Steels cases ??
A friend bought me a bunch of cheap Steel cased FMJ TULA 223 ammo, any problem with using them it in a Colt AR??
0
-
No worries, use them. By the way The words "cheap" and ".223" can no longer be used in the same sentence.[:0] 0 -
This topic comes up again and again and again (just do a search on "steel case" and maybe "AR-15").
Bottom line is, steel case ammo won't hurt your AR-15. At worst you may get dirty chambers, requiring more cleaning for reliable operation afterwards with brass ammo, and/or you may contribute to wear and tear on the guns extractor, which is a relatively cheap and easy to replace part.
See here for plenty of discussion:
http://forums.gunbroker.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=570914
http://forums.gunbroker.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=354008
quote:beantownshootah
Posted - 09/02/2012 : 2:21:42 PM
The steel cases themselves are made of inexpensive soft steel. They don't wear out gun chambers, which are made of high grade hardened steel.
The problem is that steel isn't as elastic as brass. When you fire a brass case, the case heats up and the brass expands. . .sealing the cartridge neck. . .and then afterwards contracts, allowing easy extraction.
With steel cases, the round expands less than the brass so you don't get as good a seal, allowing chamber dirt to sneak in around the case neck. Then the round doesn't contract as much, making extraction more difficult. Brass is more "slippery" than steel, again, easing extraction.
Put more simply, for a variety of reasons steel cased ammo is a lot more "sticky" than brass, and this can lead to difficulty in extraction in AR pattern guns, or semi-auto handguns that run straight-wall design cartridges.
If you look at the Russian/Commie bloc cartridges DESIGNED to be made out of steel, like the AK-47 7.62x39 or the Mosin Nagant 7.62x54R, both those rounds use cone-shaped cases specifically designed to make extraction easy.
It can be particularly problematic firing ordinary brass cartridges AFTER steel ones, because of the chamber dirt issues. People used to attribute this to lacquer buildup in the chamber from coatings on the steel cases, but I think that's only a small part of the picture.
Bottom line is, no, steel cases won't "ruin" your gun, but increased effort to pull out spent cases can cause extractors to fail prematurely, and they can cause increased numbers of jams (including difficult to quickly correct ones with cartridges lodged tight in chambers).
I'd say these are OK for practice *IF* you're willing to scrub your chambers and/or replace extractors more frequently. If you shoot a lot, and can't reload to save costs, that may be a viable option.
To the extent possible, I'd avoid the steel stuff for any "serious" application, with the exception of the Commie Bloc guns designed to run this type of ammo.
Personally, unless I have no choice, I will not run steel case ammo through any of my handguns or non-Commie bloc pattern rifles. For me, the few cents a round savings in ammo cost isn't worth the worry or possible hassle.0 -
Thanks guy's, I appreciate it..
Buying them for $6.00 a box of 20, is what I call cheap seeing I pay $15.00 for 20 Winchester coyote rounds..
I doubt I would have bought them had I known they were steel cased, but when he called and said they were $6.00 I had him buy 25 boxes of them with out thinking about the material they were made with..0 -
quote:Originally posted by mrbruce
Thanks guy's, I appreciate it..
Buying them for $6.00 a box of 20, is what I call cheap seeing I pay $15.00 for 20 Winchester coyote rounds..
Well, there is a big difference in quality between american-made brass case ammo with premium hunting type bullets, and cheap russian made .223 with steel cases.
I'm not convinced a coyote on the receiving end would know the difference, but I think if you're trying to make a long shot you'll at the very least notice better accuracy from the good stuff.
quote:
I doubt I would have bought them had I known they were steel cased, but when he called and said they were $6.00 I had him buy 25 boxes of them with out thinking about the material they were made with..
I think you made the right move here.
Right now, $6 a box is pretty good price for this stuff, especially from a brick and mortar store.
6 months ago, you could buy all the .223 steel case you liked at $5 a box, or maybe even a bit less if you bought in bulk.
Right now, because of Obama gun panic #2, the stuff is effectively sold out everywhere. Price has jumped to $6 a box post election and its probably even higher now if you can find any.0
Please sign in to leave a comment.
Comments
4 comments