Budget rifles running steel cased ammo

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bricz75

New member
Of the various budget rifles out there, are there any that run cheap, steel cased ammo particularly well?

Are there any budget rifles a person should avoid if one wants to shoot steel cased ammo?
 
I have been shooting s/b steel case 55gr. fmj out of my t/c compass with good results. I would like to try some wolf gold. I don't think I would shoot thousands of rounds of it,but a few boxes probably won't hurt it.
 
I haven't heard of any sporting rifles that function better with steel cased than brass. But at one time there were a foreign brand or two steel cased manufactures that according to some shooters were {marginal in reliability and especially so in accuracy.} But~~as time rolls on everything {consumer product} improves. __well~I hope so.
 
What caliber and to what purpose? What's considered "budget"?

The CZ 527 rifles are rumored to shoot steel cased ammo just as well or better than brass in the calibers it comes in (from my own testing, that's true for 7.62x39). I would imagine that mil surp Mausers probably do as well.
 
seanc said:
What caliber and to what purpose? What's considered "budget"?

The CZ 527 rifles are rumored to shoot steel cased ammo just as well or better than brass in the calibers it comes in (from my own testing, that's true for 7.62x39). I would imagine that mil surp Mausers probably do as well.
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.308 for target shooting, possibly hunting as well in the future.

Yes, the CZ 527 shoot that East European stuff well. I came across a fellow who claimed he was getting MOA at 100 yards.
 
Ammo:
Budget pricing = budget performance.

Rifle:
Don't worry about it. They're (nearly) all decent. And, as always, every rifle is an island. (No two are alike. One might like $70/box ammo, while the next serial number in the production sequence likes $8/box Wolf.)
 
seanc said:
What caliber and to what purpose? What's considered "budget"?

The CZ 527 rifles are rumored to shoot steel cased ammo just as well or better than brass in the calibers it comes in (from my own testing, that's true for 7.62x39). I would imagine that mil surp Mausers probably do as well.
Click to expand...
My x39 527 is about equally accurate with brass vs steel ammo (for me), but the brass I’ve tried runs never cycles quite as smoothly as the steel does.
 
I wouldn't spend my money on steel case ammo but then I also reload. I expect an inexpensive rifle will be no different than an expensive one. That means it may shoot the ammo good and it may not. The rifle's are all built to handle any factory ammo unless you get some kind of warning from the manufacturer. Having even an inexpensive rifle blow up with any factory ammo probably would not bode well for either the rifle or ammo manufacturer. How accurate? Only one way to find out!
 
I have run very little steel case through my CZ 527M, but that's because I reload and cast my own bullets in that caliber. :)
I have an AR from PSA that seems to like steel case stuff just fine, 5 inches standing at 100 yards. That would probably be better with a better shooter than me.
 
Steel cased ammo is "cheap" for a reason. Mild steel costs less than brass. However, like any factory ammo, you have to try a box to see if your rifle will shoot it well enough to bother using. It hasn't really got anything to do with the retail price of the rifle though.
You have to pay attention to the type of jacket used too. If it says 'bimetal', it's a steel jacket that is copper washed. Lotta ranges don't allow steel jacketed ammo.
 
I thought I'd solicit more opinions about which budget rifles are good for shooting steel cased ammo and which a person should stay away from. Any experiences or hearsay?
 
There are two rifles that I would not hesitate to feed steel - cased ammo:

- sks
- AK 47 / 74

I believe the chambers and extractors were designed from day one, to run steel.

All others - brass only.
 
My sugar ranch in 308

Shoots Russian ammo to 1.5 inch groups all day long. At 200 yards or less it works perfectly for hunting


Steve
 
Mostin and steel case . . .

The first 440 round I shot out of my Mosin Nagant were Bulgarian steel case ammo. (At least I think it was Bulgarian.) It all shot just fine.

However, many years ago I was shooting wolf steel cased stuff out of a Rem 7 chambered in 223 and one expanded on me. Took a plastic mallet to beat the bolt open. Did not do that again.

Life is good.
Prof Young
 
Prof Young said:
The first 440 round I shot out of my Mosin Nagant were Bulgarian steel case ammo. (At least I think it was Bulgarian.) It all shot just fine.

However, many years ago I was shooting wolf steel cased stuff out of a Rem 7 chambered in 223 and one expanded on me. Took a plastic mallet to beat the bolt open. Did not do that again.

Life is good.
Prof Young
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Perhaps other steel cased ammo like Bernaul with laquer or Silver Bear with zinc (I think) would work.

I'm kicking myself for not buying crates of 440 round 30 cal Russian when the getting was good. I wonder what happened that it either disappeared to went up a huge amount in price.
 
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