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Had a conversation with a guy who believes the days of cheap 7.62x39 is coming to an end. Russian stuff not imported anymore, and with no more semi autos the demand for cheap stuff is slow enough to discourage importers. He thinks the quality hunting rounds will always be available, but at the quality cost. Does anyone know anything about this? I had been thinking about another 7.62x39 but maybe a .223 might be better... Thoughts?
IMO it is a dead cartridge in this country
There will be enough surplus still in circulation to last years...
Ive owned one and loved it......I also own a 223 and love that. they are similar but diferent.
both are arguably a 150 yard deer cartridge...but IF it was a big stag the x39 would give me more assurance with a 150grn load. for close range bush work the x39 was AWESOME. short light,easy to carry with enough power to bowl over deer,it worked great on wallabies and Im positive it would do so on goats. the norinco bolt was a little agricultural but if treated right and not babied it never EVER gave issues
the .223 is more precise,far more accurate so neat for sniping rabbits n hares
Ive shot a few deer with it now and fairly confident BUT thats a stationary non stressed animal and precise shot placement with good loads
varmit type loads are a little safer and being 50 grn Vs 132grn SHOULD stop a bit quicker
the SST hornady bulk pack ammo in x39 is great...the 55grn hornady bulk pack ammo in .223 is great...BOTH will continue to be made and I cant see it not being imported.
the x39 is so simple to reload its not funny.....you COULD fill case to base of neck with 2206 and call it good...there isnt enough case capacity to get into trouble,trailboss loads are a heck of alot of fun to use and have thier place on game.
I onsold my x39 to a good home as the .308 I sort of inherited did what it used to do and had longer legs.....one day I wouldve seen a deer from my lookout spot and the 250-300 yards wouldve just been too far for the wee gun....
the x39 never let me down....
for goats either would be great,the .223 might argueably be better out further BUT if you shooting multiple targets in a hurry,the extra ooomph of the x39mm could be more humaine as a little more room for error.
I'd say its here to stay, its a pretty useful round for pest control (goats etc), and Belmont etc are likely to pick up the slack (same as they do 223).
The more likely round to fade out is 300 BLK IMO . . . .
Find a load that suits your needs and invest in as much of it as you can afford - ammo (of any sort) will never be cheaper than it currently is.
Wow, that’s a bold call!Quote:
Originally Posted by Beavis
I have used one a lot in a bolt and shot a lot of big game with it. Hundreds. It is a cracking wee calibre. It dumps large animals way better than the 223 which I also really like. On big deer and pigs at longer range they will sometimes run dead 50m and pile up. Reliably. No issues. It can be built in to a very light little rifle. I have consistently killed animals out to 200m with it. The Hornady 123gn SST is a winner as are several other factory offerings. Some 150gns are really good too. It is just like any other factory load really and you wont need a ton to use in a bolt action. No one seems to have the same worries about cost of ammo in their 6.5 Needmore etc. Stick with it I say. Dont ask me why but I know a number of people who have tried the Blackout with supers and went to the x39 and swear it is way better. It is here to stay and one of the best short rounds for hunting.
I suspect 6.5 Grendel is going to continue growing in popularity and eat into whatever share x39 has left. Far better ballistics in an identically sized package, and many many more options for the reloader.
dont be like that mate, iv finally got one after saying i didnt need one for yearsQuote:
Originally Posted by Tentman
The appeal of the cartridge was buying large amounts of steel case ammo and smashing it through combloc semi auto rifles. If you were going to bother handloading, why wouldn't you go Grendel and shoot the same weight projectiles with a much higher BC?Quote:
Originally Posted by Finnwolf
The rifles are modest in cost (cheap?) and if you have been left with a bunch of x39 ammo why not pull the projectiles and replace them with soft points, modest cost (cheap?) ammo.Quote:
Originally Posted by Beavis
Good for most bush hunting.
My 2 cents worth
I have been shooting a bolt action 7.62x39 for about six years now and have moved to only shooting hand loads. They are more accurate save you a bit of coin. I have also worked up loads for several other people's rifles, always with success with finding really accurate loads. Hornady SST 123gr or Speer Gold Dot with Hodgdon CFE BLK powder have given outstanding results on paper and animals. Lately been playing with Belmont Action Rifle powder and finding that is a winner too.
