Awesome Ammo or the Usual Wolf Trash?

[B. Lahey]

Ran across this the other day:

The recent loading of the 124gr Wolf "Military Classic" HP shows promising performance. This ammo is made by Ulyanovsk using their 8M3 bullet, and has been shown to fragment in several tests:
7.62x39mm Sapsan 124 gr JHP (Ulyanovsk Machinery Plant) from 16” AKMS
BG: vel=2297 f/s, pen=15.0”, Max TC=10cm@18cm, RD=0.63”, RW=100.5gr

http://ammo.ar15.com/project/Self_Defense_Ammo_FAQ/index.htm#7.62x39

I've got a bunch of this stuff. I bought a can of it at the local shop last year for plinking. I was actually kind of irritated at the time I bought it, I was looking for "nice" 7.62x39, but it was cheap.

And here I find out it's some kind of rooski wunderload... Or is it? Anyone know anything about this ammo?

Is it even loaded with this magical 8M3 projectile, or is it just another 124gr HP load from the same manufacturer? No citations on the arfcom page and the web is not flooded with 7.62x39 ballistic data. It doesn't group worth a darn in any of the rifles I've tried it in (Saiga, Vector, WASR). Seems like cheap garbage to make soda cans hop around to me, but I've been wrong before.

Awesome or garbage?

 

[darkgael]

ammo

It doesn't group worth a darn in any of the rifles I've tried it in

I'm not familiar with it. I wonder how different it can be.
In any case, (serious question, not critical) what kind of 7.62X39 ammo does group well, especially fired from those rifles?
What I expect from Wolf ammo is for it to go "bang" each time that I squeeze the trigger. It has always done that - .22, 9mm, 7.62, .45ACP - never had a dud in literally cases of the stuff.
Pete

 

[flight954]

I'm like you, I got 500rnds for plinking w/ my AR pistol. I had no issues w/ it.

 

[kymasabe]

Wolf is not necessarily the cleanest or most accurate 7.62x39 out there. I've had much better luck with Golden Tiger and especially Barnaul. I've never heard of anyone getting any decent groupings from most 7.62x39 ammo anyway unless they were using something like the CZ bolt gun and Winchester ammo or handloads.

 

[dogngun]

I shot a lot of Wolf mostly in pistol calibers, but a lot in 7.62x39 as well for the last 8 years or so.
I have never had a problem with it.
The worst problems I have ever had with commercial ammo was the 6mm Remington round I found in my box of .243 Winchester ammo. That was Remington CoreLokt, about 6 years ago.

mark

 

[B. Lahey]

I am well aware of the general quality of Wolf products.

This thread is about the ballistic qualities of the 124gr Ulyanovsk HP load sold under the name "Wolf Military Classic 124gr HP". Please limit your responses to this topic.

what kind of 7.62X39 ammo does group well, especially fired from those rifles?

S&B and Brown Bear will shoot into 4" or a little better. The loading in question will put 5 rounds into 8" to 10". Not great accuracy by comparison.

 

[ar15chase]

Nothing Wolf has ever made IMO, has ever been awsome. You get what you pay for. I am sure it is fine for plinking but I would never trust my life or a hunting trip on Wolf ammo.

 

[banditt007]

well i'll tell you what is awesome that wolf has made... their .22lr match ammo is very hard to beat. for center fires i've never experienced it so i cannot comment.

 

[ar15chase]

I have never shot their 22 ammo or shot shells. But I have fired their .223, 7.62, 9mm and 45acp. None of which I was impressed with.

 

[B. Lahey]

Wolf doesn't "make" anything. They market ammo from many different companies under the Wolf brand. Most of it sucks, but the Prvi in the Wolf Gold boxes is ok, the SK in the Wolf Target boxes is ok, this thread is about the Ulyanovsk 124gr HP sold as Wolf Military Classic 124gr HP.

If you don't have anything to say about the ballistic qualities of the Ulyanovsk 124gr HP load, go post somewhere else.

If this thread keeps on its current course of:
"I like Wolf, it go bangbang"
"All Wolf suks dood"
It may as well get shut down now.

 

[AK103K]

Wolf is usually hit or miss. Sometimes its good, other times its terrible. Regardless, I usually encounter at least one or two duds per case.

On the really good side, I've got a couple of cases of Wolf 154 grain SP's that shoots very well, 3-4" at 200 yards out of my SAR1 from a rest.

The old Barnaul 125 grain SP's, are the most accurate and consistent of all the 7.62x39 I've used. 3" at 100 has been the norm, and often less. They are the only ones I've seen that use a jacketed base on their bullets, very much like Sierra Game Kings. Everything else I've seen, has the traditional military type, exposed lead roll crimped base.

 

[B. Lahey]

Yeah, I don't mind the 154gr SP either, but the only ballistic data I've seen for it has been from a 20" barrel on the old brassfetcher site. It fragments and deforms well out of a 20" barrel, but out of a 16" AK barrel... I dunno.

For all the AKs and SKSs out there it seems like somebody would have done a comprehensive jello test of available 7.62x39 loads at some point, but if anyone has, it's not on the internet.

Sellier & Bellot makes a 123gr SP hunting load that seems like it would be a good choice for hunting/HD, but nobody has tested that one either, apparently. CZ test-fires their 7.62x39 boltguns with it, so I would guess that it's an accepted euro hunting load, but that's the extent of the available data.

I guess keeping this one on topic is a lost cause. If all I've been able to find on this Ulyanovsk load with lots of websearching was the one passing mention on arfcom, it must have been overly optimistic to think anyone on here would know anything.

 

[kymasabe]

Why don't you just call the factory and ask them directly. I've called overseas for stranger things and most countries have online phonebooks, or ask an overseas operator for the number. Figure the time difference, get the #, go right to the source.

There, that "on topic" enough for you?

 

[KyJim]

The OP first asked:

Anyone know anything about this ammo? . . .
Awesome or garbage?

Then when people post about bad Wolf Ammo, the OP got defensive. I guess that's because you already bought the ammo.The OP said:

If you don't have anything to say about the ballistic qualities of the Ulyanovsk 124gr HP load, go post somewhere else.

Sorry, this is an open board. When you ask general questions about ammo, expect to get general answers. The fact it may fragment does not necessarily make it good ammo. The "Military Classic Ammo" has laquer on the primers to seal it; i.e., the kind of stuff Wolf originally sold. It stinks when I shoot it and it gunks up the gun more. I don't know of anyone who considers Wolf to be anymore than plinking or TEOTWAWKI ammo.

 

[B. Lahey]

No defensiveness here, I thought it was garbage too.

Found the thing on arfcom, wanted more info, end of story.

 

[stevelyn]

well i'll tell you what is awesome that wolf has made... their .22lr match ammo is very hard to beat. for center fires i've never experienced it so i cannot comment.

That's because a German company makes it.

 

[Art Eatman]

Since the thread doesn't seem to be getting anywhere useful...