steel case vrs brass
ive been told that shooting steel cased ammo in my ar15 i can break the extractor, that i should shoot only brass cased ammo, the steel ammo i am talking about is wolf, any help would be great
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Some guys have good luck with it. I am no expert but in my experiences I use wolf ammo in my sks and in my 1917 s&W revolver. that is it. I have had nothing but problems with my ARs and my Ruger mini with steel case ammo. I personally would avoid it if possible. 0 -
The local gunsmith said he has seen more ar15's with broken extractors in the last year than in his first 30 years smithing. It's tempting to shoot steel case for cost reasons, BUT............. 0 -
I have shot probably 10k rounds of steel cased ammo in my 3 AR's. Not one extractor bust. They can wear out faster, but I have noticed no accelerated wear on mine. Plus its a dirt cheap part. In one case of ammo you can pay for well over a dozen new extractors. 0 -
I too have shoot thousands of rounds of Wolf out of my AR's and no problems.
Like it was pointed out you could buy a lot of extractors with the amount you save on one case of ammo let alone many cases of ammo.0 -
I shoot a lot of Wolf and Silver Bear steel case in my Rock Rivers and my Mini-14. Have never had a problem. 0 -
quote:Originally posted by bigcountry_75214
The local gunsmith said he has seen more ar15's with broken extractors in the last year than in his first 30 years smithing. It's tempting to shoot steel case for cost reasons, BUT.............
Why would they need a gunsmith for just a broken extractor? That is a two minute replacement.0 -
I alternate mags to help reduce wear. I shoot a mag of brass and then a mag of steel. I have also noticed that steel expands and does not contract as quickly as brass does- thus the casing getting stuck in the breech. Plus the laquer they us gets all gummed up too. 0 -
VERY good article on this issue here:
http://www.theboxotruth.com/docs/edu18.htm
Apparently its NOT the steel from the cases that breaks the extractors.
The cases are made from a mild steel that is still softer than the extractors.
What happens is that the steel cases don't make as good a seal with the chamber, and you get more dirt in the chambers. With steel being less "springy" than brass, the steel cases may not return to size quite as well as the brass ones after firing. The lacquer probably isn't a big factor, but it doesn't help either.
All these things mean that the steel cases tend to stick more in the chambers, causing the extractor to work harder in removing the cases.
More work = more wear and tear = more broken extractors.
As already mentioned, though, extractors are relatively cheap, so its a tradeoff that way. If you shoot a lot, you're still going to spend less having to swap out extractors every once in a while. I wouldn't take the chance on a gun I was relying my life on (eg a combat gun), but for a plinker/trainer I don't see this as a big deal.
Also, if you clean the chamber well every time you shoot, that should help reduce the problem.0 -
First off, Wolf hasn't put lacquer on their cases for several years. If you keep the chamber clean, with a chamber brush, keep the weapon well lubed you shouldn't see that much more wear on the extractor.
Most of the problems you see with steel cased ammo is the fact that the chamber never gets cleaned by some people. Since the case doesn't expand like brass does, carbon gets build up in the chamber. When Wolf was lacquering their cases, this cased even more carbon build up.
1. Keep the chamber clean
2. LUBE LUBE and when you think you have Lubed enough LUBE again0
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