7.62x54r 7N1?

rimfiremac

rimfiremac

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I've heard the x54r with '188' and '97' on the headstamp is more carefully assembled than standard surplus- 7N1 specification for whatever its worth.

Has anyone tried this stuff out? Particularly in a Finn M39?
 
The ammunition is a key thing with Soviet Bloc sniper weapons - The Dragunov took a lot of knocks when they started to make it out to the west, lots of people knocking them as inaccurate, but the only ammo widely available was machine gun ammo. The 7N1 round turns the Dragunov into a very viable sniper weapon at longer ranges - I don't know if it has the same effect at short range. I'm not sure if it would do the same for the Nagant, but it's consistency and bullet design can't hurt.
 
I have no experiance with those rounds but I have read that they are great in some rifles and not so good in others, just like any quality ammo.
 
rimfiremac said:
I've heard the x54r with '188' and '97' on the headstamp is more carefully assembled than standard surplus- 7N1 specification for whatever its worth.

Has anyone tried this stuff out? Particularly in a Finn M39?
Click to expand...

The general consensus in the US is that the really interesting part of 7N1 isn't the accuracy (you get better accuracy loading your own) as much as the bullets themselves. Copper jacket/mild steel core with an air pocket and a lead "knocker" in the base. Apparently they are as effective as SP on soft tissue but retain the penetrating qualities of other copper jacketed/mild steel cored rounds.

Replaced by 7N14 which is supposed to have better ballistics.

There was some on EE in the Spring, IIRC it was there for a while before it was either bought up or the add was taken down.
 
I pulled a round for inspection, and found it to be very interesting in profile- it is certainly shaped for low drag- here it is second from the left: 165 SGKHP, 152 7N1, 175 SMK, 178 Amax

7N1comp.jpg
 
Friend of mine bought some of the 7N1 to try out in his 91/30. Stuff sucked completely, which took both of us by surprise. Nothing wrong with the rifle, either: it held POA/POI for the next 4 years, Summer and Winter, with handloads, putting them all on the same 3x5 file card at 325 yards, iron sights.
 
The difference between the 7.62x54 "D" and 7N1 is that the diameter of the bullet of the 7N1 is 7.7mm.
 
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The SVD was never meant to be a 1 MOA rifle. Regardless of ammunition choice, whether it's handloaded or not.

The 7N1 was the dedicated sniper load for the SVD after the adoption of the SVD in 1963. It was operational in 1966 in the Russian army. This cartridge was made of a copper-washed and annealed steel case, corrosive Berdan primer, extruded powder and a 152-grain steel-jacketed FMJ-BT projectile. Overall projectile length is 1.275 inches, and the diameter is .311 inch.

The ballistics of the 7N1 load is similar to the standard 148-grain PS light ball ammo. To achieve greater accuracy, the 7N1 was manufactured to tighter tolerances. Externally the 7N1 looks identical to the standard Soviet 148-grain ball ammo. The head-stamp consists of '188' which is a factory code. The shipping crates, cans, and paper packets for the 7N1 were marked "SNIPER" in Cyrillic. Without the packaging it is impossible to differentiate the 7N1 from ball. A headstamp indicating production by factory 188 and a date of manufacture between 1966 and 1999 does indicate the possibility of it being 7N1.

For a long time the Russians have also produced high quality 7.62x54R match ammunition, called 'EXTRA' for use in competitions.

-Sources used: Guns and Ammo Combat Arms
 
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