The magazines presented here are based on
light alloy magazines. For
steel magazines, increase weight by 2%; for plastic or synthetic magazines;
decrease weight by 8 percent.
7.5mm MAS
Notes: This
cartridge was adopted by the French in 1929 after the shortcomings of the 8mm
Lebel round became obvious to even the most thick-headed French military
officials. It was originally
designed for use in light machineguns and semiautomatic rifles, but was
eventually type-standardized in French service for use in sniper rifles and
bolt-action rifles. Several
civilian rifles are also chambered for it.
Most 7.5mm MAS ammunition is military surplus; civilian loads were never
manufactured in great quantity. The
7.5mm MAS round is basically in the same class as the 7.62mm NATO round and
offers similar performance.
Other Names:
7.5x54mm French MAS, 7.5mm French, 7.5mm Mle 1929
Nominal Size:
7.5x54mm
Actual Size:
7.82x53.59mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
32.13 kg per case of 1000; Price $510 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.026 kg |
4-round box: 0.21 kg |
5-round clip: 0.13 kg |
25-round box: 1.04 kg |
100-round belt: 2.57 kg |
250-round belt: 6.43 kg |
|
|
7.5mm Mle 1924
Notes: This
round was the predecessor to the 7.5 MAS round.
It produces basically the same ballistics as the shorter 7.5mm MAS and
the same damaging and penetration effects (though it has slightly less range).
The reason it was replaced by the French in their service rifles is
because it looks nearly identical to the 8mm Mauser round, especially in the
heat of battle. There were many
accidents, minor and major, when French troops in World War I put captured 8mm
Mauser ammunition into their rifles.
The round would chamber in their rifles (though it would seem to be a bit
of a tight fit), but firing the 8mm Mauser in a rifle designed for 7.5mm Mle
1924 could result in things like a stuck bullet in the barrel, a blown bolt, or
a burst barrel, amongst other possibilities.
The 7.5mm Mle 1924 round was therefore not replaced due to any lack of
performance or defect, but instead due to grunt mentality.
Other Names:
7.5x57mm MAS
Nominal Size:
7.5x57mm
Actual Size:
7.82x56.57mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 299 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $540 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.027 kg |
3-round clip: 0.08 kg |
5-round clip: 0.14 kg |
25-round box: 1.1 kg |
7.5mm Swiss
Notes: This is a
very old cartridge, one of the oldest still in military use.
The original 7.5mm Swiss round was designed in 1889 to use semi-smokeless
powder, but was later modified to use increasingly modern propellants.
The round is still being manufactured in Switzerland as well as by Norma,
and has been in the past manufactured in several places in the world as diverse
as the US and Japan. Ballistically,
it performs similarly to the 7.62mm NATO round, and is a decent military round
as well as civilian hunting round.
Other Names:
7.5mm Swiss Service, 7.5mm Schmidt-Rubin, 7.5mm M-1911
Nominal Size:
7.5x55mm
Actual Size:
7.81x55.4mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 33.13 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $530 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.027 kg |
3-round box: 0.18 kg |
4-round box: 0.22 kg |
5-round box: 0.26 kg |
6-round box: 0.3 kg |
10-round box: 0.46 kg |
12-round box: 0.54 kg |
20-round box: 0.87 kg |
24-round box: 1.03 kg |
30-round box: 1.27 kg |
50-round belt: 1.33 kg |
250-round belt: 6.63 kg |
7.62mm Czech
Notes: This
round was developed by Czechoslovakia shortly after World War 2 for use in the
CZ-52 assault rifle and the M-52 light machinegun.
It was used for a number of years, but the Russians forced the 7.62mm
Kalashnikov and 7.62mm Nagant rounds on the Czechs in the 1960s and they
re-chambered the M-52 assault rifle to use the 7.62mm Kalashnikov round.
The chances of finding a 7.62mm Czech round outside of a museum or
collector’s hands is virtually nil today.
Other Names:
7.62mm Czech Short, 7.62mm M-52
Nominal Size:
7.62x45mm
Actual Size:
7.81x44.92mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 2.69 kg
per box of 100; Price: $86 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.022 kg |
10-round box: 0.38 kg |
|
|
7.62mm WT
Notes: The
7.62mm WT (Wilson Tactical) round was designed to be able to fit into magazines
designed for the 5.56mm NATO round, with minimum modification to the magazine.
Magazines for the 5.56mm NATO round require little modification to use
with the 7.62mm WT round. The other
consideration when the 7.62mm WT round was designed was to provide a round and a
rifle which, with little modification, would provide more stopping power and
modification, especially in a short barreled rifle.
The bullet used in the 7.62mm WT is the same as that of a 7.62mm NATO
round, and the 7.62mm WT is a bit hot-loaded for a round of its case length. The
gas pressure is sufficient to allow the use of a very low-profile gas block when
used on an AR platform, and the gas pressure also gives the AR platform somewhat
less hiccups than one firing 5.56mm NATO.
The shooting public in the US has been very favorable, but sales data
from other countries is still being analyzed to reveal a trend one way or the
other. In the US, there is also a
lot of police interest in the 7.62mm WT round and the rifles that fire it. In
addition, some states in the US won’t allow the 7.62mm WT cartridge to be used
for hunting, which is probably a giant sales killer in those states.
Twilight 2000
Notes: The 7.62mm WT round is not available in the Twilight 2000 timeline (nor
are the rifles that fire it).
Other Names:
7.62mm Wilson Tactical
Nominal Size:
7.62x40mm
Actual Size:
7.82x40.03mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 21.12 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $380 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.019 kg |
5-round box: 0.19 kg |
10-round box: 0.33 kg |
20-round box: 0.63 kg |
30-round box: 0.92 kg |
40-round box: 1.22 kg |
45-round box: 1.36 kg |
7.62mm Howa
Notes: The
7.62mm Howa was based directly on the 7.62mm NATO cartridge – the case is in
fact identical, though the bullet is lighter.
When the Japanese designed their Type 64 battle rifle, their soldiers
were still of significantly smaller stature than their US and NATO counterparts.
It was decided to design a cartridge that could be used interchangeably
with the 7.62mm NATO cartridge, but did not have the recoil of the 7.62mm NATO.
(The designers were also perhaps overcompensating a bit.)
This led to the Howa cartridge for the Type 64 battle rifle – a round
with about 10% less propellant, along with a bullet somewhat lighter than
standard for 7.62mm NATO. A gas
regulator must be adjusted to fire 7.62mm NATO rounds.
This round was not used with other Japanese weapons chambered for 7.62mm
NATO.
Other Names
7.62mm Type 64
Nominal Size:
7.62x51mm
Actual Size:
7.82x51.05mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 27.84 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $446 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.23 kg |
20-round box: 0.74 kg |
|
|
7.62mm Kalashnikov
Notes: This is
perhaps the most ubiquitous assault rifle cartridge in the world.
It was developed in 1943, but did not come into widespread use until the
advent of the AK-47 assault rifle.
It is also used in literally hundreds of AK clones, light machineguns and squad
automatic weapons, and even a few civilian rifles.
Most 7.62mm Kalashnikov ammunition has a steel case and a corrosive
Berdan primer, making reloading close to impossible.
Western and some Eastern-manufactured ammunition is made to more advanced
standards and can be reloaded.
Today, 7.62mm Kalashnikov is manufactured all over the world, even in the US.
It is a round of decent killing power, but penetration can be lacking and
accuracy at long range iffy. This
round was replaced in the Russian military by the 5.45mm Kalashnikov, but many
units of late have begun switching back to the 7.62mm Kalashnikov for its
greater damaging potential.
A subsonic
version of the 7.62mm Kalashnikov round exists.
Triple the ammunition cost.
