Czech 7,62x39 and 7,62x45 cartridges both bxn 54 headstamps

[RCS]

I have had these Czech cartridges for some period of time and always wondered why they have the same headstamp ? From my information, Czechoslovakia did not manufacture any Soviet 7,62x39mm cartridges in 1954.

The story that I was told is that when 7,62x39mm weapons started to be imported (this includes bolt action & semi autos) into the USA, the Soviet 7,62x39 cartridges were not available. Small amounts from Finland but difficult to find. As the Czech 7,62x45mm was available in quantities it was feasible to convert the steel case cartridges to 7,62x39 for the US market. Other cartridges converted were the 6,5 M/S and 6,5 Italian

Information

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[jonnyc]

Correct.