A Question About Steel Case Ammo

[nwslopoke]

I just started shooting 7.62x39 from an AR upper. First shot about 60 rounds and cleaned it then today about 100 rounds and cleaned it. I've been shooting brass for years and I'd say I would need several hundred rounds to get it as dirty.

I haven't cleaned the AK in so long I can't recall it being that dirty after hundreds of rounds but it has been a while. I did come across some Geco 7.62x39 brass but it was .37 cents a round. More than 5.56.

 

[Stomper]

An AK has a different action, no DI so there wouldn't be as much residue.

 

[Tony617]

I shoot brass cased Ammo though all of my firearms except my new WASR 10, AK-47. I called the indoor range where my work colleague is member they say it's OK as long as the bullet in non-magnetic.

I go to the Eastside indoor gun range in Bellevue (Wade's) every so often and they have signs in every shooting booth that says, "brass cased only". They run a magnet over my Ammo to be sure it is non-magnetic and I don't load any magazines before going there.

 

[rwadeg311]

If you're shooting an AR with DI, you're going to get some residue in the action from the gas operation anyway, despite whether or not steel casings "seal" as well as brass.

If your gun runs reliably with steel cased ammo and isn't an "über accurate tack-driver" that you're worried about wearing down and affecting "über accuracy" then shoot that sheite... It ain't made of sugar, it won't melt... I promise!

Yeah I hear ya. I've run some through a couple a my piston ARs and not seen a huge difference in filth build up. My main concern as I've said earlier is barrel and BCG wear. Great to hear other people's views and experiences.
Actually , I've run some Wolf 100grn steel case through my 6.5grendal and inside 400yds it's not bad. And for the price I can't complain. It's a DI and i haven't noticed any ill effects....but then again, ive put less than 300rds down the pipe.

 

[rwadeg311]

All I know is it seems like it makes my AK pretty dirty? But then, I've never ran anything else through it.

But then, aren't AKs made to run steel, being a piston setup anyway

 

[EPS]

My AK chews it up and spits it out. We'll, it would do the same thing if it was made out of concrete.
Some guns love it, some are more finicky. Try it. If you can go through a box with no problem I'd keep shooting it as long as it's cheap.
Best thing about steel cased ammo is that you can pick it up really quickly with a big Harbor Freight magnetic pick up tool (also cheap).

Yep I have a cheap AK and it loves cheap ammo.

 

[UnionMillsNW]

I often find myself tempted by the price of steel ammo and then I remember how it performs (or doesn't perform) on the range.

Most of the ammo goes "bang" but that one in 50 gets stuck in the chamber, or double feeds from the magazine, and is the dickins to get out. I've had to "mortar" my AR more than once with steel ammo...a problem I've never had with brass.

The Lucky Gunner article ( Brass vs. Steel Cased Ammo - An Epic Torture Test) breaks it down in detail but from my own personal experience the headache of a round getting jammed every magazine or two doesn't justify the savings.

Buy the best ammo you can afford. Practice often. And Safe Shooting.

 

[rwadeg311]

I shoot brass cased Ammo though all of my firearms except my new WASR 10, AK-47. I called the indoor range where my work colleague is member they say it's OK as long as the bullet in non-magnetic.

I go to the Eastside indoor gun range in Bellevue (Wade's) every so often and they have signs in every shooting both that says, "brass cased only". They run a magnet over my Ammo to be sure it is non-magnetic and I don't load any magazines before going there.

I've owned a couple AKs and

I often find myself tempted by the price of steel ammo and then I remember how it performs (or doesn't perform) on the range.

Most of the ammo goes "bang" but that one in 50 gets stuck in the chamber, or double feeds from the magazine, and is the dickins to get out. I've had to "mortar" my AR more than once with steel ammo...a problem I've never had with brass.

The Lucky Gunner article ( Brass vs. Steel Cased Ammo - An Epic Torture Test) breaks it down in detail but from my own personal experience the headache of a round getting jammed every magazine or two doesn't justify the savings.

Buy the best ammo you can afford. Practice often. And Safe Shooting.

Thanks for the recommendation. I'll check it out.

 

[DirectDrive]

It's OK for plinking if your gun will run it.
Last time I looked, most of it was Russian and I don't buy Russian products.
Don't want to support Putin.

 

[Mikej]

But then, aren't AKs made to run steel, being a piston setup anyway

I don't know, probably. When I was up for getting the AK I was able to pick up a K of Wolf for $200.00. It seemed to be the thing to do. A polish AK47 running Russian ammo. They work just fine together>

 

[RTFM]

Something I've not seen mentioned yet is steel is said to be rough on extractors.

