reloads in SKS

[swamphunter]

Anyone reload for the SKS?  What bullets and powders do you use?  Are they finicky about load and bullets?
Any information appreciated,
Thanks,
Swamp

[Robert357]

I did work-ups with both Alliant 2400 powder and H-4895.  The H-4895 would reliably cycle the SKS rifle, while the Alliant 2400 would not (for me).  H-4895 just about totally filled the brass case.  I was doing it for the heck of it.  I would not recommend either of these powders.  My conclusion was that in a pinch, H-4895 will work, but faster rifle powders are probably better.

My Lyman reloading manual says they got the best accuracy with H-335.

[swamphunter]

Thanks for the info.  I have some IMR 4895 on hand.  Also have IMR 4320, H380, XMP 5744 and H4227.  I assume the last two in particular are too slow.  I am fairly new to reloading and am not sure about which powders are faster.  I use H380 and IMR 4895 in my 22-250, so I assumed these were fairly quick powders.  Any tips or resources appreciated.
Thanks again,
Swamp

[Robert357]

My Lyman reference Books indicates the following powder speed from fast to slow two  digit number is speed reference numer and decimal is from Lee manual as to the VMD.  VMD is the volume of one grain of powder in cubic centimeters (a powder density figure)

44 Aliant 2400  .07420
54 H4227      .07690
70 H-335     .06450
72 H-4895   .07280
73 IMR-4895   .07280
85 IMR-4320   .07160
86 H380   .06910


Remeber that 7.62x39 is a very small case, so all things being equal you will need a faster powder.  Since you indicate you have certain powders on hand, my thought would be anything much slower than 4895 will require too full (ignoring VMD) a case probably a compressed load.  Also I found Alliant 2400 too fast in my work ups to reliably cycle the SKS without exceeding recommended max pressure.  That would mean that just on the basis of powder speed (ignoring VMD) of your powders, your best bet would be IMR 4895, and H4227.   Since H-380 has a pretty small VMD, it might work (much better than IMR 4320 at about the same speed but larger VMD) as well as 4895, even though it is pretty slow - hard to say!.  I didn't find the speed of XMP 5744 referenced, so that might work if it is faster than H-4895 and slower than Alliant 2400 or if the powder manufacturer has a load recommendation for the 7.62x39.  You probably are now beginning to see how complicated this can get and why lots of reloading manuals are a good investment.

You should see if any of these are listed in reloading manuals or with the powder manufactures.  My Hodgdon magazine for this cartridge lists BL-C(2),H335, H4985, H322, H4198.  Lyman lists loads for IMR-4227, N130, AA1680, IRM-4198, RX7, H-335 mostly.  So with the exception of your IMR4895 this doesn't look too promising unless you want to purchase a different powder.

Good luck and be careful

[swamphunter]

Thanks for the information.  I assumed that H380 would be a fairly fast powder as it is used in the 22-250, even for lighter bullets.  If I need to buy different powder in order to be able to load correctly I certainly will, I was just hoping to use up some stuff I had on hand, again assuming that I had some fast powders.  I forgot to mention that I also have some IMR SR 4759 that I use in my Savage muzzloader (the 4227 and 5744 were also purchased for this rifle).  From what I gather it is good for reduced loads.  Would it be fast enough for the SKS?
Thanks again,
Swamp

[Robert357]

In reading your email, I feel like I may have not been clear or else I may have confused you.  Try looking at the following website......http://www.reloadbench.com/burn.html

The above link is to a table of powder burn rates, i.e. speed at which the powder burns.

It is organized fastest (1) to slowest powder (173).  It is not my Lyman table, but will be good enough for this discussion.

You have the following powders from what I now understand (the two or three digit number is the website refernce number).

IMR-4759-------74
H-4227---------77
XMR-5744------78
IMR-4895------114
IMR-4320------123
H-380---------130

Your SLOWEST bruning powder is H-380.  It is NOT a fast burning powder.  It is considerably slower than IMR-4895. 

H-4895 and I would assume IRM-4895 require a full case of powder to work well in an SKS.  While H-380 is a slower burning powder, it is also a "denser" powder than 4895, in that for a given grain of powder it takes up less volume.  This means for a load "full case" of H-380 has more grains of powder than a full case of H-4895.   The H-380 powder burns slower than H-4895, it is just more dense. 

Your three fastest powders are all fairly close together in terms of burning rates and are IMR-4759, H-4227 and XMR 5744.  I do not have a table handy of their respective VMD's so I can't comment on which would be the most appropriate powder. 

I could not get Alliant 2400 powder to work the SKS action reliably without potentially exceeding the max listed powder level, which I was not going to do.  I felt that a slower burning powder would be more appropriate than Alliant 2400.  The powder burning rate reference number for Alliant 2400 was 67.  Therefore you three fastest powders are a bit slower and may work better in an SKS than Alliant 2400. 

It is good to start with a reference load that has been checked for maximum powder.  I indicated that I couldn't find any such loads for any of your powders except IMR 4895.  I do not know if IMR 4227 and H-4227 can be used interchangibly, even thought their burn rates are very close.  The Lyman manual lists a load for the IMR 4227.

Now back to powders burning rate and general "rules of thumb."  The faster the powder, generally the more chartridges you can load for a pound of powder, all other things being equal, which is one of serveral reasons why in the old reloading literature you will find Bulleye powder (6) so popular with oldtimers.

[Larry Gibson]

I reload a lot of 7.62x39s for my SKS and Mini MK X bolt action and an occasional AK.  With jacketed bullets my standard load for 123-125 gr .310/.311 bullets is 22.5 gr of H4227 in cases that use a LR primer.  That load runs right at 2350 fps out of most SKSs and with better quality SP bullets (Hornady, Sierra, Speer, Win, Rem) accuracy is excellent.  With milsurp fmj bullets the accuracy is only as good as the bullet quality which many times is only 4-6 moa.  I have used numerous other powders and have found 4227 to be the best for the 7.62x39 with 123-125 gr bullets. H4227 also works well with 100 gr 32-20 gr bullets or the .312 diameter jacketed pistol bullets.

Larry Gibson

[swamphunter]

Thanks for the information.  I guess I assumed that H380 would be a fast powder as it is used in the 22-250.  Thanks to all.  Thanks to Larry Gibson for the load information.  Hopefully the SKS will arrive this week.
Swamp