The Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute (SAAMI), one of the world’s foremost experts on firearm and ammunition safety and reliability since 1926, has added a new “Frequently Asked Questions” feature on its website: SAAMI.org. The organization creates and publishes voluntary firearm industry standards for safety, quality and interchangeability.
“We’re very happy to have this added functionality on the SAAMI website and think our site users will appreciate it, too,” said Brian Osowiecki, SAAMI Manager, Technical & Regulatory Affairs. “As the leading technical resource in the industry, we developed this FAQ section to answer the questions we field every day here at SAAMI, questions such as what the difference is between the 5.56 NATO and .223 Rem. cartridges, what the terminal energy is of a cartridge and many more, providing definitive answers to the public and industry members.”
The new section is a searchable, 22-page on-line document that makes looking up information—or ending those common rangeside debates with authority—fast and easy. For example, it addresses one of the more common questions asked by new AR-15 owners. “It is not safe to shoot ‘5.56’ ‘5.56 NATO’ or ‘5.56x45mm’ (‘5.56’) ammunition in a firearm with barrel marked as being chambered in .223 Rem. for a number of reasons,” according to the new FAQ. “The main reason being that a barrel marked as chambered in .223 Rem. will have a shorter throat into the rifling than a ‘5.56’ barrel which may cause increased pressure when the ‘5.56’ ammunition is fired in it.”
Headquartered in Newtown, CT, SAAMI was founded at the request of the U.S. federal government. The ANSI-accredited standards developer also coordinates technical data, and promotes science-based decision-making by regulators and legislators, as well as the safe and responsible firearms use. Today these efforts are conducted on a global scale.
