Iron Content of Rifle Ammo (SS109/M855, M59, M61, M80, M855A1, etc.)

Icelander · 04-23-2019, 08:17 AM

As has been noted, the majority of military 5.45x39mm, 7.62x39mm and 7.62x54R ammunition is steel-core, with a layer of lead around it and then a mild steel or other soft metal jacket.

I haven't had any luck finding a source that states how much of the total weight of the projectile in any of these calibers is steel. So, I thought I'd ask the forumites for estimates, as I know that some of you have shot surplus ammo in one or more of these calibers.

How much iron do you estimate to be in the projectile of the following rounds?

5.45x39mm 7N6/7N6M: 53 grains. I was able to discover that the steel penetrator weighs 22.1 grains, but how much steel, if any, there is in the gilding metal clad jacket, I do not know. Still, that's about 35-40% iron, more if the jacket is steel clad in gilded metal (Edit: Which I've discovered is almost universal). In that case, add however much the jacket weighs, which I imagined as something less than 25% of total bullet weight (to avoid being designated as AP by US law). WAG has the 7N6 at about 50% iron, depending on the breaks (specimens with increasingly hardened steel penetrators might knock a grain off the final iron content, but mostly the uncertainty is about the exact composition and weight of the jacket). Edit: US M855 jackets seem to weigh just under 20 grains and the bullets are not lightyears apart in size. With a generous fudge factor, 7N6 rounds might thus be anywhere from 50-60% iron.

7.62x39mm M43/57-N-231: 122-123 grains. The core of the bullet is approximately 50/50 lead and steel, by volume. The jacket is copper-plated steel, but I don't know how much of the bullet weight is jacket. Nor do I know how much there is of copper and steel, respectively, in such bimetallic jackets. As a total guess, the M43 might contain anywhere from 35% to 60% iron, by weight. Edit: Looks like 38-41% is a good guess, depending on the ratio of copper to steel in the jackets. There seems to be noticably more lead in the M43 AK rounds than in other steel-cored former Soviet bloc ammo.

7.62x54mmR LB, 57-N-323S or similar: 147-151 grains. Basically any round in thia caliber with a mild steel core. I was able to find out that Bulgarian silver tip 147 grain bullets contain a 69.4 grain mild steel core, a much smaller lead filler in the front that is .359" in length (out of 1.27" length of the bullet) and narrows to a tip from a diameter of 0.238". The jacket is bimetallic, copper over mild steel, and seems to be just over 0.01" thick. From pictures, the steel core seems like it's most of the bullet, but it still weighs slightly less than half of the projectile weight. Somehow, the thin jacket and tiny lead filler weigh a combined 77 grains or so. So, it's roughly the same 35% to 60% guess, depending on how much steel there is in the jacket. Edit: Assuming a similar jacket thickness to US M80 rounds and about 50/50 copper and steel by volume in the jacket, I get around 55-60% iron.

Can anyone help me narrow down these percentages?

04-23-2019, 08:17 AM	#38
Icelander Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Iceland*	Former Soviet-bloc Steel-core Ammo Iron Content As has been noted, the majority of military 5.45x39mm, 7.62x39mm and 7.62x54R ammunition is steel-core, with a layer of lead around it and then a mild steel or other soft metal jacket. I haven't had any luck finding a source that states how much of the total weight of the projectile in any of these calibers is steel. So, I thought I'd ask the forumites for estimates, as I know that some of you have shot surplus ammo in one or more of these calibers. How much iron do you estimate to be in the projectile of the following rounds? *5.45x39mm* 7N6/7N6M: 53 grains. I was able to discover that the steel penetrator weighs 22.1 grains, but how much steel, if any, there is in the gilding metal clad jacket, I do not know. Still, that's about 35-40% iron, more if the jacket is steel clad in gilded metal (Edit: Which I've discovered is almost universal). In that case, add however much the jacket weighs, which I imagined as something less than 25% of total bullet weight (to avoid being designated as AP by US law). WAG has the 7N6 at about 50% iron, depending on the breaks (specimens with increasingly hardened steel penetrators might knock a grain off the final iron content, but mostly the uncertainty is about the exact composition and weight of the jacket). Edit: US M855 jackets seem to weigh just under 20 grains and the bullets are not lightyears apart in size. With a generous fudge factor, 7N6 rounds might thus be anywhere from 50-60% iron. *7.62x39mm* M43/57-N-231: 122-123 grains. The core of the bullet is approximately 50/50 lead and steel, by volume. The jacket is copper-plated steel, but I don't know how much of the bullet weight is jacket. Nor do I know how much there is of copper and steel, respectively, in such bimetallic jackets. As a total guess, the M43 might contain anywhere from 35% to 60% iron, by weight. Edit: Looks like 38-41% is a good guess, depending on the ratio of copper to steel in the jackets. There seems to be noticably more lead in the M43 AK rounds than in other steel-cored former Soviet bloc ammo. *7.62x54mmR* LB, 57-N-323S or similar: 147-151 grains. Basically any round in thia caliber with a mild steel core. I was able to find out that Bulgarian silver tip 147 grain bullets contain a 69.4 grain mild steel core, a much smaller lead filler in the front that is .359" in length (out of 1.27" length of the bullet) and narrows to a tip from a diameter of 0.238". The jacket is bimetallic, copper over mild steel, and seems to be just over 0.01" thick. From pictures, the steel core seems like it's most of the bullet, but it still weighs slightly less than half of the projectile weight. Somehow, the thin jacket and tiny lead filler weigh a combined 77 grains or so. So, it's roughly the same 35% to 60% guess, depending on how much steel there is in the jacket. Edit: Assuming a similar jacket thickness to US M80 rounds and about 50/50 copper and steel by volume in the jacket, I get around 55-60% iron. Can anyone help me narrow down these percentages? __________________ Za uspiekh nashevo beznadiozhnovo diela! Last edited by Icelander; 04-23-2019 at 08:19 PM.