This kind of malfunction can be a pain in the ass at the range, and a death sentence in a combat/self-defense situation. I’ve had steel cases get stuck so firmly that I had to run a steel cleaning rod down the barrel and gently tap it out with a mallet. This same hardness is what causes steel to run dirty (remember, it doesn’t expand as well and thus doesn’t seal as well).īut it also means that it may expand unevenly in the chamber, leading to it getting stuck. While steel is harder and thus less likely to get ripped into by an aggressive extractor, it’s is also sometimes more likely to get stuck because of its other physical properties.įirst, we have the hardness and resistance of deformation that makes it less resistant to ripped rims and torn off heads. Then Again, Steel Might Not Extract Better If you’re just plinking at the range occasionally, it probably won’t matter.īut it’s still better to test any rifles that you plan on using for serious business, be that combat or competition, with the ammo you intend to use first. Now, is this a concern for a target shooter or someone who is going to slow-fire their way through one magazine a month? Probably not, honestly. Surplus rifles are a great way to get into rifle shooting without breaking the bank.Īn argument can be made that countries like Russia gravitated towards guns with short, aggressive cycles because they could make use of cheaper steel ammo that our Eastern brethren produced en masse.Īn argument can also be made for steel ammo being produced en masse in these countries because it works better in guns with looser tolerances and more aggressive extraction cycles that tend to be favored there. So, AKs and other guns that extract with a bit more force may actually perform more reliably with steel than brass - especially if you’re talking about older surplus guns that were imported as parts kits. Yes, it’s dirty, but it’s also incredibly robust when it comes to that sort of thing. This extra cartridge strength, especially in intermediate cartridges, is, however, one of the big selling points of steel. These rifles may run just fine and never have a single issue, and many of them will fire thousands of issue-free, brass-cased rounds down range and never chamber a single steel cartridge. That’s not to say that weapons like the FAMAS, AK-pattern guns, the FAL, and others won’t run well with brass. So, a delayed blowback-operated weapon like a FAMAS is going to be more likely to rip brass than an AR-15 and may function better with steel. In general, any rifle with a shorter and more violent extraction is going to have more issues than a rifle with a longer cycle time and less violent extraction.
More material supporting the point of contact between the extractor and the case means a lower likelihood of a failure to extract due to torn brass. This is in part due to the extra meat the extractor has to yank on as a byproduct of what is simply a larger cartridge. 223/5.56x45mm, and Kalashnikov-patterned rifles like the AK-74 that are shooting intermediate cartridges like the 5.45x39mm - rather than say, AKM and SKS rifles firing the larger 7.62x39mm. This is especially prevalent in older FALs in. This is because, in general, the tolerances are not as tight on these guns and they extract with much more force than most brass-cased ammo is designed to tolerate. These rifles can, if not properly tuned, rip the heads clean off of softer brass cases. Now, take for example some of the surplus FALs lying around (yes I know the FAL is Belgian), or AKs rechambered for straight-walled cartridges. Now, most of the Western weapons you’re probably most familiar with ( AR-15 and AR-10s for example) use primarily straight-walled cartridges that extract with fairly light pressure. Of course, there’s also the issue of extraction. Once they expand they like to stay expanded - meaning you get only two, maybe three, safe uses out of the case before it has to be thrown away or recycled.45 Colt Reloads Steel-Cased Ammo Pros & Cons Steel (Might) Extract Better Steel cases can’t really be resized as easily. Dillon 550-B Reloading Pressīut for high-volume shooters and those who want to get the most bang for their buck (literally), this is something to consider. Practically, if you don’t intend to reload/handload your ammo anyway, this won’t be much of a concern for you. You can learn more about the reloading process here.
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