Steel Ammuntion? In my AR?

[lysander]

Something from the ‘way-back’ machine . . .

Between October 1969 and February 1970, the Army conducted a test of 5.56mm ammunition assembled with steel cases at Fort Benning. The object of the test was to determine if steel cases were acceptable for general service use.

Highlights of the test were as follows:

- Over 21,000 steel cased rounds were fired and a similar number of brass cased rounds were fired. The ammunition was a mix of Ball and Tracer for both test (steel cased) and control (brass cased).

- After firing, 47 split necks observed in the test ammunition. However, none of the split necks caused any weapon malfunctions.

- There were 53 weapons malfunctions in the weapons firing steel case ammunition.

- There were 71 weapons malfunctions in the weapons firing brass cases ammunition.

- All of the malfunctions save three (3) were weapon or magazine related, not attributable to the ammunition.

- Two of the three ammunition related malfunctions were with the control ammunition (brass cased).

- Only one steel cased round caused a weapons malfunction.

- Blast, flash, noise, and felt recoil were the same between the test and control weapons.

- Part of the test was a 60 day open storage exposure test where ammunition stored either in bandoleers, or loaded in magazines or stored in ammo cans was exposed to the prevalent weather. Surface rust and blistering of the lacquer was observed on the test ammunition, discolorization on the control ammunition. After open storage the ammunition was fired with no malfunctions. (30 of the 60 days saw some form of precipitation.)

- After a simulated tactical exercise where ammunition was immersed in water for 15 minutes, dragged through the dirt and covered in mud for 45 minutes, the ammunition was left exposed for 36 hours. After the 36 hours it was fired, there was one malfunction with the test ammunition, 3 malfunctions with the control ammunition.

- The conclusion was that there is no significant difference between ammunition loaded with steel cases than with ammunition loaded with brass cases.

-It was concluded that steel cased ammunition is suitable for world wide and unrestricted use.

For those wishing to read the full report, it can be found on DTIC, search for:

AD869282 - PRODUCT IMPROVEMENT TEST OF CARTRIDGE, 5.56-MM, ASSEMBLED WITH STEEL CARTRIDGE CASES-FINAL REPORT


Short story - there is nothing inherent in steel cases that makes them problematic. More than likely there are QA issues with the ammunition manufacturer, non-spec loading, non-spec pressures, case dimensions that don't conform to spec, that are causing your problems, if you are having any.

Dammit! Ammunition... in the title.

[MegademiC]

Very interesting, but I'm not suprised. The only inherent issue I could see is running high volume of steel, then brass.

[twm134]

Very interesting, but I'm not suprised. The only inherent issue I could see is running high volume of steel, the brass.

Uh, what?

[MegademiC]

Uh, what?

Edited. 1 letter really clears things up, haha.

[T2C]

Interesting study. I have been firing steel case ammunition through my practice carbines for years and have not had any issues. Some of the WWII vintage M1 Carbine ammunition I've fired is steel case. The fact that Hornady makes Steel Match ammunition supports the use of steel cases.


It would appear the U.S. Army was onto something 45+ years ago.

[twm134]

Edited. 1 letter really clears things up, haha.

Now I understand, and agree.

[HCM]

Steel cases are not, themselves a problem. The issue with the Russian steel case is the bi metal jackets on the bullets tends to pre maturely wear bores.

I wouldn't hesitate to use Hornaday steel match etc with conventional copper jacketed bullets.

[lysander]

Steel cases are not, themselves a problem. The issue with the Russian steel case is the bi metal jackets on the bullets tends to pre maturely wear bores.

I wouldn't hesitate to use Hornaday steel match etc with conventional copper jacketed bullets.

Funny you should mention that. (That is the subject of my next article.)

But, no. Not quite, read more here.

[cbx]

I use hell of lots of ruskie ammo. It is cheaper. I get to shoot more. For the 50-100 yard range it works just fine. Even for hunting. I don't even know how many cases I've gone through over the years. Yet to have a rifle die from it. But again I don't mag dump into the ground either.

Do what ever makes you feel good.

[T2C]

Steel cases are not, themselves a problem. The issue with the Russian steel case is the bi metal jackets on the bullets tends to pre maturely wear bores.

I wouldn't hesitate to use Hornaday steel match etc with conventional copper jacketed bullets.

I agree, the bi-metal bullets induce more wear and tear on a barrel than copper jacketed projectiles. Over the life of the barrels on my practice carbines, I save roughly $600 to $700 per carbine shooting Russian steel case ammunition. Neither practice carbine sees use beyond 200 meters, so the loss in accuracy is not an issue for myself.

A lot of people do not shoot more than 1,000 to 2,000 rounds per year, so I would not recommend shooting bi-metal bullets for them. For someone who replaces a barrel every 18 months or so, it may save a few dollars.