Savage 10 FCM Scout

[Ranch Dog]

What the heck RD...... I get transferred to the night shift and am not sure if I should be up or sleeping and you pop another hog? Guess you are loving that rifle....

I should be sleeping but... I figure at some point down the trail, that is all I will be doing! Actually, I'm hitting the point of being a bit sleep deprived. 18 days into the hunting season and I have only missed out on three. It will be next Monday evening before I take a break. Up at 4 am and back down at 9 pm is my schedule.

And there's every reason why he should be loving that rifle.

You are right about that! It cost the exact same as my Rossi R92 454 Casull but none of the headaches that come with opening the box. I know the 7.62x39 is very limited in its killing authority but in that we are lucky to shoot 125 yards at any time, I don't see any issue in using it.

Good luck on your hunt pricedo!

[pricedo]

The buck miss on Monday demonstrated once again that a patch of dogwood switches is as effective as kevlar for stopping rifle bullets whether they come from a Savage rifle or not. That buck hung up behind the patch and wouldn't move so I crossed my fingers and took the shot. Lady luck wasn't with me and the buck sprinted away like a bat out of ....
Funny how a switch the size of your baby finger can make a bullet doing over 2000 fps do the funky-chicken and deflect completely off target.
It was a shot my 92 year old mother could make if the bullet path wasn't obstructed.

[pricedo]

I had an antler-less tag and picked up a 80 pound button buck.
The shot was about 90 yards.......my grandmother could have made it.
There was a 6-point buck nearby but I figured the bb was the best eating and enough meat for me.
I have shot alot of trophy bucks and it ain't about the bone anymore.....it's about the meat.
Score another for the Savage bolt action.......I agree with RD they're great rifles.......work right out of the box....first time and each & every time thereafter.

[Ranch Dog]

Well done! Should be tasty!

[akuser47]

Congrats hard to beat a savage for out the box rifles for sure. I am surely contemplating the 7.62x39 scout for sure! Maybe someday I would like to see how it shoots the steel cased wolf ammo though a .308 bore

[pricedo]

Congrats hard to beat a savage for out the box rifles for sure. I am surely contemplating the 7.62x39 scout for sure! Maybe someday I would like to see how it shoots the steel cased wolf ammo though a .308 bore

I don't know how that FMJ military surplus ammo is for barrel wear??.....varies with the brand I suppose.
I'm definitely leery of the powders (corrosive??) in that cheap Chinese stuff.
I'd shoot the crappy, on-the-cheap ammo through a surplus SKS but not out of a hunting gun I really valued like a Savage bolt action.
The steel cases cannot be reloaded.
If I was going to hunt a 7.69 x 39 I think I would get some brass cases & reload ammo with quality hunting bullets for it.
Apparently some of the factory brands load 30 caliber (0.308" diameter) bullets in their ammo.
Milspec 7.62 x 39 rifles actually are designed to use bullets that are 7.92 or 0.312" in dameter.
The round should more properly be named the 7.92 x 39mm.
In light of the above I would make sure the bullets I handloaded were compatible with the hunting rifle I was using them in.
Has anyone slugged the barrel of their Savage bolt rifle nominally chambered in 7.62 x 39 caliber? Is it 7.62 or 7.92 or some other diameter?
The x 39 is already a ballistic 90 pound weakling without further hampering it's performance with substandard ammo.

[akuser47]

I just want a rugged universal bolt gun or single shot that handles cheap steel cased and my loads is all. I have alot of 7.62x39 steel cased that is just sitting currently and I think I will enjoy finding somthing to more slowly shot it than al my ak's their appetite is to big. lol

[Ranch Dog]

I continue to shoot the rifle and remain impressed with both it and the cartridge. Hunting season just keeps me from having much free time to catch up here on the forum.

Has anyone slugged the barrel of their Savage bolt rifle nominally chambered in 7.62x39 caliber? Is it 7.62 or 7.92 or some other diameter?

I have. My notes are out in the reloading room and as I recall, it is .3095", not the .308" that Savage Customer Service told me. It is a unique throat in the rifle. It appears that the throat of the rifle was hammer forged over a mandrel "cone" that was .312" at the step and .3095" as the leade. The rifling follows the shape of the cone perfectly; hence, my thoughts of hammer forging.

This is truly a unique idea and offers some incredible utility in such a compact cartridge. First off, in effect, this acts as a polygonal barrel does. It squeezing a spec bullet down to fit the groove increasing the pressure that increases the velocity. So you shoot factory ammo that is loaded to the spec; 41.5K 51.5K PSI, will it increase the pressure? Sure it will but this rifle is built to withstand the 308 Win's 65.0K PSI. The win in this is an increase in velocity over the spec. The exact same principle employed in Glock and other polygonal barreled handguns. With factory ammo, the 20" barrel of the 10 FCM equals exceeds that from the 23" barrel of my Rossi Single Shot. That is a reflection of the above design principles in play.

That same throat allows the use of heavier .308 bullets. Heavier means longer and even though the .308 bullet is not supported at the throat the ogive matches well at the leade. The .308 bullet is deeply engraved with the .300 bore so it will spin it up to speed without issue. I can see a 165-grain match or hunting type bullet being shot on this cartridge without issue and without extending into the useful case capacity.

The 7x39 is already a ballistic 90 pound weakling without further hampering it's performance with substandard ammo.

Haah... compared to what, the 308 Win? It really doesn't bother me. You can use the same leapfrogging comparison up the cartridge food chain until you run out of cartridges. As hard as the cartridge SLAM DUNKED that hog, I don't have a problem HAMMERING a deer with it and will before the season is up.

I just want a rugged universal bolt gun or single shot that handles cheap steel cased and my loads is all. I have alot of 7.62x39 steel cased that is just sitting currently and I think I will enjoy finding somthing to more slowly shot it than al my ak's their appetite is to big. lol

As far as the steel cased and metal core ammo goes, I wasn't going to shoot it but was simply given too much not to. Bottom-line is that it shoots the Wolf and Russian military surplus ammo very well. I have sectioned these bullets and there is quite a copper cup around the steel core. I do not see any issue with using it.

Finally brass... no issue with it as there is not many reloading it. Found a source for quality brass, large rifle boxer primed once fired brass. 17¢ each, bought a thousand of them. All the US manufacturers (Federal, Remington, and Winchester) make quality ammo for the cartridge; general, match, and hunting. So far, I have been able to obtain and shoot all of it. Same with the European outfits. Still think that Prvi Partizan offers the most awesome hunting bullet.

PPU_310_SPRNB030.jpg

This is a quality rifle in the Law Enforcement Savage lineup. The rifles have unique features that place them in this role and the 10 FCM chambered 7.63x39 is just but one of them. These includes other models chambered in 223 Rem, 308 Win, and 300 Win Mag. I suspect that the little cartridge keeps the company of the others in that some law enforcement agency here or abroad wants it.

[akuser47]

Thanks for the report I now just need to save up for it.

[Maximumbob54]

Anyone that thinks the 7.62x39R isn't a good hunting cartridge needs to meet a few Native Americans with SKS's and listen to what they have done with them over the years.