7.62x39 questions

**Aguila Blanca** · May 12, 2018, 09:45 AM

I'm sort of passively looking for some bulk 7.62x39 ammunition. Pretty much everything that's available in lots larger than 20-round boxes is Russian, steel-cased ammo. I don't especially care for steel-cased ammo, but I know that's what Russian type rifles were designed to use (AK-47, SKS, etc.) so I guess for an SKS it's acceptable -- not so sure about using it in a Ruger Mini-30.

Looking on-line I see lots of vendors offering Brown Bear, Silver Bear, and Golden Bear ammo. What's the difference among these three bears? Are they all okay, or is one significantly preferable in any way?

**Aguila Blanca** · May 12, 2018, 10:33 AM

Disregard.

I knew the difference was the coating. I didn't know that Brown Bear is apparently still available in both lacquer coated and polymer coated -- I thought it was all polymer now. What I was really interested in was performance and storage issues and preferences. After reading a lot of comparisons on the Errornet, I've decided to just bite the bullet (pardon the phrase) and buy Golden Bear.

chadio · May 12, 2018, 02:07 PM

FWIW - my SKS is the only thing I will feed steel cases, everything else (every other firearm that I may or may not own and operate) is brass only. I am a firm believer that the SKS and AK47 / AK74 were designed to run steel casings from the get- go... have fun, let's see the rifle, and let us know what you think

**JohnKSa** · May 12, 2018, 02:41 PM

If you're still looking for brass-cased ammo in bulk, and are willing to pay almost 50 cents a round for it, here's some.

https://www.sgammo.com/product/prvi-...e-ammo-prvi-pa

the possum · May 12, 2018, 03:27 PM

Quote:

I've decided to just bite the bullet (pardon the phrase) and buy Golden Bear.

If it's not too late, I'd always recommend buying a box or two to try in your gun. It would suck to get a couple cases & then find out your gun doesn't like it.

My SKS has always liked the old Klimovsk hollowpoints. I don't think they're available any more, so I did some testing & found that Tulammo hollowpoints are about the same. Surplus Yugo brass cased stuff also functions well & is comparable in accuracy, but it's corrosive.

The net is full of praise for Golden Tiger. Most guys say it's more accurate, and the boat tail bullets are a bonus. However, my gun hates it. Yours might love it. My gun does not like Wolf either.

Bamashooter · May 13, 2018, 01:15 AM

The Yugo M67 milsurp ammo is brass cased and fairly cheap. It is corrosive though. PPU, S&B can usually be found for $10 a box. My main stash is steel cased but I do have some of these three on hand as well.

volkstrm · May 13, 2018, 02:00 AM

Hello Aguila Blanca,
I have used the wolf ammo lacquer & polymer coated in my sks's & ak's and it was 100%. The silver bear I have used in my ak,74's in 5.45x39 also was 100%. I really liked the silver bear its nickel plate over steel case. You may want to look at the silver bear? I would have got some in 7.62x39 if I did not already have so much of the wolf ammo. I just love to shoot my sks's & ak's. Got most of that ammo when it was like between $85.00 & $115.00 per 1000 rounds. I still have some(700-800 rounds or so) of that Chinese copper washed steel core ammo that I got over 30 years ago. Can't remember what I payed for that but it was penny's per round. That stuff I save.

Mobuck · May 13, 2018, 07:04 AM

I use some Silver Bear in a 5.45x39 AR and it runs well enough. For the 7.62x39 AR's and bolt actions, I use Hornady steel case or brass case reloads. Fiocchi and Privi make some decent brass cased 7.62.

doofus47 · May 14, 2018, 03:25 PM

If you haven't already bought a lifetime supply: I'll offer my 3c:
1. I like wolf military classic hp with a poly coat. It's pretty accurate in both my SKS and my AR and my VZ2008. Neither has it yet failed to go bang.
2. Ulyanovsk or Tula. FMJ and HP; both poly coated. These worked very well in my SKS. Although I have several batches left, I haven't yet fired them in my AR nor VZ2008.

happy shooting

Fishbed77 · May 14, 2018, 03:39 PM

One one exception, I have only every fired steel-cased 7.62x39mm ammo in my rifles chambered in that caliber (AKs and a vz.58). No issues at all.

