Red Army 308 ammunition

[Mark1]

Has anyone used the Red Army 308 ammunition? I know they have steel cases and are not re-loadable which is ok.



Just looking for some input with the M1A.

[milprileb]

The military did not issue steel cased ammo for the M14 for a reason. Russian steel case ammo often has bullets of dubious metals that wear un necessarily barrels. What you gain by cheap steel ammo is not worth what happens to your rifle. From my view point, its one thing to use steel cased ammo in a M4 upper , entire upper can is easily replaced for 300 bucks or new barrel for 100 bucks (16 inch barrels) and its another thing to replace a M1A barrel which will push costs to 600 bucks at least.

[martindc1]

Midway has a few options for 7.62x51 in stock for reasonable prices at the moment, including Winchester M80, IMI M80, and IMIM118LR. With these you can either save the brass for reloading down the road or sell the brass to recoup some of your ammo costs. Or you can leave the brass on the ground at the range so people like me can scrounge it up.

[bruce]

Have no experience with the Red Army .308 ammunition. Do have 180 rounds of experience with Russian made Barnuel .30-06 145 gr. FMJ ammo fired in strings of 10 rds. at 200 yds. from a very nice Rem. 1903 w/ 1944 dated HS barrel. Recoil was noticeably heavier than normal. After about 30 - 40 rounds, extraction was sticky and became difficult before 100 rounds were fired. Primers in fired cases showed marked signs of high pressure. If the Red Army is of similar quality, would not even consider firing it from any semi-auto rifle. Would expect similar problems. JMHO. Sincerely. bruce.

[Mark1]

Thank you. I will not get any.

[2908]

I have also heard of extractor wear issues using steel cased ammo.

[42Springfield]

For about the same price, this company is loading surplus pulldown Lake City brass and producing quasi M80 loads for bulk shooting: https://www.theamericanmarksman.com/...ARN=1656172816

I have some and it works fine, and it’s brass cased and reloadable (though primers are crimped).

[martindc1]

Originally Posted by 42Springfield

For about the same price, this company is loading surplus pulldown Lake City brass and producing quasi M80 loads for bulk shooting: https://www.theamericanmarksman.com/...ARN=1656172816

I have some and it works fine, and it’s brass cased and reloadable (though primers are crimped).

Wow, at that price it’s about worth it for the brass alone.

[moose]

Red Army Standard is a Century Arms brand for imported ammo.

Much of it was loaded in Lugansk, Ukraine...
However they have a second source in Bosnia so its not completely a dead brand.
They have also been known to contract with other former com bloc counties..

Its still all loaded to "Com Bloc" standards.. steel case, lacquered coating, etc.

They have had some QA issues, in 2013 they had one of their contractors mistakenly loaded corrosive components in some of the ammo.

In short, its Comm Block garbage ammo that doesn't belong in a western gun.
The reason extraction gets sticky is the Lacquer that stuff starts to get in your chamber. Plus yes its often loaded hot. Steel is also hell on the feed ramps and the extractor.

In short, its crap extreme ammo.. The reason they make 308 is because there are AK and Dragonov variants in 308.

SAI also (or at least used to) put something in the box with the guns saying NOT to use steel cased ammo.

[ZvenoMan]

Steel is not unsuitable for modern firearms. "Steel" is simply a term describing metal defined as steel; which can range from very hard (like a receiver) to very soft (like brass). The US issued some ammo in steel (but I haven't heard of any in 7.62x51) when it was more available than brass.
The type of steel is of course important to know. No way to know without tearing down and analyzing the many available European steel cased ammo.
Steel rusts of course, so the cases are generally lacquer coated. The type and thickness of lacquer can cause flaking, build up and fouling, again, no way to know before you buy. You may never have a problem from the lacquer. I have a dozen Mosin Nagants, some don't care; other's just can't tolerate it.
Someone above mentioned bullets of "dubious metal". Not a function of the steel cased ammo, it IS a function of "cheap ammo". Why does this matter? Too soft, the built won't perform well. Too hard, it won't perform well and can cause more wear than is normal. Most steel case ammo is labeled with bullet weight only (if your are lucky); no way to know what type of metal is used in that cheap bullet.
Many times steel cased ammo is tumbled in copper or otherwise "copper coated", this sometimes helps with the issues with the lacquer.

Why consider steel ammo: Because it's less expensive. But lower cost, as seen here, leads to some compromises. If you shoot a box or 26 through your M1A will you have any problems? Probably not. Will it perform as well as surplus GA ammo? Well, if you are shooting at washing machines ate 38 feet you will probably find it more than adequate. Bot it is NEVER better ammo than properly manufactured and stored commercial or GI surplus ammo.

I shoot it occasionally in modern pistols, especially in IDPA type matches, for that it's fine. But in an M1A; the drawbacks greatly outweigh the cost savings.
If I want to shoot at washing machines then the M1A isn't what I'd use. My M1A is expected to be a very accurate rifle at >100 yards, so bargain basement ammo isn't really what I seek.

JH