linggr09 0 Posted January 20, 2010 Report Share Posted January 20, 2010 Hi, I'm in the process of buying a saiga but i can't choose between 7.62x39 or 5.45x39. I understand the ballistics of the two rounds, and I know the wapons each was intended for, (7.62-ak-47, 5.45-ak-74), and as far as price goes each round seems to be generally the same, if you can find them in stock. I'm open to either round but the only thing keeping me from commiting to one or another is availability of ammo and especially magazines. (I'm doing a mag conversion to AK) I've been poking around on the web for the last week or so trying to find well priced mags for both rounds and I have come to the conclusion that 5.45 AK mags are much harder to come by. Is this true? I'm new to the fourm and this is my first post so Thank You in advance, and I apologize if I screw something up in my post Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Moe Zambeak 53 Posted January 20, 2010 Report Share Posted January 20, 2010 Welcome aboard! I recently started a similar thread in the 7.62x39 subforum. It has quite a bit of useful information, and may answer some of your questions and help you decide between the two rifles. http://forum.saiga-12.com/index.php?showtopic=48975 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
linggr09 0 Posted January 20, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2010 Welcome aboard! I recently started a similar thread in the 7.62x39 subforum. It has quite a bit of useful information, and may answer some of your questions and help you decide between the two rifles. http://forum.saiga-12.com/index.php?showtopic=48975 Thanks for the welcome Moe. And thanks for the link it rly helped! This gun is going to be a home defense/SHTF gun so I think I'll stick with 7.62. I like the fact that US companies produce 7.62, not to mention that with the right bullet 7.62 can cause some serrious tissue dammage. The 5.45 would be betetr for plinking but I guess thats what I bought a .22LR for. As far as future availability goes, in your opinion, do you think 7.62 will be a readily available surplus round in say 10-15 yrs? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Salmonking 149 Posted January 20, 2010 Report Share Posted January 20, 2010 Welcome aboard! I recently started a similar thread in the 7.62x39 subforum. It has quite a bit of useful information, and may answer some of your questions and help you decide between the two rifles. http://forum.saiga-12.com/index.php?showtopic=48975 Thanks for the welcome Moe. And thanks for the link it rly helped! This gun is going to be a home defense/SHTF gun so I think I'll stick with 7.62. I like the fact that US companies produce 7.62, not to mention that with the right bullet 7.62 can cause some serrious tissue dammage. The 5.45 would be betetr for plinking but I guess thats what I bought a .22LR for. As far as future availability goes, in your opinion, do you think 7.62 will be a readily available surplus round in say 10-15 yrs? 7.62x39 is a great round with great availability. It's being made in the US presently, so pretty much as long as we're allowed to have ammo, it isn't going anywhere anytime soon, but it's always a good idea to stock up a few thousand rounds if you've got the money. If you're looking for home defense, you won't need to reach out hundreds of yards, so the 7.62 will serve you well, but just be aware of the extreme amount of penetration (compared to the .223/5.56/5.45) that the round can generate. Welcome to the addiction my friend. Passing on the advice given to me when I first joined up- You'll probably end up buying them both. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Paulry 50 Posted January 20, 2010 Report Share Posted January 20, 2010 Not this again, get the 7.62x39. Ammo available, mags are good mil surp. Hell buy a .223 they shoot great, ammo available and you can get Surefires at a good price. Just don't buy a 5.45x39! They suck! (I want all the 5.45x39 mil surp ammo and mags for me!) :lolol: ha! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Klassy Kalashnikov 1,393 Posted January 20, 2010 Report Share Posted January 20, 2010 7.62x39 is a great round with great availability. It's being made in the US presently, so pretty much as long as we're allowed to have ammo, it isn't going anywhere anytime soon, but it's always a good idea to stock up a few thousand rounds if you've got the money. It's interesting you mention that, because all I see for American ammo for 7.62x39 are expensive $16 per 20 boxes or prices somewhere in that ballpark. Aside from a box or two of those, or some handloads, that people use for hunting, I am yet to hear of anyone using ammo at that price for general plinking/stockpiling. The vast majority of 7.62x39 ammo in use is Wolf/Bear/Monarch/Tiger etc. "cheap-o" stuff as far as I can tell. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Salmonking 149 Posted January 21, 2010 Report Share Posted January 21, 2010 7.62x39 is a great round with great availability. It's being made in the US presently, so pretty much as long as we're allowed to have ammo, it isn't going anywhere anytime soon, but it's always a good idea to stock up a few thousand rounds if you've got the money. It's interesting you mention that, because all I see for American ammo for 7.62x39 are expensive $16 per 20 boxes or prices somewhere in that ballpark. Aside from a box or two of those, or some handloads, that people use for hunting, I am yet to hear of anyone using ammo at that price for general plinking/stockpiling. The vast majority of 7.62x39 ammo in use is Wolf/Bear/Monarch/Tiger etc. "cheap-o" stuff as far as I can tell. Yeah, Brass cased rifle rounds are always expensive. I use the cheap steel cased ammo because I don't have any reloading equipment. If you want brass cased stuff, you could always go with some of the cheaper corrosive Yugo rounds- I've seen 1000 7.632x39s go for $200. If you go 5.45 you'll most likely be using mostly surplus military corrosive bullet or iron cased for practice. Pick your poison. