9x39mm: It's Coming!

Interesting, but it remains to be seen if Wolf can pull off marketing and selling AR uppers. That round will have one hell of a fight on its hands running against .300 BO though, especially if it's only offered in steel case.

Doesn't look much different than .300 Blackout. If Molot will start importing VSS's in the near future I'm very interested. But in an AR I'll pass.

If they can pull it off, I'd be VERY interested, I'm picturing a semiautomatic, slightly watered down .35 rem, with proper loads, it COULD be quite the fun lil close range package, DEFINITELY more interested than in the bo, this, the Grendel, and the big .450, .458, etc, are the most intriguing ar chamberings to me, based solely on components etc this would also be a fairly easy loading prospect. Thanks for the heads up, I'll be keeping an eye out.

Only issue i see is, from what i can find on the webs, it uses 9.25/26MM bullets (.362-364) not .355-.358. This puts the bullet dia right between the .35s, and the 9.3.....unless American made rifles use the more common .358 bore, im not interested. 1stMarines 35 Gunner is still on my list of wanna tries.

There are some distinct differences in the .35x39s over the .308x45s (im lumping them by basic bore dia and parent case). With sub sonic ammo, especially using rifle bullets, bore dia is basically all your going to get in terms of expansion, bigger bullet bigger hole.
There are also more .35 cal bullets that expand at lower velocity.

the larger case longer length and option for lighter pistol bullets gives the .35s a bit more super options as well, the the .30s offer better bullets under 150

Any word on the cost of the ammo? I don't need to add another cartridge. Depending on what loads are available and the cost they might win me over though. If it became a more economic alternative to 300 blk subsonics it could get some interest.

LoonWulf said:

Only issue i see is, from what i can find on the webs, it uses 9.25/26MM bullets (.362-364) not .355-.358. This puts the bullet dia right between the .35s, and the 9.3.....unless American made rifles use the more common .358 bore, im not interested. 1stMarines 35 Gunner is still on my list of wanna tries.

There are some distinct differences in the .35x39s over the .308x45s (im lumping them by basic bore dia and parent case). With sub sonic ammo, especially using rifle bullets, bore dia is basically all your going to get in terms of expansion, bigger bullet bigger hole.
There are also more .35 cal bullets that expand at lower velocity.

the larger case longer length and option for lighter pistol bullets gives the .35s a bit more super options as well, the the .30s offer better bullets under 150

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Good catch, I was thinking .358..... oops

The difference in bullet diameter will likely make this a non-starter. It's the same diameter as the 9x18 which makes sense for the Russians but not so much for reloading. I can't see how it will be more economical than .300 BO since you can convert .223 cases basically for free.

I don't seem much of a market for it.

I originally intended for my AR to be chambered in .300 BO until a co-worker convinced me that I needed to get a 5.56 first. Now that I fulfilled my duty as a loyal citizen by having a 5.56 AR, magazines and a stash of ammunition the 300 BO is back on AR build list.

The 300 BO seems to becoming a commercial success with new headstamped brass and ammunition being available along with good reloading data.

Maybe more of a prepper thing and Ruskie weapons and ammo fan?

I'm not interested. It's just another screwball cartridge for suppressor enthusiasts only.

Except cheaper. If you buy a whole new upper.

.300 BO enthusiasts don't seem to mind the sickeningly expensive ammo (some take pride in it?), so reduced cost might not matter.

Is 9x39 is too spicy for a pistol can? I don't care enough to check, but a year wait on fresh stamps really doesn't help either.

I don't see it being successful, but whatever.

Why wait? You can get an AR chambered in .358win now. Something I've been wanting for a while

If they could find an importer to make a replica AS Val it would be a huge hit. There's really no reason why they couldn't do it, especially if they permanently attach the suppressor, in which case I think the barrel would be 16'', requiring only one tax stamp. I would be falling all over myself to get one, no doubt about it.

I can't see how it will be more economical than .300 BO since you can convert .223 cases basically for free.

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Time is money. I don't enjoy, check than, I dislike loading bottleneck rifle rounds.

The 147gr 9mm in a suppressed AR SBR keeps us pretty happy subsonicly speaking and is very easy to reload for -- most of our pistol shooting is with my reloads. But if the price of the upper and ammo were right with significantly heavier sub-sonic bullet weights available, I might be interested. Steel cases are a plus for me since I don't plan to reload them and they rust away to about nothing in a few years so my friends pasture where we shoot doesn't end up looking like the streets of Mogadishu

OTOH .300 Blk is a good alternative if you want a .30 AR and don't want a 7.62x39, with the bonus of being able to use your 5.56 mags.

On balance I'd prefer Wolf make cheap .300 Blk steel cased loads both supersonic and subsonic.

My friend has a 16" AR upper in .300 Blk and I have a 16" AR upper in 7.62x39, shooting side by side at steel plates out to 400 yards there is no significant difference except my ammo costs a lot less but I had to also buy new magazines

Too early to tell, but if it doesn't take .355-.358 bullets then it's a nonstarter for me.

I like it. If they will sell me component bullets and if I can form it from brass case 7.62x39 I will get one.

Cooldill said:

What do you think about this one hum?

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yea

I don't see the point, especially in an AR.

If they were able to import these, maybe:




It would still be neat if it was the SP-5-type steel-core ball, but it's probably not.

Goosey said:

I don't see the point, especially in an AR.

