7.62x39 effect on deer
 

If I'm in the wrong section with this thread, I aplologize.

Alright everyone, I have a norinco sks. I absolutely love this rifle and I'd like to take a deer with it. I know the 7.62x39 is close to the 30-30 but I would like to know specifically what 7.62x39 does to a deer. So let me hear some stories and post some pics please. I'd really like to see entry/exit wounds. I'm curious about SP's and HP's My mind is pretty much made up not to use FMJ for hunting (at least with this gun). If you're worried about them being too graphic for the forums, please send 'em to my email [email protected]

Thanks guys!!

What do you love about your Norinco? Never fired one, but bought one once just so I could trade it to a guy for something I wanted from him.

10-4 on the FMJ. Usually not a good choice for big game like deer for basic boiler room delivery.

iSnipe

And the fact that using non-expanding bullets to hunt big game is probably illegal, you should avoid them for anything but plinking. My brother's father-in-law and his brother both use SKS's for deer hunting, both loaded with Wolf soft points. They kill deer ok if the gun is accurate enough to hit them well. Lets just saw that these guys are of the mindset that you just keep shooting until the deer stops moving, so it's not unusual for them to shoot one 2 or 3 times. With a well placed shot, though, the deer's going down.

Mike

Theres no such thing as too graphic!

I love it for a few reasons
It was my first Rifle and I've got a bunch of accesories for it so I can change the configuration around. It won't jam, fail to feed, eject anything! Simple & Tough. Parts are readily available. Ammo is pretty cheap. Plus it's consistantly on gun ban lists. :rock:

My thoughts also!..........especially if they are Chinese with a pressed on barrel........

Why the heck would you care about entry and exit wounds, are you sick? Why not just use a hunting rifle instead of a defensive rifle? I love my 1911 and M1 carbine but wouldn't to hunt deer with them.

Neither the 1911 or the 30 M1 carbine are adequate deer calibers. As long as the cartridge is capable of killing effectively I believe that you should use whatever rifle you're comfortable with. Every gun out there is a descendant of a military weapon, bolt actions were used in war before they were used on game. I've heard mixed reviews about the performance of imported ammo, they're not as reliable with expansion as the bullets that are made in the US. Reloading is probably the way to go, just load it with a bullet that's designed for lower velocities. I wonder if anyone has loaded the Hornady flex tip 30-30 bullet in the 7.62X39?

A deers ribcage is no thicker than a humans, although the hide may be tougher. Both are quite capable of lethal shots, in the right hands. Remington and Browning Auto (and a slew of others) are also derived from military weapons. Point is, if a Model 700 and a AK-47 are setting next to my bed, I'll grab the AK (not that I would ever care to own one) when someone breaks down the door. To that, I don't think that the Ak is the best rifle for deer hunting, nor would I show up to deer camp with one. I believe CZ actually made an attempt at a hunting rifle with that chambering and Remington made SP ammo, last I checked.

Defensive type rifles get zero respect in the hunting field and no points for style. Don't care about the whole accuracy and reliability argument either. Barrett 50 cals are accurate too, but don't belong in a tree stand.

Too many kids playing video games that glorify these guns. Even the inventor of the AK himself is ashamed of his creation.

I agree. I might note that the very attributes that make a rifle useful for military duty (ruggedness and reliability) also make it useful in the field.

Make sure you can hit with it. The rifles are not known for their accuracy, although IME they can hit a dinner plate at 100 yards consistently.

Re: bullet, be careful there, too. I've penetrated 1/4" steel plate at 100 yards with Chinese soft points. I think the jacket material on any Chinese or Russian ammo is going to have (relative to U.S. commercial ammo) a hight content of ferrous metal. I would stick with commercial hunting ammo. I'm sure it's available, although it might not be on the shelf at Wal-Mart.

I use an M14 with a 5-round magazine for hunting where rifles are allowed. And I certainly don't give a flying fock if that is "respectable", or not. My reasons are my own.

Fast forward twenty years into the future, and I bet that we see such an increase in the use of AR-15's for deer hunting that no one will question the use of military weapons. I'd personally like to have an AR-15 in either a 6.8 SPC or maybe even a .25 WSSM. It doesn't make any sense to state, "Defensive type rifles get zero respect in the hunting field and no points for style" just because a gun looks different from what you're used to seeing.

I really like my Norinco SKS too. It won't win any beauty contests, but it is 100% reliable and decently accurate (though the sights are terrible).

