RE: Hate to ask a dumb question but how loud is a .223 ???
 

If my Mini-14 experience is any indication, a .223 is plenty loud.

I generally wear ear plugs under ear muffs for protection. I've gotten to the age that I realize that the hearing I lose today won't be back tomorrow.

RE: Hate to ask a dumb question but how loud is a .223 ???
 

WHen I looked at this post a few days ago, no one had mentioned it, so I guess I'd better do so now....

When you're looking at how loud a .223rem is going to be, you've got to consider the action type and bbl length. Bbl length has an effect on the volume of all rounds, if you're wasting powder outside the bbl, you're getting a bigger bang and muzzle flash, if your powder is burnt more efficiently and completely, it's a bit quieter.

An AR-15 is bound to be considerably louder than a bolt action rifle as well, especially from the perspective of the shooter...when the action opens, sound gets to travel straight back in your face, and it gets pumped around in the gas system right back at you. In a bolt gun, all the sound goes out the front, it might seem REALLY quiet to the shooter, but much louder to the person standing beside him, and MUCH moreso to someone downrange.

One major difference in the .22lr and the .223 is the fact that the .223 breaks the sound barrier (by a LONG SHOT!!!) Most .22lr rounds are barely approaching the sound barrier, most .223 rounds are approaching Mach 3!! Moral of the story, if suppressors weren't illegal, a bolt action .22lr rifle could be made completely silent, you'd hear the lockwork over the shot, a .223 could never be silenced because it creates a sonic boom.

That said, the .223rem isn't that loud. It's not a very high pressure round, so even though it's a small bore (smaller bores, given equal cartridge volume, are typically louder-.243vs .308, .25-06 vs. .30-06), it's not that loud.

No, you're not going to be able to shoot the neighbors cat off her porch without her hearing a shot, but you're not going to really aggravate the neighbors a mile away if you're shooting in your backyard in the country.

Can I ask why you're worried how loud it is? Granted some people do hunt NEAR urban areas and don't like to hear complaints (I figure screw them, I've got permission to be here and make the noise I'm going to make), but Most people concerned with being quiet have rather bad intentions, why else would you be trying to hide?

RE: Hate to ask a dumb question but how loud is a .223 ???
 

I think I did mention barrel length. And most .22's are supersonic, unless you are shooting longs or subsonic LR target ammo. That is why you hear the CRAAACK when they shoot. It's the bullet breaking the sound barrier. Subsonic .22 rifles are pretty quiet even with out a silencer. A .223 is louder because it has like 5 times the powder or something. It also may have something to do with a larger object breaking the sound barrier, but I'm not sure.

And it's been my finding that closed breach systems, like a bolt action or break open are louder than a auto, not the other way around. Because you are bleeding off gasses that would otherwise go out the barrel.

I don't think the amount something breaks the sound barrier by makes it any more noisy. I don't think speed is as much a factory as size is, because of the size of the shockwave. Planes are not any louder at mach 1 than they are at mach 2, but they are waaaay louder than any rifle when they break the sound barrier.

Paul

RE: Hate to ask a dumb question but how loud is a .223 ???
 

As far as from an overall standpoint, yes, bolt guns are louder than autos, but this isn't true from the perspective of the shooter.

RE: Hate to ask a dumb question but how loud is a .223 ???
 

My .223 is loud, and I mean LOUD. I have to wear hearing protection to shoot it or my ears ring forever it seems like. It makes more noise than my 30-30 or 12 gauge.