Free Ammo...?

[shaker]

I know it's been discussed a million times, .308 vs 7.62 and what guns accept which round. I have an older M1a comming in next week and I just got off the phone with a friend of mine who said he would give me a nearly full can of .308. When I asked him what was stamped on the botton of the casing he said it was MEN-89-1 and he said it has a cross in the circle. He said there is no caliber designation on the casing or the can it's in.

Is this ok to use in a M1a as long as it's chambered for 7.62? Is this 7.62 or is this .308 ammo? He got it from his brother, thinking it was .308. I cant find any info on the markings on this stuff on the web.

I'm going to go get it anyway, just in case I wind up with a .308 as well.

Question; Only the metric military ammo has that nato cross on it?

Hope someone can help me figure this out.

Thank You,

Scott

 

[taprackbang]

Is this ok to use in a M1a as long as it's chambered for 7.62?

Absolutely, yes. That is premo German surp ammo. Your rifle may just love it and give you some serious accuracy.

 

[shaker]

Yee Haw!

Free's a good thing, maybe his brother has some other stuff I can get.

Is there a chart that anyone knows of that lists the codes for ammo?

Just how exactly do you get nato 7.62 out of that code?

Scott

 

[Jeff F]

Circle with a cross in it is NATO spec. Made in many different countries - MEN is German and the calibers I can think of are 5.56, 7.62 and 9mm. There may may be other calibers but thats all I can think of for small arms.

 

[Dunkelheit]

Jeff F is absoluely right, MEN 7,62x51 was Produced for the German G3 and MG3. Men counted to the better surplus amunitions, today its hard to get an expensive. MEN stands for Metallwerke Elisenhütte Nassau.

 

[tunnug]

Here's a site I use to identify ammo http://cartridgecollectors.org/headstampcodes_bottom.htm

 

[shaker]

Thanks everyone,

I just went and picked it up, just about every round has some kind of corrosion or dye around the primer, is this normal and safe? It looks real good otherwise nice and shiney everywhere else.

How can I tell the bullet grain on this 7.62?

So anything with the nato mark in 7.62 is ok for a m1a?

I gave him an "I owe you one" just to thank him. He said he would talk to his brother to see if he had anymore ammo or anything else he was getting rid of. What would be a fair price to pay for this ammo if he has more? I don't want to come across as a thief, I still like sleeping at night and is this legal? I am sure he (his brother) aquired it through the proper channels.

Thank You,

Scott

 

[anthony-white]

its probably primer sealant, to protect from moisture etc. That should be 147 grain surplus you have. I wouldn't assume anything is safe to shoot until its at least identified, doing so it might keep ya from shooting corrosive Indian stuff, and will help ya keep track of what your rifle will shoot accurately.

 

[Dunkelheit]

I think the Bullet has 147gr like the most Surplus Ammo.
The M1A is very reliable, i tried CBC,S+B,PMC, actually PMP Surplus all without any Problems. Crap like Wolf or Barnaul i would never use because i love my Rifle.