Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

Ok, here goes..

I just purchased a ruger mini thirty, and I love it. Accurate enough to get the job done and fun to shoot. I just have one question...Wolf sells ammunition in the 7.62x39mm size that I need, and it is cheap, very cheap. Better than paying 8 bucks a box for winchester or remington, this is around 2-2.50 a box. My only concern is that this ammo, made in russia could possibly damage my new mini thirty. I have talked to the gun shop dealer and he says the russian ammo shouldn't cause a problem in a .308 american bore, being as the ammo is made for an AK or SKS at .309 - .310, which is hardly any difference at all, but might cause more fouling than normal.

Any opinions/facts on this? I don't want to destroy the rifling in my barrel or have to clean it every 10 shots.

Thanks,


Eric

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

No it won't damage it at all. I shoot it in my sks all the time.

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

Is the SKS not a russian bore size, though? I thought the ruger had a slightly different bore size, smaller, by 1 or 2 thousandths of an inch. This is possibly why they say only use ammunition made to american specs in the manual, but i'm not sure :/

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

What you need to look at is the corrosive powder some cheap ammo is still using and the steel cases. I would think steel would wear your camber out.

I never got my mini 30 shooting good enough for my taste. I did pop a coyote or two and many dozens of rabbits.

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

The Mini 30 has a maximum barrel diameter of .308, while the actual spec of the 7.62X39 is something between .310 and .311. If Wolf ammo is produced with bullets of this diameter I'd be hesitant to use it in the Mini 30. I would expect it to produce additional wear on the barrel and additional pressure on the gas system.

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

mrcOmputer SKS is a model of a rifle not a caliber , designed by the Russians .

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

yeah :)

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

NO,NO,NO, dont do it Unless you want bad groups, and worn out barrel. Yes it will Physically fire but the bullet is larger and will create more pressure in your gun. If you want to shoot the surplus stuff, wolf, and European ammo buy an SKS or Saiga rifle(semi AK). If you want a nice deer rifle that doubles as a good tactical gun then buy the Ruger. I had a ruger mini 30 a few years ago and it was a nice rifle and very accurate. People say these guns are not accurate probally used the .311 european ammo. It is confusing I know. I believe that Ruger uses the same 30 caliber barrel blank for many guns. Then they cut them down and chamber them depending on caliber(.308, 30-06,300 mag,etc). With all the 30 caliber cartrages out there and with how many Ruger offers this makes since to me.
Jay

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

The mini 30 is chambered for 7.62x39, and should say it right on the barrel. The conversion from metric to standard is somewhat shaded becuase in the US the 30 cal is considered to be .308. Shoot what the gun is chambered for. The manual is probably referring to ammunition manufacturers outside the US are not required to meet SAAMI specs. A quick check of the Ruger website confirms that it's chambered for the 7.62x39.

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

Oh yea, show us a factory loaded 7.62x39 cartridge that uses a .308 bullet.

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

If you want to save some money and shoot cheap ammo you might want to consider picking up a SKS. These weapons, especially the Russian ones, were overbuilt making them soldier proof. You can fire anything through an SKS and not worry about a thing. With that nice Ruger though I'd be leary of using that cheap steel cased Wolf stuff because it may damage or chip your extractor or ejector.

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

ok, results:

Rifle: Ruger Mini-Thirty

Wolf: (FMJ) 7.62x39 2$ per box of 20 @ 100 yards. Groups of 3 1/2 constantly through 20 rounds.

I then cleaned the rifle...reasonable buildup and flakes of red in the action, I assume it was from the primer or casing.

Remington: (FMJ) 7.62x39 8$ per box of 20 @ 100 yards. Groups of 1 1/2 or LESS for 20 rounds.

I then cleaned the rifle, and to my surprise there was barely any buildup at all!


I am a pretty serious shooter and if another brand of cartridge can make that much of a difference, WOW. I think i'll stick with the Remington unless someone can tell me that they've had a good experience with another well priced cartridge.

Eric

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

I personally would NOT shoot any of the Wolf ammunition.I don't want to run any steel case through my guns.I would definately check and see what the bullets diameter is of the Wolf or any other foreign manufacturers ammo.If it's bigger then Ruger's recommendation I would advise against using it.To save a few bucks it's not worth ruining the gun or possible injuries.Right or wrong that's my opinion.
Ruger Redhawk

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

I'd be interested to know what the actual bullet diameter is for those American loaded 7.62x39 Soviet rounds. I wouldn't be surprised at all if they were using .311cal bullets, just like the caliber spec call for. I know Hornady offers bullets for handloaders specifically for the 7.62x39 that are 125gr. .311cal. If the bore of a Ruger Mini-30 is .308 then the bore is wrong, not the bullet, and I highly doubt that Ruger would make a rifle with a .308 bore for a cartridge that calls for .311 bullets.

You could always slug your bore and fing out exactly how big it really is. Brownell's sells the kits. I'm betting the bore in your Mini-30 is .311" at the grooves. I'd be surprised if it wasn't.

Mike

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

Well if all 7.62X39mm ammo is made to the correct specs it will have a .311 bullet diameter. That is how the cartridge was designed originally. I don't think with all the surplus rifles out there chambered for it, and all the ammo companies (yes even the american ones use .311" bullets) that ruger would choose to modify the cartridge by using a smaller dia bullet.

