Pull down and reload steel case ammo?

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dakota.potts

New member
Hello, thinking about getting into reloading here.

I have an AR 15 and CZ 75 that get fed brass cased ammo, but also have an SKS and Mosin Nagant that get nothing but steel.

I know steel case is very impractical to reload, but with these two rifles, I had a thought.

Could one buy off the shelf steel cased ammo (Wolf, Tula, Monarch etc.), pull the bullet, and reload it with a different bullet? A good example would be for hunting/defense use. There is some hunting ammo out there, but it's somewhat limited. It seems like this would be a relatively inexpensive way to get some custom loads going for hunting season or for defensive use. I believe standard .308 ammo can be loaded, no? This would open up the possibility of loading bullets such as Barnes which are not typically offered in those calibers.

I understand brass cased ammo is available which is much more plausible to reload, but if someone didn't care about saving their brass, it seems like this would be a way to work up loads for those calibers while keeping equipment and initial investment to a minimum. I've heard this is done with some surplus military rifles to load uniform powder charges and bullet sizes for more accurate shooting.
 
you absolutely can, and can make a very accurate round this way. find a same size bullet, pour out the powders and measure, find the average powder charge and re-fill the cartridges consistently. seat your new bullets, mild crimp since you may be reducing neck tension when pulling and shoot away. you CAN reload once-fired steel cased ammo, although it's a pain and they have a tendency to stick in your dies. but making Mexican match has proved to be a viable option for lots of folks.

the issue is, since you don't know the powder being used, you are restricted to using a similar weight bullet. you specifically say "barnes", which being a monolithic, usually takes a different type of powder charge..... I would stick to regular jacketed FMJ/soft-points/open-tipped bullets with lead inside that would call for similar charges. unless, you are going to dump the powder, toss it and use your own canister powders, but that seems like a waste
 
One bullet I was interested in was the Lehigh Defense Controlled Chaos. They state

"Controlled Chaos Load Data - Controlled Chaos rifle bullets develop very similar chamber pressures to equivalent weight lead jacketed bullets.

For starting load data, please refer to the powder manufacturer's starting load for an equivalent weight lead jacketed bullet. "

So, wouldn't it be safe to load a 145 grain bullet in the same cartridge as a 147 grain 7.62X54R?

Mostly just for experimentation purposes to see what can be done and what that type of bullet design does at the very high velocities a 91/30 can kick it out.

I do plan on getting a full single stage manual press for loading .223 and 9mm, so it wouldn't be out of the question to load new powder, but I'm curious what can be done using just the standard components and new bullets to develop more terminal loads.
 
When pulling bullets from brass rifle cases, the case necks will loosen some, making it desirable to neck resize in order to restore neck tension when bullets are reseated, but perhaps this does not happen to any extent when pulling from steel cases. Just something to keep in mind. It may be preferable to use a different powder with whatever new bullets you end up using.
 
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I have heard favorable things about collet pulling not affecting the neck tension so much, but I think steel tends to have elasticity so I imagine I'd treat it like it does need to be resized or at least check.


If I'm going that far with it, I may as well try a full pull down and load with some new powder. I bet I could come up with some pretty awesome 7.62X39 hog loads for my VZ 58 that way. I am curious what results could come of "Mexican Match" ammo with bullets built around hunting/tactical use though.
 
I did 880 rounds of 7.62X54R
First push in the bullet to break the sealer and crimp
I used a collet puller to pull bullets
drain powder (I measured first 20 rounds and averaged the weight )
remove decaping pin from sizing die and size cases
( some decaping pins need to be cut from rod, I just ordered a new rod
for the die )
I reused the same bullets but you can use other bullets
charge cases and seat your bullets

I found the powder charge varied 2.0 full grains (no wonder that
ammo was all over the target )
 
He is correct about not taking .308 bullets. Go to grafs.com and search for .311/.312 bullets. Hornady makes vmax for x39 as do some others. But the vmax are proven great defense/game loads, and they're cheap. The .308 bullets will suffer from poor accuracy and poor neck tension.
 
