8mm ammo...good deal ??

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Artie in Miami

8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by Artie in Miami »

I have been offered surplus 8mm ammo for $300 per thousand rounds...if I buy 3,000 rounds at once...is this a fair deal ?? It seems awfully high to me...but I have not bought ammo in about five years. The last time I did, it was about $125 per thousand. I have heard that ammo is way up in price. Any help would really be appreciated...I don't want to get screwed !

artie in miami
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by Bil »

The last I found was at .20 per round-a tin-380count of Roumanian for $75,I picked it up,no shipping.Maybe .30 is a bit much,but it has been very hard to find,not much around.If it is good stuff and there is no shipping,it may be worth it,you can always sell some.I may be way off,but if I had the bucks,I would do it.It isn't going to go down in price.I also would like to see other opinions on the price.Just make sure it is from a good batch,not some crap that is out there . ---bil
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by junglewalk »

What type/nationality is the 8mm?...> Since the beginning of last year, i have been watching as the surplus ammo has dried up....This last MG shoot at KCR, on sat/nite, i went around to the big ammo sellers, and asked the big question of why(?)........
I was amazed at the multi-faceted reasons which has resulted in $300. per 1000 rds of surplus...> It looks like we will not see our favorite surplus as we used to, until we take power back from the lib/dems, and the republicans get a back-bone this time if we ever take back the House & Senate. :(
There is no more coming into the country, that means whatever is for sale, the sky is the limit, so , yeah, I would buy it also.
The Romanian tins Bil mentioned, i have watched the few KCR has go from $39. to $89.and soon they will be gone. :?
The Turkish 8mm we all criticized, is looking pretty attractive now, so it will only get more bleak;....so Artie, where is it i can get 1000rds for $300....? :lol:
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by Artie in Miami »

the ammo is being offered as part of a trade from another collector...not from an ammo vendor...he only has the three thousand rounds that are offered in the trade. I will ask him if he as access to more, and if he minds me giving his contact info out. I should know the answer to both of these questions tomorrow. Thanks for the advice...I will scoop it up...is there certain ammo to avoid ?? I once bought some surplus ammo from a vendor in sgnews and when I went to shoot it...there was a delay after the primer was struck...there was about a one to two second hesitation before the rounds went off. Scared the crap out of me.

I will see if I can find out where the ammo was made and if he can get more...thanks again.

artie
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by junglewalk »

"I'll never admit we are carrying enough ammo on our tanks; Load some more!....."(quote of Sgt.Bob Hurley, 'Hawk Hill', 11mar69, 1/1st Cav, Viet nam)....
A notorious 8mm mil/surp was out there was FN 1950s made, with double 'A' on the head stamp. It has a reputation of delayed firing, and not firing at all, 3-5 rounds every 15.(hvy rd,197gr)
Turkish 8mm, everyone is familiar with, is pretty much sure fire, but brings other problems too. Cracked brass at the mouth of the case, over-charged powder, are the most common with the war year dated, but gets better late 40's and very earluy 50's....
Acouple years ago, a group of old guys here at KCR, experimented with the Turkish ammo, by disassembling the rounds, weighing charges and using a chronograph to measure muzzle velocities. They found 40 grs would put the 154-157 grain bullet at nearly 2800 fps, which was fast enough...They found so many cases over-charged, some with up to 52 grains which put this light-weight bullet at 32-3300 fps; Far too powerful, with wild recoil.......Therefore, some of us, will pull the bullets, dump the powder, and re-measure to 40grs, and re-seat the rounds....I have used belts this way in my semi-mg-34, and it runs smoothly, and reliably.
Egyptian 8mm was all around in the 80's and you still may find guys with it. It is loaded powerfully, for the Hackim semi-8mm, and is fine in 98ks. I have never tried any in the 34s, or disected the rds. Has a squiggle letter with a 'Y,9r' on the headstamp.(hvy rd,197gr)
Around mid-80's, there was the Chinese 8mm round our in mass. a light rd, 154 gr, with good brass. The 1953 date on the head stamp, one adds 12 years to, for the new chinese calendar since 1912(Boxer rebellion), has also a diamond in a circle on the head-stamp. I have some of this, and it runs well/smoothly thru 34 sa and 34 fa. Hard to find now.
All know the Yugo, 197gr ammo that usually comes in 900rd case, is good 98k ammo, but i never had any luck with it in my sa 34. I never went into exploration as to why though....You might have better results than I.
Other than the Romainian we have mentioned, there may be some East german 8mm in steel case out there in someones possession , that functioed well in the sa-34, and of course the 98k.
Long gone 8mm surplus ammo is ,British WWII 8mm they made for their machine guns for the bows of their tanks, called the Bessa(I think) mg. The prominant mark on the head-stamp was a 'K-II" for the Koenig ammo factory, with the date. Canada made the ammo too, but with a boxer primer, and headstamp that had '7.92mm with two digits for the year. Good in the 98k, but I shot thru thousands of rds before the sa 34 came out. .......
Gone from the market too is Italian made 8mm for that Besa mg the Brits bought from Italy between the wars. For a while in the 80's, a lot of this Italian 8mm was spotting rounds, and would explode upon impact on a hard object. (like the much sought after B-Patrone of german WWII fame! Amazing!...I shot thru them with 98ks way before the sa-34 was around. (nuts!) IAW
In the mid-90's pre-WWII Polish 8mm hit the market, hvy-197gr rounds, and this stuff was very reliable. a 'PK' and 'DZ' marking on headstamp with the year. Guys may still have this round in quantity too. Don't know how it would perform in the 34 though, it did well in the 98k, also scoped 98k, as my shooting exploits were noted in the book 'German 7.92mmMilitary ammo' by Kent. (good bed-time reading, put you right to sleepy-bye!)
Can't forget the Portugese made, hvy 197gr, in beautiful brass case, 1970's&80's dates, everyone wants. I have a few thousand rds, but have not yet tried it in the 34s....He may have that stuff. It has been high priced in recent years, and was getting hard to find, before this new ammo drout began in 2007.........
.....of course, you may really luck out, and find the surplus he has for sale is german WWII !!!....I need not tell you what to do then! :lol:
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by junglewalk »

