Russian SKS a .308 or .310 bore??? - The Firearms Forum

GW1 · 06-26-2010, 10:45 PM

hello,

I have a Russian SKS 7.62x39 rifle and I want to reload for it and I have tried my calipers and cannot consistently come up with the size of the bore. I get .308 and .309. once in a while if I press hard enough, I will get a .310. Does anyone know for sure if it is okay if I load .308 and or .310 bullets to shoot out of it? I know the .308 bullets, if too small, will not be as tight and may reduce some of the velocities, but i can work with that. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you and happy loading.

Jon--

LDBennett · 06-27-2010, 07:22 AM

GW1:

7.62 x 39 bullets for an SKS requires .310 bullets. If you use .308 bullets not only will the velocity suffer but so will the accuracy. Use the right bullets (.310).

But if it was a Ruger Mini-14/30 in 7.62 x 39 that you had (I know you have a Russian SKS) then the correct bullet are .308. Why Ruger chose that path is beyond me (??).

As an aside, the way you determine the bore size of a barrel is to force a soft slug of lead through the barrel with a cleaning rod and measure the slug with accurate micrometers. That's called "Slugging the barrel".You will never get any meaningful bore dimensions using calipers in the bore due to the rifling lands and grooves. It is the dimension between the bottom of the grooves that is the dimension used to fit bullets to the gun.

I would also add that the above info on the 7.62 x 39 appears in the Hornady Reloading Manual. If you are reloading without the aid of a manual then you are stepping onto shaky ground. Get a manual and read it several times until you thoroughly understand the processes. The Hornady manual is as good as any and includes detailed descriptions and pictures of how cartridges work in a gun and how the reloading processes work to make good ammo.

LDBennett

carver · 06-27-2010, 07:31 AM

+1 What LDBennett says.

06-26-2010, 10:45 PM	#1
GW1 Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 39	Russian SKS a .308 or .310 bore??? hello, I have a Russian SKS 7.62x39 rifle and I want to reload for it and I have tried my calipers and cannot consistently come up with the size of the bore. I get .308 and .309. once in a while if I press hard enough, I will get a .310. Does anyone know for sure if it is okay if I load .308 and or .310 bullets to shoot out of it? I know the .308 bullets, if too small, will not be as tight and may reduce some of the velocities, but i can work with that. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you and happy loading. Jon-- -->

06-27-2010, 07:22 AM	#2
LDBennett Advanced Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Hesperia, CA Posts: 5,754	Re: Russian SKS a .308 or .310 bore??? GW1: 7.62 x 39 bullets for an SKS requires .310 bullets. If you use .308 bullets not only will the velocity suffer but so will the accuracy. Use the right bullets (.310). But if it was a Ruger Mini-14/30 in 7.62 x 39 that you had (I know you have a Russian SKS) then the correct bullet are .308. Why Ruger chose that path is beyond me (??). As an aside, the way you determine the bore size of a barrel is to force a soft slug of lead through the barrel with a cleaning rod and measure the slug with accurate micrometers. That's called "Slugging the barrel".You will never get any meaningful bore dimensions using calipers in the bore due to the rifling lands and grooves. It is the dimension between the bottom of the grooves that is the dimension used to fit bullets to the gun. I would also add that the above info on the 7.62 x 39 appears in the Hornady Reloading Manual. If you are reloading without the aid of a manual then you are stepping onto shaky ground. Get a manual and read it several times until you thoroughly understand the processes. The Hornady manual is as good as any and includes detailed descriptions and pictures of how cartridges work in a gun and how the reloading processes work to make good ammo. LDBennett Last edited by LDBennett; 06-27-2010 at 07:24 AM..

06-27-2010, 07:31 AM	#3
carver TFF Moderator/Host Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: DAV, Deep in the Pineywoods of East Texas, just west of Shreveport, LA Contributor Posts: 11,555	Re: Russian SKS a .308 or .310 bore??? +1 What LDBennett says. __________________ Y'all be safe now, ya hear! Lamentations Chapter 5: 1. Remember, O LORD, what is come upon us: consider, and behold our reproach. 2. Our inheritance is turned to strangers, our houses to aliens. 3. We are orphans and fatherless, our mothers [are] as widows. 5. Our necks [are] under persecution: we labour, [and] have no rest. 16. The crown is fallen [from] our head: woe unto us, that we have sinned! 21. Turn thou us unto thee, O LORD, and we shall be turned; renew our days as of old.