The 7.62X39 mm cartridge - good or?

Ancalagon

Ancalagon

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Hello

I see a lot of love in this sub-forum for the SKS and other warsaw pact riffles chambering the 7.62 round. And although I think my opinion will be firmer once I actually get to fire these (I'm not sure if the SKS will be my first riffle or not, but definitely interested in getting it!), I think I can see why :)

What I've been wondering about though... the guns are great, but what about the round? I know for example there are a few bolt-action riffles out there (the Remington Mauser 799?) that fire the 7.62X39mm... are those any good?

What I'm basically wondering is if the round by itself stands on its own, or if it's really the guns that make these special. I know it has very reasonable recoil and that it's cheap because of the military surplus status, but apart from that... ? Good, mediocre?
 
Great for what it was designed for. Problem is, people tend to use it for other purposes and then whine when it can't drop a moose at 7oo yards, etc.
 
I use it in my CZ 527 but I have to handload forr it as it doesnt meet our minimum muzzle energy limits for deer this side of the pond. Like everything used within its limits its fine, you wouldnt expect to win F1 with a Nascar and the Pars Dakar with a geo!
 
Its a soft shooting round, it's inexpensive, plentiful, and a lot of fun.

I've had excellent results with Hornady 7.62x39 in my Ruger M77 compact. I also shoot the cartridge out of my CZ858, and to a lesser extent, my SKS.

I used to have a Baikal single shot in 7.62, but it did not like milsurp ammo.

All this to say, I'm a fan boy, and 7.62x39 can be shot very accurately with the right hardware and good ammo.
 
It is great for teaching small people to shoot. The average Russian, Chinese, Vietnamese or Angolan recruit or guerrilla is shorter, thinner and smaller than a typical Westerner.

Ruger used to advertise their Mini 14 in 7.62x39 as a good short range deer gun, a step up from the Winchester 94, because of better options for bullets. Load a little hotter, and put in a more pointed bullet, and if Ruger is to be believed, you've got a handy backwoods deer rifle.
 
maple_leaf_eh said:
It is great for teaching small people to shoot. The average Russian, Chinese, Vietnamese or Angolan recruit or guerrilla is shorter, thinner and smaller than a typical Westerner.

Ruger used to advertise their Mini 14 in 7.62x39 as a good short range deer gun, a step up from the Winchester 94, because of better options for bullets. Load a little hotter, and put in a more pointed bullet, and if Ruger is to be believed, you've got a handy backwoods deer rifle.
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a step up from the winchester 94 eh?- another case of ruger seeing the world through rose-coloured glasses ; almost any 94 will out shoot the mini series,and the REST OF THE WORLD classifies the 7.62x39 as a "light 30-30"
how is that a step up?- the 30 30 is anemic enough , let alone a light one; moreover, what's more handy than a 94 trapper?-
 
Grizzly Adams said:
I guess it depends where you hunt deer. If your handle reflects you live in Saskatchewan, I wouldn't think so. :D

Grizz
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you're misreading it; it's not the cartridge that's little, it's the deer; think dik-dik or blacktail- like smaller than a great dane- 12/14 pounds, 30cm at the shoulder
 
t-star said:
a step up from the winchester 94 eh?- another case of ruger seeing the world through rose-coloured glasses ; almost any 94 will out shoot the mini series,and the REST OF THE WORLD classifies the 7.62x39 as a "light 30-30"
how is that a step up?- the 30 30 is anemic enough , let alone a light one; moreover, what's more handy than a 94 trapper?-
Click to expand...

You should write Ruger a letter lol
 
7.62x39 is a fantastic round for what it was made for.

I don't hunt, but for plinking it's fantastic and the accuracy with even surplus may surprise you. I have 1440 rounds of Chinese surplus on the way to me from Tradex. My 858 and three SKS's are hungry!
 
7.62x39 is a nice round... Packs a bit of punch, and with a well placed shot will drop whatever you want within certain ranging limits. I wouldn't go out moose hunting with it(even though you could drop a moose with it), but a friend of mine is from Russia and uses his SKS exclusively for hunting... It has never let him down. I like mine very much and am currently debating the 7.62x39 or the 7.62x54R for my deer hunting season... I'll likely take the Mosin Nagant.
 
Back in the good old days, my wife dropped a huge cow moose with 3 shots from an AK into the chest at over 200 paces. The moose laid down to die, but my wife didn't know to not chase it, so it ran about 1/2 a mile before kicking the bucket. I also shot a 2 1/2 year-old black bear with it at about 30 yards. Hit the bear once in the chest. It dropped, stayed down for about 30 sec., then got back up. I gave it one more in the chest, it ran about 50 ft. and was down for the count. Both cases were with handloads and (I think) 130gr. slugs. I would love to get my hands on a lightweight semi ( not a Mini-30) or lever in a 7.62 X 39. It would make a great go-to gun for deer and black bear.
 
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