Steel cases are NOT reloadable. Most of them are Berdan primed, which if you can find primers are a giant pain in the buttocks to change. And the mild steel used is NOT elastic like brass is. They will not resize properly.
Wolf, Tula, Monarch etc. is relatively cheap for a reason and it's not just because the ruble is worthless.
Your 145's vs 147's theory isn't true. Two grains won't matter. However, neither Russian cartridge uses a .308" bullet. 147's are the standard 7.62NATO bullet weight. Milsurp 7.62 x 54R doesn't use 147's. 7.62 x 39 doesn't either.
 
http://www.slickguns.com/product/762x54r-147-gr-fmj-440rds-8797-or-8357-free-shipping?mobile=true 147 grain

http://www.gunsholstersandgear.com/2013/02/14/reloading-steel-cases-reload-steel-case-ammo/ reloading steel case ammo.

Regarding .308 vs .311 rounds, I have read that most 7.62x39 being sold now are .308 and .310/.311 are rarer now. I have a century made vz2008 which I have read to have a .308 caliber bore so I don't see a problem there. I will have to slug my 91/30 though and see where it sits. I'll also have to take a caliper to my different cartridges around the house and see what they measure. Wish I had a proper micrometer though

I'm also thinking ahead as I want to build a CETME, and it's highly recommended to shoot either steel case or shoot only NATO brass, so I'm curious what can be done with a bullet swap
 
t oheir, I have many russina tula steel cased that has a .310 bullet. most sks, ak's, mosin's all take a 310-312 bullet. there are many bullets on the market specifically for x39 that come in .310. maybe I was misunderstanding your post, but most all the majors sell an x39 intended bullet @310-311 in the 120-150gr range.

all of these bullets are intended for x39 hunting denfense loading
http://www.hornady.com/store/.310-7.62/

heres grafs.com section of x39 bullets, in .310 caliber.
https://www.grafs.com/retail/catalog/category/categoryId/921?

there are dozens and dozens of x39 specific bullets still on the market, you will not satisfy your goals shooting a .308, unless in fact you happen to have an odd one out .308 caliber x39


good luck

I have been at work for 23 1/2 hours, so please forgive me if I misunderstood you post ohier, but there are lots of x39 bullets that aren't 308. I have cut and crowned several sks's and found none of them to be close to .308

okay, okay, I think I see the argument now. 150gr bullets. you will have no issue going up to the .311 to take advantage of the 140-150gr baullets for your x39 tula even markets a 147gr SP in .310. but shop around for 311 and if if you feel it necessary, you can always pushed them through a .310 sizing die.

although not likely necessary, all these rounds can pushed through a 310 sizing die if it makes you feel more comfortable, but that .001 aint going to make a difference. I hae reloaded several hundred berdan steel cased bullets w/o issue, just a PITA. but if it something you really wanna do, the option is there
http://www.grafs.com/retail/catalog/product/productId/6287
http://www.grafs.com/retail/catalog/product/productId/17642
http://www.grafs.com/retail/catalog/product/productId/17252

read the reviews on these, and you'' see that others are running them in x39 without downsizing and with great results, like most of these 150gr .311's

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/28...ese-311-diameter-150-grain-spitzer-box-of-100
 
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I pulled down military ammo and wasted time

I tried real hard, but have given up on military barrels and ammo in FALs, SKSs, AKs, Garands, Lee Enfields, and Mosin Nagants.
I am still spending time with AR15s and Mausers, but not with military ammo.
I am going to take a Mosin Nagant hunting in October, but it will be in 300 Win Mag.
I am not wasting my time with military barrels, except a few 8mm Mausers and 12" twist AR15s.
My preference for barrels is;
The As:
Shilen select match, Krieger, Pac Nor, Benchmark, Hart, Parker Hale, Lothar Walther
The Bs:
Shilen SS match, Douglas, Green Mountain, Rem 700 factory, Ruger #1 factory, Browning 1885 factory, Savage 110 factory, Marlin micro groove factory.
The C's:
[did not make the list]
 
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