My father in law just bought a Norinco semi-auto 7.62, the M305. I have heard to not shoot commercial ammo in a military gun for a couple reasons, one being that commercial ammo has softer primers. Is this true? That the action on a military rifle operates more harshly and could actually set off the next shell? Seems skeptical to me. So if he can't use my ammo(.308 winchester), if he buys a lot of milsurp ammo, can I use it in my rifle, a good old bolt action? Any help is much appreciated. Thanks
Can commercial rifles handle milsurp ammo? Specifically .308 shooting 7.62x51
- Thread starter Willerton
- Start date
Both guns can use both types of ammo.
Your bolt rifle will handle any kind of commercial or military 308/7.62 ammo.
The M14 has two things to keep in mind:
- Ammo loaded with heavy bullets probably uses a slower powder, which will have a higher pressure at the gas port. This will beat up the op rod. When buying commercial ammo, buy 150 to 170 gr bullets.
- The softer commercial primers can cause a slam fire. I would not hesitate to use commercial ammo, but I would avoid Federal brand ammo (and Federal primers) because they are more sensitive. With any other commercial ammo, he is good to go, but it is important that the first round is fed from the magazine. Don't put a round in the chamber and drop the bolt on it. That is asking for a slam fire.
Your bolt rifle will handle any kind of commercial or military 308/7.62 ammo.
The M14 has two things to keep in mind:
- Ammo loaded with heavy bullets probably uses a slower powder, which will have a higher pressure at the gas port. This will beat up the op rod. When buying commercial ammo, buy 150 to 170 gr bullets.
- The softer commercial primers can cause a slam fire. I would not hesitate to use commercial ammo, but I would avoid Federal brand ammo (and Federal primers) because they are more sensitive. With any other commercial ammo, he is good to go, but it is important that the first round is fed from the magazine. Don't put a round in the chamber and drop the bolt on it. That is asking for a slam fire.
Typically yes.
Some brands have varying degrees of primer hardness. I think general consensus is that Federal ammo has some of the softest, and Norinco surplus has some of the hardest primers.
However, in most cases the problems I have heard of result in light strikes, which can sometimes be solved with new springs for your gun.
It also depends on the specific firearm. Some firearms have free-floating firing pins, so that when the bolt slams shut, the pin continues forward and bounces off the primer. With soft primers and/or repeated chamberings of the same cartridge, you can get a slam fire. That usually happens with milsurp guns using commercial ammo, but can also happen with multiple chamberings of the same cartridge. The firing pin just keeps lightly hitting the primer until eventually it might discharge.
That is part of why milsurp ammo has harder primers, or you might have a lot more NDs especially with the guys who go out on patrol, chamber a round, then put that round back in the mag at the end of patrol.
If you have an old commercial gun, that's when I might be suspicious of using newer milsurp ammo, that might be made for guns with stronger alloys. But that goes for almost all old guns and new ammo, whether milsurp or not.
Some brands have varying degrees of primer hardness. I think general consensus is that Federal ammo has some of the softest, and Norinco surplus has some of the hardest primers.
However, in most cases the problems I have heard of result in light strikes, which can sometimes be solved with new springs for your gun.
It also depends on the specific firearm. Some firearms have free-floating firing pins, so that when the bolt slams shut, the pin continues forward and bounces off the primer. With soft primers and/or repeated chamberings of the same cartridge, you can get a slam fire. That usually happens with milsurp guns using commercial ammo, but can also happen with multiple chamberings of the same cartridge. The firing pin just keeps lightly hitting the primer until eventually it might discharge.
That is part of why milsurp ammo has harder primers, or you might have a lot more NDs especially with the guys who go out on patrol, chamber a round, then put that round back in the mag at the end of patrol.
If you have an old commercial gun, that's when I might be suspicious of using newer milsurp ammo, that might be made for guns with stronger alloys. But that goes for almost all old guns and new ammo, whether milsurp or not.
Good point about light strikes in a commercial rifle with military ammo. I have a Rem788 chambered in 7.62x39. It gets about 40% ignition with milsurp ammo. It is at the gunsmith, as I write this, getting a 28 pound Wolf spring installed.
Right on. Appreciate the info. Another of the issues he mentioned was that milsurp ammo can be a slightly thicker case wall to make it a bit more durable in the field and that I might have trouble chambering the ammunition. True, false? Thoughts? Experiences?
Thicker case wall can developp slighty higher pressure because the case capacity is reduced but externally, the cases, whenever milsurp or commercial will have the same dimension so either round will chamber without a problem.
Joce
