8x56r

[Witchdoctor]

Hello all, anyone have any good leads on any 8x56r style carbine ammo, surplus or new production is acceptable.

[entropy]

I always see WWII German production ammo at gun shows, but it isn't cheap.

[mogunner]

sgammo has some. I suggest if you want to shoot much, stockup and start reloading for it.

http://www.sgammo.com/catalog/rifle-amm ... 8x56r-ammo

Here's some others I found on gun-deals

http://gun-deals.com/list/ammo/8x56R+Steyr

[Witchdoctor]

This is what I'm seeing out there too...isn't a lot of choices and what is available is not cheap about $1.00 per round. Yep it's time to get a reloader.

[entropy]

Good round to reload for. That way you can make 'em so they don't dislocate your shoulder, and save on powder in the process!

[Witchdoctor]

Are the materials to reload this caliber fairly easy to come by, brass, projectiles and such ?

[entropy]

I don't reload 8x56R, but I found this on Wikipedia:

Reloading the 8×56mmR Mannlicher can be problematic, due to the .329" groove diameter of the barrel. Commonly available .323" 8mm "S"-bullets will produce very poor accuracy. Open-base jacketed bullets, such as the .323" 244 grain round-nose FMJ bullets used in the 8×50mmR Mannlicher, will often produce better results but are difficult to obtain. However, the reloading situation for this cartridge, at least in Europe, has improved significantly in the last few years.

Some manufacturers like Haendler & Naterman (Germany; 190 grains) or Degol (Belgium) still produce various bullets for sporting or hunting purposes. Prvi Partizan produces a FMJ Boat tail bullet under the number B-384 and a Soft Point bullet nr. B-561, both 208 Grains.

Lee Precision, Inc. can make a bullet-sizing die in .330", allowing .338" bullets to be swaged down to this caliber. Bullets in the 200 to 225 grain weight class would work best. Lyman offers cast molds in this caliber. Corbins offers swaging dies for their bullet swaging-presses to make various bullets from raw materials.

Reloadable cartridge cases can be produced by resizing 7.62×54mmR Mosin–Nagant Russian brass. This results in a case neck 2mm short, but no problems arise from this, as the cartridge will still headspace correctly on its rim. The remaining case neck is also still sufficient to hold the bullet firmly. RCBS produces a reforming die. 8×56mmR Mannlicher brass for handloading is produced by Prvi Partizan although availability is irregular.

Chargers or clips for the M.95 (and earlier 8×50mmR and 8×56mmR Mannlicher rifles) are available from surplus arms and ammunition dealers such as Sarco.

Reloading dies are made by Hornady, RCBS, and Lee.

[bunkysdad]

Lee makes a bullet mold specifically for this round. It casts a .329 bullet aprox 205 grains. That would really appeal to me if I had this rifle to shoot.

[awalker1829]

This is what I'm seeing out there too...isn't a lot of choices and what is available is not cheap about $1.00 per round. Yep it's time to get a reloader.

Yep. I like odd cartridges, so $1.00 a round is cheap compared to something like 8mm Lebel or 7.62 x 45. Lebel ammo is anywhere from $1.50 to $2.00 a round (depending on your source) and 7.62 x 45 is north of $3.00 a round. Most Mauser ammo is dirt cheap by comparison. On the financial end, reloading won't save as much money as you might think, but at least you'll have a ready supply.

[bunkysdad]

Well not if you are not already a reloader, but if you are then reloading at a quarter a round isn't unreasonable, or even less.

[millman]

Hornady loads this round, I think. It would have nice brass. Like said above, this rifle as a shooter is a handloading proposition.