Steel cased .223 in my ar15? is it that bad?

Dennis316 · Feb 25, 2010

so ive been collecting ammo ever since i got my gun, every paycheck i would buy about 300ish rounds of good brass ammo, now, i see i can get 1000rds of wolf 55gr .223 ammo for like 250 shipped...i want to buy me some of that to shoot when i go to idaho, like out in the desert, is it worth it? i keep my gun pretty clean, i mean i paid alot of money for it and mean to keep it for a while

i also want to try brown bear 62gr hollow point steel cased ammo

its obviously lower quality that federal, and probably even pmc, but just to mess around, what do you think?

Brianaintright · Feb 25, 2010

As long as it's a good quality AR you should be fine. it's dirty but thats about it.

Dennis316 · Feb 25, 2010

Brianaintright said:
As long as it's a good quality AR you should be fine. it's dirty but thats about it.

bought a bushmaster...not the best, but hopefully its better than having one made out of wood or plastic

FatFugg · Feb 25, 2010

Dennis316 said:
bought a bushmaster...not the best, but hopefully its better than having one made out of wood or plastic

A lot of that cheap ammo burns dirty as mud, but as long as you have a chrome lined barrel & firing chamber you will be fine. I personally wouldn't use it in a non-chrome lined barrel as the steel cases can damage the chamber.

Thanatos · Feb 25, 2010

With the ammo prices today I run the cheap steel case stuff. I am currently working on 500rd case of the Brown Bear stuff. As long as it goes *bang* when I fire it its good with me. Also not worried about collecting brass since I don't reload anyways. Gonna go buy a couple thousand more rounds of the cheap stuff when I get back home from Haiti.

chameleon · Feb 25, 2010

ya the steel cases are hard on extractors, can break or wear them (not that it will, they just can). also yes they run dirty. as long as you give ur AR that extra bit of spit shine after each trip out firing you should be fine.

hubers454 · Feb 26, 2010

Dont do it, steel rounds have lacquer on the outside, thats why it dosn't rust. what happens when the chamber gets hot the lacquer melts gets in the gas tube, builds up in the chamber. the gun gets real hot a round gets stuck in the chamber when it cools and then breaks the extractor, causes jams, or can rip the rim off the case. AK 47s and sks type rifles have a real loose chamber(wider at rim) and loose tolerence to compensate for the Lacquer/paint

Brianaintright · Feb 27, 2010

hubers454 said:
Dont do it, steel rounds have lacquer on the outside, thats why it dosn't rust. what happens when the chamber gets hot the lacquer melts gets in the gas tube, builds up in the chamber. the gun gets real hot a round gets stuck in the chamber when it cools and then breaks the extractor, causes jams, or can rip the rim off the case. AK 47s and sks type rifles have a real loose chamber(wider at rim) and loose tolerence to compensate for the Lacquer/paint

Most current steel cased ammo has done away with the lacquer but you're right, shooting laquered ammo quickly can gum up things pretty quickly.

chameleon · Feb 27, 2010

ya. if you have an upgraded extractor and a chrome lined barrel than you should be fine shooting it. just make sure to give your AR some EXTRA spit polish when you clean it

migxdm · Feb 27, 2010

nothin wrong with wolf. ive put many thousands thru my ar, and ak's doesnt seem any dirtier than anything else out thee.

DerBarbarian · Feb 27, 2010

I've put about 1,500 rounds of Brown Bear through my AR and I've never had a jam or misfire. Just gotta give her a good cleaning when you're done and you should be fine!

Steel cased .223 in my ar15? is it that bad?

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