PSL Heavy loads

I hear that exceding 150 Gr loads in a PSL is not a good idea since it will beat itself to death. Where exactly would the damage be done? <Phil S.>

The damage is supposedly done to the trunnions and some people mentioned bent rivets among other things.

Once again you're opening a can of worms asking this because the back and forth talk about heavy loads in the PSL will begin. Some members swear by light ball only, and others prefer heavy ball...you'll get different answers and opinions. Up to you to figure out which side to believe.

The major concensus is light ball only. That being said I haven't seen any of the supposed pictures of damage done to the PSL receiver via heavy ball. Personally I'm going to have to go with the light ball side because heavy ball is for bolt action rifles and certain guns like the real Dragunov and its baby brother the Tigr along with its Chinese cousin the NDM.

has anyone got any pics of how the rear of the psl is set up? I read or saw somewhere that the psl has a telescopic recoil spring guide that when heavily compressed may result in the smaller telescoping rod protruding out the back of the larger rod and possibly bumping against the back of the dust cover under heavy compression? Don't know whether it was a fable because I would have guessed the bolt's travel would have been halted before this could happen. When it comes to ammo it's different strokes for different folks.

I opened this can of worms a couple of weeks ago asking the same question. The concensus is light ball only like Tigr said. Most people follow this. But there are some people that shoot a light dose of heavy ball.

I myself have only shot about 600 rds of 182 gr Bulgarian brass. I have had no problems so far, but I am looking at switching to 148 gr Bulgarian brass to help preserve and save my rifle.

When I asked this question, it was Tigr or ZX-10R that explained it very well with a comparison.

When you are 20 you can drink and smoke and it wont do much (heavy ball on a new gun). But when you get older you cant drink and smoke as much and be ok. This analogy makes sense to me, thats why I am looking for light ball brass.

With that, I will always shoot some heavy ball when I go to shoot, but I will shoot mainly light ball from now on.

You can shoot what ever ball you want. Just keep an eye on your rear trunnion and the back of your bolt carrier.

This may never be fully understood since no one will do a test with two PSL's, one light ball and one heavy ball to see the effects.

The damage is supposedly done to the trunnions and some people mentioned bent rivets among other things.

Thanks for the reply Tigr-- The reason I asked is because most hollowpoint ammo I see goes up in the 180s range. I wonder if a buffer like Blackjack would make a difference. <Phil S.>

has anyone got any pics of how the rear of the psl is set up? I read or saw somewhere that the psl has a telescopic recoil spring guide that when heavily compressed may result in the smaller telescoping rod protruding out the back of the larger rod and possibly bumping against the back of the dust cover under heavy compression? Don't know whether it was a fable because I would have guessed the bolt's travel would have been halted before this could happen. When it comes to ammo it's different strokes for different folks.

My PSL had that problem when I got it making a nice dent in the dust cover. I took some metel off the retainer on one end (the part that goes into the bolt carrier) and rounded off the other end that was hitting the dust cover. Caution is advised here since new parts are not so readily available. I also installed a Blackjack buffer pad which takes up a little of the returning bolt carrier travel. Hope this helps. <Phil S.>

I opened this can of worms a couple of weeks ago asking the same question. The concensus is light ball only like Tigr said. Most people follow this. But there are some people that shoot a light dose of heavy ball.
Thanks for the response. I use Bulgarian 148 mostly and save the rest of the 54R for my Mosins. I was wondering about the heavier stuff in case I wanted to use some hollow points at some time. <Phil S.>