Can someone please give me the lowdown on Wolf ammo? I have been hearing totally conflicting stories and am not sure what to believe.
I have been told that the laquer on the casing will melt and act like glue under rapid fire, making extraction impossible. I did experience this with my POF but was later told by POF that it may have been due to them throating their chambers tighter in the 5.56 than other manufacturers combined with the high pressures of the Wolf ammo.
I have also been told that the laquer acts as a lubricant for feeding and extraction. Experience has taught me otherwise but I would like to get the opinions of those with far more knowledge and experience than I have. I would really hate to buy match grade ammo for an upcoming carbine course requiring 800 rounds.
uhh… pretty much everything you heard is mostly, if not entirely, incorrect…
wolf lacquer doesn’t effect cycling- period.
stuck cases with wolf generally happen from a combination of a tight chamber and the fact that steel cased ammo doesn’t fully seal the chamber, allowing the extra dirty soot of wolf to foul the chamber, causing stuck cases.
wolf ammo is not over pressured, it’s actually really weak
wolf is fine to shoot in any gun, but be aware that some guns dont like it
Sounds like ya got it covered !!! There still is some Older Wolf kicking around with the Old Lacquer coating,looks kinda Reddish on a Green Case !! The Newer stuff has a grayish Polymer coating and I think it works much better with less issues than the Red stuff. I have shot Hundreds of rounds out of my ARs without cleaning,upwards of 500rds of Wolf with 0 problems. Best thing to do is buy some and try it,some guns just don’t like it ! Ya can get some pretty good deals on Wolf now,but 500rds or so and try it,if it works your good to go,if not sell it & buy Brass cased stuff !!!
Do a search here as there are dozens of threads on Wolf.
the short answer is that some guns like it and some don’t, and even the guns that do are seeming to have an increased number of stuck cases indicating to me a slip in QC at Wolf. I have fired literally 10s of thousands of rounds of Wolf over the years and went from never having a stuck case to having maybe 2-3 per thousand rounds. It is still worth the reduced cost to me. Ironically lower quality guns tend to have more problems with Wolf than better quality, in large part because even those that say “5.56” on the barrel often aren’t.
FWIW, I’m planning on picking up a quantity of Brown Bear and Silver Bear to see if they produce the same rate of failure or not. In fact I have a contact there that I might ping to see what he can do for me…
BTW current production Wolf is not lacquer coated, so you can pretty much ignore any information posted in the last few years that mentions lacquer (and probably anything else that person posts).
This guy nailed it…But you DO want to clean your rifle thoroughly after firing, I’m pretty sure the primers are corrosive. Not sure though, am I right??
I do, however, recommend cleaning the chamber with a brush on a more aggressive schedule. I find that I can eliminate even the 2-3 stuck cases per thousand if I hit the chamber with a brush every 200 rounds or so. Not the end of the world if you can’t though.
It does bear mentioning that when I say “stuck case” I mean really, really stuck. Like, the extractor ripping the a chunk of the rim off the case, no chance of getting the case out with anything other than a rod dropped in from the muzzle end. Just so people understand.
It also is more likely to happen after a aggressive string of fire. I can fire 500 rounds slow-fire over a series of matches or stages, but if I go to a class and shoot 200 rounds in one 30-45 minute string I’m almost certain to have a stuck case. Clean the chamber with the brush after you knock the case out with a rod.
This is ALL a relatively new occurrence for me that started in December of last year with guns that previously ran Wolf without issue. It started with the 75 grain stuff which induces a ridiculously high rate of stuck cases and has spread to 55 and 62 grain as well which exhibit the 2-3/thousand rate. Because of this, and until I can get some Brown/Silver Bear through a few guns at an aggressive clip, I am using brass-cased ammo for classes and reserving the Wolf for matches where the continuous fire is at most 60+/- rounds per stage and often far, far less.
Why would you think everything is incorrect? You ADDED some good points to what has already been mentioned the repeated what everyone said at the end by saying some guns don’t like it. No need to blast everyone elses VALID comments within the thread. In-corrects:rolleyes: ass…
Check your extractor. A new one might fix this(unless it is ripping thru the rims).
I also have a procedure I do on a new barrel prior to install that involves zipping the chamber with a felt bob on a dremel and some JB Bore paste to micro-polish it. Even the chrome ones. This will help prevent stuck cases.
I do find it humorous reading the comments in the thread from a bunch of guys that never really shoot bellyaching about a lack of accuracy from cheap ammo. Which isn’t a commentary on Molon’s thread which I found interesting, if perhaps a little out of character with all the vitriol and repetitive use of words like “fanboy”.
I too have fired north of 20K of Wolf over the years and it is GTG for inexpensive training ammo for me. A lot of members are allergic to eastern european ammo.:rolleyes: My experience, I’ve about the same issues with stuck cases in both brass and steel cased ammo. I’ve seen folks running M193 popping primers left and right. Any manufacturer can make a defective lot. Anything Man makes can brake. With Wolf…It’s one of those things you’ll have to experience yourself and determine if it suits your needs and IF your weapon can run it reliably. I shoot a pretty aggressive shooting schedule and can go through 8-10 mags in 30 minutes and have done so for the past 2 years in weapons without cleaning, up to 4K rounds fired, with just lube. I’ve shot it in several carbine courses. A lot of “truths” have been espoused so I won’t rehash. Some issues are true for some, but not for others. As far as lacquer Barnaul/Brown Bear is concerned, I would consider it the most reliable that I have shot between the two, having experienced no malfunctions with it. Bottom line, obtain a quality AR with a true 5.56mm chamber, lube generously, clean if you feel you have to, create a part replacement schedule, buy spare parts, and drive on.
Not upside down…just frown on the whole blasting others posts…thats all. Not trying to start anything with you. Like I said, everything you said was very valid and absolutely true. Just saying others in the thread had valid comments on the thread based on THEIR experience. As for me and Wolf?? Runs fine through mine. I’ve heard wolf will jam in a new york second in a Ruger SR-556, and other rifles. Like pretty much everyone said, it depends on the rifle and how fast your running it.
I have put 1260 rounds of Brown Bear 62gr HP through my AR so far and have yet to experience a stuck cartridge or any other mishap. I can’t speak for Wolf but if you’re looking for an alternative steel cased ammo, I recommend Brown Bear. Also, as far as it being dirty, I haven’t noticed any significant difference from my friends AR firing M855. I don’t have near the rounds downrange as most of the people here, this has just been my experience.
There still is some Older Wolf kicking around with the Old Lacquer coating,looks kinda Reddish on a Green Case !! The Newer stuff has a grayish Polymer coating and I think it works much better with less issues than the Red stuff. I have shot Hundreds of rounds out of my ARs without cleaning,upwards of 500rds of Wolf with 0 problems. Best thing to do is buy some and try it,some guns just don’t like it ! 
Ya can get some pretty good deals on Wolf now,but 500rds or so and try it,if it works your good to go,if not sell it & buy Brass cased stuff !!!
agree::agree: