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30x165 30mm 2A42 AAA and GSh-30 aircraft cannon shells, 7.62x54r round for comparison.....

Some of the 7.62x54r ammunition I've got at the moment.....

1. Russian silver-tipped LPS, 188/77 bi-metallic case.
2. Russian LPS, 188/77 bi-metallic case.
3. Russian T-46 tracer, 188/77 bi-metallic case.
4. Hungarian T-46-M tracer, 21/84 copper washed case.
5. Hungarian T-46-M tracer, 21/88 grey coated case.
6. Hungarian LPS, 21/76 grey coated case.
7. Chinese LPS, 71/75 copper washed case.
8. Bulgarian LP (lead core FMJ), 10/54 brass case.

Also have some 1954-dated Bulgarian heavy ball and 1970's Egyptian heavy ball that isn't in the pic.

That's just showing off!!!!!!!

I take it the copper wash, grey paint and lacquer are all means to keep the steel case away from the steel chamber?

Is bi-metallic just a thicker wash, more in keeping with plating?

Cookisan wrote:That's just showing off!!!!!!!

I take it the copper wash, grey paint and lacquer are all means to keep the steel case away from the steel chamber?

Is bi-metallic just a thicker wash, more in keeping with plating?

More to do with corrosion resistance than anything, the grey Hungarian cases are polymer coated.

Bi-metallic means they are steel cases with a copper plating applied, the copper is applied to the steel before the cases are formed.Copper washed cases (common on Chinese cases) have the copper wash applied after the cases have been formed.

As an experiment i had a load of primed Soviet bimetallic 54r cases sat in a pop bottle full of salt water for about 2 years and when I emptied them out the cases were as good as when they went in with no corrosion on them, in fact they actually came out cleaner than when they went in!.I dried them and still have them as I keep meaning to take them to the range and try them to see if the primers are still viable.

Compare that to a lacquered case that has been fired and left outdoors. Rusty as anything very quickly. Got any Imperial 7.64 x54? Always wanted to track down an Imperial Germany made steel cased 7.62x54.

Also if you want a slack handful of ‘45 dated rounds you are more than welcome comrade. Vile dirty stuff that splits when shot!

Blighty wrote:Also if you want a slack handful of ‘45 dated rounds you are more than welcome comrade. Vile dirty stuff that splits when shot!

Thanks mate, I may take you up on those once things eventually get somewhere near normal . To be honest, as you’ll probably know, some of the brass cased Bulgarian stuff has a tendency to split the necks and some rounds even have split necks before they are fired!.From experience the '53 dated stuff is worse for it, probably due to poor storage over the years.With the Soviet steel cased stuff I think I've only ever had one maybe two split necks in all the rounds I've fired but the vast majority of it has been from the 1960's onwards.Most recent dated military 54r I've had is the 1988 dated Hungarian tracer, I have shot around 120 rounds of it and every single one lit up.

And you are correct, fired steel cases don't take long to rust at all, especially if they've got wet as well.

No Imperial rounds, I've seen Imperial 54r inert ammo for sale but it isn't cheap for what it is.A steel cased Imperial German round must be as rare as hell now.

This might be of interest, quite a few rare ones crop up on here from time to time......

https://www.bayonetsandbullets.co.uk/pr ... -62-x-54r/

snayperskaya wrote:Some of the 7.62x54r ammunition I've got at the moment.....

1. Russian silver-tipped LPS, 188/77 bi-metallic case.
2. Russian LPS, 188/77 bi-metallic case.
3. Russian T-46 tracer, 188/77 bi-metallic case.
4. Hungarian T-46-M tracer, 21/84 copper washed case.
5. Hungarian T-46-M tracer, 21/88 grey coated case.
6. Hungarian LPS, 21/76 grey coated case.
7. Chinese LPS, 71/75 copper washed case.
8. Bulgarian LP (lead core FMJ), 10/54 brass case.

Also have some 1954-dated Bulgarian heavy ball and 1970's Egyptian heavy ball that isn't in the pic.

Just had a mooch in the cabinet and found some 1979 Bulgarian LPS with bimetallic cases, 100 rounds I forgot I had!, a few Russian 1963 silver-tipped LPS with violet laquer rather than the usual red laquer and a single 1947 Bulgarian brass cased light ball round with the "lion" headstamp.

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