Just bought the new Sport II. I have 500 rounds of brass case ammo to shoot but I've seen some pretty good prices on steel case ammo. For those of you that have the Sport and or the new Sport II have you had any issues shooting steel case stuff ? Thanks, Jim

Gonna go grab my popcorn!

You'll get 50% who'll say it will destroy your gun or not work at all. And they other 50% don't have a problem.

Personally I don't have a problem with it. Shoot steel case almost exclusively since 98 and so far nothing has ever broken or worn out. First thing I do is I'll try a box or two. If my firearm doesn't like it I won't use that ammo in it. Simple as that! Buy a box and try. Don't go buying 500 before you know for sure

I've shot a lot of steel cased ammo... and not all steel cased ammo is equal.

If you are going to shoot the cheaper, foreign made stuff, be aware that it has a bi-metal jacket that is reported to increase barrel wear. However, if you do manage to shoot enough of it to wear out your barrel, you can afford to replace your barrel with the savings you have over factory brass ammo.

Hornady makes a steel cased round with a copper plated bullet. These do not have the accelerated wear of the bi-metal jacketed rounds, but they aren't as cheap either. They are cheaper than comparative brass cased Hornady rounds, but there are other brassed case options that cost less than these Hornady rounds, especially if your range allows FMJ. Mine doesn't, so the Hornady rounds are more economical for me.

Like Arik said, buy a box and try it. I use the Silver Bear 62 gr soft points for range plinking and hog hunting.

Bingo.

Also be very aware that some ranges ban the use of Steel Case ammo. If your ammo fails a magnet test, they won't let you shoot it.

1. Some ranges use abandoned, once fired, brass cases as a small revenue stream. The labor it would take to separate out the non reloadable cases from the brass ruins the value proposition.

2. Some ranges (indoors) don't want to risk damage to their backstop plates.

3. A mild steel jacketed projectile can spark, igniting range dust at the backstop causing a fire.

Before buying Russian manufacture steel case bi-metal jacket ammo, make sure you can actually shoot it.

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-John

It's a personal choice. Just keep in mind that cheap ammo sometimes gives cheap performance. Balance cost to the accuracy you want.

For example, while not steel ammo the idea applies, Lake City surplus ammo can be bought pretty cheaply but the accuracy compared to better rounds is not as good. Think minute of a man's chest instead of Minute of Angle.

How many rounds do you have on your Sport barrell?

I don't have a sport. But my Colt has around 6k

I never really understood steel since I don't buy it, but is most steel cased also steel jacketed or steel cored? Isn't there steel cased that is copper jacketed and lead?

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Still carrying my S&W 642

Are you referring to the Hornady 9754EL 223 REM 55GR FMJ Training Rounds? (I believe they also come in heavier version as well.) These are lacquer coated steel cased rounds that I purchased to use for my (soon to be received, I hope) TS. I also bought the Hornady TAP rounds that these are supposed to emulate for training.

Are these pretty safe for the M&P 15's? If not, I'll keep to the Wolf Gold brass training rounds I just placed an order for the other day.

Thanks.

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642-1, M&P15 TS

It depends on the round. Some have steel cores and some are lead. It seems the copper jacket compound is different than in brass rounds and tends to wear out the bore faster as a result.

Some also have corrosive components in them as well, whether it be the primer, the powder, or both. It just depends and you need to read the product description carefully to see which is which.

Never heard of corrosive 223/556

It's generally ment as steel case. The actual case which holds the powder and bullet. The bullet itself can be whatever.

Those are fine... I don't see where they state that they are lacquer coated, but the projectile is copper coated lead... same thing that they use in a brass cased round, only use a steel case to lower the cost.

I use Hornady Steel Match, 55gr HP, #80274, as my range does not allow FMJ rounds. Supposedly loaded to the same specifications as their brass cased match rounds, only with a steel case (and priced accordingly). They are expensive, but consistent.

For general plinking, I'll shoot the Russian stuff.

Thank you. Appreciate it.

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642-1, M&P15 TS

I've seen some here and there in 5.56. I think I saw it on either Cheaper Than Dirt or Sportsman's Guide.

I've never seen it in .223 Remington.

No, I get that, I understand what the case is and what a steel case is. My question was really referring to what JaPes said earlier about ranges not wanting their backstop damaged or fear of spark from a metal round. This has nothing to do with the case, but rather the bullet itself. Therefore I was asking if all steel cased was also steel jacketed and or cored and thus why a range might not allow it. From what I have read above some steel cased can be steel jacketed or cored and some can be copper and lead. I guess a range does not want to deal with risking any metal cased/cored bullets downrange thus they just don't allow any steel cased at all....no matter what the jacket or core is made of.

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Still carrying my S&W 642

Some surplus ammo has a mild steel core but those are surplus only. Most have a bimetal bullet. It's a very mild steel jacket. Hardened tool steel has a rockwell hardness of 650/700 Brinell. Mild steel has a hardness of 120/130. Bi-metal jackets are made from very soft mild steel. Bores/barrels are at least as hard as tool steel and when chrome plated are even harder.

The two biggest things ranges generally don't like with steel cased cartridges. Is the missed cases after clean up can damage the lawn equipment. And steel containing bullets tend to pit the steel targets some. Either can cost the range money and they don't like that.