I certainly don't see 7.62x39 going away anytime soon even if the cheap surplus ammo does. Given the way ammo prices are constantly rising if you're not a hand loader you should become one.
hthomas: could you give some details about your progress with with Belmont Action Rifle powder and 7.62x39 please?
lil gun........
funny how folk think the cartridge will just "go away" there are still some .32/20s in usage...not many admittedly but they are out there.
there are plenty of bolt action options for this simple wee cartridge,the x39mm is going nowhere in a hurry.
@Ben Waimata I wonder if there's a 223 round out there that knocks goats around as hard as 7.62x39.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ben Waimata
That might be the next logical step.
I bought a Ruger ranch in 300 blackout and 7.62x39 as I have a heap of ammo for both and reload for both.
My blackout loads are so cheap, that alone makes it a great round.
Shooting surplus 7.62x39 is a great plinking steel gun out to 200m easily.
Both deal to goats and deer out to 150m without to much fuss.
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Ive got mcbeths 3witches in the safe -.303 ,7.62x39, .223 if I cant put a single hole in it then 3"no3 12g up close and personal provides very effective lasting solutions!like a good sweet shop owner i can offer a variety of differing types of delivery of said solution currently ive something like 7differing delivery actions on call.
would i trade any in -no even for a gwyneth paltro vaginal candle good sir.
Ilikes rugged working calibres.and i sure as shit aint no sniper.
@hthomas interested in the velocities you get with CFE BLK and Belmont Action Rifle. Most other powders I have tried can only achieve lower velocities than factory loads.Quote:
Originally Posted by hthomas
x39 will be around for ages. If you can make a sub load for x39 of decent weight shoot, then I don't see any advantage in 300AAC (although the cases can be made out of .223). 300AAC cycled a semi auto AR15 with sub loads, that was where it was king IMHO.
I don't see 7.62x39 going anywhere in NZ as long as people are shooting it in bolt guns. However it might not be worthwhile to import large quantities of steel cased anymore. Prvi Partisan and Sellier and Bellot make brass cased x39 and I think Hornady does as well.
x39 edges 300 Blackout in supersonic performance as I recall, however 300 Blackout uses a wide selection of common 308 projectiles so as far as handloading goes there are more options.
Big advantage of the 7.62x39 over the 300Black is (was) the fact that hunting projectiles used in this calibre where made for the calibre and its velocities.
300Black suffered terminal ballistic performance issues because of the lack of projectiles available that were designed for the lower velocity's as compared to the mainstay 308 Win and all the other higher velocity 300's out there. Hand loaders couldn't get reliably performing projectiles, instead having to rely on bullets tumbling on impact for effect. 300Black is only really coming into its own now that projectiles specific for the round are becoming more available. Problem is, a lot of people have been disappointed with it and moved away. This makes the marketing of the round a whole lot harder now.
Personally, I bought bulk Highland 7.62x39 brass cased 127gr PSP back when .223 ammo pricing went ballistic, and consider it to have been one of my best 'investments' yet.
I found over the coarse of a few goat culls, that nothing killed them quicker than the Barnaul 125gr soft points. It was like the bullet was made specifically for goats. I found it wasn't uncommon to have to plug a goat more than once with the cheap Hornady 55gr Training Ammo (remember that stuff?), but this stuff out of my Saiga was excellent. Used to be able to buy it at my local for $12/20. The good old days.
The hollow point however seemed much harder and not as effective.
Good ol days were me buying Norinco SP for $6 for 20 and that stuff was great on mobs of goatsQuote:
Originally Posted by Beavis
300 Blackout has under gone a lot of development and understanding since it first hit the market and I think people have a better idea how to get the best out of it. Despite a flood of new cartridges out there hitting the market, 300 BO is well established now. It used to be here in the USA that five years ago 300 BO rifles were harder to find but now any decent gun store probably has some 300 BO stuff on the shelf. In fact I was in a high end gun store the other day and I'd say about 20% of their stock in semi auto guns was chambered in 300 BO. There are also bolt gun options from manufacturers like Ruger and CZ.Quote:
Originally Posted by hotbarrels
Having done a bit of shooting at goats over the years and now using bolt guns i believe the 762 x39 to be more effective than the 223 by a significant margin.
It has the nearly the same energy at 200 yds as the 223 at the muzzle it's accurate
( when not shot out of a semi with loose tolerances and poor sights)
The trajectory is a bit more sloping but mil dot scopes cope with that
I used to be a 223 fan boy (well late middle aged really) but the last couple of weeks have got me thinking that I was influenced more by the ar platform than by any superior ballistics the 223 might possess.
I think the Russian will be with us for the long haul and the likes of the blackout will probably fade into obscurity.