Looking for the truth about Wolf ammo

[Boondocksaint]

I have heard some terrible things about this ammo, but the price keeps me interested. All I would be getting is 45ACP and 9mm. Possible some 12gauge, but I use Estate mostly.

So, what's the deal here? Would the 45ACP's steel casings mess up the chamber on my 1911?

I know it's cheap, but is it even moderatly reliable? I wouldn't put it in my HD gun, but for the desert, it's very tempting.

Thanks!

[Josh]

ive used the 12gauge and .223

I have had not problems. The only issue I know of is the old laquer on the cases making them stick in the chamber and causing FTE when hot. But this problem has supposedly been solved by them switching to a polymer sealant.

[bwiese]

The lacquer on Wolf cases has never been a problem. Several folks on AR15-L and AR15.COM have tried even to burn off lacquer and found it very difficult, so this is not the issue.

Awhile back Wolf changed formulations for neck sealant since that was the problem. It seems to work well and stopped large crud buildups. Aside from this Wolf's always a tad dirtier than other ammo anyways, but that doesn't affect functioning.

Every Wolf 223 (and a few 9mm) round I've shot has gone bang. No duds, extraction or ejection problems.

Some folks are (unreasonably) paranoid about the (soft) steel cases Wolf and other Russian ammo uses. This will not cause appreciable wear or damage since it's very very soft steel (almost iron). The conventional nickel-plated cases common in pistol ammo have a much harder surface.

Even if Wolf did put more wear, the savings still makes it worth it. On an AR, extractors & ejectors are just a couple of dollars and user replaceable. Contrast that with the $50-$70 avg price difference btwn Wolf and other 223 ammo brands. And since a good 223 rifle has a chrome-lined barrel chamber worries should be moot too.

I'll bet you excessive cleaning wears out more guns than Wolf ammo ever did.

On a handgun w/lower chamber chamber pressures, extraction forces, etc. it'd be moot.

Go shoot Wolf and enjoy it.

It has a bit more average dispersion at target than 'quality' ammo but seems to be no worse than that of bulk Yellow Box or White Box 230gr FMJ.


Bill Wiese
San Jose

[Sagebrush]

I've bought a case of Wolf .45 acp that I've shot about a box of and have had absolutely no problems.

I'm about to move, though, so I'm going to post it in classifieds in the next week or so. If anyone is interested before then, please contact me. I'm in San Francisco.

[bwiese]

Ted...

I've shot the Wolf 62gr ammo out of my Colt 1/7" 20" A2 upper and it doesn't do too badly, not 1MOA but about 2.5+ MOA.

I'll try some outta my scoped Match Target just for fun.

Bill Wiese
San Jose

[trempel_ry@yahoo.com]

Wolf is pretty much the only brand that I shoot in my SKSs. I've never had a problem with it, and it fairly accurate too. I used to shoot it through Mosins and they loved it. It's non-corrosive and a great cheap alternative to surplus ammo. Their .22 stuff is German made and is a good mid-priced target ammo. I actually prefer their 12ga loads (slugs & buck) to everything else.
I've also shot it in .223 and 9mm and have never had a problem.

[berg]

Regarding laquered Wolf .223, I found an interesting quote from this page:

http://www.ar15.com/content/page.html?id=27

"Poor Death451 (managed a forced smile/smirk) finally learned what shooting 15,000+ rds of Wolf through an AR-15 will do to your gas tube, front sight block, and barrel over time... Laquer isn't a good thing for AR-15s! He was a very good sport when getting harrassed by nearly everyone (myself included) for shooting dirty WOLF AMMO through an AR-15. "

[delloro]

15,000 rounds and the cost of a gas tube? BFD. arf.com snobbery. and why is the teacher PACKING in the living room? waaaaaaaay too much tacti-'tude for me.

[gloxter]

As far as 9mm goes, I've never had a problem with the new polymer coated cartridges, nor have I ever had a problem with the "old" green cartridges. I've put over 2,000 rounds combined (green and grey) through my Glock 19 without a hiccup. I purhcase cases of 1,000 rounds of 9mm Wolf delivered for $89.00 and can shoot for months on end without breaking the bank. Even my RA M96 carbine never flinched when shooting grey cased .223 through it. But then again, neither one is an AR. On a side note, a friend's HK USP .40 DID have extraction problems after a few rounds shooting the green cased ammo. We thought the chamber was becoming gummed up from the green laquer, at lease that's what we found. Just my experience though! Go for it. Just remember to specify grey cased to be safe because some distributors may try to "off" their old green stuff on you.

[Boondocksaint]

Thanks for the info. I think I'm going to stick with PMC and Winchester for 9mm, it's cheap enough.

However, for .45ACP, I'm still hesitant. Does anyone have actual 5000+ round stats for Wolf .45ACP?

[icormba]

used and still use Wolf .223 & 7.62x39 with hardly any issues. Yeah, accuracy isn't that great.

9mm & .45... used it only in a 92FS & 1911, was not reliable for me in either gun... Was not about to run through all 1000 rounds of .45 for single action non semi-auto(because of the ammo!). Sold it to a friend, in which it worked GREAT in his Ruger P89?
PMC works great in both guns.

[Forever-A-Soldier]

Personally, I won't fire anything WOLF except 7.62x39. I bought 500 rds of .45 and many of the casing split after/during use in 3 different .45 cal guns. 9mm I wasn't thrilled with either. YMMV.

F.A.S. Out
(Still in the Sandbox)

[Moonclip]

Depends on caliber and gun. 9x19 WOlf is little cheaper than better quality brass cased ammo. Some guns that are designed around steel case ammo like AK, SKS, Makarov are fine with it.

Some ranges don't like it, they claim safety issues but it is more because they want you to buy thier ammo and they do not want to sort out the non reloadable brass. Makes me laugh as Firing Line I think allows aluminum blazer ammo but not Wolf when steel case ammo is easily seperated out with a magnet.

I think the safety issue is overblown. If it was so unsafe, it would have been withdrawn from the market and Wolf actually does offer a money back guarantee and their US import headquarters appears to be loacted in Anaheim, I'll have to check it out eventually.

[Glock21Owner]

I bought a case of 1000 rounds of .45acp from Cheaper Than Dirt, luckily with a money back guarantee. Out of the first box I had 5 misfires and terrible accuracy. not to mention that gawd awful ammonia smell. I sent the remaining ammo back and got a refund.

[Kruzr]

Makes me laugh as Firing Line I think allows aluminum blazer ammo but not Wolf when steel case ammo is easily seperated out with a magnet.

Moonclip, the brass on the range at the Firing Line belongs to Cal Ammo. It's their reloads and any brass that remains goes to them. At the range it is just swept up and put in buckets....all mixed up. They sort by caliber and then cull the brass by hand so it isn't the steel cases that caused the rule. BTW, they also remove AMERC headstamps. What I am told is that over the years, there were consistent problems with eastern bloc ammo. The quality may be better today, but the rule remains.
I've shot lots of Wolf out of a Mini-14 with no problems so long as I kept the gun clean. Not overly accurate or consistent but fun for plinking. I'd never shoot it out of my handguns. I simply don't trust it and the steel cases make a mark in the extractor pad on a 1911. I suppose that if you shoot a lot of it, it would make a groove. And yes, it smells awful.