It seems like there are a lot of conversations on steel cases ammo, probably brought about by the current shortages as anything. Here is as good an article as I have read comparing the steel vs brass and it’s effect on your gun, both the steel case and the bi-metal jackets. Read and enjoy.
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Interesting article. But sort of reinforced my belief in not using steel and to use Federal, which is what I have the most ammo for my AR-15’s
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I read that a while back. Has a lot of good info but take it with a grain of salt, it was a torture test not how 99% people use their AR.
They are fair about that aspect and do a cost breakdown of shooting that much steel ammo plus barrel exchanges at the end.
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Um, well, let’s see…
This argument holds no meaning for people that shoot, professionally…
If you’re putting multiple, tens of thousands of rounds through anything annually, then you are probably using custom, or, at least, high $$$ ammo…
…for the rest of us… …IT DOES NOT MATTER!!!
Keep your rig clean and shoot what you need… Jez… (unless you have a PTR-91… then… you’re on your own!!)
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My biggest concern with steel cased ammo in an AR is hearing some trainers report that once the gun is hot the coating on the steel case can melt the round into the chamber.
Too each there own but the savings of steel vs brass just doesn’t justify the risk to me.
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That is an old wives tale. It’s really an incorrect diagnosis of a potential issue. The lacquer on the steel case does not melt or get tacky. If it did, every sks and ak would be good for about one mag before it was useless. What the issue is is that the steel is not as springy and is harder than brass, so the chamber does not seal as well as it does with brass ammo. Because of that, you get a lot more carbon blowback into the chamber, so the chamber gets a lot dirtier a lot faster potentially causing function issues.
Either way, still don’t use steel.
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I have shot thousands of rounds of TULA ammo in 9mm and .45 with no problems and will shoot more I am sure.
I went with RAS (Red Army Standard) ammo for my AK, 124grn. HPBT.
I get to shoot more because it’s cheap.
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I have some steal, bought it on accident. I’d shoot it if my range would let me 
. Wish I had my own personal property out in the country where I could shoot whatever.
The steak just sits waiting for the day the world falls apart .
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I’ve often wondered about this topic. For the average person that’s shooting a couple mags at the range to keep up their fundamentals, steel is probably fine if you’re also cleaning it well after your range session. The Tula failures after 200 rounds is kind of alarming but I wonder if that’s just an anomaly. It seems odd that the other steel brands would shoot significantly more rounds before seeing issues. I’ve put 200 rounds of Tula 9mm through my pistol without any issues but I do clean it after every range session.
I still look for brass first but I don’t think I’d be opposed to shooting a couple mags of steel during practice.