Other Names:
7.62x39mm Russian, 7.62mm Russian Short, 7.62mm Soviet M-43, 7.62mm obr 43 g
Nominal Size:
7.62x39mm
Actual Size:
7.9x38.65mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
23.63 kg per case of 1000; Price:
$380 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.019 kg |
5-round box: 0.18 kg |
10-round box: 0.33 kg |
10-round clip: 0.19 kg |
15-round box: 0.47 kg |
20-round box: 0.62 kg |
25-round box: 0.76 kg |
30-round box: 0.91 kg |
40-round box: 1.2 kg |
45-round box: 1.34 kg |
60-round box: 1.78 kg |
75-round drum: 2.21 kg |
90-round box: 2.64 kg |
100-round belt: 1.89 kg |
100-round drum: 2.93 kg |
101-round drum: 2.96 kg |
7.62mm Nagant
Notes: This
rifle was adopted for Russian service along with the M-1891 Mosin-Nagant rifle.
It has been standard issue among the Russian military and former Russian
client states for over a century.
Its primary use today is in medium machineguns and sniper rifles, though some
civilian rifles are chambered for it.
Like many Russian rounds, the 7.62mm Nagant Rifle round uses a steel case
and a corrosive Berdan primer, making reloading the spent case almost
impossible. However, more standard
cases were made by Remington until about 1950, and more recently by Norma and
Lapua. The 7.62mm Nagant round is
roughly in the same class as the .30-06 Springfield, but offers somewhat better
range. It remains one of the few
rimmed military cartridges in standard issue by any military.
A subsonic
version of the 7.62mm Nagant round exists.
Triple all costs for this subsonic version.
Other Names:
7.62x54Rmm Russian, 7.62x53Rmm Russian, 7.62mm Mosin-Nagant, 7.62mm Russian
Rimmed, 7.62mm M-1891, 7.62mm Nagant Rifle
Nominal Size:
7.62x54mm
Actual Size:
7.87x53.6mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
32.63 kg per case of 1000; Price:
$520 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.03 kg |
5-round box: 0.25 kg |
5-round clip: 0.13 kg |
10-round box: 0.45 kg |
15-round box: 0.65 kg |
20-round box: 0.85 kg |
47-round pan: 1.93 kg |
50-round drum: 2.05 kg |
50-round belt: 1.31 kg |
75-round drum: 3.05 kg |
100-round belt: 2.61 kg |
200-round belt: 5.22 kg |
250-round belt: 6.53 kg |
|
|
|
7.62mm NATO
Notes: This
cartridge began as the round submitted by the US for the NATO Small Arms Trials
in the early 1950s. It is basically
a shortened version of the .30-06 Springfield cartridge, but without taking out
much of the propellant. Though
other countries submitted ammunition which was sometimes more advanced than the
7.62mm NATO round, the US basically used its influence to bully the rest of NATO
into submission to accept the 7.62mm NATO round (then called the T-65).
The 7.62mm NATO is no longer the standard NATO rifle cartridge, but
remains a standard in medium machineguns and sniper rifles worldwide.
It has also become a popular hunting round, able to take down medium and
sometimes large game at fairly long ranges.
A very rare SLAP
(Saboted Light Armor Penetrator) version of the 7.62mm NATO round exists;
multiply all costs of the ammunition by five.
A subsonic version of this round also exists; triple all costs of
ammunition for the subsonic version.
A Japanese variant of the 7.62mm NATO round is called the 7.62mm Howa;
this round has a propellant charge reduced by 10%.
Reduce all prices for this ammunition by 3%, as well as the weights of
the ammunition. The 7.62mm CETME
round is similar and has the same weights and costs to the 7.62mm Howa round
(for game purposes).
Other Names:
.308 Winchester
Nominal Size:
7.62x51mm
Actual Size:
7.82x51.05mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
30.63 kg per case of 1000; Price:
$490 per case of 1000, $735 per 1500-round belt, $1960 per 4000-round
belt
Magazines:
Per round: 0.025 kg |
2-round box: 0.13 kg |
3-round box: 0.16 kg |
4-round box: 0.2 kg |
5-round box: 0.24 kg |
6-round box: 0.28 kg |
7-round box: 0.31 kg |
8-round clip: 0.2 kg |
9-round box: 0.39 kg |
10-round box: 0.43 kg |
12-round box: 0.5 kg |
15-round box: 0.61 kg |
20-round box: 0.8 kg |
25-round box: 0.99 kg |
30-round box: 1.18 kg |
49-round belt: 1.2 kg |
50-round box or drum: 1.93 kg |
50-round belt: 1.23 kg |
70-round drum: 2.68 kg |
100-round belt: 2.45 kg |
125-round drum: 4.74 kg |
200-round belt: 4.9 kg |
250-round belt: 6.13 kg |
1000-round belt: 24.5 kg |
1500-round belt: 36.75 kg |
4000-round belt: 98 kg |
|
|
7.62mm Oberndorf Subsonic
Notes: This is a
special round designed specifically for a special sniper rifle – the Heckler &
Koch SL-9SD, a silenced sniper rifle version of the SL-9 (civilian version of
the G-36 assault rifle). This
round, produced only in very small lots for certain customers (mostly US, NATO,
and other special operations units of friendly countries), uses what amounts to
a heavy but shortened hollow-point bullet loosely-based on the 7.62mm NATO
bullet, packed into a shorter case which is sub-loaded (having less propellant
than is normal for a round of its size.
This makes this round subsonic (and quieter when fired through a
silencer), while still having decent damaging qualities.
Range is of course necessarily limited, but since the propellant load is
just short of what would normally be required to make it supersonic, the
reduction in range is not as much as one might think.
The 7.62mm Oberndorf Subsonic round is, of course, strictly limited in
its sales, and the average individual or even soldier or police officer cannot
get wither the round or the rifle that fires it.
Twilight 2000
Notes: This round is not available in the Twilight 2000 timeline.
Other Names:
7.62mm Oberndorf
Nominal Size:
7.62x37mm
Actual Size:
7.82x37.04mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 1.78 kg
per box of 100; Price: $108 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.018 kg |
10-round box: 0.31 kg |
|
|
7.62mm Short CETME
Notes: The
7.62mm Short CETME round was essentially a development round used during the
design process of the CETME-58 battle rifle; After developing their own version
of a short 8mm Mauser round, it looked like NATO was going to adopt a 7.62mm
round, but the design of what would become the 7.62mm NATO round had not yet
been finalized. CETME, like a lot
of European companies and countries, realized a full-power rifle cartridge would
simply be too much in a light rifle with selective fire capability, and decided
to use a light version of the 7.62mm bullet from the US T-65 round combined with
a shorter case containing less propellant.
This was the 7.62mm Short CETME round.
A few versions of the CETME battle rifle were built to test the round,
and reportedly the Spanish, Portuguese, and Germans were quite interested in it.
Unfortunately, the US used their new-found post-World War 2 political
clout to force their T-65 round on NATO, which became the 7.62mm NATO round, and
CETME was forced to chamber their new battle rifle for the 7.62mm round, which
ended the development of the 7.62mm Short CETME round.
Today, the round and rifles which fire it are the province of museums and
are not found even in collectors’ hands.
Of course, there is no need to reload the round, and the statistics below
are for completeness and game purposes only.
Other names:
7.62mm CETME Intermediate
Nominal Size:
7.62x40mm
Actual Size:
7.82x40.02mm
Case Type: Necked
Weight: 2.11 kg
per box of 100; Price: $77 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.019 kg |
20-round box: 0.63 kg |
|
|
7.65mm Mauser
Notes:
Originally designed in 1889 for the Belgian-pattern Mauser, this round was later
for use in Turkey. However, its
widest use was in South America, particularly Argentina, where it was chambered
in their Mauser rifles and some machineguns.
Some sporting rifles were also designed to fire this caliber in the US,
South America, and Europe. The
round was once very popular, but that popularity faded after World War 2.
Recently, a lot of Argentine-pattern Mausers have shown up on the world
surplus market, and the cartridge is having some renewed success.
