What is the difference between m855 and m193

The administration at the time sought to reclassify ammo like the XM and other steel core cartridges as armor-piercing in fear that they could be used to cause serious damage to citizens and law enforcement officers. Interestingly enough, during the same time as the government was looking to restrict steel-core ammunition, they also expressed interest in limiting the production of lead-based ammo because of environmental impacts. Fortunately, after short-lived hysteria, the ATF appears to have dropped any interest they had in banning or further restricting XM cartridges.

Choosing between the XM and the XM depends on a few factors, such as:. The general consensus is that mil-spec ammo outperforms its commercial counterparts for the sole reason that there are stricter regulations for ammo to meet military specification. Skip to content. Green Tip 5. Federal 5. You might also like:. Notify of. Inline Feedbacks.

Would love your thoughts, please comment. The first is that M has a heavier bullet. The 62 grain bullet inside the M round is heavier than the 55 grain bullet found in M A lot of that difference is due to the twist rate of the barrel you fire them from.

This can cause hiccups with the heavier 62 grain round. The other big difference between M and M ammo is inside the bullets themselves. Places like Lake City manufacture M ammunition like most full metal jacket ammunition. They build M slightly differently. The green tip on the bullet denotes that M has a steel core on the bullet. This helps it penetrate light cover, such as a car door. But body armor, especially Level IV body armor that is rated to resist rifle bullets , is quite tough.

We set up three tests to find out the armor piercing qualities of M relative to M The first was two plates of Level IV body armor. T he second was two plates of AR hardened steel. And the third was two plates of A36 mild steel. We shot them all at a distance of yards. We shot each pair of targets with a round of M ammunition and a round of M ammunition.

Average velocity for the ammunition measured at the muzzle was fps for the M round and fps for the M Neither round penetrated the armor, although both of them did leave significant bulges on the back side of the armor plate. Of course, it would hurt quite a bit to be shot with either round. However, neither penetrated enough to cause significant damage to someone wearing rifle-resistant body armor. When it comes to punching through body armor, there really is no difference between the steel-cored M and the M with its conventional, full metal jacket construction.

Manufacturers specifically harden AR steel to resist impacts and abrasions. Some ranges restrict its use, so be sure to check the rules at your local gun club before you use it. When it comes to performance on soft targets, M leaves a lot to be desired. The M does a better job here, although its performance in soft tissue is anything but predictable.

It is even longer than some 69 grain FMJs. This extra length requires a faster twist rate for proper in-flight stabilization. For this reason, M performs well in barrels with a or twist. Calculating the optimal spin rate of a specific projectile is well beyond my mathematical capabilities.

It does have a slight edge over M at longer ranges thanks to its improved ballistic coefficient. Civilians are not as restricted as the military when it comes to what type of projectiles we can use. While it will work in a pinch, an FMJ with or without a green penetrator tip is not the best choice for self-defense. Neither M nor M is going to provide solid gold performance. However, both of these cartridges are affordable, readily available, and consistent enough to make most shooters happy.

If you simply consider them a general purpose load, you can understand why these 5. Let your fellow shooters know — share this article using the Facebook, Twitter and other social media icons below. The more we all know, the better organized and stronger the shooting and hunting community will be. The Lodge AmmoToGo. Look for tips for the range here.

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