Now as for the steel cases, I wouldn't personally use them. I just don't like the idea of it. I have a friend that has a mini-14 and has put almost 2000 rounds of wolf ammo thru it with no problems, but he isn't shooting for micro groups, just to hit milk jugs of water and such, so extreme accuracy isn't a great concern for him.

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

I wouldn't be too worried about the steel cases. The steel is very mild and much softer than the high carbon steel or stainless steel of any guns chamber. The Wolf and most other steel cases are also laquered to prevent corrosion and to make them smoother and function better. I fired literally 10,000+ round of Wolf ammo through my SKS when I had it, and there was no indication of wear due to the steel cases whatsoever.

Also, the Wolf ammo is non-corrosive. Not all imported surplus ammo is, but Wolf is for sure. I've actually hear that the Wolf ammo is just Russian Mil-spec ammo packaged in a prettier box to be sold here. The accuracy isn't worth writing home about, but it's pretty reliable stuff. And for $2 a box (or less), it's cheap as dirt.

Mike

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

The data in my Speer manual calls for .311 bullets for the 7.62x39 Soviet. I'm sure other manuals state the same. If 7.62x39 is also a SAAMI standardized cartridge now, I can't imagine Ruger would barrel it for anything other than .311" bullets.

Mike

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

Contact Ruger and ask about using European ammo they should know.

This was copied from Lee Reloading web site under the tech assistant.



.308 & .311 Bullets

There are some calibers that commonly use .311 diameter bullets in addition to .308 bullets. This is accomplished through the use of a .311 expander as opposed to the .308.

7.62 x 39 Pacesetter dies includes a .311 expander along with the .308.

7.62 x54R commonly uses .311 bullets. To accomplish this, an expander for a .303 British sizing die can be purchased to replace the one that comes in the die.

32 H&R Magnum commonly uses .311 but the sizing die will size the case enough to hold .308 bullets. It would be necessary to purchase an additional expander plug and reduce it's size to .308 in order to have both options. This can be done using a drill press and emery cloth, or for $10.00 plus the cost of the new expander, we would do it for you.

I know that it does not make since in this day and age that there can be the same cartrage with a diffrent bullet diameter. The american manufactures DONT want to get sued so they make the rounds safe. I own a few 8mm (8x57) Mausers and I cant tell you how many times I have read about the old 1898 .318 barrels vs the standard .323 barrels. There are NO .318 barrels left. If you happen to have one that wasnt rebroached in the arsenal in 1903- 1905??? then you have somthing so rare it shouldnt be shot. But all the american manufactures use .323 bullets but with a reduced load. If you buy the european ammo(S&B, FNM) you will notice it is much more powerful.

If you notice all the people who say the Wolf ammo is good have a European gun(SKS, Saiga). The people who say it shoots bad groups usually have a Mini 30. I owned,and reloaded for a Mini 30. I always had to use .308 bullets or I had horrible groups. Thats why I sold it and bought a SKS. I wanted a rifle I could shoot cheap. Wolf uses Painted steel cases on thier ammo to keep the cost down. This paint chips off and gets into your gun. Usually this is no big deal if you clean it good but this makes for more work.

Jay

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

Never said it shot good groups, thats for sure. Unless you consider 4-6MOA good. Wolf ammo sure is a lot of fun though! It's so cheap it doesn't make one feel bad when they blast through a 30rd magazine as fast as they can pull the trigger cause those rounds cost maybe $3. Can't beat that with a stick! ;)

Mike

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

I bought a Mini-30, I am the 3rd. owner of this gun, I went to the range and short Wolf ammo 7.62X39, I mic the bullet and it was .308, I put 40 rounds thru the gun and had a hard time keeping them in a paper pie plate, the stuff is not good in the Mini-30.....I bought some 7.62X39 brass on ebay federal brass, bought some Remington bullets 125 gr. SP .308, 125 gr. SP .310 and some 123 gr. FMJ .311, I took my reloading info from Smith Relaoding web site. The load was Reloader #7 25.5 gr., the end results was 1" or less groups using the .308 125 gr. SP bullet at 50 yards, this is the end of the story, great gun with the right ammo...

PS: that Wolf ammo shoots great in my SKS.....Nam 65/66 9th Marines..

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

I have a mini-30 and I shoot wolf ammo all the time. I don't have a problem with abnormal buildup and it seems to be decently accurate out to about 150 yards. All I've been shooting is pie plates and man sized training targets. Seems fine. Wolf is cheap for a reason but I find it to believe that it's going to damage your gun or anything silly like that.

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

The Wolf and Barnaul ammo I have measures .311. The UMC I have measures .308.
The mini- thirty I used to own said in the manual to use only American made ammo or ammo of .308 dia.
The guy I sold it to has put several hundred rounds of .311 through it and no problems.
Go figure!

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

The Wolf ammo will NOT DAMAGE your Mini-30 at all. I don't know if all Mini-30's have .308" groove diameter bores or not, but the ones that do have a leade angle designed to permit the use of 7.62X39mm ammo with bullet diameters of .308" up to at least .311" with no undue pressures.

RE: Mini 30 with Wolf 7.62x39
 

Slug the bore, it will give you all the answers you need. I wouldn't shoot oversized jacketed bullets in a rifle- You can be running very high pressures and not know it. The rifle might be fine for 100 or 500 rounds, but then then something lets go on the rifle and BLAM!

If ruger made the rifles with .308 groves, then its pretty idiotic of them- it would be like making a rifle chambered for .308 and only cutting the rifling to .304" across.