#1 Purpose
There are a lot of things we use our rifles for outside of shooting paper for fun, with hunting, teaching, and self defense coming to mind.
Shooting paper - Well, any one of my rifles are fun for that, so let's move on to hunting.
Hunting - I've been squirrel hunting, and would like to go deer hunting next season, and the AR-15 is not the appropriate rifle for either of those cases. Squirrel is far too small to be using the .223, and deer too large. In these cases I would choose the 22LR, and the .308 respectively. The 22LR has a more appropriate ballistic behaviour (I'll speak on this later), and carries good energy for squirrel hunting, and it's also quiet enough that your not going to make your ears ring every time you fire. With deer, the .308 packs enough energy to drop a deer, but if used on a squirrel...well, you may not have much left...and the .308 is too loud...I wouldn't want to fire mine without earplugs.
There are also some legal considerations as to caliber, number of rounds in the clip, etc, but I'm no expert on this, so do your research before you take your AR out hunting.
Teaching - For someone new to firearms, I prefer the 22LR...it's cheap, it doesn't kick (so not intimidating to new shooters), it's not loud, it has a quick up and down ballistic curve (in relation to range), and wind has a noticeable effect on the bullet. These are all good things to drill home the lessons of ballistics.
Self Defense - In this case, I'd take anything loaded, but...if I had a choice, my AR-15 would be the first thing I pick up. Being semiautomatic is my #1 reason....it's going to give me the best chance of being alive at the end.
#2 Ballistics
From a ballistic standpoint, each caliber has it's own characteristics. This chart compares the rounds which I like to fire.
As you can see, depending on your range to the target, and the size of the vitals for the target, each caliber starts to show it's particular advantages. The 22LR is within the vital zone for squirrel from 10 yards to 60 yards, for this type of hunting this should make for an easy shot in the usual hunting range. If I were picking off groundhog or some other varmint out to 100+ yards, the 17HMR would be a better choice...the bullet flies flatter, and carries more energy than the 22LR (out to 200 yards anyway). For deer hunting, the .308 stays well within the vitals, even when zeroed for 220 yards.
#3 Cost to shoot
The cost of shooting is a definite consideration. If you want to go out and shoot all day, the 22LR just can't be beat...a block of 525 rounds can be had for $20 around here, after 100~150 rounds, I've had my fun, and haven't spent all that much money. The 17HMR isn't too terribly expensive at $13 for 50 rounds, moving up to the .223, I've been paying $40 for 100 rounds, and for the .308 prices are about $24 for 20 rounds! Breaking this down to cost per shot....
Caliber Price Each
22LR $0.04
17HMR $0.26
.223 Rem $0.39
.308 Win $1.20
You could fire 30 rounds of 22LR for the cost of a single round of .308!
I hope you've enjoyed my insight, and maybe this will help you make your point to the wife next time you are on the market for a new rifle.
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