Is steel cased ammo bad?
I've been offered what appears to be a really good price on steel cased hollw point 7.69x32mm ammo. Is there any reason not to use this ammo in an AK or an SKS?
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The steel cases are not nearly as much of a problem as getting hollow pointed ammo to feed reliably in an AK. All AKs and SKS rifles will handle steel case ammo without much concern; their extractors are extremely strong. 0 -
Thanks Mark- guess I'll give it a try 0 -
I was wondering the same thing myself.I have avoided using it because I didnt know if it would harm the gun.I was also curious about using it in my AR 0 -
Some steel cased Norinco ammo I have is the most accurate ammo I have found for my AK. Shoots 1 1/2 inch 5 shot groups at 100 yards from prone with iron sights. I wish I could find more from the same factory and year. 0 -
Hornady is now makeing a steel cased tap training round.. cheap and consistant is the word. 0 -
Biggest thing I have found with some ammo, is that it MAY burn somewhat dirty, it depends on who and when manufactured. Otherwise, steel case is issue round of most countries that use the AK and SKS, other than YUGO, and what they were designed to feed on. 0 -
Steel cased ammo is the only way to go in AK's & SKS's. As mentioned the HP rounds have a tendency to hang up on the feed ramps. I prefer FMJ for my rifles but have a couple thousand of HP that I will blast off at some point. 0 -
Steel cased ammo is the bugaboo of the year; aluminum-based AR-types may have a problem, most ChiCom guns were made for it. The hollowpoints are really more like a small dimple on the tip of the bullet, and none of my guns have a problem with them. 0 -
quote:>>I've been offered what appears to be a really good price on steel cased hollw point 7.69x32mm ammo. Is there any reason not to use this ammo in an AK or an SKS?
No, go ahead and use it. Some points for consideration:
-I just recently bought some of this myself. FWIW, I paid $110 for 500 rounds about 2-3 months ago, and I consider that a good price (though not a "steal"). I've seen it on sale for as little as $100/500 rounds recently. Anything less than that would be a screaming "buy".
-The steel used in steel case ammo is a mild/soft steel. It should NOT damage hardened steel chambers or extractors.
-SKS and AK rifles were DESIGNED to use steel case ammo. So go shoot all the steel case ammo you like.
-My understanding is that the 7.62x39 round itself was deliberately designed to use steel cases (or potentially use steel cases). The round was given a sharp case taper to help extraction because steel isn't as elastic as brass. In other words, its BRASS cased 7.62x39 that's "abnormal" not steel!
-You MIGHT run into problems with steel case ammo in guns not designed for it. In some civilian-type guns (Ruger mini-30, bolt actions, etc), the firing pin strike might not be strong enough to set off the hard military type primers in steel-case ammo.
Also, when fired, the steel cases don't make as good as seal as brass cases, potentially causing some carbon/dirt accumulation in the chamber. If you THEN go to fire brass rounds, they may stick in the chamber. This is particularly a problem in AR-type guns. The increased "stickiness" can also stress extractors, causing them to fail. This is more of a problem in PISTOLS. None of this applies to AKs and SKS rifles.
-All of the so-called "hollowpoint" 7.62x39 I've seen uses a bullet with a little teensy hole in the tip. Its not a "real" hollowpoint, and it also doesn't expand; its basically just a way to circumvent a ban on importation of military type ammunition in certain jurisdictions. In other words, I wouldn't use it for hunting if better ammo were available. See here:
-Some shooters have found that the "hollowpoint" ammo is more accurate than the FMJ ammo, though I don't think any of the steel case ammo is going to provide what you might term "match" accuracy.
-You "may" have a problem with reliable feeding of hollowpoint rounds from your AK rifle. . .you may not. Depends on the gun, and the magazines used. If not, its probably possible to tweak the feed ramp of your gun and/or your mags to get these to work well, though it may or may not be worth the bother.0 -
quote:Originally posted by gunnut505
aluminum-based AR-types may have a problem,
BS.
The only aluminum the round comes in contact with is the mag feed lips if using an aluminum mag. Bolt, barrel extension, barrel all hardened steel.0
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