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The AR-15 and steel cased ammo - how to make Wolf or Tula shoot reliably.

12K views 20 replies 18 participants last post by  Ram Rod 
#1 · (Edited)
Edited: Added a link to another Defensive Carry Thread on a Warning on Wolf Ammo (at the bottom).

Original Post...........................(below text).....................................................................

Granted, for home defense, I'm running Federal 65 grain........ But, a shooter has to practice and sometimes, you just have to shoot what ya got........

(last paragraph from the blog - referenced below) If you have an AR that doesn't like steel ammo, but have a stockpile of it or have a source where you can get it for cheap, it's worth a try to mix some brass in with the steel and see if your AR will run it.

My Comment: I'm going to test this in the ARs and a Mini-14. Will get back with a report later on my success or failure. :rolleyes:

Topic: Using inexpensive Russian-made steel cased .223 ammo selling for quite a bit less than the brass versions of the same rounds. Either for Practice or Defense.

Suggested Solution for stuck Steel casings: (apparently caused by blowback of power residue between the casings and the chamber causing a stoppage at about the 50th round) is to mix Brass with Steel rounds, at a ratio that allows the Brass to 'clean' the residue from the chamber, extending the period (number of rounds of steel cases used) before a stoppage, or eliminating it all together.

This Blog (link below) puts up a good argument - though the testing he did is limited in data points, it did show promising results.

Have any of you tested this? Please share your results.


Tinkerer's Blog
Sunday, May 20, 2012

The AR-15 and steel cased ammo - how to make Wolf or Tula shoot reliably: Tinkerer's Blog


Edited: Read Warning Thread on Wolf Ammo: http://www.defensivecarry.com/forum...-discussion/104614-ar-ammunition-warning.html
 
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#3 ·
It is generally when you start mixing brass and steel case ammo is when you get stuck cases, usually the brass ones.

You will also have a higher occurrence in .223 chambers and low end rifles.

That AR Ammo Warning thread is also 2 years old. I think that problem has been solved.
 
#4 ·
Russian Ammo Stinks

Here's my story, as short as I can make it:

I have a brand new Olympic AR15 in 5.56 that I took to the range to site in and test with several types of ammo.

10 rounds Remington .223 - no problem.
10 rounds Hornady Steel case - no problem.
1 Round of TulAmmo steel case... fired but did not eject, causing the next round to jam securely! The ejector sheered the case rim off at a 45 degree angle and the casing was frozen in the chamger so hard that I had to use a hammer on a cleaning rod to bang it out, and I mean banging about 15 times with more force than I cared to use.

Lesson learned - I will never shoot this crap (or any other cheep ammo) again. It's dangerous.

End of story.

PS - I was assured that it was high quality, reliable, no problem ammo (even after telling my cheep ammo story about how my 1911 got a bullet lodged half way down the barrel using Carrols ammo).
 
#5 ·
Here's my story, as short as I can make it:

I have a brand new Olympic AR15 in 5.56 that I took to the range to site in and test with several types of ammo.

10 rounds Remington .223 - no problem.
10 rounds Hornady Steel case - no problem.
1 Round of TulAmmo steel case... fired but did not eject, causing the next round to jam securely! The ejector sheered the case rim off at a 45 degree angle and the casing was frozen in the chamger so hard that I had to use a hammer on a cleaning rod to bang it out, and I mean banging about 15 times with more force than I cared to use.

Lesson learned - I will never shoot this crap (or any other cheep ammo) again. It's dangerous.

End of story.

PS - I was assured that it was high quality, reliable, no problem ammo (even after telling my cheep ammo story about how my 1911 got a bullet lodged half way down the barrel using Carrols ammo).
With an Olympic Arms, it could have been the rifle as well.
 
#7 ·
Many folks, including myself, have been running Wolf without any problems for years now.

Tula on the other hand I hear bad things about all the time. I wouldn't buy that stuff....EVER!
 
#8 ·
One thing about Wolf and Tula I noticed,I reload and been using Wolf primers for several years with very few problems,They quit making Wolf primers so I ordered Tula primers,the box they came in is the same packaging the Wolf primers came in,I got a feeling that Tula bought out Wolf,I haven't loaded any Tula primers yet.
As far as steel cased 223 my gun shoots Wolf fine,but the silver bear in 7.62x39 that has what I assume is galvanized steel cases will stick in my 7.62x39 AR upper
 
#13 ·
Not worth it.
 
#21 ·
Exactly
 
#12 ·
I've run over 1K rounds of WPA without a hitch.

Tonight at Walmart, I saw Tula for less than 5 bucks a box, so (thinking of this thread) I picked up 200 rnds. I've never tried it, but my PSA seems indifferent to the steel-cased cat-pee stinking WPA, so we'll see how it does with Tula. :dunno:
 
#14 ·
I have two uppers for my AR, and have bought 1500 rounds of wolf, and have some bulk Federal Lake City m193 too. The only problem I find is every time use it, if I don't clean the Bolt and chamber I am going to have a problem. Also changing ammo is asking for trouble, even swithing from 55 gr wolf hollow points to wolf 62 gr soft point, I am asking for trouble. If I start with a clean gun, and don't change ammo in the shoot, I don't have a problem. Also I have started out with brass 5.56, and swithed to wolf without a problem. You should test it with a clean chamber, and bolt, and just run one lot, that's what goes on with russian ammo in russian guns, more reliable that way.
 
#15 ·
One other note, I do not hear of gun damage with chrome lined barrels, don't forget those bullets are copper plated steel jacketed rounds, so I would not run them through a non chromed barrel. They are also the desert fire starters you hear about, and I will not run steel though any of my handguns.
 
#16 ·
I've only fired 40 rounds through my M&P, 2 mags loaded 20 each fired back to back, and I had no issues what so ever. I wouldn't hesitate to shoot a few boxes now and again, but my AR isn't set up for extreme precision or anything like that so a little extra junk food doesn't hurt it.
 
#17 ·
I'll shoot steel in an imported (cheap) AK, but not in my (expensive) AR's.
When Noveske and CMMG say steel will void the warranty on my barrels I've got to believe there's a reason.
 
#19 ·
I am just not seeing how that could have any merit at all. :confused:

How do brass cartridge cases clean blowback residue from barrel chambers?
They don't.

On topic, for whatever reason, most AR's have a tendency to start jamming when mixing steel and brass ammo, especially those with tight chambers (low end and .223 chambers). Some say it's the lacquer from the steel case coating the chamber, some say the sealant used on the bullets. I don't know that anybody knows the exact reason, just that the accepted procedure is to not mix flavors unless you do a thorough chamber cleaning between, or just flat out don't mix flavors during a shooting session.

Copper or brass washed steel cased bullets, OK in chrome, not a good plan in stainless. Depends on the thickness of the coating of the bullet. Not a fan of steel in my bullets anyhow, limits where you can shoot, and what targets you can shoot. Range masters get bitchy when you start tearing up their poppers and gongs with steel core.
 
#20 ·
I run Tulammo all the time, I just make sure to give a few rotations with a chamber brush and run a bore snake through my barrel afterwards. No problems. If I was taking a carbine class or needed some reliable ammo, it would be brass cases all the way. Steel case just for practice.
 
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