The 7.65mm Mauser is regarded as one of the best Mauser cartridges, and
is an excellent hunting cartridge for up to medium game.
Cases are made by several American manufacturers, primers by a few more,
and complete cartridges by some European manufacturers.
Other Names:
7.65mm Argentine Mauser, 7.65mm Belgian Mauser, 7.65mm Turkish Mauser
Nominal Size:
7.65x53mm
Actual Size:
7.9x53.1mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 32.5 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $520 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.026 kg |
5-round box: 0.25 kg |
5-round clip: 0.13 kg |
25-round box: 1.05 kg |
30-round box: 1.25 kg |
40-round box: 1.65 kg |
|
|
7.7mm Type 99
Notes: This
round was adopted by the Japanese in 1939 for use in World War II when their
previous exploits in China suggested that their 6.5mm round did not have enough
punch. It was produced specifically
for the new Arisaka Type 99 rifle, a modification of the previous 6.5mm-firing
weapon. It is ballistically quite
similar to the .303 British round, and even uses the same bullets.
While Japanese World War 2 ammunition was never of good quality, modern
Type 99 ammunition made by Norma is a great improvement over the Japanese
ammunition. However, this
ammunition is only made in small quantities, primarily for war relics as no
rifles were built after World War 2 chambering the 7.7mm round.
A semi-rimmed
version of this ammunition was also manufactured during World War 2; this was
primarily for Japanese machineguns.
It is extremely rare, as war ammunition was mostly used up or destroyed after
World War 2. Some handloads may be
found; most of them are modified .303 British rounds, and made for firing from
war trophies and relics.
Other Names: .31
Japanese, 7mm Japanese Rimless, 7.7x58mm Arisaka; (Rimmed Versions) 7.7mm Type
92, 7.7x58SR, 7.7mm Japanese Semi-Rim
Nominal Size:
7.7x58mm
Actual Size:
7.9x57.91mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.12 kg
per box of 100; Price: $114 per box
Per round: 0.028 kg |
5-round clip: 0.14 kg |
|
|
7.92mm CETME
Notes: During
the development of the CETME-58 battle rifle in the early-to mid-1950s, several
cartridges were tried, including a few intermediate cartridges.
One of these was the 7.92mm CETME; based on the 8mm Mauser and 8mm Kurz
cartridges (with a touch of the US T-65 round, which eventually became the
7.62mm NATO round), it was essentially a somewhat longer version of the 8mm Kurz
round with a different weight of bullet and more propellant.
The CETME battle rifle chambered in 7.92mm CETME was in fact manufactured
in limited quantities and even issued to some Spanish troops for advanced field
testing, where it proved to be a popular chambering.
Unfortunately, politics (especially the tremendous post-World War 2
political might of the US) intervened, and eventually, most of the 7.92
CETME-chambered rifles were re-chambered for the 7.62mm NATO cartridge, much to
the chagrin of Spanish troops and much of Western Europe.
The surviving rifles chambered for 7.92mm CETME are now the province of
military museums, as are any surviving factory-produced 7.92mm CETME rounds;
none are being made today by either factories or (to my knowledge) by
handloaders. The boxed loads and
magazine weights below are presented for completeness and game purposes only.
Other Names:
7.92mm CETME Intermediate
Nominal Size:
7.92x40mm
Actual Size:
8.2x40.03mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
2.32 per box of 100; Price: $84 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.021 kg |
20-round box: 0.69 kg |
|
|
7.92mm Maroczek
Notes:
This is essentially a Polish modification of the 7.92mm Patronen round,
and the difference is that the 7.92mm Maroczek round is hot-loaded and has even
greater muzzle velocity than the 7.92mm Patronen round.
However, this hot of a round led to extreme barrel wear, with the Poles
experiencing barrels shot out after as little as 200 rounds.
The 7.92mm Maroczek round is tungsten-cored, a holdover from when the
rifle was meant to be an antitank rifle.
The Poles, however, realized that its effectiveness against armor was
essentially nil and used it primarily as a long-range antipersonnel sniper rifle
or as an antimateriel rifle used to destroy small or delicate pieces of enemy
gear, such as radios and rangefinders.
The use of the round and its rifle for the most part ended when the Poles
were conquered by the Nazis, though there was some possible use by resistance
fighters and in the Warsaw Ghetto to harry the Nazis.
Today, any such rounds will probably be handloaded.
Nominal Size:
7.92x92mm
Actual Size:
8.2x92mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.96 kg
per case of 100; Price: $204 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.053 kg |
10-round box: 0.89 kg |
|
|
7.92mm Patronen
Notes: The 7.92
Patronen round was designed in the early 1940s for use against light tanks,
light combat vehicles, and unarmored vehicles. It was designed specifically for
use in the PzB-38 and PzB-39 antimaterial rifles, and essentially was a 13mm TuF
shell necked down to take an 8mm Mauser bullet.
The round has a very high muzzle velocity, with the combination of large
case with lots of propellant and a small bullet giving performance and antiarmor
capabilities similar to that of a sabot round.
The bullet contained a small capsule of tear gas behind the tungsten
carbide nose, which was supposed to help disable the crew; in practice, the
amount of tear gas is so small as not to be noticed by any potential target.
The round also has tracer material in the tail.
It became
quickly apparent that the rifle and the 7.92mm Patronen round was supremely
ineffective against all but the thinnest armor, and production stopped in 1942.
The PzB-39 remained in the Nazi inventory for use as a long-range sniper
rifle until 1944, when the rifle and the round were phased out of service.
Today, the only 7.92mm Patronen rounds found will be war trophies/museum
pieces and handloaded examples.
Other Names:
Patrone 318 SmK-Rs-L’spur, Patrone 318, Patrone 318 SmKH-Rs-L’spur, 7.92mm
Patronenkasten
Nominal Size:
7.92x94mm
Actual Size:
8.2x92mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.86 kg
per box of 100; Price: $194 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.048 kg |
|
|
8mm Austrian Service
Notes: This
cartridge was originally designed for the 1888 Mannlicher straight-pull rifle,
and later used for other such rifles and the Austrian version of the Schwarzlose
machinegun. It was also a popular
hunting round in Europe at one point, with some Mauser and Mannlicher-Schoenauer
rifles being chambered for it. It
has always been uncommon in North America, however, and virtually unknown
anywhere else. The round is still
being commercially manufactured in Europe by Hirtenberger.
It has good power for use against most medium game as well as people.
Other Names:
8x50mmR, 8mm Austrian Mannlicher
Nominal Size:
8x50mm
Actual Size:
8.2x50.29mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 33.25 kg
per case of 1000; Price: 530 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.027 kg |
5-round clip: 0.13 kg |
250-round belt: 6.65 kg |
|
8mm Breda
Notes: This
round was designed for use by a few World War 2 Italian machineguns, such as the
Breda Model 35 and Fiat-Revelli Model 1935 and was never used for anything else.
It was designed mainly to replace the 6.5mm Carcano in machineguns, as
that light rifle round was inadequate for machineguns.
It is a significantly better round than the 6.5mm Carcano, and comes
close in power to the .300 Winchester Magnum.
It has not been manufactured since World War 2, and as no civilian or
other military rifles were ever chambered for it, is of little interest to
handloaders, so the ammunition is virtually impossible to find today.
Other Names:
8x59mm Breda, 8x59mm Italian
Nominal Size:
8x59mm
Actual Size:
8.28x59.18mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.99 kg
per box of 100; Price: $128 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.032 kg |
20-round strip: 0.84 kg |
50-round belt: 1.6 kg |
|
8mm Brenneke
Notes: These
rounds were developed in 1912 by Wilhelm Brenneke himself, for use in
Mauser-pattern rifles. The 8mm
Brenneke is basically a smaller version of the 9.3x62mm Brenneke round.
The round has plenty of punch and can handle most medium game, and some
large game.