I run steel in my AK and Mosin not thinking twice, my Daniel Defense only runs top shelf ammo.

My pistols I mix with no reservations except my two selected cc guns, top shelf ammo only for those two also.

.02 cents

 

[Boboclown]

Something I've not seen mentioned yet is steel is said to be rough on extractors.

I run steel in my AK and Mosin not thinking twice, my Daniel Defense only runs top shelf ammo.

My pistols I mix with no reservations except my two selected cc guns, top shelf ammo only for those two also.

.02 cents

Mausers, mosin nagants, aks, etc, can run steel all day all night 7 days a week and won't care.

But they are harsher on ar extractors. But with how cheap the ammo is and how cheap extractors are, the savings leave a lot. But I shoot brass in my 5.56 AK so there's that.

 

[awshoot]

Lucky gunner did a great review on steel case, it's a great read and you should look up "lucky gunner steel case review" they shoot 10k rounds of 3 different steel case and 1 brass case over the course of a couple days ....

Cool article: Brass vs. Steel Cased Ammo - An Epic Torture Test

And video: Brass vs Steel Cased Ammo

 

[osprey]

My 7.62x39 AR builds shoot wolf military classic steel cased ammo moa and very reliably. The barrels I chose for the builds are specifically designed for steel cased ammo. For under $200/1000 what's not to like?

 

[Member 34319]

For those that reference the article where they shot 10k of each ammo type.

I don't think a few boxes of steel case or even a case of 1000 over the coarse of a year or such will result similarly.

If you operate and use 10k rounds in a month, perhaps these issues will be something to consider.

My first AR15 ate a ton of steel case ammo, mostly Cabelas Herters stuff. Never had issues with throat erosion or gas port erosion like that article did. Then again I didn't eat the ammo as fast as they did for that article.

I've shot steel case in bolt actions as well. The Hornady stuff does surprisingly very well on paper.

 

[Ops]

buy quality parts and you have a lifetime of shooting at half the cost.

 

[Boboclown]

For those that reference the article where they shot 10k of each ammo type.

I don't think a few boxes of steel case or even a case of 1000 over the coarse of a year or such will result similarly.

If you operate and use 10k rounds in a month, perhaps these issues will be something to consider.

My first AR15 ate a ton of steel case ammo, mostly Cabelas Herters stuff. Never had issues with throat erosion or gas port erosion like that article did. Then again I didn't eat the ammo as fast as they did for that article.

I've shot steel case in bolt actions as well. The Hornady stuff does surprisingly very well on paper.

The cost savings of steel ammo is worth the barrel life, as you'd have hundreds leftover even after replacing it. For ARs that is.

 

[ma96782]

I reload so.....

When shooting at the range where I can find my cases.........usually I'll take the brass cased ammo.

My son likes to shoot in those wooded areas.......he is given some of my steel cased ammo.

The other difference?

Usually, it's about $0.30 a round for brass
vs.
$0.20 per round for steel.

Aloha, Mark

 

[2ndtimer]

I have never run steel cases ammo in any of my AR's, or any of my other firearms, for that matter. I have heard that the steel cases can be hard on extractors and that the bimetal bullets are hard on the barrels. Another factor is that the steel core bullets are not only hard on steel gong targets, but have the potential of starting fires due to sparks from steel on steel impacts. At my club range, they are not permitted to be fired at the gongs, and in my opinion should be banned from our range due to target damage and fire hazard potential.
Plus, as a reloader, I can load far more consistent ammo with the once fired brass other members leave at our range.

 

[DirectDrive]

I have never run steel cases ammo in any of my AR's, or any of my other firearms, for that matter. I have heard that the steel cases can be hard on extractors and that the bimetal bullets are hard on the barrels. Another factor is that the steel core bullets are not only hard on steel gong targets, but have the potential of starting fires due to sparks from steel on steel impacts. At my club range, they are not permitted to be fired at the gongs, and in my opinion should be banned from our range due to target damage and fire hazard potential.
Plus, as a reloader, I can load far more consistent ammo with the once fired brass other members leave at our range.

Armor Piercing (AP) rounds are a different animal.
This thread is about steel case ammo.

The steel used for these cases is supposed to be softer than the steel in your firearm.
I don't use steel cased ammo, but if I needed to save a few bucks I might.