7.62x39mm for deer
 

I've never posted here before, so I apologize If a similar question has alreday been asked.
I recently had the opportunity to use my friend's SKS, and I found it to be one of the most comfortable rifles I have ever fired. Since these rifles and the ammunition they fire are inexpensive, I am half considering buying one to be used as a short range deer rifle. Is the 7.62x39mm round powerful enough to take small to medium size deer if the range is less than 75 yards and shots are carefully placed. I would appreciate any feedback.

Edited by - JamminJay on 01/19/2003 16:55:40

RE: 7.62x39mm for deer
 

id say it would do fine if you do what you said by keeping the shots close and place them right where they have to be....i wouldnt use military ammo or fmjs though..i would find a manufacturer that makes a good hunting bullet and use those or reload or have someone reload them for me....

RE: 7.62x39mm for deer
 

almost any round will take a deer if the shot is placed right. but you might want someting that shoot decent groups. cause not always will your shot hit where you want it to go. brush twigs etc.
in the new hunt america issue. someone asked the same question and the reply was that it was less powerfull than the 30-30win but decent up close. if you use a soft point.

RE: 7.62x39mm for deer
 

Friend of Mine bought His son an Interarms bolt action rifle in 7.62X39 about 10 years ago, and with His reloads that little rifle was one heck of a deer getter! I can't remember what grain bullet He used, but I believe it was a 130 gr., heavy jacketed spitzer bullet that He reloaded. That rifle got handed down to two other boys, and I believe every deer shot with it were one shot kills. Dandy little short range deer getter.

RE: 7.62x39mm for deer
 

I shoot an SKS on Kansas whitetails after My .30-06 lays claim each season, and I'm not losing much by switching...that said, I need to point out that it's a crap shoot buying SKS's, because they are VERY inconsistent, some are tack drivers, and some would need a prayer to hit a deer at the end of the muzzle, mine, thankfully, throws groups of 1.3" at 100 yrds, and 4" at 200yrds. I absolutely love mine for brush hunting, and drives, it has a folding stock (which I still shoot very well with it folded) and a short barrel (paratrooper version), so it's very fast handling in the brush, and I don't have to worry about losing a shot because I'm moving the rifle to jack the next round. I'd probably never take a shot at 200yrds with my rifle, even though I know that I'd be hitting, but I have a .30-06 to take long shots, and I bought an SKS to limit myself, whether it has to be limited that much or not.

Don't use surplus ammo (the cheap stuff) on game of any sort, it's just too inaccurate and inconsistent, plus much of it is FMJ, which is illegal. Another problem with surplus ammo is the fact that it is incredibly dirty, the ignition is very poor and inconsistent/incomplete, and the powders are often quite corrosive, I've seen several guys ruin their gas systems/chambers/pushrod by simply shooting and not cleaning them for a week, rust and nastiness almost before you can get home.

NEVER USE THE CHEAP SURPLUS AMMO ON DEER, please, respect the game, get consistently manufactured at least decent ammunition.

Screw the 10 ring, keep them in the zero!!!

RE: 7.62x39mm for deer
 

Thanks for the advice everyone. My next gun purchase will definately be something that chambers the 7.62x39mm round. I had never intended to use bulk or surpluss ammo in the woods, but I did plan to use it at the range due to its low cost. I reason that if I can obtain inexpensive ammo, I can afford to go to the range more, which is something I enjoy. If bulk ammo dangerouse or detrimental to the firearm, however, I'll definately forget that idea. Does anyone know if wolf ammo is generally safe?

RE: 7.62x39mm for deer
 

i love my sks, it shoots winchester 125gr softpoints really good, i might start handloadin for it soon, just haven;t gotten the chance, i really like the 130grain speer flatpoints i use for my 30-30 so i might paper patch them to .310 and get a better fit, as far as wolf ammo, i get alot of misfires in all the wolf ammo i buy, wether its 223/7.62x39/9mm/45. but i still buy cause it;s cheap and it shoots reasonably well for casual plinkin.

"smile, life could be worse.. i could be datin your daughter."

RE: 7.62x39mm for deer
 

Iv takin for deer with the sks and its a goor one for that winchster makes sofe tip ammo for that and thay do very will and the wolf hollo ponts do good I got a doe tow yaers ago at 200 yds in ky and it drop in it tracks

RE: 7.62x39mm for deer
 

I've used my sks to take two hogs... both about 125 lbs or so... and it worked ok. I used Federal ammo, with a 123gr softpoint. For hogs, it needs a heavier bullet. For deer, those would work well, especially considering your self-imposed range limitation. Wolf is also now selling a load with a 154gr softpoint bullet. I bought 4 boxes of them at the last gunshow, but haven't had a chance to see how they group. If they are reasonably accurate, then I don't see any need to ever reload for deer or hogs.... and they are cheap... almost as cheap as the fmj mil-surp ammo.
I have used mil-surp Chinese ammo, and the Russian hollow-points, and have NEVER had a misfire. NEVER. I haven't used any of the Wolf ammo in the 7.62, but I have in pistols, and it seemed to work ok for me there.
Now is a good time to be shooting an sks... ammo is about as low as I've ever seen it... 80 dollars a thousand? Hard to beat that.

"Progress, far from consisting in change, depends on retentiveness..those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." Santayana

RE: 7.62x39mm for deer
 

I shoot a lot of Wolf in my SKS, and I've never had any misfires or other problems with it, only that it's incredibly dirty and it has steel cases and is berdan primed (both make the cases incapable of being reloaded by most rollers). I've never noticed mine getting nasty from the wolfs, definately not at the accelerated rate that many other surplus ammos would give, but then again, I clean mine before I leave the bench.

To get an SKS to perform well, a guy really needs to roll his own, which is slightly problematic since it throws the cases so far, but I custom stitched a bag that fits around the action to collect them. Another option to get cheap ammo to go to the range is to roll your own, but for general plinking, wolfs are ok, just clean it before you leave the range.

Screw the 10 ring, keep them in the zero!!!