The boy bought A Ruger American in that caliber, and sent me 100 223 grn Hornadeys and 100 Lapouha brass. I’ve got a bunch of H335 on hand, and large rifle primers to boot. The dies are ordered, and should be here tomorrow. Now what. I’ve never done this before, although I’ve been hand loading for 40 + years. Where do I start? 7mm
Ruger used 308 barrel on older mini 30s, then started making barrels 310/311. I guess they were concerned with surplus ammo and pressure. Point being, you may want to have the proper diameter bullets for the American barrel. I tried 308 bullets in a SKS, and they were undersized.
Its not any different than loading any other cartridge that you have been loading over the last 40 years. Find load data either in a manual or online, start low and work your way up. The only catch is some brass uses small rifle primers instead of large but I haven't seen those lately.
I’m in the same boat as Rocky, but note the muzzle flash from an AK makes a terrific target. And the AP core bounces off my boot heel. Wait before you pick them up as they will be very hot.
I have always been a huge fan of the Bofors steel, made in Finland, Sako Riihimaki, I've owned a .222 and a Hornet. Saw one in 7.62X39 once and still kick myself today for not buying it.
I bought a Ruger ranch rifle this summer in 7.62x39 and a case of Norma tactical 124gr. fmj to practice with. Listed velocity for the Norma is 2430 fps. The ranch rifle got 2365 fps out of it's 16.2 inch barrel.
I'm loading the empty brass with 123gr Hornady SPs and RL7. That's the best powder I had for this cartridge. I've picked up some CFEBLK and will try it later. In the meantime, I think the RL7 load will work just fine.
Gun Parts Co. used to sell a sporter conversion kit for small ring Mausers- - - -a short-chambered .308 barrel with the small ring thread, and a spring, follower, and spacer to shorten the magazine well to the proper length to feed the 7.62 X 39 cartridge reliably. I built one for my granddaughter's first deer rifle, with a 3X9X40 scope, in a synthetic stock. She took her first deer with it at age 13. I loaded it with Hornady 130 grain .308 spire points at about 2200 FPS.
I had no idea Lapouha made 7.62x39 brass or Hornadey made 223gr bullets.
All new to me as well ! Lol. On serious note. My cz 527 carbine shoots the basic silver bears at moa +/-. Love they little gun and caliber is very underrated. 30/30 like in a bolt action
Sounds like he wants a basic subsonic load for shooting suppressed similar to a 300 blackout. I can’t see spending money on Lapua brass for that but to each is own.
A round to ponder possibilities? Often considered it in a bolt gun , but never got around to it SKS for price was a winner when you could snag em for 70-80 bucks and 70.00 per thousand rds . Then there were the polytech AK’s for around 200 give or take Not tack drivers by any means , but minute of deer for sure . Kenneth
I have always been a huge fan of the Bofors steel, made in Finland, Sako Riihimaki, I've owned a .222 and a Hornet. Saw one in 7.62X39 once and still kick myself today for not buying it.
When I lived in Minnesota, back in the 80s, a Sporting Goods Store, Berger Brothers, carried Finnish made AKs and SKS. Manufacturer was Sako.. They also carried Chink and Soviet Block manufactured AKs and the SKS... those weren't put on the rack to sell. They were just stood up in plastic garbage cans, 33 gallon size. They were pretty much labeled $69.00, take your pick.
The Finnish Sako built AKs and SKSs, were $1100 and $1200 bucks each. You held one of each, you realized the Finnish Sako ones were well worth the price they were asking for them...they were also worth every penny if you got to shoot for accuracy.
The Soviet Block AKs and SKSs, they didn't seem worth the $69.00, especially after you handled the Sako built ones.
I bought a Norinco SKS about 25 years ago,...took the sear out of it, put it in a grinding vise and took about .025" off of it with a surface grinder. Then I drilled and tapped the rear of the trigger guard and screwed an 8-32 button head screw in it that limited over travel of the trigger.
I tweaked on the sear and the length of the screw until it had about 1/32" travel before it broke and virtually no over-travel.
After that, I started getting very good accuracy with it by shooting .312" diameter 150 grain Hornady spire points over a case full of H322 or a healthy charge of WW680. (AA1680 is pretty much a duplicate of the discontinued WW680)
Item #3120 | 100/Box Our traditional line of bullets feature exposed lead tips for controlled expansion and hard-hitting terminal performance. Most have our pioneering secant ogive design — one of the most ballistically efficient profiles ever developed (see diagram to right). Most feature our exclusive InterLock® design — a raised ring inside the jacket that is embedded in the bullet's core that keeps the core and jacket locked together during expansion to retain mass and energy.
But I reiterate,...itr's fun to shoot bullets intended for either the .32 auto or the .32 long in the 7.62X39. They're light and the correct diameter,...and the 7.62X39 will really spit them.
There's no load data for them, so you'll have to fly by the seat of your pants. 2400 is good and 296 is a bit slower than 2400 and works well also with the light bullets.