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jimdigriz 580 Posted January 21, 2010 Report Share Posted January 21, 2010 7.62x39 is a great round with great availability. It's being made in the US presently, so pretty much as long as we're allowed to have ammo, it isn't going anywhere anytime soon, but it's always a good idea to stock up a few thousand rounds if you've got the money. It's interesting you mention that, because all I see for American ammo for 7.62x39 are expensive $16 per 20 boxes or prices somewhere in that ballpark. Aside from a box or two of those, or some handloads, that people use for hunting, I am yet to hear of anyone using ammo at that price for general plinking/stockpiling. The vast majority of 7.62x39 ammo in use is Wolf/Bear/Monarch/Tiger etc. "cheap-o" stuff as far as I can tell. The steel-cased stuff is plenty good in Russian rifles. I personally can't afford to shoot brass stuff. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Klassy Kalashnikov 1,393 Posted January 21, 2010 Report Share Posted January 21, 2010 Oh, I'm not saying it's not good. I have a 5.45 and a 7.62 and they both eat nothing but bear. I just hear the "don't get a 5.45 cause all the ammo's foreign and it might dry up" and it's a little ironic, because for all practical purposes, both rifles are on foreign ammo supply. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jimdigriz 580 Posted January 21, 2010 Report Share Posted January 21, 2010 I just hear the "don't get a 5.45 cause all the ammo's foreign and it might dry up" and it's a little ironic, because for all practical purposes, both rifles are on foreign ammo supply. Good point. Who are the domestic manufacturers of 7.62x39? I only know Winchester for sure, and I won't shoot their stuff because it is too pricey. Imagine how much more expensive it would be if the foreign supply disappeared. But even .223 would be prohibitively expensive then. My approach to foreign ammo supply concerns is this: Build a lifetime's supply as rapidly as possible. My wife is not exactly pleased with this approach... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Paulry 50 Posted January 22, 2010 Report Share Posted January 22, 2010 You think I'm happy about it? Don't mis-understand. for some reason I always seem to get in to a deal right after it was a "Great" deal (house, car, Saiga, Wife, ect.) I've been into black rifles since 1975! Always been into them. Always wound up selling the damn things. I remember buying pre-ban SKS for $79 and AK Norincos for $250 and 1200 rounds of Chinese 7.62x39 for $89 a case. ($8 shipping on UPS) I used to buy cases and sell the boxes on the local Wooden Nickel sales paper for $2.00 a box. No one in town could even find this ammo much less at that price back then. (New HK91 bought for $500 new in box from H&K. Came with all items as well as a number of brand new mags. Deer hunted with it, Moose hunted with it could split rocks with open sites at 100 yards! Paid for my damn wedding when I sold it for $2500! Thanks to George Bush 1) OK, I can't complain. I didn't think I would ever be able to afford a black rifle again until I meet Miss. Saiga! $275. Now I have to support the .223, 7.62x39 and 5.45x39. (I thought about the .308 long and hard but the cost of everything changed my mind) Now I hear about the 5.45x39 for $99 per tuna can of 1080 and I bought in. But NO! it's now $150 right when I need to be stock piling. And I'm hurting with the damn Xmas blues! Don't mean to be grouchy, but if members are looking for their first rifle, the .223 might be the best choice! They can find ammo, they can buy decent mags that fit right in and they are a blast (no pun intended) to shoot! Save some Mil surp 5.45x39 for me! That's all I ask! Thanks, Frosty Quote Link to post Share on other sites
shades_of_grey 1,092 Posted January 23, 2010 Report Share Posted January 23, 2010 (edited) Fluid Power, you mention mags.. that's a significant recommendation of the 7.62x39 right there! Mil-surp combloc steel 7.62x39 mags are far more numerous and thus far cheaper than 5.45x39 or Saiga .223 mags. Shop around and you can find em for ~$10-$15 apiece. They're solid steel, tough as hell, and will probably outlast all of us. Aside from the mag costs, I recommend 7.62x39 for the effectiveness of the round. It penetrates cover far more effectively than the 5.45x39 and is plenty accurate for the range it was designed for, (~400 yards) Edited January 23, 2010 by post-apocalyptic Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jimdigriz 580 Posted January 23, 2010 Report Share Posted January 23, 2010 Mil-surp combloc steel 7.62x39 mags are far more numerous and thus far cheaper than 5.45x39 or Saiga .223 mags. Shop around and you can find em for ~$10-$15 apiece. I got 5 combloc 7.62x39 steel mags earlier this month for $8 apiece at APEX. But I also managed to find Bulgarian polymers for the 5.45 at $10 apiece at Centerfire. Best deal I've seen on 5.45 steel mags is $18 though. The cheapest .223 mags I've seen are the Galil polymers, but they fit very loosely and feel flimsy compared to the Circle 10s. I'm wondering whether they will perform reliably. Will find out tomorrow. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Paulry 50 Posted January 23, 2010 Report Share Posted January 23, 2010 OK, one other thing, Brown Bear ammo is available in 500 packs for anywhere from $119 to $125 in all these calibers. This is great ammo. Shot both, wolf which works great but is a little dirty but the Brown Bear made by Barnual is clean, accurate and also works great! I've used a number of actual Barnual ammo and it is very good stuff. So point I'm making is to some degree all the calibers are about the same price. If your going to buy a Saiga in stock configuration, the real question is: what is your intended use? I've read through your posts and I have to say the answer is: 7.62x39 Rifles are less ammo is everywhere everyone has mags Better self defense Can use it hunting All major US ammo makers offer it (don't belive me? check out the web sites!) (not sure why someone said it had to bought from overseas? unless they were talking about cheap stuff?) When members say the 5.45x39 is cheaper to shoot that is due to mil surp corrosive ammo. Not Commercial non-corrosive which I would not recommend to new shooters (at this time). You might want to do what I did and get them all? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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