Tactical Rifleman Fires 5.56 Under a Car to Test Cover

Tactical Rifleman put a car to the test by firing roughly 28 rounds of 5.56 underneath it, then walking the length of the vehicle to see where skipped rounds and bullet fragmentation ended up on cardboard placed around it. The short clip is a quick, visual lesson on which parts of a car actually stop bullets and which parts just look like cover.

Key points

• The test: About 28 rounds of 5.56 were fired underneath the car to map where fragments and ricochets traveled.
• Wheel hub holds up: Tactical Rifleman says the area around the wheel hub came out clean, with no penetrating hits.
• Everywhere else gets hit: Moving down the length of the vehicle, the cardboard showed penetrating marks from skipped rounds and secondary fragmentation.
• Not likely fatal, still bad: The video states these fragment hits probably wouldn't kill you, but would "ruin your day."
• Priority order for cover: Tactical Rifleman says the engine block is the primary spot to use for cover, with the wheel hub as the secondary option.

Quick take

It's a short clip, but the point is useful: a car isn't uniform cover, and most of its body won't stop rounds or the debris they kick up. Tactical Rifleman's demonstration backs up the standard advice to get behind the engine block first and the wheel hub second if that's all that's available.

Watch the full video: Tactical Rifleman