Other Names:
8x64mmJ Brenneke, 8x64mmS Brenneke
Nominal Size:
8x64mm
Actual Size:
8.2x65.02mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 42.88 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $690 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.034 kg |
5-round box: 0.33 kg |
|
|
8mm Danish Krag
Notes: This
round was designed for use in the 1889 Danish version of the Krag-Jorgensen
rifle. It originally used a much
heavier bullet when the cartridge used a round-nosed bullet, but a lighter
bullet was designed when the round was switched to a spitzer (pointed-nosed)
bullet. It was once a popular
civilian hunting cartridge as well as a common military round in Scandinavia,
and was regarded as one of the better military rounds of the time.
It has not, however, been commercially loaded in about a half a century
and even handloads are scarce these days.
Other Names:
8x58mmR
Nominal Size:
8x58mm
Actual Size:
8.18x57.91mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.8 kg
per box of 100; Price: $122 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.03 kg |
|
|
|
8mm Hungarian Mannlicher
Notes:
Originally developed in 1930 for the Solothurn machinegun, design of this round
actually started back in the mid-1920s to replace the somewhat-deficient 8mm
Austrian Service round. The
Hungarians also chambered their pre-World War 2 service rifles for it.
It was never used in any sporting rifles, and it virtually disappeared
after World War 2, since the Nazis forced the 8mm Mauser round on the Hungarians
starting in 1940. Handloading is
problematic since bullets of this size are not generally available and usually
must be custom-cast.
Other Names:
8x56Rmm, 8mm Austrian-Hungarian Mannlicher, 8mm M-1931, 8mm Solothurn, 8mm
Hungarian M-31
Nominal Size:
8x56mm
Actual Size:
8.33x56.13mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.83 per
box of 100; Price: $122 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.031 kg |
5-round clip: 0.15 kg |
|
|
8mm Kurz
Notes: This was
the first assault rifle round, an intermediate-sized rifle round for use in what
was then the new weapon class of assault rifles.
It had a long development for ammunition, taking nearly a year starting
in 1940, and was first used in combat on the Russian Front in 1942.
The advent of this round and the rifles that fired it had a profound
effect on weapon development; virtually all infantry rifles now issued are
assault rifles. Unfortunately, no
weapons to fire the 8mm Kurz round were built after World War 2, and ammunition
was made for only a few years after that war in East Germany. The 8mm Kurz is
basically a chopped version of the standard 8mm Mauser round.
Other Names:
7.92mm Kurz
Nominal Size:
7.92x33mm
Actual Size:
8.2x33.02mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
2.18 kg per box of 100; Price:
$70 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.017 kg |
30-round box: 0.84 kg |
|
|
8mm Lebel
Notes: This
round, though the same size as the 8mm Austrian Service, will not fit in rifles
chambered for the 8mm Austrian service (and vice versa), due to the great
differences in case shape. It
originally used a round-nosed heavy bullet when introduced in 1886, but was
switched to a spitzer bullet in 1898.
Though inadequacies of the widely-rimmed round showed up as early as
World War 1 (particularly in semiautomatic and automatic weapons), it was used
until shortly after World War 2 as a military round, and as a hunting round even
after that. The shape of the
cartridge makes it difficult to manufacture, and even more difficult for
handloaders to make from scratch.
Today, the 8mm Lebel round is difficult to find.
Other Names:
8x50mmR Lebel, 8mm Lebel Rifle
Nominal Size:
8x50mm
Actual Size:
8.2x50.29mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.33 kg
per box of 100; Price: $106 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.027 kg |
3-round clip: 0.08 kg |
5-round clip: 0.13 kg |
20-round box: 0.87 kg |
24-round strip: 0.84 kg |
30-round strip: 1.04 kg |
100-round belt: 2.66 kg |
249-round “belt”: 6.62 kg |
250-round belt: 6.65 kg |
|
|
|
8mm Mauser
Notes: This is
one of the world’s great rifle cartridges, having been used by dozens of
countries, including Germany, Czechoslovakia, Poland, and China.
Although it is almost universally known as the 8mm Mauser or 7.92mm
Mauser cartridge, it is not in fact a Mauser design, having been designed by the
German Infantry Board Commission at Spandau Arsenal.
It was not even actually designed for a Mauser rifle; the Gew 88 is
actually a modified Mannlicher design.
The original bullet had a rounded nose; when this was changed to a
pointed nose, velocity of the round jumped and it began to outperform comparable
rounds of the time. Due to the vast
numbers of rifles (mostly civilian today) that fire this round, the 8mm Mauser
is still being produced worldwide.
Other Names:
7.92mm Mauser, 7.9x57mmJ, 7.9x57mmJS, 8mm German Mauser, 7.92x57mm, 8x57mm,
8x57mmI, 8x57mmS, 8mmJRS (in its rimmed form).
Nominal Size:
7.92x57mm
Actual Size:
8.2x57mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
37.63 kg per case of 1000; Price: $600 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.03 kg |
2-round box: 0.16 kg |
3-round box: 0.2 kg |
5-round box: 0.29 kg |
5-round clip: 0.15 kg |
10-round box: 0.52 kg |
10-round clip: 0.3 kg |
20-round box: 0.98 kg |
25-round box: 1.21 kg |
25-round strip: 0.98 kg |
30-round box: 1.45 kg |
40-round box: 1.91 kg |
50-round belt: 1.51 kg |
75-round drum: 3.52 kg |
100-round belt: 3.01 kg |
200-round belt: 6.02 kg |
250-round belt: 7.53 kg |
|
|
|
8x51mm Mauser
Notes: This
round was introduced in 1888, and designed for the short-action Mauser rifles of
the period. It is basically a
shorter version of the standard 8mm Mauser round.
It was popular at the time, but was replaced by the 8x56mm Mannlicher
Schoenauer, and later other rounds, reaching the peak of its popularity before
World War 1. It was not well known
in North America. It is about in
the same class as the .30-30 Winchester.
It is not now being produced commercially.
The bullet was relatively heavy at 227 grains.
The round was originally designed for rifles with 7.9mm lands and 8.1mm
grooves diameter; this was changed 1894 to a 7.9mm lands and 8.2mm grooves
dimensions to reduce wear on the bore of the barrel. The round was not otherwise
changed, and is essentially the same round as before.
Nominal Size:
8x51mm
Actual Size:
8.03x50.29mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.19 kg
per box of 100; Price: $102 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.026 kg |
4-round clip: 0.1 kg |
5-round box: 0.25 kg |
|
8mm Mauser M/88
Notes: The predecessor and
parent cartridge of the 8mm Mauser round we all know so well and love, the 8mm
Mauser M/88 bears the same relationship the US .30-03 round has with the .30-06
– it is a lower-tech round with a round-nosed bullet, a different propellant
load, and somewhat different dimensions.
It was one of the first smokeless powder rounds developed, and first used
in the Prussian Gew 88 rifle. It
was also one of the first rounds in the trend towards smaller-caliber, more
powerful cartridges. Further attempts at
improving the round resulted in the now-common 8mm Mauser round.
For Twilight 2000 v2.2 purposes, the 8mm M/88 round is almost identical
in stats to the 8mm Mauser, with only minor differences.
Nominal Size:
7.92x57mm
Actual Size:
8.22x57mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 33.22 kg
per case of 1000; $600 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.03 kg |
5-round clip: 0.15 kg |
|
|
8mm Remington Magnum
Notes: This
round was developed in 1978 as a chambering for the Remington 700 BDL rifle.
It is based on a blown-out version of the .375 H&H Magnum case, and
required that the Remington 700 BDL be redesigned for the chambering.
The 8mm Magnum is similar to several other designs of the period and
earlier, ranging from 8x68mmS to 8mm PMM, as well as several wildcat cartridges.
It was the first 8mm Magnum cartridge developed by an American company,
however. It is easy for handloaders
to produce the 8mm Remington Magnum using any one of several existing cases.
