Which 5.45x39mm Product Lines Are Most Common?
Current observed prices are in the 30-day price summary at the top of this page, recomputed from tracked retailer listings. The table below lists common product lines by bullet type, weight, and intended use. It is a reference list, not a ranking.
| Product Line | Type | Grain | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wolf Military Classic / Polyformance | FMJ, steel case | 60gr | Range / Practice |
| Wolf Military Classic / Performance | Hollow Point, steel case | 55gr | Range / Varmint |
| Century Arms Red Army Standard | FMJ, steel case | 60gr–69gr | Range / Practice |
| Hornady BLACK (81247) | V-Max (polymer tip) | 60gr | Varmint / Range |
| Military surplus 7N6 (no longer imported) | Steel-core FMJ | 53gr | Range / Collecting |
What Is 5.45x39mm?
The 5.45×39mm was developed in the Soviet Union in the early 1970s by a design group led by M. Sabelnikov, and adopted in 1974 with the AK-74 rifle. It replaced the 7.62x39 as the Soviet standard infantry cartridge, in the same way that NATO armies were moving from full-power rifle cartridges to the smaller 5.56 NATO.
Key dimensions: the bullet is nominally .220–.221 inch (5.6mm) in diameter, the bottlenecked case is about 1.568 inches (39.8mm) long, and the loaded overall length is about 2.244 inches (57.0mm). C.I.P. lists a maximum pressure of 355 MPa (about 51,500 psi).
The standard Soviet ball load, 7N6, used a 52.9-grain (3.43 g) bullet with an unhardened steel core, a thin lead inlay, and a hollow cavity under the jacket at the nose. Military cases are lacquered steel with Berdan primers, so they cannot practically be reloaded.
Do not confuse 5.45x39 with 7.62x39 or 5.56x45. All three are intermediate rifle cartridges and two of them share the "x39" case length, but the bullets, case bodies, magazines and bolts are different. None interchanges with another. The cartridge a firearm takes is the one stamped on its barrel. The 5.45×18mm is an unrelated Soviet pistol cartridge.
Firearms Chambered in 5.45x39mm
- AK-74 family — the AK-74, folding-stock AKS-74, compact AKS-74U, RPK-74 light machine gun, AK-74M, and the later AK-12.
- AK-74-pattern civilian rifles — semi-automatic rifles built in the United States and Eastern Europe on the AK-74 pattern, plus imported parts-kit builds.
- AR-15 uppers in 5.45x39 — complete uppers with a 5.45 barrel and a bolt for the 5.45 case head, used on a standard AR-15 lower with 5.45-specific magazines.
U.S. Supply: What Changed
For years most 5.45x39 sold in the United States was imported.
- Military surplus 7N6 arrived in sealed "spam cans" of 1,080 rounds. It is corrosively primed. On 7 April 2014 the ATF classified 7N6 as armor-piercing handgun ammunition, because pistols were being made in the chambering and the bullet has a steel core. That ended its import. Existing stock still turns up on the secondary market.
- Commercial steel-case ammunition from Russian plants such as Barnaul and Tula was the other main source. Ammunition manufactured in Russia was added to U.S. import sanctions in August 2021, which removed much of that supply.
What remains on the tracked market is a mix of remaining import stock and loads from other makers, such as Hornady's 60-grain V-Max load in its BLACK line, with a published muzzle velocity of 2,810 fps.
Corrosive primers: surplus 7N6 is corrosively primed. Corrosive residue draws moisture and rusts a bore and gas system quickly unless the rifle is cleaned with a water-based solvent after shooting. Check the box or the listing for commercial loads.
How 5.45x39mm Prices Compare
The 30-day summary at the top of this page shows the observed price distribution for 5.45x39mm right now — the median, the quartiles, and how many retailers and listings stand behind them. Range FMJ, hollow-point and V-Max loads are listed together in that summary, so expect polymer-tip loads to sit toward the upper end of the observed range and steel-case FMJ toward the lower end.
The cartridge is sold in 20- and 30-round boxes, in cases of 500 to 1,000 rounds, and in sealed cans, so box prices are not comparable with each other. Cost per round is the comparable figure; the search button at the top of this page sorts current listings by it. Because supply now depends on a smaller number of sources, the number of retailers and listings behind the summary matters — check those counts beside the figures. See steel case vs. brass case and how to buy ammo online for what changes between offers.
5.45x39mm Brands
- Wolf — Military Classic, Polyformance and Performance steel-case FMJ and hollow-point loads.
- Hornady — the 60-grain V-Max load in the BLACK line.
- Tula — steel-case loads that were common before the 2021 import restrictions; availability depends on remaining stock.
- Century Arms — Red Army Standard FMJ loads.
Where to Compare 5.45x39mm Prices
IronScout tracks in-stock listings across the retailers it covers and recomputes the 30-day summary daily. Set a free price alert to be notified when a listing crosses a price you choose.
Related Calibers
- 7.62x39 — The AK-47 and SKS cartridge that 5.45x39 replaced in Soviet service. Same case length, different round.
- 5.56 NATO / .223 Remington — The NATO small-bore intermediate cartridge of the same generation. Not interchangeable.
- 7.62x54R — The full-power rimmed Russian rifle cartridge.