I have always been a huge fan of the Bofors steel, made in Finland, Sako Riihimaki, I've owned a .222 and a Hornet. Saw one in 7.62X39 once and still kick myself today for not buying it.
When I lived in Minnesota, back in the 80s, a Sporting Goods Store, Berger Brothers, carried Finnish made AKs and SKS. Manufacturer was Sako.. They also carried Chink and Soviet Block manufactured AKs and the SKS... those weren't put on the rack to sell. They were just stood up in plastic garbage cans, 33 gallon size. They were pretty much labeled $69.00, take your pick.
The Finnish Sako built AKs and SKSs, were $1100 and $1200 bucks each. You held one of each, you realized the Finnish Sako ones were well worth the price they were asking for them...they were also worth every penny if you got to shoot for accuracy.
The Soviet Block AKs and SKSs, they didn't seem worth the $69.00, especially after you handled the Sako built ones.
Valmet , I think was my first across the counter so called assault rifle
308 , bad mama jama
One of those , why the hell did I sell that?
Didn’t matter if it was surplus or commercial ammo , accuracy was there and no hic cups
That’s been a spell ago
Kenneth
Next valmet was over under several years later 12 over 06 Killed a lot of game with that gun Hope the MFer that stole it dies a vile death
The Soviet Block AKs and SKSs, they didn't seem worth the $69.00, especially after you handled the Sako built ones.
True, but I bought my Chinese SKS for $95, along with 1000-1200 rounds in a wooden crate for $95, back in '93. Under $200 for rifle and a thousand plinking rounds?! Had plenty of fun with that rifle, bought another case years later for $150, and still have both laying around. Time to unmothball them and have some more fun.
He bought it for himself and I guess my DIL. I just get to reload for it! He’s already done his homework, and is aware of the bore diameter, which is why he got the Bullets he did. I guess he wants a short/mid range for deer. Oh well, I do enjoy the reloading, and working up a load, and another gun to shoot and ring out is always a plus. 7mm
The case has been used for good accuracy by benchrest competitors for years. The 6.5 Grendel shoots the same weight bullet to good effect. As to the 7.62x39; never owned one. I've shot them but I'm not too impressed but that's just me. Others like the Russian and the 300 BO.
In March of 2011.... I had Kiff & Co make a reamer based off the 6.5 Grendle necked up to .308. You could very well describe it as a 7.62 x 39 Improved.
It has the same subsonic capabilities as the original 300 Whisper but ran away from both the 7.62 X 39 and the Whisper in upper end velocity .
That said, the 7.63 x 39 is a pretty amazing cartridge given the performance you can wring out of it by handloading.
The boy bought A Ruger American in that caliber, and sent me 100 223 grn Hornadeys and 100 Lapouha brass. I’ve got a bunch of H335 on hand, and large rifle primers to boot. The dies are ordered, and should be here tomorrow. Now what. I’ve never done this before, although I’ve been hand loading for 40 + years. Where do I start? 7mm
I assume this is a typo and you meant 123gr not 223gr.
Hornady makes 4 different 123gr .310 bullets, (2) Interlocks (1) SST and (1) FMJ.
If he is going to hunt with this don’t use the FMJ, what did he send you?
H335 works well, but it’s not my favorite. My Ruger ASI Custom Mini-30 likes VV N-130, Norma 200 and AA 1680 in that order. My Armalite 7.62x39 shoots everything about the same, but AA 1680 produces the highest velocity.
Most load data that lists pressure in PSI is at 50-51K PSI. duno why.
You are loading for a bolt action, not a weaker AR-AK-SKS type weapon. I would not hesitate to bring the pressure up to at least 55K PSI and maybe even higher to 60K.
This might be tough to do with 335 as you would have to start compressing it. Ball powders sometime do not compress well.
Code
Cartridge : 7.62 x 39 (M43) Russ.
Bullet : .310, 123, Hornady SP 3140
Cartridge O.A.L. L6: 2.190 inch or 55.63 mm
Barrel Length : 18.0 inch or 457.2 mm
Powder : Hodgdon H335
Predicted data by increasing and decreasing the given charge,
incremented in steps of 2.0% of nominal charge.
CAUTION: Figures exceed maximum and minimum recommended loads !
Step Fill. Charge Vel. Energy Pmax Pmuz Prop.Burnt B_Time
% % Grains fps ft.lbs psi psi % ms
-20.0 80 25.20 1856 940 21702 4398 74.5 1.326
-18.0 82 25.83 1903 989 23099 4573 76.0 1.291
-16.0 84 26.46 1952 1040 24595 4749 77.5 1.257
-14.0 86 27.09 2000 1093 26198 4923 79.0 1.224
-12.0 88 27.72 2050 1147 27918 5096 80.5 1.191
-10.0 90 28.35 2099 1204 29763 5267 81.9 1.160
-08.0 92 28.98 2150 1262 31745 5435 83.3 1.129
-06.0 93 29.61 2200 1322 33876 5600 84.7 1.098
-04.0 95 30.24 2252 1385 36150 5762 86.0 1.068
-02.0 97 30.87 2303 1449 38644 5919 87.3 1.039
+00.0 99 31.50 2355 1515 41314 6071 88.6 1.008
+02.0 101 32.13 2407 1583 44203 6218 89.8 0.978 ! Near Maximum !
