WHAT IS THE BEST AMMO FOR OVERALL STOPPING POWER? DO I GO WITH 5.56? WHAT BRAND OF AMMO?
There is no such thing as stopping power. Spend a couple of days reading the stickies and learn.
Start here: Terminal Ballistic Information sub-forum.
And please don’t use ALL CAPS.
Welcome to the forum. You’ll find the people here knowledgeable and friendly, provided you ask questions thoughtfully and respectfully.
How did you find this website?
Why do you have “streetgang” in your name?
cuz he boutaboutit, gaw.
Being a career cop, and having to deal with these douche bags on a daily basis, I frakkin hate gangbangers.
Just sayin.
Gangbangers have PC’s now?
If so we could end the banging by showing em all youtube and some good ole fashion pron sites.
PBR Street Gang it the name of the river boat that carried Capt Willard on his quest to find Col Kurtz. Apocalypse Now movie.
good to see there are ppl in here that enjoy a great flick… as for you tpd3223, well i have the utmost respect for our police community… luckily not all cops make immediate kneejerk assumptions base on a name, im guessing you will never make detective based on your poor observation skills…im glad your not “serving and protecting” in my neighborhood, as most of the police in my area think first then act…
Some af ya can remove foot from own mouth now…LOL!
Jump to conclusions…insert foot in mouth.
We all have to eat crow now and again, it’s good for the soul.
I honestly saw and thought similar, but I feared saying anything (But was tempted) because I did not know if there was a secret meaning to his handle. There is.
Not me. I don’t care about usernames… it’s the fishy question asked.
When I read that question I immediately thought… this guy is a fresh pistol convert! 
When I first got my Glock back in 1993 I started grabbing magazines and reading… everything was about STOPPING POWER…how much force is generated by what round…what caliber…and what bullet transmitted the most energy into the mass struck.
I guess with rifles I never asked because I figiure that its so much more power than my 9mm pistol… its a moot point. Its like getting hit by a freight train compared to my 9mm pistol.
So that’s what I though… low post count, new to the rifle board, asking a question not heard often around these parts… about to be insulted and attacked for beeing a NOOB!
Poor guy, he never stood a chance. 
your right, the question seems a wee bit fishy…in fact quite dumb… allow me to elaborate… i work in remote locations in enviromental assesments and need to carry a rifle for personal protection. there is a whole host of wildlife threats including grizzly and black bear, cougar, (my personal fav) wolverine, and surprisingly deer… the areas i work are so remote that most wildlife do not see us as a threat, but rather a nuisance and will attack if feeling a little territorial. in the past i have carried my winchester defender, but it is getting beat up pretty bad and i would like to try my ar15 as an alternative. so to sum up, im really just looking for the best all around ammo for this scenario.
does that make a bit more sense?
If you bring an AR out into the woods and run into a grizzly bear, I hope you are quick at changing mags.
Really? That surprizes me a bit. What kind of rifle could you carry that would be a great margine better?
I would have though the 5.56 Nato stuff would take down a bear since it seems to take down a man in the battle field.
Ya cant carry most .50 cals that I’ve ever seen unless its a black powder 50 cal.
Would a AK with its 7.63 larger diameter bullet be a better round for large/violent game…say while working remote areas of the Alaskan pipeline…think pissed off, starved half to death polar-bears.
Now I’m interested, I honestly would have thought a few 5.56 rounds into a charging bear would have his guts sliced and diced into mush from the fragmented 5.56 going harry-carry threw its abdomend in all directions.
Would maybe a 30-06 hunting rifle do better?
I dont hunt bear, WTF do those bear hunters use? Cannons?
Here’s an article/forum about someone who killed a Polar Bear with an AR. Said they shot it 7 or 8 times.
http://newsminer.com/news/2008/mar/28/polar-bear-killed-fort-yukon/
It wouldn’t be my choice. I’ve hunted in northern MN for over the last 25 years and I’d rather have a .308 or 30-06. I’m NOT a ballistics expert…but my grandfather was a gun smith, reloader and one hell of a hunter and he never went into the woods without his Enfield 30-06.
I had a simliar conversation with him once about why he didn’t bring his Colt AR-15 or Mini 14 with him instead.
His reply was something along the lines of “what, you want me to piss him off before he kills us?”
Obviously you can kill a bear with an AR, but I don’t know if I’d chance it personally. That’s just me.
Having seen polar bear in the wild, that guy was just plain lucky she was a juvenile. Big browns are scary enough and they don’t get nearly as large or mean as the polar bears.
I hunt brown bear in Alaska every other year and grizzlies in northern CONUS every year. Nothing like stalking an animal that’s a few steps higher than you on the food chain. My primary rifle is a lever action Marlin 1895G Guide Gun chambered in 45/70 Gov’t with 420gr hardcast bullets at ~1800fps. It will drill a .458" hole all the way through any animal that walks. My backup gun is a 12ga Remington 870 slug gun. Other popular bear calibers are various .338 bolt action rifles and the classic African calibers. The big bears are different than other game animals in the states. Even if they had their “guts shredded” as you suggest, they can and will try to kill you before they die. These are very tough animals that don’t bleed out quickly. You need to put big bullets in vital areas (head/heart/lungs)…which means deep penetration with heavy projectiles. .223/5.56 isn’t particularly effective in that area.
From reading your requirements, I’d suggest you look at the .308/7.62 AR variants (AR10, etc). Not optimum for grizzly, but I’ve killed several with .30cal rifles in the past. 6.8SPC / 6.5G might also work if you’re looking at smaller bears and get good bullet placement…or enough bullets on target. Then there’s the big bore AR market, such as .50 Beowulf, .458 Socom, etc.
I’ve taken quite a few decent sized whitetails with .223 over the years, but it’s certainly not my first choice. I was in a blind and was able to take my time to get the “right shot.” As such, I declined to take more shots than I fired. In defensive situations, you don’t get that option, so I’d pick a larger caliber if I were you.
:D:D:D
My grandpa used to own a 444 Marlin. He said he shot one deer with it and sold it. Said it picked the deer up and threw it into a tree and him on his a$$.
From Marlin’s website:
A big bore favorite that combines the power of the big 444 Marlin cartridge−which generates nearly 1.5 tons of muzzle energy−with the quick and super-smooth Marlin lever action system. Its 22" barrel makes the 444 a real joy to handle, no matter what the conditions.
For a visual reference:
45/70 vs. 5.56
