Questions on Wolf 7.62x39 soft point ammo.

[scythefwd]

Is it corrosive?

Is the soft point going to expand well enough to take a deer?

I found it on the shelves for about 7.50 for a box of 20. Would like to know if this round is acceptable for hunting whitetail with. I know it has the approx. power of a .30-30, but will the bullet expand for a good clean kill?

 

[Mike U.]

Is it corrosive?

No.

Is the soft point going to expand well enough to take a deer?

Don't know for certain, but, haven't heard of them NOT expanding in mammalian targets, sooooo....

 

[scythefwd]

Mike,
Thanks for the reply. My only experience with x39 is fmj and I know they wont expand. I hadn't found much about the soft points, only the hollow points out there. Guess it will expand like a corelokt (in theory)?

 

[lvcat2004]

when I shot (at) a deer last year with my WASR with wolf soft point.....I missed......


but have I hit it in the right LOCATION....I have no doubt that it would've dropped like a rock

It's all about the location. Condidering that deers have been dropped with a 22LR in the right location, you shouldn't be concerned about a 7.62x39.

 

[scythefwd]

lvcat2004
Location is king. I'll grant that, but I don't do cns shots with a rifle that isn't moa accurate or better. I won't do a cns shot on a moving target (even if it is a slow walk). I generally try heart / lung shots and a .22lr isn't going to do the job there (well... not humanely). I want the deer to drop as quickly as possible. I'm not taking the garand out into the woods, so it is either my .30-30 or my sks. I am more accurate with the sks off hand (I like the balance more). My .30-30 I also want to keep in good shape... there isn't many bolt action .30-30's out there any more and I want to pass it to a child when they are old enough. The sks I can beat up and not worry about it.

 

[kanook]

I was using a SKS and my deer dropped like a rock when it got hit with the x39. granted it was a head shot.

 

[lipadj46]

Is the soft point going to expand well enough to take a deer?

There is a Wolf/Russian 7.62 Ammo FAQ (ar15.com maybe) out there where they claim the Wolf soft points really do not expand that much and suggest other ammo to use for deer hunting.

 

[pmbiker]

Wolf Military Classic HP is the one you want. That's the round discussed in the AR-15 forum discussion. Ballistics gel and real world tests suggest this is the most reliable in terms of expansion/fragmentation.

 

[Deer Hunter]

The Wolf SP that I used for about 4 or 5 years when I hunted with an SKS expanded nicely.

This isn't internet talk. I shot numerous deer with this round. Shots varied from broadside to turned to me, from 50 to 110 yards.

I've probably killed 10 or more deer with the round. In each case the round expanded.

 

[GTSteve03]

Based on ballistics gel testing by BrassFetcher, the 154gr Wolf soft point should expand quite well.

 

[c5_nc]

Its one of the better rounds available for hunting and that price is pretty decent for today's rates if your only buying in smaller quanities. Its heavier and soft point, just what you want.

 

[Mike U.]

Now, I posted a pic awhile back of Russian 7.62x39 FMJ bullet construction. They were bullets sawed in half lengthwise and showed an air gap ranging from so-so to huge. This causes the bullet to immediately tumble upon impact and does impressive damage in ballistic gel I've seen in the past. The HP's are the same construction basically. The very tip has just been removed.
So, if worse comes to worse, perhaps you could go with a HP.

I throw this out as just a possible sub. just in case the SP's your looking for become scarce as all ammo is wont to do recently.

Hope it helps.

Edited to add:

Let me just throw this pic in here so ya'll can see what I'm talkin' about.

 

[trigga]

me and my cousin both use 7.62x39 for deer. he uses an sks and i use an ak. we both happen to have better accuracy with the wolf soft point compared to winchester and remington which both are hp. i know the umc expands pretty good on deer because he shot one in the hind and took it for dead. ran off when he came near but not far. my other cousin had to finish it off with a 30-06 to the heart. the umc is not bad at all, if only i had better accuracy i would shoot them too.

 

[pmbiker]

The Wolf Mil. Classic HP is not your average commie HP round. The jacket material around the HP is pre-scored to initate expansion. Most other Russian HP rounds I've seen are just as described above, a FMJ with the tip cut off.

Before you count on any of the SP/HP rounds, make sure they will run in your gun. Some AK and SKS don't like the HP rounds and the SP even less.