Can I use ANY 7.62 x 39mm ammo in my new AK?

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Maxx409

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New to the site, and Sooo glad I found it. LOTS of great stuff here.

Though we've had a 9mm beretta for about 20 yrs. and barely ever even took it out of it's case, we've recently been "inspired" to purchase a pair of his and hers AK 47 Semi Auto Rifles. (So this whole sport is really new to us.)

And we both absolutely love them. We've noticed over the years that the 9mm isn't very finicky and just about any 9mm centerfire pistol ammo works like a charm. Does the same apply for the Rifle? I notice differences in (gr)? I believe this stands for grain and is the weight of the projectile? Is this correct?

Any tips on where I can find info for the complete noob? Lots of info here, but for the absolute beginner it's a little tricky to take it in. And as for my main question. Do I have to worry about different gr as long as it's 7.62 x 39mm centerfire, is it okay to use?

Thanks for any help. Again, Great site!

We found we've somehow been conditioned to feel like a criminal for owning and wanting to purchase guns and frankly, that's a bunch of crap! I forgot what it means to be an AMERICAN and much to my dismay, the sacrifice others have made for my freedom! So thanks Vets! You ARE what has made our Country GREAT!
 
Any factory new 7.62x39mm ammo will work, most of the least expensive ammo will be made in Russia under various brands such as Wolf. There are different types of bullets such as FMJ and hollow points of different weights. There is ammo with steel cases, lacquer coated cases, and zinc plated cases.

I’ve used all of the above and more with my Yugo M70 with out any issues. One of the many great things about AK is they are not picky about ammo, at least in my experience. I’d recommend starting with Wolf Military Classic with a FMJ 124 gr bullet, among the least expensive rounds and has always function fine for me.

Note some surplus ammo may be corrosive and extra care should be taken when cleaning. I stick to factory new.
 
thanks JDC that was Exactly the info I was looking for. Saw some at my local sporting goods store and it beats driving an extra 30 mins. to the gun shop. :)
 
I've been running Wolf black box FMJ through my WASR-10/63 since day one without a single jam or misfire. Said gun was purchased "new in box" - some of them are reported to have had teething problems during an arbitrary break-in period lasting up to a couple hundred rounds, but my rifle has been clear of such troubles.

These guns will feed almost anything you put in them, though I do understand that you may encounter occasional issues with soft point or hollowpoint rounds (they were, like most military rifles, originally designed to fire FMJ ammunition).

Stick to FMJ of any brand or type and you should have no trouble whatsoever, provided the gun itself is properly lubricated and in fine working order. I know that the AK design has a legendary reputation for durability and reliability, but it's still a mechanical device with plenty of opportunities for failure - what many fail to mention is that proper maintenance is necessary to translate said reputation into real world results. :)
 
gonna need some pics of those His and Hers AK's....

maybe it will be starting grounds for my wife to let me buy 2 new guns!!!
 
I feed Wolf to my AK. Its the cheapest and it eats it like candy. It is also surprisingly accurate with it.
 
I do Wolf or Bear brand ammo, both work fairly well for me. Generally speaking, an AK will fire damn near anything that fits into the chamber, be it proper mil-spec 7.62x39 or a rock over some gun-powder :p.

As far as ammunition goes, I would personally suggest Wolf Military Classic or Brown/Silver/Gold bear lines of ammunition all in the JHP or JSP flavor. The inherent accuracy of these lines is on par with "rack-grade" AK accuracy of ~4"/100yd, and they all display very impressive terminal ballistics, that should be more then enough for deer, boar, or rouge hominid.
 
FYI, Maxx: I don't know how much you plan to shoot, but around here Remington seems to go for about $15 for a 20 round box. You can buy get a case of Wolf for significantly less online. Ammoman.com has 1000 rounds for $249 delivered. Recently raised from $199 a case, but still only $5 a box. Depending on what you're spending at the sporting goods store, might save a lot of money.
 
I just got an SKS and I bought a bunch of Wolf black box and Military Classic to shoot. Out of every 20 round box of the Military Classic I had at least one casing to split from the neck down, past the shoulder in some instances. No splits with the Black Box. I got mixed opinions of the safety of the splitting casings. It was probably ok however as my gun wasn't harmed and the rounds did fire ok. I did call Wolf and some girl answered and told me it was common to find that steel casings split. When I cleaned I got "mud" out of the barrel. The Wolf is really dirty. I had to clean my bolt/firing pin with non-chlorinated break cleaner to keep it from sticking. It is supposed to float freely in the channel. (Check your pin to see if it floats or has a spring. I don't know much about it except if the fp sticks firm the gun could go automatic on the SKS or at least slam-fire. Not sure about the AK.) I got hold of some Brown Bear and Silver Bear made at the Barnaul plant in Russia and it seems to be much cleaner than the Wolf and no split casings. I think ammunitiontogo.com is a good place to purchase on line. They have Wolf as well as Silver Bear and Brown Bear (Barnaul).
Probably too much information and not relevant to you at this time but it was fresh on my mind so I thought I would share my experiences. Others have great luck with Wolf and don't seem to have the problem with dirty burning powder. Maybe they just don't mind cleaning a lot. Maybe they just don't clean. Your Mileage May Vary.
Another good website dedicated to the AK is http://www.gunsnet.net/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=6
 
A lefty shooting an AK? All I'm gonna say is, keep your right hand (particularly your thumb) out of the way of the bolt handle. It HURTS. I learned that the hard way. Last time I was at the range I managed to avoid tearing up my hand. I still can see the mark on my 4th finger from losing a chunk of skin. I was adjusting the scope on my Saiga, fired, and the bolt handle ripped into my finger.

