Compare: 300 Blackout/7.62X39

[speezack]

I recently purchased a Ruger Ranch in 7.62X39... I wanted a semi-auto .30 caliber rifle... although I have always hunted with a bolt action... I am getting a bit old now and just wanted something a little more... uh... manageable... I opted for the 7.62X39 because I was sort of familiar with the round (AK47)... and did not want to deer hunt with an AR style rifle... although the Ruger is close... it isn't quite the same and I thought this particular round would be a bit more ballistically... I have since heard a lot about the 300 BO... so, what is the overall consensus on the comparison of these two... I am not interested in shooting low velocity rounds... just want it for deer hunting primarily...

... is there really that much of a difference???? I figured they both are close ballistically to a 30/30,,,

[M1A4ME]

The .300 BO has some advantages over the 7.62X39.

1. Easy to reload, if you're a reloader. You can buy brass cheaper or even make your own (I do) from .223/5.56X45 brass. Every piece of .223 brass I lose to a split neck becomes a piece of .300 BO brass after cutting, resizing and trimming.
2. Either bought new or reloaded you can buy heavy bullet ammo for the .300 BO. If you want to shoot with a suppressor the heavy .300 BO bullets are subsonic so they'll be quieter than a suppressed 7.62X39 (lighter bullets are supersonic).
3. The bolts for the .300 BO are the same bolts as for the .223 caliber rifles. Easy/common for complete bolts or parts vs. 7.62X39 (at least if you have an AR15, not sure about bolts/parts for a Mini14 - Ruger may not be as friendly and willing to sell parts for the Mini 14).
4. The claim is that the .300 BO is a few percentage points more efficient/powerful than the 7.62X39. Not sure a deer can feel 7 or 8%.
5. spare magazines for .300 BO should be the same magazines as for .223 so (in an AR15 anyway) so they should be both cheaper and easier to find when you want to buy spares/extras.

On the other hand, the 7.62X39 is cheaper to buy ammo for. Some rifles shoot the steel cased Wolf and Tula ammo very well. My brother's rifle actually shoots very nice groups with Silver Bear soft point hunting ammo. Better groups than wtih Tula or Wolf FMJ or hollow points.

I have a SIG 556R in 7.62X39 and an AR15 in .300 BO. The SIG is more accurate with Wolf steel cased ammo than the AR15 in .300 BO is with any load I've tried in it. I've not been at all impressed with the .300 BO AR15. My DPMS GII in .308 is more pleasant to shoot (nose on the charging handle) than my .300 BO AR15. The DPMS is shooting the same weight bullet about 25% faster than the .300 BO and should be kicking me harder - but it doesn't.

I think either one would be a good little brush gun for deer. Ballistics are pretty close to the .30-30.

Just my opinion, I haven't even shot at a deer with either one, but if I was going to deer hunt with one, it would be the SIG in 7.62X39 (you know, it's probably heavier than your Mini14. Your rifle may recoil more.

[MarcSpaz]

The only thing I would debate about the above post is the accuracy issues. I think that is going to vary based on the weapon, more so than the projectile.

At 300 yards with zero magnification, a 9" barrel, a can, and a 7 mph breeze, I have a 100% hit ratio on 18" targets and an 86% ratio with 6" targets with my supersonic 300 Blackout rounds. With subsonic rounds I get 1.5 MOA groups at 150 yards with less than 3 MOA drop compared to the fast movers.

On the AK side of the house... I have 3 friends that let me try their AK47's and I couldn't land a single shot with any of them on an 8" target at 100 yards... so I refuse to buy an AK47.

That doesn't mean I'm discrediting the 7.62x39... but it's a good illustration of how results may vary.

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[kelu]

I think AK47 was never meant for precision. At least, nobody told us when we trained with them that we should hit anything other than by chance over 150 yards. (OK, when I say anything, it's that chest target, I forgot the name.) But withing that range, you only need to hit once.
Beyond that, we had PSL.

[MarcSpaz]

Good point. A few friends of might who used them in battle have said roughly the same to me. One friend from Iraq said the AK47 was a great gun if you get in a gun fight in a phone booth. LoL

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[MarcSpaz]

Something to think about with regard to the 300 Blackout is what its original design was intended for. The US Military wanted a cartridge that was going to work very well suppressed, out of a short-barreled rifle, for close-quarters combat. Specifically, with the idea of getting into gun fights inside of buildings, alleyways, Etc.

The idea of having the supersonic rounds was to help reduce the number of weapons an infantryman would have to carry in an urban combat situation. The supersonic rounds would give the infantryman an opportunity to fight their way out of a situation beyond the range of what a pistol would be maxed out at. Ballistically speaking, the subsonic 300 Blackout round has about the same type of flight path and energy on target as some 40 Smith & Wesson rounds. While the supersonic rounds will have more energy on target at 500 yards out of a 9" barrel then a 5.56 NATO round out of the 16 inch barrel, their drop and accuracy isn't as good.

Another restriction that came into play was the Department of Defense did not want to buy a whole bunch of new weapons. They wanted to have this new cartridge adapt to their current weapons platform with as few changes as possible. The 300 Blackout, for the most part, fit the bill better than anything else. They used a 5.56 mm case with a 30 caliber projectile. They made the cartridge the same length as a 5.56 mm cartridge. This made it so the military literally just had to do barrel swaps and they were good to go.

Now the M16 in the AK-47 we're comparable short to mid-range weapons. I wouldn't necessarily say the 7.62 x39 is better for hunting compared to the 300 Blackout due to design constraints. I'm just recommending you look at the big picture.

I originally built my 300 Blackout to go boar-hunting. Unfortunately my disabilities have gotten too bad and I haven't had a chance to get out there with that yet. But due to its versatility with a short-barreled rifle and the fact that my disabilities limit the amount of weight I can carry, that was the reason I selected that particular platform.

[speezack]

Great info... I sort of knew the background of the AK47... I have a friend who hunts with a AR 300 BO... I just can't wrap my head around hunting with an AR style weapon... military certainly but I am an old Marine... who qualified in 1961 with the Garand... later the M14... and never got my hands on an AR.... Oh well,... deer hunting with a .30 caliber weapon that resembles old bolt rifles was what I had in mind...

You all have answered my questions... the 7.62X39 seems to be pretty accurate out of the Ruger... I do happen to have an M4 Colt... so I may, in the future op for another barrel and try the .300BO... but for now I will hunt with the little Ruger...

BTW... I did manage a nice little buck the same day I set up the scope on the Ruger so I know it will do the job... it was not a long shot however... probably 60 yds.... left shoulder... less than 50 yds. to recover so it did ok so far...

[Snakester]

I have very little experience with the 300 BO.....But, I dropped a small buck in very thick brush at about 45 yds. with my SKS 762 a couple years ago . He never new what hit him. I don't think he even flinched . I was lucky to get a clear shot and the thick brush really didn't come into play. I have been thinking about the Ruger Mini 30 myself and being in 7.62x39 makes it that much better.

[Snakester]

Sunday I picked up a Ruger Ranch 7.62x39....I had been looking at the mini 30 but ended up with the Ranch. I like the mini 30 type mag. and the short barrel. I ordered several 10 rd. mags. and a flash suppressor . Having the shorter barrel it feels like handling a 10/22. I also installed a Red Dot Scope and a sling. Can't wait to shoot it.

[MarcSpaz]

I saw that in your gun porn post. That bad boy is pretty sharp!

[Snakester]

I've got about 700 rds. through the Ranch Rifle. It's a lot of fun to shoot. Really accurate and with the short barrel , it is balanced nice too.