5.45x39mm – 60 gr V-MAX – Hornady Black (81247) – 200 Rounds

Hornady Black is the company’s line for modern military pattern rifles, and this load brings a true expanding bullet to the 5.45x39mm. This listing is Hornady Black 5.45x39mm 60 grain V-MAX ammunition, MPN 81247, sold as a 200 round factory case. It is built for AK-74 owners who want something more capable than surplus FMJ for varmints, predators and home defense, loaded in brass cases with a polymer tipped bullet designed for fast, violent expansion.

Hornady rates this load at 2,810 fps with 1,052 ft-lbs of muzzle energy. The 60 grain V-MAX has a red polymer tip that starts expansion on contact and helps the bullet fly flat, with a G1 ballistic coefficient of .285. That makes it a strong choice for coyotes, groundhogs and other varmints, and it gives AK-74 shooters a defensive option that expands rather than passing straight through like the common 5.45 FMJ and 7N6 style loads. It is not a match load or a big game load; for deer sized game, a heavier controlled expansion bullet in a larger cartridge is the better tool.

This ammunition fits rifles chambered in 5.45x39mm, including the AK-74 and its semi-automatic clones, the Saiga in 5.45, and AR-15 rifles built with a dedicated 5.45×39 upper, bolt and magazines. A common question is whether 5.45×39 works in a standard AR-15. It does not. It is a different cartridge from 223 Remington and 5.56 NATO and will not chamber in a 223 or 5.56 rifle. Another common question is whether this ammo is allowed at ranges that ban steel. These are brass cased rounds with a copper jacketed, lead core bullet, so they do not attract a magnet, which is what most indoor and steel free ranges check.

This is new production ammunition, not reloads, made by Hornady in Grand Island, Nebraska. Each round uses a boxer primed, reloadable brass case with non-corrosive priming, so there is no special cleaning needed after a range session, and the brass is worth saving if you handload. The case ships as 10 boxes of 20 rounds for a total of 200 rounds in a Hornady factory case.