Personally I'd recommend staying away from corrosive stuff. Yeah, it'll shoot it, but cleaning it out of an AK is a royal pain in the butt. It's not the fact that cleaning an AK is hard by itself. It's the fact that an AK has so many nooks and crannies that powder gets blown into that have to be cleaned to get rid of the corrosion. A normal cleaning on an AK is fairly simple and fast. A corrosive ammo cleaning is very involved and detailed, takes a lot of time, and uses a LOT of cleaning supplies.

Bottom line: if you can afford commercial ammo, even Wolf, use it instead.
 
Bentonville: I've had one slamfire on my Yugo, but that was using S&B ammo. You can get a replacement firing pin with a return spring to avoid this from Murray's.

MikeTheWolf: I'd put a foregrip on that sucker if I kept getting bit!
 
I would avoid the corrosive ammo. Not that it's bad, just a lot more effort to clean. I stick pretty much to the Russian stuff since it does have the hard primers and less likelyhood of slam fires.
 
All of the basic Russian types work 100% in mine: Brown Bear, Silver Bear, Golden Tiger, Wolf. Romanian "HotShot" (Century) brand works fine for me also.
I just bought 1,000 rounds of Brown Bear 7.62x39 FMJ. It is the least expensive FMJ I've seen in stock lately and it works just fine. I use Brown Bear in 9x18 and 9x19 also.
Sportsman's Guide has 500 rounds of Brown Bear FMJ for $109.97 + shipping. If you use the "$10 off" coupon code, that'll cover most of the $14.49 shipping.
I'd stay away from the Yugoslavian surplus brass-cased corrosive stuff though. It's really not less expensive than new non-corrosive Russian or Romanian steel-cased anyway.
 
Wow, that's a lot of responses in 1 day. You guys are gooood. I'm not permitted to shoot FMJ (Full Metal Jacket) rifle rounds at the range we belong to so we'll have to opt for regular stuff. The place I bought our guns at carries wolf for about $5 a box but it seems everywhere is selling out of the stuff.

Think I might give Ammoman a try if the shop is still out, thanks for the hedz up Odnar.

A big thanks to everyone else who helped too. :D

Also thanks for the AR 15.com site. good stuff. And for Brian and Mt. gunny... well.... you asked.

edit: yeah, those are his and hers Smith and Wesson 9mm Berettas too! My wife's the best!
 

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I'm not permitted to shoot FMJ (Full Metal Jacket) rifle rounds at the range we belong to
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Yeah, wow. So what do they allow you to shoot?

Perhaps what he means is the bimetal Wolf stuff. Mild steel jacket, lead core, copper washed. Some backstops can't take it.
 
Odnar, it DOES have a foregrip. Left-handed, and your thumb tends to hook up. If you get your grip back too far, or aren't careful while sighting in, you'll get bit. Just need to remember to keep your hand forward, and no problem.

But yeah, good call on using non-corrosive ammo. Frankly, I've got a spam can of corrosive stuff, but I just ordered 200 rounds of non-corrosive PRVI Partisan. I'll shoot corrosive in my Mosin Nagant (5-minute cleaning job, if that), but my PSL (AK-based rifle equivalent to a Dragunov) is such a pain in the butt to clean after using the stuff that I sometimes leave it at home. Franky, if I was shooting non-corrosive ammo, I could clean my PSL (or any other AK for that matter) in 5 or 10 minutes and be done with it. But when I'm shooting corrosive ammo, try 30 minutes to an hour. It's just not worth it.

Bottom line: if you want to shoot cheap corrosive ammo, do it in a bolt action. At least there you can boresnake the barrel and dip the bolt and firing pin in solvent and be done with it. Don't do it in a semi that's just going to blow all that nastiness all over the place.
 
Mike: What I meant to say was a vertical foregrip.

Maxx: Wolf also makes a JHP and a JSP. See if your range will allow them. The JSP is usually slightly more expensive, but still far, far below what you'll pay for Remington, Winchester, etc.
 
I'm not permitted to shoot FMJ (Full Metal Jacket) rifle rounds at the range we belong to so we'll have to opt for regular stuff.
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As was said: FMJ is the "regular stuff".
What the range probably does not allow are "steel jacketed" bullets. If that is the case, you are plain out of luck for the cheap ammo; Brown Bear, Silver Bear, Golden Bear, Wolf, Golden Tiger, HotShot, etc all have brass or copper plated "steel jackets" over a lead core. Even if they are HP or SP (hollow point or soft point). Although I seem to recall that Wolf does offer one copper jacket type.
Your range probably wants you to shoot THEIR expensive ammo with brass or copper jackets over lead cores. I'd look for another place to shoot which allows steel jacketed ammo. Although some outdoor ranges don't allow steel jackets due to a perceived possible fire hazard of sparks from steel jackets and rocks. However, I believe the steel used is far too soft to do any flint'n'steel impersonations. And also there are some ranges under the mistaken impression that "steel jacket FMJ" is the same as the old "steel core FMJ"...it's not even close.
If you can only shoot non-steel FMJ, then Sellier & Bellot or Federal might be the least expensive alternatives.
 
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