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Is 5.56 NATO ammo the same as .308 caliber?

Answer:

No, 5.56 mm NATO ammunition is .223 caliber (having been developed from the Remington .223--originally the Remington .222 Special). Ammunition of .308 caliber is 7.62 mm, a larger NATO round, common to the M1 rifle and the M60 machine gun. There were a number of NATO nations at the height of the cold war that used 7.62 ammo for infantry weapons, the HK (Heckler & Koch) G3--manufactured in Germany--was primary among these. The G3 is still in production and there are many variants still in use today by NATO troops and the armies of other nations.

Note that, while 5.56x45 ammo is dimensionally similar to .223 Remington, and 7.62x51 ammo is dimensionally similar to .308 Winchester, in both cases, the rounds are not entirely identical, and vary in areas such as neck angles. 5.56x45 ammunition should not be used in a dedicated .223 barrel.

Contributor:

C.Hainsaw

First answer by C.Hainsaw. Last edit by BurningSaviour. Contributor trust: 231 [recommend contributor ]. Question popularity: 1 [recommend question].

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