.308 or .310 for an SKS

Status
Not open for further replies.
P

Pit4Brains

Member
Joined
May 31, 2012
Messages
225
Location
Mesa, Az
Or does it even matter?
I've never loaded this cartridge, in fact I haven't even gone to the store for the dies yet, but my Hornady 8th ed. shows two different dia. at different grains.

110 gr is .308
123 gr is .310
130 gr is .308
150-155 gr is .308

I was planning on going with a 110 sp or a 123 sp and 4198 powder, just to make up some plinking rounds for now.
Anyone have any Sierra data? I don't have a Sierra book yet but I like their prices..
 
It just depends. Some rifles simply don't care about .002" and others it means the difference in groups vs patterns.

All my guns with bores no larger than .3105" shot .308" diameter bullets just as well.
 
I would suggest slugging the bore of your rifle to get the best match possible.
Sending a .308 bullet down a bore that is .310 .311 or.312 is not going to be very accurate.
I would think using a .310 bullet in a .308 bore would raise pressures to some extent as well but it has surely been done many times by unknowing shooters.
Safety first.
Luck
T
 
Good info.. Thanx! I'll save that for some future comparison.
Now I need to find some brass. I don't think those grey chinese things are reload able are they? I'll keep my head down at the range and look for some fired stuff around here..
 
It's my understanding that most SKS barrels are .311" or .312" depending on where it came from & if it's chrome lined. That said I find it odd that guys say they shoot .310" best. Yesterday I actually rolled a fishing sinker to .315" so I can use it to slug my bore & find out.

That said, I also find it odd that mine came with a 9.5 twist & the standard projectile is in the 120gr weight range... Maybe SKS accuracy was doomed from the start by an improper twist. Look what a 30BR will do with the same weight class!
 
Good luck finding reloadable 7.62x39 at the range. I think you'd have a better chance of seeing a unicorn jump over a leprechaun who's sitting on a pot of gold.

Check MidwayUSA, they sell new 7.62x39 brass you can use.
 
Good luck finding reloadable 7.62x39 at the range.
Click to expand...

You're probably right on that one. Most off the shelf ammo has steel casings, no?
Last time at the range the guy next to me left good M-14 brass (.30 carbine or whatever) all over the place. He looked like he hand loaded but didn't seem to want to pick up all of his brass. So there may be a chance for some.

I went to the store last evening and ended up passing on the 7.62 dies for now and opted to get a set of .38/.357 carbides and associated supplies so I can get back to shooting the wheel guns.

At $5-$6 a box for chinese ammo, I can just plink at the range for now.
I did find two sinkers in the tackle box, one is .310 or so and the other is about .320. I'll take my time and send those down the bore to get a good dia. and determine twist at the same time. Meanwhile I'll start collecting some brass, the appropriate bullets and get the dies the next time my budget says I can.

Thanks for the heads up about slugging. I have never done it before but it looks simple enough..
 
(QTY 50 is on sale through 6/30/2012, making it cheaper than per-case QTY 500 or QTY1000)
 
Interestingly enough I was just at Sportsman's where they had a few boxes of 7.62x39 brass-cased tracer ammo. I picked up a box. When I got home I measured a bullet, to my suprise, it is .306"?!?!
 
GJgo said:
Interestingly enough I was just at Sportsman's where they had a few boxes of 7.62x39 brass-cased tracer ammo. I picked up a box. When I got home I measured a bullet, to my suprise, it is .306"?!?!
Click to expand...

You can't rely on measurements taken above the cannelure. Many 7.62 profile bullets will measures much larger on the shank than they do the ogive.
 
When I got home I measured a bullet, to my suprise, it is .306"?!?!
Click to expand...

What brand were those tracers? I don't think I'de buy them just for the brass and there's little to no use for a tracer. They pose extra hazards past their intended target, like fires.. i know they are banned at all of our controlled ranges here. None the less they can be cool at night, which is also illegal here in Az

You can't rely on measurements taken above the cannelure. Many 7.62 profile bullets will measures much larger on the shank than they do the ogive.
Click to expand...

