Picked up some old ammo from an estate sale. Thought it was all 30-06 and 30-30 but have 42 pieces that I can't identify. Any thoughts. Mystery ammo is in the middle on the pics.

 

Mystery ammo has an OAL of 2.49 and the case is 2.27. Dia. is 0.45 same as the 30-06. There is absolutely no headstamps.

Any info appreciated. Thanks.

7.7x58 Arisaka, the ammo of the WWII Japanese rifles. The red band indicates it is AP ammo. If you have any purple banded ones go gingerly those were incendiary. Typically they have no case markings.

pull one apart and check the dimentions for .308

base .473

base to base of shoulder 1.560

base to top of shoulder 1.710

base to neck 2.015

neck inside dia. .343

I believe Vlad is right. One way to tell is bullet diameter. They were usually .311.

 

Also if you're looking into getting rid of the 7.7 (if it is indeed 7.7) I might be interested in taking it.

Thanks for pointing me in the right direction. In searching the web ,the pictures of match the 7.7x58. The double circles around the primer hole, the non-existent head stamp, the color coded sealant around the neck and lastly, the bullet diameter is

.311 to 3.12. Thankfully no purple bands.

You guys are the best.

Glad you were able to make a positive identification. I wonder if its actual 7.7 Jap from the war? Cause if it is, dude you're lucky to have it.

 

The new factory loads range from 25 to 40 dollars for a box of 20. So one can only imagine how much original ammo is worth.

Given that WWII era ammo was known to not have head stamps, and seeing how it has the red AP marking, and the case and bullet dimensions match, the odds are pretty good that is real WWII vintage ammo. Probably worth something to collectors.

Picked this up from an estate sale. The other ammo there was 30-06 from Ravenswood Armory dated 1917 & 18 among others dating to around the 30's to the 50's. Had been stored for at least the last 40 years, so it probably is the original..

Thanks again.

Kenny