Unfortunately, the results produced by the 8mm Remington Magnum do not
really justify the extra weight and recoil, when the .338 Winchester Magnum or
.340 Weatherby Magnum will produce similar results.
The 8mm Remington Magnum was not, therefore, a very successful round.
Nominal Size:
8x72mm
Actual Size:
8.2x72.39mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.78 kg
per box of 100; Price: $152 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.038 kg |
|
|
|
8x60mm RWS
Notes: After
World War 1, German civilians were forbidden by the Treaty of Versailles to own
hunting weapons in a military caliber (such as 8mm Mauser).
A new round with similar ballistics was therefore devised by RWS, and the
rifles modified in a simple procedure to take the new round.
Later, it became an popular hunting round in Europe., outclassing the 8mm
Mauser and .30-06 Springfield. It
is still manufactured by RWS.
Other Names:
8x60mmJ Mauser, 8x60mmS Mauser
Nominal Size:
8x60mm
Actual Size:
8.08x60.07mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 38.5 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $620 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.031 kg |
4-round box: 0.25 kg |
5-round box: 0.3 kg |
5-round clip: 0.15 kg |
8x68mm RWS
Notes: This
round was first designed in late 1938.
It is basically a “sub-magnum” cartridge, not quite as powerful as an
actual magnum round, but still plenty powerful.
It actually outclasses rounds such as the .300 H&H Magnum, .300
Weatherby, or .300 Winchester Magnum.
It is quite popular in Europe, but almost unknown in North or South
America.
Other Names:
8x68mmS RWS
Nominal Size:
8x68mm
Actual Size:
8.2x67.31mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 44.38 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $710 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.036 kg |
3-round box: 0.24 kg |
4-round box: 0.29 kg |
5-round box: 0.35 kg |
8x75mm RS
Notes: This
round was developed sometime around 1910, and is basically a 9.3x74mmRmm case
necked down to accept an 8mm bullet.
It was designed to provide what was essentially at the time an 8mm Magnum
cartridge for African hunting. At
the time of the 8x75mm RS’s inception, there was a lot of competition between
the British and Germans in the big-game rifle and ammunition arena; while the
Germans made the better rifles, the British always seemed to stay just ahead in
the ammunition power arena; the 8x75mm RS was Germany’s attempt at the time to
produce an 8mm Magnum round for use in express and bolt-action rifles.
Confusion arose over the years as two bullet diameters were actually
used, one which was .318 caliber and one which was .323 caliber; while the .323
caliber bullet will fit into the breech of a rifle designed for .318 caliber,
the bullet usually either gets stuck in the barrel or causes a barrel rupture.
Rimmed and rimless versions were produced.
Eventually, the .318 caliber bullet was standardized.
Ballistics and power of both versions are similar to those of the later
.375 H&H Magnum round. Factory
production of this round today is only in small lots; the 8.75mm RS round seems
to be primarily in the hands of handloaders.
Other names:
8x75mm, 8x75mmRmm (for rimmed versions), 8x75mm Magnum, 8x75mmRmm Magnum (for
rimmed versions), 8x75mm JRS
Nominal Size:
8x75mm
Actual Size:
(Standard) 8.08x74.68mm, (Non-Standard) 8.2x74.68mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight (Standard
Version Only): 4.21 kg per box of 100; Price: $153 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.038 kg |
|
|
|
9mm Mauser Rifle
Notes: Though
the primary cartridge for most German Mauser rifles was the 8mm Mauser round,
Mauser also developed a family of cartridges after the introduction of the
original 8mm Mauser in 1888, based on that original 8mm round, primarily by
necking the 8mm case up or down.
One of these was the 9mm Mauser Rifle round.
For a short time, the 9mm Mauser Rifle round was used in military rifles,
but its most common use throughout its history has been as a hunting round in
Europe and to a lesser extent the US and Canada.
A good number of rifles had 9mm Mauser Rifle chamberings, and it was
factory-loaded in the US and Europe until 1938.
However, the 9mm Mauser Rifle round has long been considered obsolete,
and presently no companies are producing factory cartridges.
The 9mm Mauser Rifle cartridge is in the same class as the .358
Winchester in all categories except for range, but with a pointed-nose bullet
instead of the original round-nosed bullets, it produces decent penetration and
damage within its range. The 9mm
Mauser Rifle round is essentially the province of handloaders these days.
A rimmed version of this round was also made for use in express-type
rifles.
Other Names:
9x57mm Mauser, 9x57mm, 9x57Rmm (for the rimmed version)
Nominal Size:
9x57mm
Actual Size:
9.04x56.9mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.02 kg
per box of 100; Price: $146 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.037 kg |
|
|
|
9mm Russian Rifle
Notes: This
cartridge was designed for the first version of the Medved hunting rifle
(essentially a Dragunov action put into a conventional stock).
It is not known exactly when this cartridge was introduced, but it was
probably in the late 1960s (given when the SVD was introduced).
Soviet civilian hunters wanted to use at least a version of an SVD for
hunting, but wanted their version chambered for the Finnish 9.3x54Rmm Sako
cartridge so they could take down larger animals, but the Dragunov’s designers
could not make that round fit into the Medved/Dragunov’s action (despite the
Sako round and the 7.62 round being
nominally the same length, the Sako round is longer by enough that it
doesn’t fit into a Dragunov action).
The Soviet government also decided that the Dragunov’s action would not
be that heavily-modified in order to
fit the Sako round. Therefore, the
7.62mm Nagant cartridge was simply necked up to take a .35-caliber bullet, with
an appropriate increase in propellant to compensate for the increase in bullet
weight. The 9mm Russian Rifle round
is apparently being manufactured only in small amounts, even in Russia, and the
Medveds chambered for it haven’t been made in decades.
The 9mm Russian Rifle round was always rare outside of Russia itself, and
is even rare inside of Russia now, though for a while it was a popular hunting
round.
Other Names: 9mm
Russian, 9x54Rmm, 9x53Rmm, 9mm Izhmash (or Izhmash Rifle), 9mm Medved
Nominal Size:
9x54mm
Actual Size:
8.89x53.6mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.66 kg
per box of 100; Price: $133 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.033 kg |
4-round box: 0.13 kg |
|
|
9mm SP-5 Complex
Notes: This is
actually a set of several related cartridges, designed by the Russians in the
mid to late 1980s for use in certain special applications, particularly in
silenced weapons and those with very short barrels.
All are essentially necked-up 7.62mm Kalashnikov rounds, loaded with
heavy bullets and low levels of propellant, ensuring their bullets are subsonic
but hard-hitting. This allows them
to be used in silenced weapons, which is in fact the most common use for SP-5
Complex cartridges. There are
currently three known types of rounds in this set: the SP-5 ball round,
essentially a normal jacketed lead bullet; the SP-6 AP bullet, with a steel
core; and the PAB-9, with a somewhat denser steel core that produces a bit
better penetration.
Some of the
weapons which fire these rounds have been offered for export, though it is not
known how many sales have taken place.
The cartridges and the weapons are produced only in Russia and not common
even inside of Russia itself. The
prices below are for standard SP-5 ball ammunition; for SP-6, double the prices,
and for PAB-9, triple the prices shown below.
Nominal Size:
9x39mm
Actual Size:
9.2x38.5mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 2.82 kg
per box of 100; Price: $306 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.026 kg |
10-round box: 0.45 kg |
20-round box: 0.84 kg |
|
9.3mm Brenneke
Notes: This was
Wilhelm Brenneke’s largest and most powerful cartridge.
Brenneke was a designer of high-velocity ammunition for rifles in the
early 20th century, and many of his cartridges are similar to those
of his contemporary, Charles Newton.
Brenneke’s rounds have been much more long lived, however, and many
rifles are still chambered for them to this day.
The 9.3mm Brenneke is a large cartridge which propels a bullet that is
heavy and has a lot of power, almost magnum-class.
