Experiences with Brown Bear Ammo?

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  • MooreALX

    Plinker
    Rating - 100%
    15   0   0
    Aug 8, 2012
    130
    16
    Hartford City
    I shot a whole case of 115gr 9mm Brown Bear through my Glock 17 with absolutly no issues. No Failures to Feed or Fire. The ammo fires a little on the dirty side (not too bad), and the lacquer they put on the cases gets on your fingers when loading mags. I normally reload, but if I was in another situation where I needed ammo quick and didn't want to worry about picking up brass, I would be completely fine buying more brown bear.
     

    nm0369

    Sharpshooter
    Rating - 100%
    58   0   0
    Aug 8, 2012
    363
    18
    Indy Southside
    Brown Bear, Wolf, Tula etc are all the same IMO. It's cheap and dirty, but fairly accurate. That's a good price on decent plinking ammo, but only if you could buy 10+ boxes. Buying two boxes of any ammo online sucks....the shipping makes a good deal bad.
     

    Rhino12

    Plinker
    Rating - 100%
    2   0   0
    Jan 16, 2013
    91
    8
    Agree with previous comments. Brown Bear/Wolf/Tula is the only thing I get for my CZ-82 (9x18). It works great for plinking and goes bang every time. I don't notice any additional mess or fouling, but my pistol is smooth bore, so its hard to compare.

    -Rhino12
     

    87iroc

    Master
    Rating - 100%
    4   0   0
    Dec 25, 2012
    3,437
    48
    Bartholomew County
    I have shot a ton of Brown Bear thru my SKS and it ran flawlessly.

    TulAmmo also makes Herters 762X39 and I had issues on the first box. One FTF(but popped bullet into barrel...glad I checked barrel)and one delayed fire. So I hold Brown Bear higher than Tul...but it may have just been a fluke. I still have about 200 rounds of it to shoot. I'll get to it at some point when my Brown Bear runs out.

    Its dirty...but non-corrosive. I recommend cleaning after every outting...I have gotten a bit lazy on this...and my SKS needs it due to the dirty ammo I shoot in it. The others don't care as I use higher quality ammo in them(less carbon build up)
     
    Rating - 100%
    28   0   0
    Oct 3, 2008
    4,187
    149
    On a hill in Perry C
    Its been my experience that the BB is better than most cheap Russian ammo, at least in x39 andx54r. My Saiga shows a definite preference for it, by a decent margin. My shooter M39's favorite is the 185 gr. FMJ and that load shoots at least decently in most other of my Mosins.
     

    koutsevil

    Sharpshooter
    Rating - 100%
    2   0   0
    Jun 8, 2013
    508
    18
    San Pierre, IN
    I have shot over 1000 rounds of Brown bear. No failures at all. I paid $9.99 a box from ammo to go before the shtf last fall. It is dirty. It never gummed up my Glock 17.
     

    sgreen3

    Grandmaster
    Rating - 100%
    51   0   0
    Jan 19, 2011
    11,027
    63
    Scottsburg,In
    Ive shot a boat load of it in 7.62x39 functioned perfectly. A little dirty but shot well. Never shot their pistol ammo before but Id say would be along the same lines.
     

    worddoer

    Master
    Rating - 100%
    42   0   1
    Jul 25, 2011
    1,664
    99
    Wells County
    It has been my experience that the Brown Bear ammo is the best of the Russian ammo. It has a strong odor I will admit. But both of my AR-15's and all my Glocks run well on it.

    Many say it is dirty, but to me seems no dirtier than Remington UMC or Federal American Eagle. I am able to obtain decent groups with this ammo considering it's price. But it will never shoot or group like high end premium ammo.

    Many say it's not worth the price. If you don't shoot much then I concede that argument is true. But if you shoot often, your savings will quickly add up to be a substantial sum. Many talk about extractor or bolt face wear or damage in AR15's. But you save enough money on every 1,000 rounds you buy to pay for a new extractor and bolt and still have savings in your pocket. If you shoot more, you save even more. If you ever happen to wear a barrel out with Russian ammo, you have saved enough to replace that barrel and still have more money in your pocket.

    Those who are that worried about causing any wear on their guns are those who probably don't practice with them. To become proficient in gun use means practice...and practice will cause wear. Just how the world works. I would suggest those individuals find other things in their lives to focus on.

    Here is a link to more facts and data on Brown Bear ammo:

    ComBloc Ammo FAQ

    And some more links to facts about Russian Ammo from our own YouTube personality FullAuto:

    The Truth About Wolf Ammo - YouTube
    Wolf Ammo Demonstration - YouTube
    Review: Golden Tiger Ammo .223 and 7.62x39 - YouTube

    And a link to a very thorough study on the effects of Russian ammo on AR-15 rifles:

    http://www.luckygunner.com/labs/brass-vs-steel-cased-ammo/
     
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