whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

I see some guns in 7.62 X 39 and some in 308 but i dont know the difference. Is there one? Thanks ya'll.

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

there is a very big differance between the two. they are both 30 cal but the 7.62x39 has much less power than the .308. the 308 will shoot much further and more acurate than the 7.62x39. the 308 is a much better round. that is what our milatary snipers use.

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

No, these two rounds are in NO WAY the same, nor interchangeable. The 7.62x39mm is a soviet cartridge that fires a 0.311" bullet. The .308Winchester is interchangeable with the 7.62NATO, which are essentially identical in specs, and is an american derivative of the .30-06 based around a .308" bullet...

There are a great deal of "7.62mm" rounds out there...but it's kinda like the 7mm's, there's 7mmRem Mag, 7mmWSM, 7mm SAUM, 7mm-08, 7-30 Waters, 7mm STW, and so on and so on, all have kinda the same first name, but they're VERY different rounds.

Kinda like how guys named Richard, I've known probably thirty different Richards, the only way to tell them apart in a phonebook is their LAST NAME.

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

The 7.62 NATO and 308 Winchester are one in the same. The 7.62 Nato Was Adopted by the US in 1954. Winchester Introduced the 308 Win in 1952. The 308 case is almost a half inch shorter than the 30-06.

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

yeah, I think the designation for the metric discription is 7.62x54. The 7.62x39 is your average AK round.

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

By the way, 7.62 does not designate 7mm anything. Just to further confuse things from what nomercy said, your above mentioned rounds use a .308-.311 dia. bullet. Your 7mm's are .284 in dia.

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

[/quote]

By the way, 7.62 does not designate 7mm anything. Just to further confuse things from what nomercy said, your above mentioned rounds use a .308-.311 dia. bullet. Your 7mm's are .284 in dia.
[/quote]


7.62 millimeters = .300 of an inch (.30 caliber)

ie, as nomercy said there are LOTS of 7.62 rounds out there since any 30 cal bullet is 7.62mm in diameter. he was refering to however, 7.62x39(AK), 7.62x51, 7.62x54........he was refering to the wide range of cartridges that use an identical bullet.....he did not mean that 7.00mm is equal to 7.62mm just that the one bullet size can be found in different cartridges

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

Pharoh, I believe you misread my post...I in no way implied that that list of 7mm cartridges HAS ANYTHING to do with the two 7.62mm cartridges in question, I simply used an analogy of the number of various rounds that share a common "first name" bullet diameter that are certainly NOT the same case...I could have accomplished the same by saying that the nomenclature for the 7.62mm rounds can be comprehended more easily by comparing this system with the .300's, ie. .300WSM, .300Dakota Mag, .300Win mag, .300RUM, etc etc.

I felt that this guy would be more familiar with the variety of 7mm cartridges (i.e. realize that there is more than one 7mm cartridge available) and be able to associate that with the question at hand.

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

Thanks for the info yall, i wasnt confused about the whole 7mm/7.62mm thing. Thanks again

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

I sure like the way 7.62 NATO sounds. Ya.... I think if i used a .308..... I would go around saying I shoot a 7.62 NATO LOL!

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

is it possible that the worlds most popular cartridge aside from the 7.62x39 (AK round) would be the 308, or 7.62 NATO? kind of like how the .22lr is the most popular here, followed by the '06?

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

[quote]ORIGINAL: Nomercy

No, these two rounds are in NO WAY the same, nor interchangeable.

100% Correct

[quote]
The 7.62x39mm is a soviet cartridge that fires a 0.311" bullet.

Wrong it is 7.62 mm or 30 cal. or 0.308"

[quote]
The .308Winchester is interchangeable with the 7.62NATO, which are essentially identical in specs

True

[quote]
and is an american derivative of the .30-06 based around a .308" bullet...

Wrong again. Both the 30.06 & the .308 fire the same .308" diameter bullet.

7.62 x 39mm = 123g. at 2300 fps muzzle vel.
.308 = 7.62( NATO) x 51mm = 150g. at 2800 fps muzzle vel.
30.06 = 7.62 X 63mm = 150g. at 2900 fps muzzle vel.

Stats. are from Federal Ammo. site based on simular common rounds.
Note: only one round aval. for 7.62 X 39mm

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

For what it's worth: The 7.62 X 39 is on par, power wise, with the .30-30 Winchester. Both are way behind the .308 and way, way behind the
.30-06

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

European cartridge designation makes more sense than the US designations, which don't mean anything. European designation is bullet diameter and length, expressed 7.62x39 (nominal .30 caliber bullet, case length is 39 mm). 7.62 Nato, AKA .308, is 7.62x51. the 7.62x54 noted above is actually 7.62x54R...the "R" designates a rimmed cartridge.
Just a quick look at the two cartridges in question will point out the different case sizes.
7.62x39, and 7.62x51.

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

the 308 still sucks, very accurate, but for hunting why not use a 30-06 if you want a 30 caliber bullet

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

the 7.62x39 does fire a .311 bullet.....

The 7.62x39 Soviet (Model 43)
By Chuck Hawks



This attenuated .303 cartridge (bullet diameter is .311", not .308" like true 7.62mm rifles) has had one of the most infamous careers in the history of firearms. It was designed during the Great Patriotic War (World War II to those of us in the Free World) for use on the Eastern Front against Hitler's Wehrmacht by Stalin's Communist hoards.

(rest of article) http://64.233.187.104/search?q=cache...B7.62x39&hl=en

RE: whats the difference between .308 and a 7.62mm X 39mm, or are they the same?
 

Because I like a short action and I can do anything with a 308 that you can with an 06 as far as deer hunting goes.