Not For Sporting Purposes? Wrong!

Bustin’ Big Bucks With the Ar and Drt Ammo.

- Chuck Taylor

In our modern world of political correctness, deceptive politics and don’t-bother-me-with-the-facts ignorance, the claim that the AR15 and AR carbine are “unsuitable for sporting purposes” and should, therefore, be banned from civilian ownership is commonplace. Day after day, night after night, the anti-gun news media parrots the phrase both verbally and in print, leading those who aren’t shooters or hunters to eventually believe the lie.

Yet, the facts they pointedly ignore show otherwise. In truth, both rifles are not only suitable for sporting purposes, they are actually excellent for nearly any kind of sporting endeavor—from recreational and competitive shooting to collecting and hunting.

Yes, I said, hunting. Hunters have long known that the AR15 and AR carbine (the civilian version of the military-designated M4) are excellent hunting rifles. And, why not? They possess all the attributes that a good hunting rifle needs: light weight, fast handling qualities, functional reliability and accuracy.

Varmint hunters, in particular, have long embraced ARs, realizing that hitting a moving jack rabbit, coyote, fox or bobcat is no mean feat. The semiautomatic AR, with its fast repeat shot capability, makes the task a little less difficult.

Loaded with either jacketed soft-point (JSP) or hollow-point (JHP) ammunition, the .223 REM/5.56 NATO cartridge has plenty of punch for such endeavors and is quite capable of downing any kind of game up to the size of javelina with no difficulty whatsoever. However, it’s long been believed that the .223 lacks the power and penetration to quickly and humanely down larger animals, such as deer.