Other Names:
9.3x64mm Brenneke
Nominal Size:
9.3x64mm
Actual Size:
9.27x64mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 5.4 kg
per box of 100; Price: $172 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.043 kg |
3-round box: 0.31 kg |
4-round box: 0.36 kg |
5-round box: 0.42 kg |
9.3x62mm Mauser
Notes: This
round dates from 1905, developed by Otto Bock to give Mauser users an adequate
cartridge for African game, though it was soon being used on larger European
game. Rifles were chambered in this
caliber in the US until about 1940, but no major US manufacturer makes rifles
for it now (though some smaller manufacturers, such as A-Square do).
It is a quite common chambering in Europe, and many European rifle
manufacturers make rifles for the 9.3x62mm Mauser.
Ammunition is easy to find in Europe, and somewhat less easy in North
America.
Other Names:
9.3mm Mauser
Nominal Size:
9.3x62mm
Actual Size:
9.27x61.47mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 51.88 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $830 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.042 kg |
2-round box: 0.23 kg |
3-round box: 0.3 kg |
4-round box: 0.37 kg |
5-round box: 0.43 kg |
10-round box: 0.76 kg |
|
|
9.3x74Rmm
Notes: This
rimmed rifle round was Germany’s answer to high-power cartridges in the early
1900s such as some of the Nitro Express rounds.
It is a powerful round that has performance similar to the .375 Flanged
Nitro Express round – good for virtually any game on Earth, including elephants
with a well-placed shot. Rifles are
still made for this round (typically single-shot or double-barreled rifles due
to the rimmed round), and ammunition is still made by RWS and Norma.
Nominal Size:
9.3x74mm
Actual Size:
9.27x74.42mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 62.75 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $1000 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.052 kg |
|
|
|
9.3x66mm Sako
Notes:
Introduced in 2002, the 9,3x66mm Sako was designed specifically for use in
Sako’s Model 75 family of hunting rifles.
The 9.3x66mm Sako has more power and penetration than the 9.3x62mm
Mauser, but can’t quite match the 9.3mm Brenneke for range or the .375 H&H
Magnum for power; it is an “in-between” cartridge.
Sako has developed several bullets for this cartridge, including blunt
and spitzer bullets, and jacketed and bare lead rounds; Nosler-partition rounds
are also included. The 9.3x66mm
Sako remains, however, a limited-production round.
Twilight 2000 Notes: The
9.3x66mm Sako is not available in the Twilight 2000 timeline.
Nominal Size:
9.3x66mm
Actual Size:
9.27x65.44mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.86 kg
per box of 100; Price: $88 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.044 kg |
5-round box: 0.43 kg |
|
|
9.3mm Sauer
Notes:
This is a rimmed round designed for use in single-shot and
double-barreled rifles. Very little
is known about this round and its history today, and it is a very rare round
today. The round has good stopping
power, but only average penetration.
Rifles that fire this round are scarce; casings are largely handmade,
though bullets suitable for this round are made by Barnes and Speer.
Other Names:
9.3x72Rmm
Nominal Size:
9.3x72mm
Actual Size:
9.27x71.88mm
Case Type:
Straight
Weight: 4.88 kg
per box of 100; Price: $156 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.039 kg |
|
|
|
9.3mm SN
Notes: This
round (also commonly known as the 9mm SN) was developed after Russian experience
in Afghanistan Chechnya, where they discovered that the 7.62mm Nagant round
fired by most of their sniper rifles, even the AP version, simply didn’t have
the range for use in very open environments or the punch for effective
countersniper or general sniping work in built up areas.
There is some controversy as to the origins of the round; some sources
say it is a wholly indigenous development, some say it is based on the .338
Lapua Magnum, and some say it is based on either the 9.3mm Sako or 9x64mm
Brenneke round. In fact, the exact
caliber is also in question; some sources give it a nominal size of 9x64mm,
others give it a nominal size of 9.3x64mm.
My research so far seems to lean towards the nominal size of 9.3x64mm,
and that is how I have treated it below.
Either way, the round seems to fall in performance between the .338 Lapua
Magnum and the 9.3x64mm Brenneke rounds, and in addition the bullet is
steel-cored to give it excellent armor penetration, in addition to being rather
heavy. (API and Tracer versions are
also available). The only known
rifle at present to be chambered for 9.3mm SN is the SVDK, a modification of the
SVD Dragunov. The 9.3mm SN seems at
present to be a dedicated sniper round manufactured only in small lots and both
the round and rifle are not in general issue at present.
Twilight 2000
Notes: The 9.3mm SN round does not exist in the Twilight 2000 timeline.
Other Names:
9.3x64mm Russian, 9.0mm SN, 9.3mm Russian, 9x64mm, 9x64mm Russian
Nominal Size:
9.3x64mm (but see above)
Actual Size: 9.45x63.76mm
(Provisional; also, see above)
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.92 kg
per box of 100; Price: $179 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.045 kg |
10-round box: 0.78 kg |
|
|
9.3mm Swiss
Notes:
Primarily a round meant for target shooting, the 9.3mm Swiss round is
known for its sharply pointed bullet.
The chambering is rare in the US, but better-known in Europe.
However, the 9.3mm Swiss is still mostly the province of collectors and
they are not manufactured by any large companies at present, though Barnes and
Speer make the bullets and some other small companies still make the cases.
Nominal Size:
9.3x53mm
Actual Size:
9.27x53.34mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.5 kg
per box of 100; Price: $144 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.036 kg |
|
|
|
9.5mm Mannlicher
Notes: This
round was introduced in 1910 for the Mannlicher-Schoenauer rifle of the period.
No current rifles are chambered for this round, since the round is
difficult to handload or even machine-manufacture due to the strange headspace,
and mistakes are easy to make (and can be fatal to the shooter).
Nonetheless, the round performs well on thick-skinned game, as long as
the game is not too dangerous (due to short range).
The round was an almost exclusively
European round and was seldom seen in North America, though it could be
encountered in Africa in the hands of European hunters.
It is rarely found today, and there are no major manufacturers making it.
Other Names:
9.5mm Mannlicher-Schoenauer, 9.5x57mm MS, .375 Rimless Nitro Express, 9.5x56mm,
9.5x56.7mm
Nominal Size:
9.5x57mm
Actual Size:
9.63x57.15mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 5.2 kg
per box of 100; Price: $166 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.042 kg |
|
|
|
.30 Blaser
Notes: This is a
magnum round designed in 1990 by Blaser Rifle Works and RWS for use in
single-shot and double-barreled break-open rifles.
It is rimmed, so it is not really meant for other types of rifles.
It uses fairly heavy bullets and has velocity that falls between the
.30-06 Springfield and .300 H&H Magnum.
This makes it good for most game of up large size as well as a good
man-stopper.
Other Names:
.30R Blaser
Nominal Size:
7.62x68mm
Actual Size:
7.82x68.07mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 40.88 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $650 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.033 kg |
|
|
|
.30 Carbine
Notes: This
cartridge grew out of the 1940 recommendation by the US Ordnance Department that
a light carbine would have great advantages over the M-1911 pistol in some
circumstances. This led to the M-1
Carbine series, and the ammunition developed for it, the .30 Carbine cartridge.
It is a modification of the .32 Winchester Self Loading design.
The best use for the .30 Carbine cartridge turns out to be not killing
people, but varminting and small game hunting.
Other Names: .30
M-1 Carbine
Nominal Size:
7.62x33mm
Actual Size:
7.82x32.08mm
Case Type:
Straight
Weight:
15.38 kg per case of 1000; Price:
$250 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.012 kg |
7-round box: 0.16 kg |
15-round box: 0.31 kg |
30-round box: 0.59 kg |
40-round box: 0.78 kg |
|
|
|
.30-06 JDJ
Notes: This is
basically a .30-06 Springfield round redesigned for use in the Thompson/Center
Encore single-shot pistol. It has
since been chambered in a few custom rifles and at least one commercial rifle,
but its primary use is still in the Encore.
