given, but beyond that price is the most important factor.

However, what ammo for defensive purposes? For instance, home defense or a small riot situation, minor local disaster, etc. Do you buy hunting ammo (JSP, JHP, ballistic tip, etc), do you load up military surplus ball, or do you use "tactical" super $1.50/round stuff? What would be a good defense load for both .223 and 7.62x39? I recall reading about some barrier/gelatin tests for the .223 that were very interesting, but does anything like that exist for the 7.62x39? Is that stuff too expensive to function test, zero, and keep a couple 30 round mags loaded up?

And that brings us to SHTF ammo. Short term like Katrina, where you might have to fight off armed gangs for a week or two until either you can leave or the authorities can return (the above category might be better suited for this), or long term like something from "Lights Out." In order to stockpile a significant amount, it needs to be cheaper than the $1.50/round stuff, but it needs to be more reliable than Wolf. Military surplus is generally what I think of when I think of this ammo (partly because of shelf life, sealed cans, etc.) but is there another/better option? Is FMJ better due to increased barrier penetration, or is some sort of expanding round best?

Just curious on everyone's opinions on these three types of ammo.

 

[Don't Tread On Me]

Well, here's my take on it.


For 7.62x39mm:

plinking: anything, cheaper the better.

Defense: Barnaul (silverbear etc..)FMJ. This is a little hotter than Wolf, and is Zinc plated. Some people report better function with these than with Wolf. Is slightly cleaner as reported by some folks. Stick with FMJ's as it seems some AK's done like JHP's. Or, you could co with the brass cased U.S. made ammo like Winchester etc...I like the Barnaul better. However, the difference is almost unoticible, but it might be for some people.


For .223:

plinking: I like Wolf. It works in my AR's. If not, then I'd look for a cheap mil-surp ammo that works. If not, then look for something like American Eagle. If you can't do Wolf or the cheaper import surplus, price will be high.

Defense: I like the 75gr Hornady stuff. It is best price/performance/availability out there. TAP, either black or red box (if you can get that) is fine. In fact, even their 75gr "Match" is fine too. Also, 77gr anything is good. After that, I'd say the 68 or 69 grain loads, any kind. After that probably the 64gr power point..then the military surplus like 55gr XM193.

 

[rangerruck]

I use both for both, and both, if the second reaon every pops up.