If they were able to import these, maybe:

View attachment 249355


It would still be neat if it was the SP-5-type steel-core ball, but it's probably not.

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Or this...



Want. So. Bad.

If it was in .358 bore this would be an awesome little thumper for us in the states, but with the oddball (read Makarov) 9mm bullets, it really loses on the reloading side. I would buy a .358x39 any day, but i will pass on the 9.25mm bore... I'd love to see this with a 200grn bullet in a bolt gun, that would be quite the heavy hitter in some thing like a cz 527 or the howa mini action...

If Wolf can supply a bajillion Mak-diameter barrel blanks as well as complete uppers in addition to this ammunition, then maybe we have something.

I notice folks aren't recognizing the potential of the round as an option for plain-Jane AK platforms, but I suspect it would basically become the "300 Blackout" for the sub-sonic trashcan gun crowd. So long as blanks are available, it's easy to get lots and lots of AK, VZ58, HK-style, and Mini-30 barrels cranked out in a jiffy to satisfy demand once the ammo's here.

What's funny, is until 6.5CM really took off like a rocket a year or so ago, it was really hard to get 6.5 barrel blanks, since everyone was hot to trot on 6.8, yet now they're everywhere since several of the blank makers retooled and produced some large batches (at least one of them for those cheap Wolf-brand Grendel uppers on sale now) so it's not like this fabled and long-awaited cartridge is doomed to obscurity automatically. Especially since it is by all accounts a much better purpose-built solution for the sub-sonic SBR rifle round than 300 Blackout, which is itself more an economic confluence ubiquitous brass, bore size, rifle, and magazine than a ballistic optimization.

TCB

well if they make a singleshot rifle for this new round with sp bullets high velocity would make a nice deer round in the brush!

wally said:

Time is money. I don't enjoy, check than, I dislike loading bottleneck rifle rounds.

The 147gr 9mm in a suppressed AR SBR keeps us pretty happy subsonicly speaking and is very easy to reload for -- most of our pistol shooting is with my reloads. But if the price of the upper and ammo were right with significantly heavier sub-sonic bullet weights available, I might be interested. Steel cases are a plus for me since I don't plan to reload them and they rust away to about nothing in a few years so my friends pasture where we shoot doesn't end up looking like the streets of Mogadishu

OTOH .300 Blk is a good alternative if you want a .30 AR and don't want a 7.62x39, with the bonus of being able to use your 5.56 mags.

On balance I'd prefer Wolf make cheap .300 Blk steel cased loads both supersonic and subsonic.

My friend has a 16" AR upper in .300 Blk and I have a 16" AR upper in 7.62x39, shooting side by side at steel plates out to 400 yards there is no significant difference except my ammo costs a lot less but I had to also buy new magazines

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I load 30-30 and 243 and I find it not hard to do!

After shooting my 357 herrett for the last year I would not want a 358x39 and I'll tell you why. 357 revolver bullets would be effective subsonic hunting rounds, but you can only get jacketed 357 bullets up to 180 grains and most places you can only get 158. A 180 grain subsonic load is barely more powerful than a 147 grain 9mm and a lot more expensive. It's less powerful than a 220 grain 300 blackout load. Yes there are lots of 358 bullets for the 35 Remington available but go look at the prices. All the 225-250 grain jacketed 358 bullets are $35+ for 100 and will not expand at subsonic velocity. The 260 grain round that the 9x39 is intended for is much more appealing to me if they will sell me bullets on the cheap, especially a soft point or hollow point.

LoonWulf said:

Only issue i see is, from what i can find on the webs, it uses 9.25/26MM bullets (.362-364) not .355-.358. This puts the bullet dia right between the .35s, and the 9.3.....unless American made rifles use the more common .358 bore, im not interested. 1stMarines 35 Gunner is still on my list of wanna tries.

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For reloaders it's a consideration, for people who shoot steel it isn't. I would say that steel case ammo may be more prevalent than brass when shooters don't reload. I base this on the amount of it being sold and what I see at the range, nothing more than that and I could be completely off in left field.

I reload so I prefer brass. If I owned an AK or some other military rifle chambered in a soviet bloc cartridge I probably would shoot steel. That stuff is cheap.

With the way things are going I wouldn't be surprised if the ATF or congress prohibited the import of soviet bloc ammo. America first, isolationist trade policies, arms embargoes and all of that. As of right now China is still prohibited from importing semi auto firearms into this country. I think that has a lot more to do with protecting our manufacturing than anything else but it is a reality. I don't see that changing.

CoalTrain49 said:

For reloaders it's a consideration, for people who shoot steel it isn't. I would say that steel case ammo may be more prevalent than brass when shooters don't reload. I base this on the amount of it being sold and what I see at the range, nothing more than that and I could be completely off in left field.

I reload so I prefer brass. If I owned an AK or some other military rifle chambered in a soviet bloc cartridge I probably would shoot steel. That stuff is cheap.

With the way things are going I wouldn't be surprised if the ATF or congress prohibited the import of soviet bloc ammo. America first, isolationist trade policies, arms embargoes and all of that. As of right now China is still prohibited from importing semi auto firearms into this country. I think that has a lot more to do with protecting our manufacturing than anything else but it is a reality. I don't see that changing.

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Thats true, theres no place to legally shoot nonexpanding ammo here, while i do it from time to time, its no advantage to me. Were it less iffy i would probably shot alot more of it., because.it IS quite a bit cheaper.