The .30-06 JDJ actually holds more powder than the .30-06 Springfield due
to the case design. It is an excellent hunting round, slightly better than
comparable rounds, but takes a specially-modified or designed weapon to fire it
due to the neck design.
Nominal Size:
7.62x62mm
Actual Size:
7.82x62.36mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.75 kg
per box of 100; Price: $120 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.03 kg |
|
|
|
.30-40 Krag
Notes: This
round was the first “small-bore” cartridge used by the US military, being
adopted in 1892. It was also one of
the first military rounds to use modern (i.e. smokeless) propellant.
The cartridge virtually disappeared after 1936, until 1973, when Ruger
began chambering some of its falling-block single-shot rifles for .30-40 Krag.
This stimulated new interest in the round, but it remains a relatively
rare round these days.
Other Names: .30
Army
Nominal Size:
7.62x59mm
Actual Size:
7.82x58.67mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.53 kg
per box of 100; Price: $112 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.028 kg |
4-round box: 0.23 kg |
5-round clip: 0.14 kg |
250-round belt: 7.05 kg |
.30 Newton
Notes:
Originally designed in 1913 for Fred Adolph, the .30 Newton was at first called
the Adolph Express. When Charles
Newton began producing his own rifles, he changed the name to .30 Newton.
The rounds were manufactured for Newton by Western Cartridge.
Unfortunately, when Newton’s company failed, the cartridge did too, and
Western Cartridge did not make any .30 Newton cartridges after 1938.
Richard Speer made cases for the round for a time after World War 2, but
also stopped. The round is adequate
for virtually any sort of North American game, if you can find it or a rifle
firing it.
Other Names: .30
Adolph Express
Nominal Size:
7.8x64mm
Actual Size:
7.82x64mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.84 kg
per box of 100; Price: $122 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.031 kg |
5-round clip: 0.15 kg |
|
|
.30 Pedersen
Notes: Just
prior to the US intervention into World War 1, the US Army studied French and
British tactics, and especially, their successes and failures.
The US Army quickly realized what everyone else already knew – that the
most dangerous time for a soldier was when he came out of the trenches to
advance across the “No Man’s Land” between the friendly trench and the objective
enemy trench. As friendly troops
rushed across the intervening terrain, covering fire had to be lifted and
shifted, and was therefore noticeably sparse in the area of the actual advance.
The idea of the Pedersen Device was born from these studies; this was a
parts kit to be dropped into a very-slightly modified M-1903 rifle (there were
also plans for the device to be used with the M-1917, British Enfield, and
Mosin-Nagant rifles, though these never materialized), turning it into a
high-capacity semiautomatic rifle.
Along with the Pedersen Device, Pedersen also designed a new round; though based
on the .30-06 Springfield, it was vastly modified.
The caliber remained the same, but the new round used a much shorter and
lighter bullet, along with a shorter case containing less propellant, minimizing
recoil during sustained fire. It
has been rumored that the case was a longer version, necked down version of the
.32 ACP round; it has been equally rumored that the case is a cut-down .30-06
Springfield case. No sources I have
found seem to agree in this regard.
Regardless
of which is true, the .30 Pedersen round does resemble a rather short .30-06
Springfield bullet in a long .32 ACP case.
The Pedersen Device was to be first fielded during the planned Spring
Offensive of 1919, but the Germans surrendered and the Offensive never happened,
and the rifles were quickly converted back to standard M-1903s.
The cuts made in the receiver for the extraction of the rounds mystified
many troops for decades; it was not until after World War 2 that the existence
of the Pedersen Device was finally made public.
Today, if you
have intact .30 Pedersen ammunition, consider yourself lucky; those bullets are
worth a fortune in real life. If
you have yourself an intact Pedersen Device, you can call yourself astoundingly
lucky; virtually all of them were destroyed between World War 1 and 2, usually
by melting them down. The weight
and price below are given for game purposes only; the actual chance, whether in
game or real-life terms, that one would actually find either a Pedersen Device
or the ammunition are virtually nil.
However, in an
interesting turn of events, the French became very interested in the .30
Pedersen round. In fact, the French
7.65mm Longue round is an almost exact copy of the .30 Pedersen round!
Other Names: .30
M-1918, .32 Pedersen (though this is considered incorrect)
Nominal Size:
7.62x20mm
Actual Size:
7.82x19.81mm
Case Type:
Straight
Weight: 8.36 kg
per box of 100; Price: $30 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.008 kg |
40-round box: 0.48 kg |
|
|
.30 Remington
Notes: The .30
Remington cartridge was introduced in 1908 as a rimless version of the .30-30
Winchester cartridge, specifically for use in its then-new Model 8 semiautomatic
rifle. Since then, several other
rifles by Remington and other companies have chambered the .30 Remington round,
but the last rifle to be built to chamber this round was manufactured just after
World War 2. A lot of confusion
arose when the Remington Model 8 in .30 Remington was introduced – they were
marked as firing “.30-30 Remington” caliber, which led to a lot of inexperienced
shooters becoming frustrated when they bought and then tried to load .30-30
Winchester rounds into their Model 8s!
The .30 Remington cartridge is virtually identical in performance to the
.30-30 Winchester; however, the .30 Remington has a slight edge in range over
the .30-30 Winchester round.
Theoretically, the .30 Remington should be easier to handload, but handloading
data is scarce for the .30 Remington, and most handloaders tend to under-load
the case with propellant.
Factory-made .30 Remington rounds were actually available until the early 21st
century, and the most of the rifles chambered for it are still quite
serviceable, but most of these factory tend to
also be under-loaded with propellant,
unless made by Remington itself or under direction from Remington.
Since the round was factory loaded until recent years, .30 Remington is
still easy to find, whether under-loaded or not.
Other Names:
.30-30 Remington
Nominal Size:
7.8x51.56mm
Actual Size:
7.8x51.56mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 30.8 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $390 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.02 kg |
5-round box: 0.19 kg |
|
|
.30 Remington AR
Notes:
This cartridge was designed in 2008 to fill a perceived gap in hunting
rounds between the .223 Remington and the .308 Winchester.
The design was the product of experts from several companies who did not
wish to be identified; the work was done under the name of “Freedom Group.”
Since then, some company names disclosed include Remington, Bushmaster,
and DPMS; there are others.
However, it is manufactured only by Remington. The .30 Remington AR was designed
specifically for the AR platform, and the first rifle chambered for it was the
Remington R-15. The .30 Remington AR’s parent case was the .450 Bushmaster;
magazines and rifles for it are specifically modified for the round.
Muzzle velocity is high at 850 meters per second.
The .30 Remington AR has a rebated rim, enabling it to be used with an
AR-10 bolt and bolt carrier group. The round has proven itself effective on
small to medium-sized game, but it has not yet caught on with the civilian
public.
Other Names: .30
Rem AR, .30 RAR
Nominal Size:
7.62x39mm
Actual Size:
7.82x38.86mm
Cased Type:
Necked
Weight: 18.7 kg
per box of 100; Price: $75 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.019 kg |
4-round box: 0.15 kg |
|
|
.30-03 Springfield
Notes: This
round was designed to replace the .30-40 Krag as standard US military cartridge
when the Krag rifle was replaced by the M-1903.
The .30-03 Springfield featured a longer case than the .30-40 Krag with
more modern propellant and more velocity than the .30-40 Krag.
It is based on Mauser round designs of the period.
However, the US military was slow to modernize, with the .30-03
Springfield and the M-1903 rifle being adopted slowly.
Meanwhile, the rest of the world was moving to pointed, aerodynamic
spitzer bullets (the .30-03 Springfield uses a round-nosed bullet), and even
better propellant. The .30-03
Springfield thus became rapidly obsolete for military purposes, replaced by the
.30-06 Springfield only three years later.
