A few years back I got a rifle chambered in .223 Wylde for plinking. It shoots great at 100 yards with 69 gr. hollow point boat tail Sierra Match King bullets in factory 5.56 ammo. A box of 20 rounds costs about $15-$16, but I shoot it slow and one box can last me a whole trip to the range.



My understanding is that hollow point rifle ammo is not used in the military, and 5.56 is not allowed for deer in many states.

Other than plinkers like me, what is the intended market for 5.56 match ammo.

Thanks

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As the name implies, it is designed for accuracy and intended for shooting competitions, also known as shooting matches.

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Pisgah

NRA High Power Service Rifle matches for one.

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SWCA#2439

Just because they are hollow point does not necessarily mean they are for hunting or defense. In particular, those match kings have been proven to be terrible game bullets. The hollow point is this case is merely a method of redistributing the mass of the bullet to change its center of gravity for steadier flight without changing the weight or the ballistic coefficient.

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In addition to excellent post #4, I believe the idea behind this style of “hollow point” rifle bullet was never to geared toward the hollow point. It was constructed from base upward, a flat base bullet, and the hollow tip is simply a by-product of manufacture.

Google:

MK262
MK262 Mod 0
MK262 Mod 1

The military uses these rounds on people, and they work very well. In this case, the first two are 77gr SMKs loaded at 5.56, while the final version is Nosler's version of the same bullet, also loaded at 5.56 pressure.

The open tip SMK has been the “go to” bullet for competitive rifleshooters for decades. The 168-175 smk has been the standard bullet for the military and law enforcement sniping community for decades also.
Polymer tipped bullets are making serious inroads now to replace or augment the open tip match bullets. Sierra makes several of their match bullets now in either the open tip or polymer tipped bullet.
The 77gr smk OT has proven itself on the battlefield in the Mk262 loads, as noted above.
In my Sierra manual, every page that lists smk’s has a disclaimer stating that the smk is not intended for hunting game animals. Seems to be a bit of dichotomy there, but it is what it is.

For High Power Service Rifle competition my .223 across-the-course bullet is 75 grain Hornady Open Tip Match or 77 grain Sierra Match King. Both deliver superb accuracy from 200 to 600 yards. For .308 the bullets of choice are the 168 grain or 175 grain SMK in Federal Gold Medal Match cases. Again, excellent performance in my M1A service rifle and bolt rifle.

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Tom in AZ
Respect the Dingbat

Got a couple of CZ 527s mini-Mausers in .223/5.56 for varmint hunting.

CZ says the use of either in their rifles is OK!

This has always been my understanding as well.

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Military small-arms are limited to non-expanding ammunition. Just because the military uses them on soft targets, does not mean they are the best bullet for such a purpose.

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It's the military training and equipment that gives those bullets a more lethal nature due to the inherent accuracy.

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I've used both the 77 grain 5.56mm SMK projectiles and the 168 SMK projectiles in the military so let me clarify some misunderstandings on these bullets.

The various international agreements outlaw the use of bullets designed to expand or fragment in humans and thus the FMJ bullet has been de rigueur for over a hundred and twenty years. In about 1990 or so, the Army's legal department distributed a document authorizing us to use the M852 Match ammo in our M21 and M24 sniper rifles in a combat role even though the bullet used in that round was a "hollow point." They opined that the bullet was not designed to expand or fragment in soft targets and was thus legal under the various Haig Conventions regarding small arms ammo. That interpretation has withstood the test of time and we now see the newer M118LR 7.62 Match ammo as well as the 77grain 5.56mm ammo in use. This ammo is superior to ball ammo in both trajectory and accuracy.

As they are not designed to expand, they really shouldn't be used for hunting. So, as many have already stated, it is for match shooting and for military sniping.

If you reload, it is easy to duplicate the military match ammo and thus cut the cost of shooting these projectiles significantly.

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Keep your powder dry.

Guy's like me who get off on shooting tiny groups on paper targets .
5 shot groups that can be covered with a nickle or dime just put a smile on my face and a song in my heart !
Happy Shooter,
Gary

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How far away do you put your matches?

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