What is NATO ammunition?
NATO ammunition refers to the small arms cartridges used by the member-states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Read on to understand the differences between a given cartridge’s civilian and NATO variants and determine if it’s safe to shoot NATO ammo in your guns.
What is the difference with NATO ammo?
The first difference is the higher pressure level of the 5.56 NATO cartridge which runs at approximately 58,000 psi. A 223 Remington is loaded to approximately 55,000 psi. The second and most important difference between the two is the fact that a 5.56 NATO chamber has a . 125” longer throat.
Is NATO ammo better?
That’s the biggest difference. 9mm NATO is a bit spicier than 9mm Luger. It’s accurate and reliable, but it’s definitely snappier because it’s designed to hit 1250+ feet per second out of a standard pistol. Most commercial 9mm ammo is going around 1100 feet per second with a 115 grain bullet.
What caliber is NATO round?
The 5.56 NATO round, however, wouldn’t go on to be adopted as the standard for the alliance until 1980. Ultimately, the decision to shift from 7.62 x 51 mm ammunition to 5.56 x 45 mm came down to simple arithmetic. The smaller rounds weighed less, allowing troops to carry more ammunition into the fight.
What calibers are NATO rounds?
The two primary calibers for small arms that are NATO standards are the 5.56 x 45mm and the 7.62 x 51mm and they have their civilian equivalents. The 5.56 x 45mm is the . 223 Remington while the civilian form of the 7.62 x 51mm is the .
Can .308 shoot 7.62 NATO?
As a result, commercial rounds can be up to 12,000 psi hotter than NATO. Therefore, general consensus dictates it’s perfectly safe to fire 7.62 NATO in a . 308 Win chamber, but the reverse is inadvisable.
Is 308 a NATO round?
308, and only shoot 7.62 NATO in rifles chambered for 7.62 NATO. Most rifle owners do use these two calibers interchangeably, however. Now, on to the fun stuff, because 7.62 NATO, also known as 7.62×51, is different from .
Why is 5.56 called NATO?
The FN-created cartridge was named “5.56×45mm NATO” with a military designation of SS109 in NATO and M855 in the U.S. These new SS109 ball cartridges required a 228 mm (1-in-9 inch) twist rate while adequately stabilizing the longer L110 tracer projectile required an even faster, 178 mm (1-in-7 inch), twist rate.