The Italian 8mm headstamp has 'BPD' with date....... :shock:
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by Bil »

Junglewalk-in your opinion,would you prefer the Roumanian or the Portuguese?I have some of each and wondered how they compare.Thanks. ---bil
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by junglewalk »

I'm using the Romanian as long as I can buy it in my fa-34. I have yet to try the Portugese in it, but will eventually....I have a fellow friend re-enactor who posts on here, who has used the 'FNM' 8mm, and has had it function well.
Difference between the rounds is the weight of the bullets, which is reflected in the recoil of the moving parts, the 177gr vs. 198gr is minimal, but yet there....If I had an unlimited source for both, i would be happy....(just my opinion) :)
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by tomcatshaas »

junglewalk wrote:I'm using the Romanian as long as I can buy it in my fa-34. I have yet to try the Portugese in it, but will eventually....I have a fellow friend re-enactor who posts on here, who has used the 'FNM' 8mm, and has had it function well.
Difference between the rounds is the weight of the bullets, which is reflected in the recoil of the moving parts, the 177gr vs. 198gr is minimal, but yet there....If I had an unlimited source for both, i would be happy....(just my opinion) :)
IAW
where are you still finding Romanian to buy?
Artie in Miami

Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by Artie in Miami »

I just found out that Samco Surplus Arms is in Miami !! They have 2 types of 8mm surplus...hurtenberger for $73.80 for 200 rounds and Portugese for $120 for 400 rounds. Which one would be best for the mg34 ?? This way, I can pick it up and avoid shipping !!Thanks

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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by junglewalk »

8) Artie,
I only know how the FNM Portugese works, and am not at all familar with the Austrian Hurtenberger.
These days, 400 rds of FNM @ $120. is pretty darn good. You should vist them with-out delay, and visit them often! (Test fire some of your first 400 rds, if good, go back! :lol: ).......It is all disappearing like smoke! :?
Beautiful women are like well built machineguns: Some should just be looked at, and left alone, while others were built to get hot.
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Will it work ??

Post by Artie in Miami »

I just came from SAMCO in Miami...all the portugese 8mm was gone (of course) and all they had left was the hurtenberger...so I bought some....I noticed on the receipt that it is "(8x57 JS) Boatail Hirtenberger NC/BO" the "NC" is good news...I hope that means non-corrosive...and it said in the ad that it was reloadable...what is the "boatail" all about. I hope this will work in a full auto mg34...I am going to visit a friend on the west coast of FL and we are hoping to shoot this in his gun....WILL IT WORK ??

artie in miami
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by m2ball »

Boattail is the shape of the back end of the bullet. All german 8mm was made with a boattail bullet of 198 grains. It will not harm the MG. That's what it was made to shoot.
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by medved »

buy it the ammo will only go higher in price.
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by Der Alder »

What do you guys think of the 80's Yugo 8mm M75 sniper ammo that Aim has at $315 /900? I know it seemed high not too long ago, but now maybe not. It looks really nice. I can't see it going anywhere but up $$$. I've been thinking about getting a case just to sock away. Would this stuff be too hot for a M53?
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by gdmoore28 »

Junglewalk --

Maybe you can help me identify the following 8mm ammo:

* First has the following on the headstamp: 7.9/FS/1944/T?C The ? symbol seems to be a lower-case "u" with a dot, or period, just above it. Case is brass.