He didn't say where he measured it, but being tracers, who knows what quality was put into those rounds.

The Hornady bullets at the store that were labeled as 30 cal and 7.62 on the same box were .310. all other 30 cal were .308
 
The stuff I picked up is Trajectory Technologies 147gr. I paid $12.95 for a box, figured what the heck.

P.S. I slugged my bore & it was .312. Might start a thread to discuss. I've actually been curious about .312 bullets, such as the 100gr Hornady XTP or a lighter .311 or .312 rifle bullet.
 
Last edited:
Just by the look of my rifle when i bought it, I doubt if there was any Quality Control going on during the manufacture. It seems to me these rifles are built to fire a range of rounds so maybe they can handle 308 thru 311 or 312 because who knows where the ammo was going to come from. It is a combat weapon, not a tack driver.
I am still going to slug mine to see what it is..
 
Sorry, .312" grooves & .301" lands.

I actually had the thought that, since SKS were made to run dirty & still be reliable, that what if they run a .310 bullet in a .312 bore to lessen the chance of a kaboom if it gets dirty in the bore during the coarse of action?

That said, the .312 150gr Interlock looks interesting as well. Looks like some have used it in the x39.
 
Years ago I was at Fort Benning, GA and the Zimbabway (Spelling ?) rifle team was competing with their SKSs. We all laughted, however they actually shot fairly well. I guess somebody worked on ther rifles? They were shooting Golden Tiger ammo I do remember that.

If you choose a bullet in the 120 - 125 range you can actually pull the military bullet and seat the sporting round of choice. Finding those valuable reloadable brass on a hunt can be a problem sometimes. I use the Yugoslavian 7.62x39 as it is brass cased and shoots great. It is "slightly" corrosive so clean your gun after shooting it.
 
I slugged the barrel twice. Once with a sinker and once with a rolled-down .44 lead ball. The sinker was hard to measure so I rolled the ball down to a cylinder of about .340 or so and ran it down with plenty of oil. The ball made a very good profile and it turns out I have .301 between lands and .311 in the grooves.
Now to put the dies and some brass on the list. Then I think I'll go with .310 pills.
I use the Yugoslavian 7.62x39 as it is brass cased and shoots great.
Click to expand...
I'll keep an eye out for some of that.. Thanx
 
I dont reload for mine a whole lot. I do maybe keep a couple hundred loaded up for fun.
Cant hardly reload them for much less than you can buy it for. Plus then you have to chase that 7.62x39 brass.
SKS slings it every where.

When I do shoot my reloads I take out the gas piston and cycle the bolt manually.

I do use the 124gr fmj pills that you can get in bulk from Hi-tech ammo for $48 for 500.

These shoot well out of my Mosin, SKS and AK.

That way if some thing happens and we cant get the cheap stuff any more. I am not out of ammo.
 
My only intention for reloading for this rifle is so I can keep it in the truck or on the quad and dust coyotes and prairie dogs when they become available. FMJs are out of the question for taking any wildlife. Ill keep the FMJs for zombies and when SHTF!..
 
Keep you eye out for those Midway blem sales that come up from time to time.
Last year I picked up a few hundred of the 124 gr 310 sp's for cheap.
Took them Deer hunting :)
 
T Bran said:
I would think using a .310 bullet in a .308 bore would raise pressures to some extent as well but it has surely been done many times by unknowing shooters.
Safety first.
Luck
T
Click to expand...

I've put Yugo milsurp down my early (.308 bore) Mini-30. Don't know about pressures but it throws the brass into the next time zone. But then they're known for that. Seems to shoot OK.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

Ray P
  • Locked
Magnum primer for BLC2 in 308?
Replies
10
Views
4K
Lloyd Smale
L
G
  • Locked
Round Enough for Tube Magazine?
Replies
4
Views
501
blarby
B
winchester1886
  • Locked
Hunting with a SKS
Replies
10
Views
2K
winchester1886
winchester1886
G
  • Locked
.309 bullets in 30-06?
Replies
2
Views
347
BBDartCA
B
R
  • Locked
308 Pet Loads
Replies
4
Views
659
rwdwrt
R
Back
Top