Saiga 5.45 or 7.62???

[jimbombo]

Hi All..
Getting a Saiga. centerfire has them for $319-$350, depending on the caliber.
I am leaning towards the 5.45 just cause it seems like a fun round to shoot. Possibility of doing some varmint hunting in the future, part of the reason leaning to that round.

1. Not too familiar with the 5.45 rnd, any input as too what avaliability of this round in the future will be like? Will not be phased out any time soon?

2. From what I understand if buying one of these rifles stay with 5.45 or 7.62 rnd, b/c of the surplus of high cap mags if I decide to convert it! Right??

3. Will the rifle be any less durable or reliable b/c of the higher pressures of the 5.45 round?

Thanks
Jim

 

[Gunnerboy]

5.45 is a suberb rnd i like it better than 7.62x39 for over 200m

 

[mortablunt]

5.45 is an excellent varmint choice. The rifle will not be harmed by using 5.45.

 

[Rob G]

1. There's always a lot of speculation on the 5.45 ammo supply. Right now we have tons of cheap Russian 7n6 available. How long will that last? I have no idea. But the Russian military aren't the only manufacturers of this round so I'd say we're good to go.

2. Surplus 5.45 mags aren't quite as easy to find as surplus 7.62 mags but they are fairly readily available if you look around. Either one will be far easier to find than a surplus 5.56 mag.

3. Pressure is not an issue. The Saiga was designed to fire the 5.45. It'll be just fine.

 

[jimbombo]

Thanks Rob

One last question.. Probably kind of goofy, are there any concerns about buying the russian ammo vs .223 or 7.62 made in the US(by concerns I mean most everything made in the US is regulated, Russia--who knows? Specifically the berdan primer or mercury in the primer and breathing that in or handling it?) I am probably worrying too much with that one !!!

thanks
Jim

 

[Rob G]

One last question.. Probably kind of goofy, are there any concerns about buying the russian ammo vs .223 or 7.62 made in the US(by concerns I mean most everything made in the US is regulated, Russia--who knows? Specifically the berdan primer or mercury in the primer and breathing that in or handling it?) I am probably worrying too much with that one

I wouldn't be worrying about mercury and other such things. Inhaling the lead from a fired round is probably far more dangerous in the long run. Plus it's really hard to say if the ammo you're shooting has mercury in it. The vast majority of ammo doesn't. As for US vs Russian ammo, I'd buy whatever's cheapest. Generally that's the Russian stuff. We have this conception in this country that the Russians/Soviets were incapable of good quality control. That's really not true. They turned out good products where it mattered to them and as a general rule that meant military production. I've put thousands of rounds of Russian surplus ammo through my AK and not had a single malfunction.

I will point out thought that a lot, but not all, of the Russian ammo is corrosive. It's not a big deal it just means that you can't take you gun to the range and then not clean it afterwards because the salt in the primer can cause it to rust. Down here near Houston where the humidity is high I've seen guns fired with corrosive ammo form rust in less than twenty four hours.

 

[wnycollector]

I own both 5.45 and 7.62x39 Saiga's. My 7.62 Saiga is fun, reliable and accurate but as Gunnerboy stated previously, 5.45 is a superb round. Between me and my two teenage son's we have put ~10K down the pipe's of my 5.45 Saiga and 5.45 S&W AR-15. At ~$0.12/round I cant get enough of it My S&W AR with 7n6 is actually more accurate than my 5.56 AR with WPA or Brown Bear. I really don't think you can go wrong with either saiga, I just prefer the 5.45 round.

 

[Z-Michigan]

No one has used mercuric primers for 40+ years. They have a whole set of issues. The primers in older commie ammo may be corrosive but aren't likely to be mercuric.

5.45 will be somewhat cheaper to shoot and less recoil, 762x39 will provide far more availability and options for ammo. The 5.45 is also slightly easier to convert to original configuration, but only slightly. Either one is good.

 

[Girodin]

If you have money to stockpile the cheap 5.45 then I'd get that. I remember when 7.62x25 was cheap and everywhere, now not so much. There will still be other ammo options if the surplus dries up, but the price advantage wont be there.

Another consideration is if you are willing to clean properly to deal with corrosive ammo. Its not a huge deal but some people are lazy.

From what I have seen the 5.45 is going to be just as reliable.