I've shot quite a few groundhogs with it- all with hollow-point bullets. Based on those experiences, I would recommend staying away from hollowpoints for deer. The bullets tend to expand excessively and fragment, even in a small animal like a ground hog. Several hogs were torn in half or turned inside out by the bullets. I would go with a good quality soft point - it should do just fine on deer.

Maybe you like to play Army...

Really? The AR has been out since the 60's. It's a fad, nothing more.

Ya got me. I like to pretend whitetails are "the terrorists". Actually, anything that moves while I'm out it the woods. I actually load up about 15 20-round mags and pretty much shoot anything that's behind enemy lines.

My Grandfather had a bolt action rifle that was 7.62X39. I don't remember him killing any deer with it but my Great Uncle shot 3 does in a row with it within 2 minutes. He didn't mean to, he thought the gun may have been off but when he shot they dropped in their tracks and fell out of sight. He thought he was missing (which is RARE for him) and when the next one would step up he would put her down too! He was using a plastic tipped bullet and they DESTROYED eveything on the inside. Poor ol deer never had a chance. I think it is a great round for deer hunting under 200 yards. I used to hunt with my SKS but never killed anything with it. Just liked the ideal of having 40 rounds with me hahaha! Young and dumb I guess!

What does the 7.62*39 do to deer? If you hit em, it kills em.

762x39 is used a lot for deer around here, not my choice but I've seen it in action and it works fine. The last buck I saw shot with one was shot in the neck and jumped out of the ditch he was crossing and landed dead on top of the bank. My choice is an AR-10 in 308. I'm not just playing ARMY either. I was using AR-15's before I was in the ARMY. The Army designates their weapon M-16 which is identical except for the full auto funtion or 3 round burst, while the civilian hunting rifle is semi auto. I think full auto has been phased out in the M-16 in favor of the 3 round burst. I have shot both in military sevice. Of coarse I want the best hunting rifle I can get so I choose the one that I am familiar with and have used the most as a civilian and in the military.
Interesting note, for those who don't agree with AR's in civilian hands. AR-10's were originally built as a high end sporting rifle in semi auto form, in 308 for hunters in the 1950's just like today. Of coarse yes, they were offered to the military in full auto versions and 15 years or so later they were accepted finally, (who wouldn't want a Gov't contract?) but only after being downsized to 223 and made full auto for military use. Armalite, the original Company to build them had gone broke by then, trying to satisfy the military and sold out to COLT, who got the first contract. In the mean time they had sold many thousands to civilians for hunting, their original purpose. The military accepted them long after soldiers began using them in semi auto versions sold to the public. Soldiers picked these up in both 308 and 223 wherever they could find them. So truely they were hunting rifles first, then they were made full auto, made 223 and several changes were made like the dust cover and charging handle, for military use. Yes they were a division of Fairchild, a company that built planes for the military, and who fully intended that Gene Stoners new weapon would be offered to the military. Everything the military changed made it more useful, except for the full auto which has no place in hunting. Todays AR's are built specifically for hunters in many calibers and by many companies. Most of these companies still build them in 3 round burst for police and military use also.
People in most cases remain ignorant of these facts because they have seen the AR used by the military for so long and because they have seen so much anti assault weapons propaganda that tends to show full auto weapons being misused, and then tells them that this was an assault weapon made for war. This is technically true, full auto weapons are made for war and full auto weapons are assault weapons. Semi auto sporting rifles are made for hunting and shooting sports, they are not assault weapons but few people know the difference. It's like saying bowhunters use assault weapons because wars were fought with them, true, but not fair. Bows and arrows today are way more effective than what early man used, to hunt and deffend himself in war, but still not considered assault bows that are too dangerous for civilians to own and hunt with, while some military weapons shoot the exact same calibers, as civilian arms used for mostly hunting. They are the same gun and no more dangerous in any way, whatever the configuration, except for the full auto and FMJ, AP and exploding bullets which are illegal to hunt with. So, buy a legal box of ammo, buy a legal magazine and hunt. Who cares what it looks like if it shoots, and does the intended job?
For some who will probably still disagree, look up Gene Stoner and the history of Armalite Rifles, and don't annoy me with your dissapproval of these facts. Find out the truth for yourself.

turkey guide - thanks for the informative post, though I haven't done my own fact checking yet. :). However, the 2nd Amendment has nothing to do with hunting or sporting. If it protects anything, it protects the civilian use and ownership of "military style" arms. Not saying you agree or disagree with this, but your post seems to suggest that people should be okay with ARs, etc because they were designed for hunting/sporting.

