Handloading the 7.62x39mm - Load Data

Bench Topics

by John Haviland

Handloading the 7.62x39mm

My rifle buying may have reached a new high (or low, depending on your outlook). I rationalized the recent purchase of a CZ 527 Carbine 7.62x39mm as necessary to utilize the six boxes of .310- and .311inch bullets and a couple of pounds of powder I already owned. That reasoning has worked out quite well, and I'm somewhat dismayed I waited so long to buy a rifle in 7.62x39mm Russian.

Autoloading rifles, such as the imported SKS, are by far the most popular rifles and carbines for the cartridge. At best, these guns are precise enough to shoot 3- or 4-inch groups at 100 yards. There is little sense investing the time handloading only to see a rifle spray bullets across an area like a hose watering carrots in the garden, but handloading for the cartridge in a bolt ac-

Sierra .30-caliber, 110-grain hollowpoints shot accurately from the CZ 7.62x39, despite being .003 inch narrower than the CZ rifle's .311-inch bore.

tion is well worth the time. Various handloads shoot pretty well through the CZ, even though it weighs only a couple of ounces on the light side of 6 pounds and wears a thin, 18.5inch barrel.

For years foreign surplus ammunition was so cheap barely anyone reloaded the 7.62x39. Most of that supply has dried up. Russian commercial ammunition was all that was found locally. The TulAmmo and

Hornady 7.62x39mm dies come with two expander balls for sizing the inside case neck diameter to hold either .308-, .310- or .311inch bullets.

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Federal ammunition (left) is assembled with brass cases suitable for reloading; the two imported cartridges with gray steel cases are unacceptable for reloading.

This group was fired at 100 yards with Hornady 123-grain, .310-inch Spire Point bullets and W-680 powder.

The 7.62x39mm CZ shot accurately with handloaded bullets of different diameters. These bullets shot well (left to right): Speer 125 TNT (.308), Hornady 123 Spire Point (.310) and Speer 125 spitzer (.311).

Wolf cartridges cost 46? per round. I got ripped off, though, because a friend says he buys those loads for about 29? each at the big box store across town. That is a pretty good bargain, as a jacketed bullet for reloading costs about that much. These two brands shoot about 2-inch groups at 100 yards from the CZ, but their steel cases are unsuitable for reloading.

Most American ammunition is made with brass cases suitable for reloading. The CZ commonly shoots Federal 123-grain Power-Shok softpoint loads under an inch at 100 yards. However, those loads cost over $1.00 a shot.

With those Federal cases, some new PMC cases begged from Lee Hoots of Wolfe Publishing and a set of Hornady Custom reloading dies, I set to work handloading the 7.62x39. The Hornady sizing die comes with two expander balls for sizing the inside case neck diameter to the proper diameter to hold .308and .311-inch diameter bullets.

Hornady lists its bullets for the 7.62x39 as "7.62 Cal." with a diameter of .310 and Speer "303 Cal" with a diameter of .311 inch. A friend said regular .30-caliber bullets shot accurately through his CZ rifle, so I loaded and shot some. They

shot just as accurately through my CZ's .311-inch bore as the slightly larger diameter bullets. Those different diameters and brands provide a lot of bullet options for the little 7.62.

The Russian is no longer-range

Bullet Options The CZ's bore measures .311 inch between opposing grooves, but the bores of many American rifles, such as the Ruger Mini Thirty, measure .308 inch. That's to take advantage of common .30-caliber bullets. Federal Power-Shok 123grain softpoints measure .308 inch in diameter, so the loads can be safely fired through both diameter bores.

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cartridge. At their relatively mild

velocity, once bullets from the car-

tridge reach 200 yards, they plunge

like a rock off a cliff. Sierra 110-

grain bullets at slightly over 2,511

fps should be a good choice for

small game and varmints. Hit-

ting on aim at 100 yards, they

drop nearly 7 inches at 200 yards.

Heavier 123- and 125-grain bul-

lets with a muzzle velocity of 2,300

fps drop only an inch more. The Nosler 125-grain Ballistic Tip has a sleek shape, and with a velocity

These bullets were shot while developing handloads (left to right): Sierra 110 (.308) hollowpoint, Speer 125 TNT (.308), Nosler 125 Ballistic Tip (.308), Sierra 150 spitzer (.308), Hornady 123 Spire Point (.310), Speer 123 FMJ (.311) and Speer 125 spitzer (.311).

of 2,460 fps it drops about an inch

less than the Sierra 110-grain bul- rifle. It has given the highest veloci- treme velocity spreads for three shots

let, but an inch of drop either way ties and about the best accuracy of

ranging between 15 and 30 fps.

at 200 yards is splitting pretty fine all the propellants tried, but I'm out

hairs.

of luck once my meager supply is

Handloading

The 7.62x39 is commonly re-

burned up, because 680 was discon- The 7.62x39 is a battle cartridge de-

ferred to as somewhat less power-

tinued 30-some years ago. Accurate signed to positively cycle through

ful than the .30-30 Winchester. My 1680 is similar to 680, and data in an autoloading firearm. The result

CZ shoots Sierra 150-grain pointed various reloading manuals shows

is a case body with a relatively large

bullets at 2,190 fps, while Sierra

comparable powder charges and ve- amount of taper. That taper resulted

150-grain flatpoint bullets leave the locities ? but darned if I can find

in quite a bit of case neck stretching

muzzle of a 20-inch, .30-30 barrel at any 1680.

after firing Federal factory loads and

about 2,300 fps. Both bullets have

Fortunately, other powders work new PMC cases with reloads. After

about the same trajectory out to 200 nearly as well. H-4198 and Reloder cases were trimmed to a length of

yards. The pointed bullet does catch 7 were the best paired with 110- to 1.518 inches, loaded, fired and sized

up to the flatpoint and even slightly 125-grain bullets. Relatively slower again, their necks stretched no more

exceeds it at that distance.

burning powders, like H-322 and

than other cases, such as the .30-06

VV-N130, provided the highest ve- or .30-30 WCF. Still, I prefer to

Propellants

locities with 150-grain bullets. All

trim cases each time after they are

Winchester 680 was the powder on powders listed in the load table pro- sized, because it's just as fast to run

hand that forced me to buy the CZ duced uniform velocities, with ex-

cases through an electric case trim-

mer as it is to measure each one with

a micrometer to make sure it is not

over maximum length.

No peculiarities to reloading the

cartridge come to mind. So far I've

loaded the Federal and PMC cases six

times, and they are still going strong.

I'm also attempting to think of

more purposes for the Russian car-

tridge to further justify buying the

CZ rifle. Its economical reloading

cost and mild recoil have made it

a great plinking and practice car-

tridge. The rifle is about the same

weight and length as a Winchester

Model 94 .30-30 carbine. So I have

loaded a batch of cartridges with

Hornady 123-grain Spire Points and

Three good powders for loading the 7.62x39 include W-680, H-4198 and RL-7. Too bad W-680 was dropped years ago.

W-680, waiting for this fall to hunt whitetails in the river bottoms.

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