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Will the Saiga cycle using sub-sonic ammo?


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Has anyone tried using subsonic ammo in their saiga? I'm particularly thinking of the .308?

 

 

I think I remember seeing a silenced Saiga .308 on YouTube that was using subsonics and it didn't seem to have any problems, but I haven't tried them myself and I don't know what modifications they made to their gun.

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With a bare muzzle, it doesn't look good.

Example:

Typical 308 load is 147gr @ 2850fps? right?

 

So that's: 9.525g at 868.7m/s, or a momentum of 8.274 kg-m/s

 

Lapua offers a 308 in 165gr (10.65g) at 2690 fps (820m/s) which gives a momentum of 8.733 kg-m/s.

 

Lapua Subsonic is 200gr (13g) at 320m/s, giveing a momentum of 4.16 kg-m/s; approximately half the momentum.

 

Is that enough? I dunno.

 

For info pruposes only, to get the same momentum as the faster loads, the subsonic bullet would have to weight over 400 grains.

 

Lapua also specifies a necessary ~1:10-inch (1 in 250cm) twist and maximum length 17.78 inch (450mm) barrel. So will the backpressure from a longer barrel, or a suppressor, or even one of those 4-piece krinkov flash hider/recoil boosters make it cycle? I dunno that either.

 

If it were a permanently dedicated subsonic ammo shooting rifle, you could enlarge the gas port. But that's only if you are gutsy enough to do such a permanent alteration.

 

Any of this help?

C-

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If you are a handloader you might be able to come up with a load that will work. There a heavy bullts available. The round nose may work better in a fast twist. Some of the subsonic loads use a reduced capacity case that may help too. Would be an interesting reload project. Their are some subsonic loads for the 7.62x39 on the Beartooth Bullets site. Check with their forum and somebody may have done this already. My 308-1 works with the start load and 168 grain bullets.

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