That shouldn't be ANYONE on this site. If anyone in these parts disagrees with ARs in civilian hands, they had better wake the heck up. I'm not going to give you the whole lecture, but suffice to say the end result of that attitude is that we'll all be disarmed.

I don't have a problem with AR's in civilian hands. What I do have a problem with is that because I own guns I'm expected to agree with everyone that owns one. Don't think so. Personally, I think its an asinine rifle for hunting. I don't care what anyone says. Remember the amendment before #2? Not my preference. Sure, its a great design, accurate, reliable, and so on. But, kids today spend too much time in front of the TV and playing video games. Where do yo think most of them learn about this stuff? First hunting rifle and AR? No. These kids use cheat codes and special enhancements so that the video games are "more bloody". Is that not something to be concerned about.

Read through some of the posts on this site. "Im a felon, and want my guns back" There are those that want gore. " I want a baseball sized hole" "got to drop in its tracks" " I like head shots" blah, blah. More time is spent on reveling in shoulders being blown off than the reason behind hunting.

The day that all gun owners share the same responsibility and respect for firearms is the day that I agree with everything gun.

And that ain't today.

I understand your point, and I think there is a causal relationship between violent video games and violence in society. I don't agree with all gun owners. Heck, I don't agree with everything my wife says and does.

My point was strictly that we have the right to own firearms, including mag-fed semi-autos. I wasn't referring exclusively to hunting.

It is unfortunate that some take pleasure in the amount of damage done by certain calibers, hits, etc., but I don't think that's the majority of hunters. I, too, would prefer that every deer I shoot drops in his tracks (I mostly hunt with a crossbow, but do a bit of gun hunting) or, at the very least within sight. That's not because I revel in the damage done, but because every time a deer I hit runs out of sight, I worry about recovery. I worry until I'm putting the tag on him.

my AK sporter looks identical to this one, remember FLORIDA requires a 5 shot max magazine capacity on semi auto deer rifles


If you are building or buying a 7.62x39 and are arguing with yourself over bore diameter, consider that ,
most .308-caliber spitzer bullets are not designed to provide their best terminal performance at 7.62x39 impact velocities
most .308 bullets in hand loads ,will result in horrible accuracy .
And, even though there’s not a wide selection of .310 and .311 bullets,
those available are just the right weight and length for the 7.62x39 and do provide good terminal performance.

http://www.handloads.com/loaddata/default.asp?Caliber=7.62%20x%2039&Weight=All&type= Rifle&Source=


this is the only bullet Ive found that produces target grade accuracy in my rifles in 7.62-39mm
its .311, .308 bullets are about as accurate in my rifle as throwing rocks, if your blind-folded while dead drunk on roller skates
imr 3031 and imr 4064 work well but most load data is a bit hot, so work up carefully, 2" 100 yard groups are easily achieved
https://www.speer-ammo.com/bullets/r...50-sptz-bullet
most deer hit with the ak cartridge act like they were hit with a 30/30, some drop, most run a short distance, its effective but its sure not a 270 or 25/06.

Sellier and Bellot offers a 7.62x39 123gr SP with a claimed MV of over 2400fps. This stuff is cheap and normally fairly good quality ammo. They use the correct .311 bullets also.
http://www.sellierbellot.us/index.php/products/view-product?id=204

Looks like it works too

Available in a wide variety of hunting calibers, Custom™ ammunition is loaded with InterLock,® SST,® InterBond,® FTX® and GMX® bullets, providing an all-around line of hunting ammunition for your preferred shooting experience.

https://www.hornady.com/ammunition/r...-steel-case#!/

Hornady only offers the SST in 7.62x39 and its a .310 bullet. Have you priced the stuff?

Steel is running around $35/50 which isnt bad
Black is over $20/20

S&B can be found for $11-12/20 and occasionally ive found it for $10/20 with a brass case.

I realize premium hunting ammo costs more. While I have never used 7.62x39 its not a 5.56. I think if you google you could find lots of stuff. Even more if you hand load it.

Well, that is sorta my point. You cant reload the Steel. You can reload the cheap S&B though and its pretty fast stuff for 7.62x39. I still have a unopened crate of old Israeli surplus HP ammo. Rumor is it was some special Special OPs ammo they used in Galil rifles many many years ago. Ive had good luck with the S&B ammo in other calibers. Not the best stuff out there but good cheap ammo. I liked it much better than stuff i tried from PRIVI.

