Someone gave my son 500 rounds of bulk ammo head stamped "LC 17" and said it is for a .223. I assume the LC is Lake Charles but have never seen the 17. There is no other markings and so fr I have only seen a cell phone pic of it. Does anybody know if this will be safe for the M&P Sport II Z?

LC is Lake City Ammunition Plant, they make ammo for US military. The 17 indicates original production was 2017.

As far as being safe, is it original manufacture, or is it reloaded? What is the source? Who is the "someone" who gave your son the ammo?

If the brass has the brass colored primer still crimped in place it will be factory new and safe to use.

Like cyphertext, I'm curious about the source. Even with recent sales and rebates, that's still almost $150 worth of ammo.

In laws gave it to him as a birthday present. Guess I'm just leery about chambering a round without knowing the caliber.

Yep you want to verify what caliber it is.


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If it is LC17 it is most likely 5.56 NOT .223!
You don't want this put in a rifle chambered for .223 - you'd be asking for TROUBLE!!!
If his rifle is a 5.56 you're good to go.

Lake City only produces 4 types of ammo... 5.56mm, 7.62mm NATO, .50BMG, and 20mm. These are pretty easy to tell apart just by looking at them.

Thank you all for the info and advice. The sport II barrel is stamped for 5.56, guess we'll give it a go.

Just for the record, Lake City Army Ammunition Plant is located in Independence, MO , it's a 3,935 acre facility owned by the government.
Usually marked with LC and the year of manufacture, 17 would mean 2017 , brand spanking new. If the primers are crimped it has not been reloaded and would be 5.56 military grade ammo .
The brass is of excellent quality...I have 45 acp , 7.62 Nato and some 30-06 brass (for M-1 Garand) that dates from WWII through the 1980's , most scrounged from old school Army-Navy Surplus stores...back when they had real surplus.
Shoot it in a rifle that can handle 5.56 mm...I still haven't figured out the 223/5.56mm thing. 500 rounds now that's a nice birthday present ! Good score , have a good time at the range.
Save the brass and decrimp the primers , it's very reloadable.
Gary

Dimensionally, the cartridge cases are identical.

A 5.56x45 chamber has a longer "leade" (that is, empty space before contacting the rifled portion of the barrel) than the 223 Remington. This difference can cause the 5.56x45 round to generate slightly higher pressures when fired from a 223 Remington chamber.

Because the slightly higher pressure can exceed the SAAMI maximum, it is recommended 5.56x45 ammunition not be fired in 223 Remington chambers. Ammunition appropriate to the marking on the gun should be bought (or loaded) and fired. But, because the pressure differences are small, should you mess up and fire a few rounds of 5.56x45 through a 223 rifle, you will almost certainly be okay. Still, it is not advisable to make a habit of it.

For more discussion on the subject see: 400 Bad Request

Mugsy909, the reason cyphertext likely asked these questions is that people frequently reload fired brass cases. Some of the people who reload believe that published load data is for "wimps" and so routinely exceed published maximums. Unless you know the person who reloaded ammunition very well and can have confidence in their ability and technique, reloaded ammunition from an unknown third-party should not be used.

[QUOTE=Unless you know the person who reloaded ammunition very well and can have confidence in their ability and technique, reloaded ammunition from an unknown third-party should not be used.[/QUOTE]

Would make one change to that statement. Instead of 'should not be used', I would say "Should never be used". As well as the possibility of a "Hot Load", there is the chance of a squib load.

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