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7.62x39 Ammunition Comparison: What is the Best Way Feed Your AR-47?
By George Ross Jr. October 2, 2021

With the wide range of 7.62x39 ammunition available at this moment in time I decided it was time to find out which ammunition delivers the best accuracy out of a 16 inch AR-47. Since I use a 50 yard zero that is the distance I used in this comparison. I started off with a clean rifle and fired 5 burner rounds. I ran 2 patches coated with Sage & Braker CLP and allowed the barrel to cool for 5 minutes in between each 5 rounds fired. Testing was done with two separate trips to my local gun range. The first day I used the yellow targets and on the second day the pink targets were used.

Test Rifle

The original AR-47 I built has undergone some changes since it was first built. Here is the configuration that was when used in this ammunition comparison.

Results

Below is a table with the results. The most accurate is at the top and the least accurate is at the bottom according to the average group size. Keep in mind that the group measurements do not have the width of the bullet subtracted from them. So these are end to end measurements as opposed to center to center measurements that are normally used when comparing to MOA grouping.

Target Pictures












Analyzing My Performance

It is clear by looking at the daily averages that I shot better on the second day of shooting. The first day at the range I encountered a lot of people who were zeroing their rifles for the upcoming deer season. I may have even been a bit rude and short with some folks as I was on a mission and they were sighting in their rifles and exchanging hunting pictures and stories. The second day I was shooting with all my friends meaning I was alone. So I didn’t feel as rushed. Which lead to better performance on my behalf.

Final Words

Looks like I shoot the Barnual 123 grain full metal jackets the best. That’s great news as they are also among the cheapest options you can buy. The middle of the pack GECO, Seller & Bellot, Wolf Military Classic, Wolf Polyformance, and PPU all shoot within 1/8” of each other on average. It is surprising to see that the worst performers where the ones that cost more than most, but they use brass casings so why wouldn’t they cost more.

If you look at the best group from each ammunition tested you will notice that all but Norma and Fiocchi were able to keep a group size of 1 5/8 inches or below. They were at the bottom for average group size and best group size. For this reason I cannot recommend using either of them. The rest of the tested ammunition was all within 9/16 of an inch of each other when looking at just their best groups. It’s worth noting that I shot my best group with the TulAmmo and if it were not for one flyer on the second day of shooting the TulAmmo my have taken the top spot. Even with the flyer the TulAmmo was able to claim the third spot when looking at average group size. Hopefully this comparison helps you with your next 7.62x39 ammunition purchase. If not I still had fun doing it and it definitely will help me with my 7.62x39 ammunition purchasing decisions in the future.