That one exception was when I tried to run some brass-cased Prvi Partizan brass-cases soft-nosed ammo in my (otherwise perfectly reliable) Saiga. It just kept choking on them. Go figure.

stagpanther · May 15, 2018, 06:58 AM

Quote:

1. I like wolf military classic hp with a poly coat. It's pretty accurate in both my SKS and my AR and my VZ2008. Neither has it yet failed to go bang.

Last time I bought some poly-coat ammo in bulk (might have been Tula's) I was running a failure rate of about 2 cartridges per 20 round box. Primer failure every time. Homey don't do poly-coat anymore.

seanc · May 15, 2018, 05:26 PM

Since you've got an SKS that can use stripper clips, you should get the m67 Yugo ammo from SGAmmo:
https://www.sgammo.com/product/surpl...ve-yugo-surplu

It's on stripper clips and is good ammo, though it is corrosive.

Per JohnKSa's recomendation: Prvi 7.62x39 is good ammo, but the Prvi lead round nose rounds can cause feeding issues. They worked in my SKS, but do NOT work in my AK. However, Prvi does also have pointed soft point ammo that feeds like a champ:
https://www.sgammo.com/product/prvi-...case-ammo-pp73

Also, SGAmmo has Golden Tiger, which is what I have in quantity.

seanc · May 15, 2018, 05:29 PM

volkstrm

Quote:

the silver bear its nickel plate over steel case

Silver Bear is zinc plated. Not bad to shoot, but I had issues with stored Silver Bear in the past. I won't be buying any more (even though the 5.45x39 gets great reviews).

TruthTellers · May 15, 2018, 11:49 PM

I've got 7 year old Wolf still shooting fine, but if I was buying in bulk I would probably go with Silver or Golden Bear. Some may say the lacquer or poly coating can't build up, but if you shoot enough rounds at once, and that's doable given how cheap 7.62x39 ammo is, it can build up in your gun and cause issues.

But, if you're not expecting to hoard off a wave of zombies, I think it's tough to beat Wolf ammo for 20 cents a round.

Ifishsum · May 17, 2018, 04:55 AM

Good luck here with any of the Wolf variations as well as the brand Cabela's sells? Red Army I think? Tula not so much, less consistent and some misfires which are rare with Wolf and RA.

T. O'Heir · May 17, 2018, 12:12 PM

Your local gun shop can and will order anything you want in any quantity you want. Expect to pay up front. However, you should not buy anything in bulk until you have tried a box out of your rifle.
A lot depends on what you think is 'bulk' too. So does the primer. Boxer tends to be more expensive than Berdan regardless of the brand.
A net search(Google) for 7.62 x 39 ammo turns up 241,000 sites.

Ledslnger · May 18, 2018, 11:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TruthTellers

I've got 7 year old Wolf still shooting fine, but if I was buying in bulk I would probably go with Silver or Golden Bear. Some may say the lacquer or poly coating can't build up, but if you shoot enough rounds at once, and that's doable given how cheap 7.62x39 ammo is, it can build up in your gun and cause issues.

But, if you're not expecting to hoard off a wave of zombies, I think it's tough to beat Wolf ammo for 20 cents a round.

One of my buddies that is ex-Special Forces and his son burnt through a bunch of lacquered rounds....albeit in an AR. He told me it took him 3 hours to clean up the chamber.

Erno86 · May 18, 2018, 12:27 PM

I had two misfires, and a primer fire only squib load in my 7.62x39 AK, while using Tula ammo. The squib load bullet lodged in the throat of the bore and the gunpowder looked clumpy.

"Great hatcam video of a squib load"

Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcHJajwkWyM

Sturmpanzer · May 26, 2018, 05:49 PM

My Yugo Underfolder eats any ammo...its an AK..nuff said... I use Wolf or Tula...no misfires or anything... Thats over 6K rounds thru my AK...nothing wont feed thru it if its up to specs...

