oponion's on a 7.62x39

[ixslr8]

308 is just so expensive compared to 7.62x39. Imho its the perfect caliber for fun/hunting. Its cheap and has way more power than 223.

[mr surveyor]

commie ammo ain't gonna be "cheap" forever.

[Oldgringo]

About a gazillion Chicoms think the 7.62x39 is the berries. How can so many be wrong?

[USAFgoober]

So any inputs on mini 30s. Ive never shot one

I owned a mini 30 and it was a good gun. The newer 581 series have a heavier barrel and are much improved over the older ones that earned a reputation for bad accuracy. I enjoyed shooting it but my issue was that it wasn't reliable with cheap foreign ammo. It could handle American made brass just fine. But the berdan-primed steel-cased Wolf, Tula, Bear, Yugo surplus just wouldn't run right in it.

I eventually sold it because part of the reason for owning a 7.62x39 gun is being able to take advantage of the cheap steel case ammo thats out there. So I sold the mini 30 and got a Russian AK that was designed to shoot cheap Russian ammo.

[rwponline]

I bought a CZ 527 Carbine in 7.62x39 last year, and I really like it. I don't have much centerfire rifle experience, so I thought it would be a good, cheap way to build up my skills. I think I was right. The steel case ammo is very cheap ($0.24/rnd), and the rifle is light enough to provide more recoil than a .223, but still very easy on the shoulder for extended shooting.

As for the rifle, the workmanship is very, very nice. I did have to shave a few thousands off the claw extractor (Mauser type action with controlled round feeding) in order to reliably eject the russian brown bear ammo (the bolt would bind). I measured the cases of the brown bear, and the sealant they put over the case causes the extractor groove to be .005-.010" oversized (per the 7.62x39 spec). Since the mod it has fed/extracted 100%. From what I can tell you cannot drop in a round or top off the 5 round magazine without removing it.

As for accuracy, I'm not a good rifle shooter, but even I can reliably manage 2" groups at 100 yrds with cheap steel case (single sandbag, 3-9x bushnell, without engaging the set trigger). I suspect the rifle is capable of much more.

Lastly, it's just a fun gun to handle. 5.9 lbs naked, beautiful Turkish walnut stock, iron sights for backup, and a handy 18.5" barrel. Once I get a smaller scope on there (1-4x or 4x fixed) it will be great little brush gun.

[74novaman]

Two informative posts from 2 new members. Welcome folks!

[glbedd53]

Sellier & Bellot 7.62 x 39 ammo is both accurate and pretty cheap if you can find it. I used to get it at all the gun shows but now I can only find it on the internet.