+04.0 103 32.76 2460 1653 47331 6359 90.9 0.950 ! Near Maximum !
+06.0 105 33.39 2513 1725 50724 6493 92.0 0.922 ! Near Maximum !
+08.0 107 34.02 2567 1799 54415 6619 93.0 0.895 !DANGEROUS LOAD-DO NOT USE!
+10.0 109 34.65 2620 1875 58435 6737 94.0 0.869 !DANGEROUS LOAD-DO NOT USE!
Results caused by ± 10% powder lot-to-lot burning rate variation using nominal charge
Data for burning rate increased by 10% relative to nominal value:
+Ba 99 31.50 2509 1720 49645 6365 95.5 0.929 ! Near Maximum !
Data for burning rate decreased by 10% relative to nominal value:
-Ba 99 31.50 2171 1287 33974 5510 78.6 1.102
I had no idea Lapouha made 7.62x39 brass or Hornadey made 223gr bullets.
All new to me as well ! Lol. On serious note. My cz 527 carbine shoots the basic silver bears at moa +/-. Love they little gun and caliber is very underrated. 30/30 like in a bolt action
I purchased one of those CZ 527's in a 7.62 X 39 for my girl She absolutely Loves it.
The boy bought A Ruger American in that caliber, and sent me 100 223 grn Hornadeys and 100 Lapouha brass. I’ve got a bunch of H335 on hand, and large rifle primers to boot. The dies are ordered, and should be here tomorrow. Now what. I’ve never done this before, although I’ve been hand loading for 40 + years. Where do I start? 7mm
So we have found that one guy among us that didn’t buy and $80 SKS in high school
My favorite Hunting bullet in .310 is Speer 123gr SP. I bought 1K Blems on GunBroker several years ago. They work great on Whitetails and are very accurate.
My Ruger is a ASI Custom with .308 bore. May favorite Hunting bullet is Sierra 135gr SSP (Discontinued).
My favorite Hunting bullet in .310 is Speer 123gr SP. I bought 1K Blems on GunBroker several years ago. They work great on Whitetails and are very accurate.
My Ruger is a ASI Custom with .308 bore. May favorite Hunting bullet is Sierra 135gr SSP (Discontinued).
That was one of the bullets my father used in his 30 Herrett Contender. The other was a similar Hornady offering.
My favorite Hunting bullet in .310 is Speer 123gr SP. I bought 1K Blems on GunBroker several years ago. They work great on Whitetails and are very accurate.
My Ruger is a ASI Custom with .308 bore. May favorite Hunting bullet is Sierra 135gr SSP (Discontinued).
That was one of the bullets my father used in his 30 Herrett Contender. The other was a similar Hornady offering.
I had a couple hundred of those Hornady 130gr SSP, excellent bullet for Whitetails out of the 7.62 X 39, but thems be all gone
I wonder how the current issue 130 grain Hornady "varmint" spire point would do at these moderate speeds? I think Dirtfarmer told me about good results from a 308, or maybe even a 30-06.
Ruger used 308 barrel on older mini 30s, then started making barrels 310/311. I guess they were concerned with surplus ammo and pressure. Point being, you may want to have the proper diameter bullets for the American barrel. I tried 308 bullets in a SKS, and they were undersized.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7.62%C3%9739mm
I believe Bill Ruger came out with the Mini-30 after he lost a contract with the US Military for a similar rifle, I think it was called the XB something.
Anyhow as the story goes, Ol' Bill was left with a warehouse full of .308 barrels after he lost the contract.
He decided to use those barrels in a civilian project he called The Mini-30.
After those barrels were gone, the new barrels were manufactured in the proper .310.
All I did was buy a Barrel, Bolt Carrier and a couple of magazines $200 and swap back and forth my AR15, It works great takes 5 min to swap. I don't know what to call it an AR47 or a AK15.LOL
Yeah. What he sent me was Hornady SSTs, 123 grn, according to the box the diameter is.3105. He shot some steel cased Tula FMJs into 2.5” at 200 yards. I’ve been feeding my .257 Roberts the 117 grn SSTs, my 7 Mag and his 7x57 mm 139 grn SSTs, and my O6 and two .308s the 150 SSTs, and all 6 guns shoot MOA or better, so I’ve got high hopes for this gun with these bullets. Right now it’s the day before Thanksgiving, and Saturday is the opening of Deer Season here in Pennsylvania, and I’ve got quite a few guns to check the zero on, so really playing with this Ruger might go on the back burner for a little while. 7mm
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