May 12, 2018, 09:45 AM	#1
Aguila Blanca Staff Join Date: September 25, 2008 Location: CONUS Posts: 18,458	7.62x39 questions I'm sort of passively looking for some bulk 7.62x39 ammunition. Pretty much everything that's available in lots larger than 20-round boxes is Russian, steel-cased ammo. I don't especially care for steel-cased ammo, but I know that's what Russian type rifles were designed to use (AK-47, SKS, etc.) so I guess for an SKS it's acceptable -- not so sure about using it in a Ruger Mini-30. Looking on-line I see lots of vendors offering Brown Bear, Silver Bear, and Golden Bear ammo. What's the difference among these three bears? Are they all okay, or is one significantly preferable in any way?

May 12, 2018, 02:07 PM	#3
chadio Senior Member Join Date: June 29, 2011 Posts: 931	FWIW - my SKS is the only thing I will feed steel cases, everything else (every other firearm that I may or may not own and operate) is brass only. I am a firm believer that the SKS and AK47 / AK74 were designed to run steel casings from the get- go... have fun, let's see the rifle, and let us know what you think __________________ Ex - Navy, Persian Gulf Veteran. Loved shooting the M14, 1911, M60, M2

May 12, 2018, 02:41 PM	#4
JohnKSa Staff Join Date: February 12, 2001 Location: DFW Area Posts: 24,971	If you're still looking for brass-cased ammo in bulk, and are willing to pay almost 50 cents a round for it, here's some. https://www.sgammo.com/product/prvi-...e-ammo-prvi-pa __________________ Do you know about the TEXAS State Rifle Association?

May 13, 2018, 02:00 AM	#7
volkstrm Senior Member Join Date: November 10, 2007 Posts: 222	7.62x39 Questions Hello Aguila Blanca, I have used the wolf ammo lacquer & polymer coated in my sks's & ak's and it was 100%. The silver bear I have used in my ak,74's in 5.45x39 also was 100%. I really liked the silver bear its nickel plate over steel case. You may want to look at the silver bear? I would have got some in 7.62x39 if I did not already have so much of the wolf ammo. I just love to shoot my sks's & ak's. Got most of that ammo when it was like between $85.00 & $115.00 per 1000 rounds. I still have some(700-800 rounds or so) of that Chinese copper washed steel core ammo that I got over 30 years ago. Can't remember what I payed for that but it was penny's per round. That stuff I save.

May 14, 2018, 03:25 PM	#9
doofus47 Senior Member Join Date: June 9, 2010 Location: live in a in a house when i'm not in a tent Posts: 2,483	If you haven't already bought a lifetime supply: I'll offer my 3c: 1. I like wolf military classic hp with a poly coat. It's pretty accurate in both my SKS and my AR and my VZ2008. Neither has it yet failed to go bang. 2. Ulyanovsk or Tula. FMJ and HP; both poly coated. These worked very well in my SKS. Although I have several batches left, I haven't yet fired them in my AR nor VZ2008. happy shooting __________________ I'm right about the metric system 3/4 of the time.

May 12, 2018, 10:33 AM	#2
Aguila Blanca Staff Join Date: September 25, 2008 Location: CONUS Posts: 18,458	Disregard. I knew the difference was the coating. I didn't know that Brown Bear is apparently still available in both lacquer coated and polymer coated -- I thought it was all polymer now. What I was really interested in was performance and storage issues and preferences. After reading a lot of comparisons on the Errornet, I've decided to just bite the bullet (pardon the phrase) and buy Golden Bear.

May 13, 2018, 01:15 AM	#6
Bamashooter Senior Member Join Date: March 12, 2010 Posts: 1,860	The Yugo M67 milsurp ammo is brass cased and fairly cheap. It is corrosive though. PPU, S&B can usually be found for $10 a box. My main stash is steel cased but I do have some of these three on hand as well.

