9mm AR Good or bad

[bmbutch]

I have a CMMG 9mm AR, which is one of my favorites, lots of fun to shoot.
Built my SBR as 9mm, went with Spikes Enhanced Magwell Adapter, so I can swap to other SBR Uppers, use CMMG Ramped Bolt, Gas Buster Charging Handle (requires a bit of dremel work with ramped bolt), & spikes LPK. It's a blast to shoot! Sent Form 4 in for suppressor 4 months ago.

 

[Gingerbread Man]

Opening a can of worms but apart from a plinker, why? A 10/22 is a better and amazingly cheaper plinker. Every time I look at a 9mm AR they are more than a regular AR and mags are expensive compared to AR-15 or Ruger 10/22 mags. They're pretty fussy as far as functioning and for the price of another 9mm AR and 9mm AR mags you could buy a lot of 5.56 ammo.

 

[rvb]

Opening a can of worms but apart from a plinker, why? A 10/22 is a better and amazingly cheaper plinker. Every time I look at a 9mm AR they are more than a regular AR and mags are expensive compared to AR-15 or Ruger 10/22 mags. They're pretty fussy as far as functioning and for the price of another 9mm AR and 9mm AR mags you could buy a lot of 5.56 ammo.

Sometimes the answer to "why" can be "Because it's something fun to shoot." Yes, a plinker.

.22 ammo is cheaper, yes, but if you're reloading 9mm it's not an order of magnitude or anything. I was already reloading good subsonic 9mm for competition use, so I didn't consider ammo cost an issue. Mags are 3-5x what a regular AR mag costs, but if cost was the biggest concern, you're right, you could pick up a 10/22. For a plinker, a couple mags is enough vs the dozens I have for my regular ARs.

I don't believe a quality 9mm AR, built to the colt design, with quality mags (metalform) is fussy at all. My experience with my build has been 100% reliability (after the first few mags as the carrier raceways smoothed out). Colts I've seen run 100%. Some of the other designs, eg the oly design or others that use glock mags, etc, do seem to have problems. I think a .22 is going to have bigger reliability problems.

You can get a 9mm much quieter than .223 with a silencer (but not as quiet as a .22), and it will still be viable for defensive use (can't say that about .22). You can't get a .223 AR as short either, if you are doing an SBR (my 9mm has a 5" barrel).

It's a wildly FUN gun to shoot. People always look sideways at it like WTF... until they shoot it.... especially shooting steel. My wife and her friends enjoy shooting this gun (mainly because it's so quiet) yet she hates the .223 ARs.

It doesn't have to be for everyone, but I don't see me getting rid of mine.

I use a 15/75yd zero w/ my 147gr handloads. really starts to drop fast past 110. Great 100 yd and under gun. 115s could maybe get you another 25-50 yds.

My 147gr chart
Range Impact
0 = -2.5
10 = -0.73
20 = 0.62
30 = 1.54
40 = 2.03
50 = 2.06
60 = 1.64
70 = 0.75
80 = -0.62
90 = -2.47
100 = -4.8
110 = -7.65
120 = -11
130 = -14.86
140 = -19.26
150 = -24.19

 

[Gingerbread Man]

I hear you RVB, I just always ask why. I have 3 300 Blkout uppers for my SBRs and some folks are asking why. Well, most are like WTH until I screw on the can and shoot subs. Then they have big grins.

 

[rvb]

I hear you RVB, I just always ask why. I have 3 300 Blkout uppers for my SBRs and some folks are asking why. Well, most are like WTH until I screw on the can and shoot subs. Then they have big grins.

If you already have a .300blk, then I wouldn't bother w/ a 9mm, either. The .300 ammo is going to be more expensive (even reloading) than 9mm, but the parts/mag commonality is a big plus. On the other hand, I have no use personally for .300blk because I already have the 9mm to shoot quiet. If I didn't have the 9mm, I would probably go .300 blk instead.

The only advantage that 9mm gets over .300 blk is cheaper (and more available) ammo/brass and ability to use a pistol-caliber-only ranges. Oh, and the ability to share silencer w/ a pistol...

-rvb

 

[Gingerbread Man]

I reload 308 and 5.56 so throwing 300Blk into the mix was a no brainer for me. I already had 5.56 and 7.62 cans, plenty of reloading compnents so I just had to buy brass and dies. Before THE PANIC I could get 300 Blk for $10 a box at PSA. But reloading 300 is easy and is costing me about $0.20 a rd to reload. I have no idea why a 20rd box is $35. I build my own guns so I just popped a 300 barrel on I was golden.
Anyway, if your happy, cool. I am.

 

[venenoindy]

I seen the 556 as low as .39 per rdn and 9mm the lowest I seen it .34 per round so I would rather shoot the 556.

 

[Kingpin]

After starting this thread I was on my way to the LGS to buy the Colt 9mm then I thought call my son and see if he was wanting to sell his Bushmaster .223 20" barrel with Nikon and Eotech glass wouldn't you know he made me a good deal. Now I have to put a hold on the 9mm maybe 2014 then again maybe 300blk to many choices for a gun guy.