* Second has the following on the headstamp: 7,92 with the letters CH located 180 degrees across the head. These inscriptions are separated by two small six-pointed stars. These are in a 20-round box with the following printed on the front: "7,9sS PCH 1988" Case is brass.

Thanks for your help.

GeeDeeEmm
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by junglewalk »

Mr.Adler; Move quickley, and buy it. .....Buy it where-ever you find it, if you can. Things have changed since January last year, and getting worse...... :(
Beautiful women are like well built machineguns: Some should just be looked at, and left alone, while others were built to get hot.
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by Rahatlakhoom »

Der Alder wrote:What do you guys think of the 80's Yugo 8mm M75 sniper ammo that Aim has at $315 /900? I know it seemed high not too long ago, but now maybe not. It looks really nice. I can't see it going anywhere but up $$$. I've been thinking about getting a case just to sock away. Would this stuff be too hot for a M53?

I got some of this. It is very fine ammo.
Real pretty stuff.
Been feeding it sparingly to my Yugo M76 countersniper.
Very clean, very accurate. I'd venture to say it would be fine in the M53.
It may be a tad hotter than the Romanian, definitely cleaner.
I'm going to try it in my '53 if I ever get it up and running.
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GDMoore, The T C ammo is turkish....

Post by amafrank »

and I wouldn't shoot it in anything I own. I've repaired an untold number of MG's that have fired that ammo. Some guys have not had any trouble and fired 10K rounds of the stuff but others have found the "golden BB" in the first or second round. I tried firing some when it first came into the country and it wouldn't cycle in any of the semi's or mg's. It locked my Hakim up tight and it took 2 weeks to get the bolt loose so I could clean the thing out. The bore was rusted badly by then. I know a lot of guys who shoot it in their K98's but it is pretty corrosive and my K98's are worth more to me than the savings from buying this crap. Others have different opinions and you have to choose for yourself.

The other ammo you mentioned doesn't ring any bells with me but someone should recognize the headstamp. The sS indicates it is heavy ball of 192-198gr bullets. Schweres (heavy) spitzgeschoss (pointy bullet) is sS. If it was made in the 80's it is likely Czech, Yugo or Romanian as they were some of the last manufacturers and users of that cal. I'd lean toward the Czech. I've seen a few lots of the Czech stuff in green laquered cases that were really bad ammo. It seems very underpowered and wouldn't cycle any of the semi's or MG's we tried. On the other hand a lot of the earlier dated Czech brass cased ammo worked great in everything.

On the brit manufactured 8mm from WWII there were a number of manufacturers and the K headstamp was Kynoch not koenig. Kynoch was an ammo manufacturer from way back and a commercial firm though the brits did have some of the govt arsenals making 8mm as well. It was good quality stuff and occasionally shows up but not in large quantities that I've seen. It seems to have become collector rather than shooter grade.

The egyptian ammo was pretty bad from the dud standpoint with 1 in 5 or 6 frequently not firing.

The ammo from ecuador seemed to work ok and is still out there to be found in case lots occasionally. The only problem I recall hearing about was hard primers but no blowups like the turk.

Thats it from here.
Frank
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Re: 8mm ammo...good deal ??

Post by gdmoore28 »

Frank,

Thanks for the info. I bought the Turkish ammo from Sportsman's Guide a number of years ago. I shot around fifty rounds of it thru my K98 with no failures. And it did leave some nastiness in the barrel, but a good cleaning fixed that. Haven't fired any of it since.

The other cartridges, dated in the 1980s, were obtained from my local gun shop a few months ago. It fires just fine, and doesn't leave a mess. The store has only a very small quantity left, but they are going to sell it to me for about 20 cents a round. I wanted to try to identify it before I bought any more. If anybody has any info on it, I would appreciate it.

GeeDeeEmm
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