May 13, 2018, 07:04 AM	#8
Mobuck Junior member Join Date: February 2, 2010 Posts: 6,846	I use some Silver Bear in a 5.45x39 AR and it runs well enough. For the 7.62x39 AR's and bolt actions, I use Hornady steel case or brass case reloads. Fiocchi and Privi make some decent brass cased 7.62.

May 14, 2018, 03:39 PM	#10
Fishbed77 Senior Member Join Date: November 23, 2010 Posts: 4,862	One one exception, I have only every fired steel-cased 7.62x39mm ammo in my rifles chambered in that caliber (AKs and a vz.58). No issues at all. That one exception was when I tried to run some brass-cased Prvi Partizan brass-cases soft-nosed ammo in my (otherwise perfectly reliable) Saiga. It just kept choking on them. Go figure.

May 15, 2018, 05:26 PM	#12
seanc Senior Member Join Date: December 28, 1998 Posts: 590	Since you've got an SKS that can use stripper clips, you should get the m67 Yugo ammo from SGAmmo: https://www.sgammo.com/product/surpl...ve-yugo-surplu It's on stripper clips and is good ammo, though it is corrosive. Per JohnKSa's recomendation: Prvi 7.62x39 is good ammo, but the Prvi lead round nose rounds can cause feeding issues. They worked in my SKS, but do NOT work in my AK. However, Prvi does also have pointed soft point ammo that feeds like a champ: https://www.sgammo.com/product/prvi-...case-ammo-pp73 Also, SGAmmo has Golden Tiger, which is what I have in quantity.

May 15, 2018, 11:49 PM	#14
TruthTellers Senior Member Join Date: October 22, 2016 Posts: 3,883	I've got 7 year old Wolf still shooting fine, but if I was buying in bulk I would probably go with Silver or Golden Bear. Some may say the lacquer or poly coating can't build up, but if you shoot enough rounds at once, and that's doable given how cheap 7.62x39 ammo is, it can build up in your gun and cause issues. But, if you're not expecting to hoard off a wave of zombies, I think it's tough to beat Wolf ammo for 20 cents a round. __________________ "We always think there's gonna be more time... then it runs out."

May 17, 2018, 04:55 AM	#15
Ifishsum Senior Member Join Date: September 15, 2005 Location: Oregon Posts: 1,033	Good luck here with any of the Wolf variations as well as the brand Cabela's sells? Red Army I think? Tula not so much, less consistent and some misfires which are rare with Wolf and RA.

May 17, 2018, 12:12 PM	#16
T. O'Heir Senior Member Join Date: February 13, 2002 Location: Canada Posts: 12,453	Your local gun shop can and will order anything you want in any quantity you want. Expect to pay up front. However, you should not buy anything in bulk until you have tried a box out of your rifle. A lot depends on what you think is 'bulk' too. So does the primer. Boxer tends to be more expensive than Berdan regardless of the brand. A net search(Google) for 7.62 x 39 ammo turns up 241,000 sites. __________________ Spelling and grammar count!

May 18, 2018, 12:27 PM	#18
Erno86 Senior Member Join Date: September 22, 2012 Location: Marriottsville, Maryland Posts: 1,739	I had two misfires, and a primer fire only squib load in my 7.62x39 AK, while using Tula ammo. The squib load bullet lodged in the throat of the bore and the gunpowder looked clumpy. "Great hatcam video of a squib load" Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcHJajwkWyM __________________ That rifle hanging on the wall of the working class flat or labourer's cottage is the symbol of democracy. It is our job to see that it stays there." --- George Orwell Last edited by Erno86; May 18, 2018 at 12:41 PM.

May 26, 2018, 05:49 PM	#19
Sturmpanzer Junior member Join Date: November 11, 2017 Posts: 116	My Yugo Underfolder eats any ammo...its an AK..nuff said... I use Wolf or Tula...no misfires or anything... Thats over 6K rounds thru my AK...nothing wont feed thru it if its up to specs...

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