Dragunov Tigr ammo selection? heavy vs light ball

[marktx]

I have read that the surplus heavy ball ammo isn't very good for the Romanian PSL type rifles. So I'm wonder how good/bad it might be for an actual Dragunov Tigr? So far have just shot 150 grain through mine but have been thinking about some of the 182 grain Yugo stuff that seems to get a lot of praise. How about shooting the really heavy ball ammo?

 

[Coronach]

I think it's designed for light ball, but I admit I'm not positive. My main concern would be putting corrosive ammo through my multi-$k rifle.

This is kinda like driving a Bentley and saying, "Yeah...I think it takes diesel. Let's see."

Mike

 

[marktx]

My main concern would be putting corrosive ammo through my multi-$k rifle.

Eh... I got it a few months ago for the silly price of $800

I'm not in any particular rush to shoot corrosive ammo through it but given the relatively low price of milsurp 54R right now it seems prudent to stock up. Just for the sake of argument let's say that the supply of milsurp dried up tomorrow, the next cheapest 54R right now is Prvi Partizan which is twice as expensive (26 vs 57 cents per round) as the reportedly quite accurate Yugo surplus. I don't think anybody prefers corrosive ammo but it's sure nice to be able to buy a few boxes for cheap to keep around for a rainy day. Now just for the sake of argument let's say that ammunition imports are banned..... I have seen Winchester 54R around but it isn't cheap at all.

Anyway.... I want to get a little ammo for this thing just to get some a lock on some low prices.

 

[jpwilly]

The Tigr can handle Heavy Ball but you and the rifle will both feel the added recoil. I'm pretty sure a diet of 7N1 would be best for it in the long run.

 

[Coronach]

Eh... I got it a few months ago for the silly price of $800

Well then! I'll give you $850 for it.

Seriously, you did well on that exchange.

Mike

 

[Funderb]

i'm sure if you clean all the exposed internals with hot water and make sure to get it all out in your normal cleaning, you will be rust free.

It all depends on whether you want to spend a little extra time cleaning..

 

[WardenWolf]

The Tigr really should not be fed Heavy Ball. It CAN shoot it, but if you shoot it enough you will shoot it loose. It can take it better than a PSL, but for best results, you should treat it like a PSL and only shoot light ball. There's some 160 grain (or so) Winchester ammo available, though, and this should be fine to shoot in a Tigr. It's closer to light ball than heavy.

I feed my PSL PRVI Partisan 150 grain and Wolf Gold 150 grain. I have a spam can of Russian surplus, but I avoid shooting it because cleaning it out of a gas-operated rifle is a royal dog and uses too much cleaning supplies.

Non-corrosive: boresnake the barrel, swab the gas tube, and dip the bolt head and piston head in the solvent. Clean gun in 5 minutes.

Corrosive: deep cleaning involving pouring water down the gas port, careful cleaning of the bolt and chamber, careful cleaning of the bore. Clean gun in around 30 minutes to an hour (depending on various things), 1/4 a bottle of solvent used, and a lot of patches.

For the amount of ammo I shoot per outing, I estimate each bullet is now worth quite a bit more than the PRVI Partisan due to the thoroughness of cleaning required.

Lesson learned: it doesn't pay to shoot corrosive ammo in a semi-automatic 7.62x54R rifle.

 

[cratti]

Light Ball ammo is what you want; Heavy Ball was designed more for use in machineguns.

 

[Ash]

Of course, the Soviet designation for heavy ball wasn't "heavy ball" but "long range ball" to give more reach for machine gun fire.

Ash

 

[English Bob]

I'd certainly stay with the 150Gn stuff and did in my own Tigr.

Although it will shoot the heavy ammo, it's probably a little punishing for the action over time, even if you do fit a recoil buffer.