Part of the whole point with 7.62x39 is cheap ammo but the CZ 527 is anything but cheap. Underwood offers some nice rounds made with Lehigh Controlled Chaos bullets but im not sure if those are upto the task of deer hunting. Its a controlled fracture design but i know their hunting bullets are very effective in other calibers. Running steel case through a neat little CZ bolt action just doesnt feel right i guess....although its probably just fine.

https://www.starlinebrass.com/brass-...x39mm-Russian/

What is all this talk about steel and military surplus? He didn't buy an AK. Which could still shoot hunting ammo.

The Hornady link you posted was for Hornady steel case and we dont even know if the OP reloads. Keeping that option open though would be wise.

Ok. If he googles it for himself, I bet he can find lots of stuff.

But if hornady is making steel cases for hunting, I wouldn't be afraid to use them.

https://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/...ted+Soft+Point


Core lokt has killed more deer than CWD ever will.

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/34...oint-box-of-20

Not a lot of reviews. I suspect if you googled hunting deer with 7.62x39 and forum you would get tons of people who have.

Probably fine in 308 bores like the Mini-30. Thats the problem with some USA made 7.62x39 bullets. They are not .311. I think Federal uses a .311 Speer HotCor bullets in their Fusion hunting ammo. The CZ 527 like most imports uses a .311 groove barrel. A lot of the USA made stuff wont shoot well in those bores.

https://www.remington.com/search/ammo?cartridge=353

Bunche to choose from. Even more with google. I am going to say most 7mm rounds are good with in reason, for deer, and short ranges. Most hunting around here is 30 yards.

I know this is an older post but still a relevant topic. I'm mentoring a boy of a single mom who has no family or friends that hunt. The young man is small for his age of 11. strength and tolerance for recoil are some hurdles we had to deal with. I have a 30-06 and 7mm08 for my hunting tools for Wisconsin Whitetail. My two main rifles were not an option for this young guy.

A lot of research and studying led me to buy a Ruger American Ranch in 7.62x39. I handload so going forward I will have other options but for the Wisconsin's youth hunt, 10-05-19 I used off the shelf Winchester Soft Point hunting bullets.

This round grouped well and this young guy was able to shoot them well. Long story short the young guy harvested his first deer.

The shot was a 100 yard shot. The little guy used shooting stix to support the weight of the rifle. The shot was near the center of the chest broadside while the deer was grazing. The 150 pound doe rand 40 yards and died quickly.

The bullet went through the deer and no ribs were hit. The bullet damaged both lungs, the end of liver, and a major piece of plumbing for the heart. (not sure if the pipe was into or out of the heart.) The damage to the lungs and liver were very clear and tissue was damaged in an estimated 2-2.5" diameter around the bullet's path.

While this was a successful hunt I think the Winchester ammo will not be used again. I feel the bullet didn't expand much

In addition to the above:
Since the successful hunt, I've shot some Hornady Black SST 7.62x39 out of the RARR. This ammo shot very well. The SST is a quick expanding bullet but, I think at this slower .30 cal velocities (compared to an'06 or .308) this bullet may hold up and expand nicely on deer.

That is an interesting thought. I imagine that means deeper penetration.

we all develope personal preferences due to field experiences, and yes shot placement remains the critical factor!
over the last 5 decades, many of the guys I hunt deer and hogs with here in florida have found a semi auto, or lever action carbine;s in mid range calibers to be very well matched to the rather fast and close range hunting,
that is very common around here.
ranges rarely exceed 70-80 yards, you rarely get the opportunity to get off more than one or two shots, hunting from climbing tree stands is common but still hunting thicker brush is also done all the time.
when most of us have used several of these carbines we eventually find we prefer one over the others.
Ive used the marlin 44 mag lever action for decades, the best load I found was the lee 310 grain hard cast bullet over 21 grains of h110 powder
this is quite effective up to about 120 yards but its trajectory is not conductive too much further accurate shot placement with iron sights.

for the last few years Ive used a 7.62/39mm sporter carbine , its accurate and shoots a bit flatter shooting and every bit as effective when loaded with 150 grain .311 diam bullets
it may not look traditional but its slowly winning me over from the marlin 25 grains of accurate 2015 powder seems to work ok in my carbine. cast bullets have up to this point proven to be less accurate so I stick to jacketed in this carbine.


Ive owned and used a ruger semi auto carbine but was never able to get consistently better than about 3" 100 yard groups so I sold it to a buddy that loves it , and hes not concerned as I doubt hes ever shot a deer or hog at over 50 yards in 4 decades