is it possible/possibly worth it

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G-Force24

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Some friends and I are thinking of getting into reloading. Aside from handgun loads and basic rifle loads, is it possible to reload the surplus 7.62x39 round.
Yes I know that it is insanely inexpensive to purchase cases of complete rounds, but if/when these rounds run out or whatever political action yada yada yada. Is it possible???
 
It's possible, but the price of the Berdan primers is prohibitive to say the least. Look at Can Ams ad. They are over half as expensive as the milsurp rounds themselves.

$120/1000 before taxes and shipping.

You would be far better off, investing in boxer primed brass and going on from there.

$.15/primer(berdan), plus $.20/bullet, plus $.08 for powder per round = $.43/round or $430/1000. I've included taxes in the price and buying bulk components.

Milsurp 7.62x39, is the deal of the century.
 
Like bearhunter says, it's less fuss to buy boxer primed brass.
The cost of primers(that aren't everywhere and the availability of 'em is sporadic.) aside, loading berdan primed brass is more trouble than it's worth. Requires a special tool to get 'em out.
 
What you can do is to make "Mexican Match" surplus military ammo. That is pull the FMJ bullet, neck size the brass, re-weigh the powder charge, and seat a match or hunting bullet in place of the FMJ. If you change the bullet weight you will have to recalculate the load accordingly. Berdan primers mean you are pretty much restricted to one firing per cartridge, but if you get it cheap enough its worthwhile. I haven't made Mexican Match with 7.62X39 but I have with .30/06, .308, and .223 rounds. Personally I would avoid resizing steel cases.
 
If you have carbide dies, steel cases resize quite well. Back in the day when 7.62x54 was almost non existent, we struggled with the steel cases. We couldn't beg, buy, borrow or steal brass cases, berdan or boxer. The steel in the cases is suprisingly ductile.

As mentioned, berdan primers are a pain. The special tool from RCBS works well and some guys have rigged up hydraulic methods. The crimped primers, can also cause a bit of grief. Another thing with berdan priming, the flash holes wll often be plugged with crud. The holes need to be cleaned. One fellow I know, drilled out a decapping hole in the bottom of a bunch of cases. He never had any issues that I could see. No pressure signs either. I was more than a bit surprised, I had always been under the impression that the extra hole in the middle would provide to much ignition and increase pressures accordingly. It isn't an experiment I've chosen to try.
 
I make cheap Mexican match ammo in 7.62X39. I pull the bullets and get the weight ofthe powder charge. reduce the charge and put it in boxer primed brass, then cap it with a cast 150gr GC bullet. It is almost as cheap as buying surplus and I put the surplus bullet aside for use if the weather doesn't allow me to cast.

All I have left is the corrosive berdan primed steel cases that I don't want to shoot so I give them to a friend to reload once.

Cactus
 
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