It was however, for a time, chambered in a version of Winchester’s Model
1895 lever-action rifle, the blunt-nosed bullet being ideal for a lever-action
weapon. Nowdays, .30-03 Springfield
is quite rare; the round is very difficult to handload due to the lack of
suitable cases to modify (a .30-06 Springfield case will not work for this
purpose).
Nominal Size:
7.62x64mm
Actual Size:
7.82x64.52mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.88 kg
per box of 100; Price: $124 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.031 kg |
5-round clip: 0.16 kg |
|
|
.30-06 Springfield
Notes: This
round is a modification of the earlier .30-03 Springfield cartridge.
The biggest change in producing the .30-06 was the new, streamlined,
lightweight spitzer bullet. The
first rifle to be chambered for the .30-06 was the Springfield M-1903 military
rifle, and its use grew by leaps and bounds, eventually becoming the standard US
military rifle and light machinegun round as well as a wildly popular civilian
round both in the US and other parts of the world.
It is one of the most versatile rounds in the world, with the ability to
take down everything from small game to medium-large game to of course, man.
Other Names:
7.62x63mm, .30 Government M’06, .30 US Service, .30 Browning
Nominal Size:
7.62x63mm
Actual Size:
7.82x63.2mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
38 kg per case of 1000; Price:
$610 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.03 kg |
2-round box: 0.16 kg |
3-round box: 0.2 kg |
4-round box: 0.25 kg |
4-round clip: 0.12 kg |
5-round box: 0.3 kg |
5-round clip: 0.15 kg |
7-round box: 0.39 kg |
8-round clip: 0.24 kg |
10-round box: 0.53 kg |
10-round clip: 0.3 kg |
20-round box: 0.99 kg |
30-round box: 1.46 kg |
30-round strip: 1.19 kg |
32-round box: 1.55 kg |
47-round pan: 2.25 kg |
100-round belt: 3.04 kg |
250-round belt: 7.6 kg |
|
|
.30-378 Weatherby Magnum
Notes: This
round was originally developed specifically for 1000-yard benchrest
competitions. It was created by
necking down the .378 Weatherby to .30 caliber.
The round was manufactured in very small amounts until 1996, when
Weatherby asked Norma to manufacture the round, and it was factory-standardized
in 1998. The .30-378 Weatherby
Magnum is very handloader-friendly, easy to produce and wildcat.
Though light bullets exist for this cartridge, the .30-378 does best with
bullets greater than 200 grains in weight.
The round is, however, known to wear out barrels very fast.
Other Names:
.30-378 Weatherby
Nominal Size:
7.8x74mm
Actual Size:
7.82x73.66mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.46 kg
per box of 100; Price: $138 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.035 kg |
|
|
|
.30-30 Winchester
Notes: This
round was the first small-bore smokeless powder cartridge; it was designed for
the original Winchester 1894 lever-action rifle.
Many other companies have picked up on it over the years; it is very
nearly the ideal lever-action rifle centerfire cartridge, and also works well in
bolt-action, break-open, pump-action, and even some semiautomatic rifles.
One of the attractions of the .30-30 Winchester is that it performs well
in short carbines and light rifles.
It is a good round for use against medium game as well as people, but the
velocity can fall off dramatically due to its blunt-nosed design.
Other Names:
.30-30 Winchester Centerfire, .30 Winchester, 7.62x51Rmm
Nominal Size:
7.62x51.56mm
Actual size:
7.82x51.56mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
31 kg per case of 1000; Price $400 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.02 kg |
3-round box: 0.13 kg |
4-round box: 0.16 kg |
5-round box: 0.19 kg |
.30-338 Winchester Magnum
Notes:
Originally a wildcat round developed specifically for 1000-yard benchrest
competitions, the .30-338 Winchester Magnum has recently been used in a number
of custom and semi-commercial rifles.
It is a .338 Winchester Magnum necked down to accept a .30-caliber
bullet. It almost exactly
duplicates the ballistics of the .308 Norma Magnum, and it is possible that
Winchester would have offered the .30-338 Winchester Magnum as a mainstream
round if Norma hadn’t beaten them to it.
It is a quite powerful round for its size.
Nominal Size:
7.62x64mm
Actual Size:
7.82x63.5mm
Case Type: Necked
Weight: 3.81 kg
per box of 100; Price: $122 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.031 kg |
|
|
|
.30-40 Krag
Notes: The
.30-40 Krag, adopted by the US Army for their version of the Danish Krag rifle
in 1892, was one of the first smokeless powder cartridges fielded by any army in
the world. In fact, though civilian
weapons and rounds usually lead the way in design, the first civilian smokeless
powder rifle round would not appear until 1895 (a version of the .30-30).
The .30-40 Krag was also chambered in civilian rifles in 1893 in several
Remington and Winchester rifles.
The .30-40 Krag, though it enjoyed a US military yse of only 10 years, has far
outlived its military use; rifles are still sold that are chambered for it.
This is because the .30-40 Krag has decent range and good stopping power
on medium and semi-large game. The
.30-40 Krag does not have the power of the .30-06 or 7.62mm NATO/.308
Winchester, but it has slightly less kick (not quantifiable in game terms,
unfortunately), and a flatter trajectory.
It is also flexible in its propellant load and bullet weight; many
wildcats have been based on the .30-40 Krag.
Other Names: .30
Army, .30 USA
Nominal Size:
7.62x59mm
Actual Size:
7.82x58.67mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 31.02 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $560 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.028 kg |
4-round box: 0.23 kg |
5-round clip: 0.14 kg |
|
.32 Remington
Notes: This
round was introduced specifically for the Remington Model 8 semiautomatic rifle,
and is basically a rimless version of the .32 Winchester Special.
It was later chambered in a variety of Remington pump-action and
bolt-action rifles, but it was discontinued long ago.
It basically duplicates the .32 Winchester Special’s ballistics and
damaging potential.
Nominal Size:
8x52mm
Actual Size:
8.13x51.82mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.36 kg
per box of 100; Price: $108 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.027 kg |
5-round box: 0.26 kg |
|
|
.32-20 Winchester
Notes: This very
old round was introduced in 1882 by Winchester for its Model 73 lever-action
rifle. It quickly gained popularity
both as a rifle and revolver round.
Most American firearms manufacturers have probably chambered a rifle or revolver
for the round at one point or another in their history.
The .32-20 Winchester successfully made the leap to modern propellants,
Remington and Winchester still offer both cases and manufactured ammunition.
The .32-30 is not a very powerful round, but is popular with farmers,
ranchers, trappers, and varmint hunters.
One can hunt small game with the round while being reasonably sure that
you will not destroy too much meat.
Other Names:
.32-20 Winchester Centerfire, .32-20 WCF, .32 Winchester
Nominal Size:
8x34mm
Actual Size:
7.92x33.53mm
Case Type:
Straight
Weight: 16.5 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $260 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.013 kg |
3-round box: 0.09 kg |
|
|
.32-40 Winchester
Notes: This
round was introduced in 1884 as a blackpowder match-quality round.
It later made the jump to smokeless powder, but was never really popular
except as a starting point for wildcatters.
The .32-40 Winchester has been long out of production by most major
companies, but Winchester manufactured a few lots temporarily in early 1980s for
its John Wayne Commemorative Rifle.
Today, few manufactured rounds exist, though handloading is fairly easy using a
number of cases as a starting point.
Other Names:
.32-40, .32-40 Ballard
Nominal Size:
8x54mm
Actual Size:
8.13x54.1mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.51 per
box of 100; Price: $112 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.028 kg |
5-round box: 0.27 kg |
|
|
.32 Winchester Self-Loading
Names:
The fortunes of this round rose and fell with the Winchester Model 1905
semiautomatic rifle for which it was designed – the rifle was discontinued in
1920, and the .32 Winchester Self-Loading round with it.
It is probably a smaller version of the .35 Winchester Self-Loading round
(though this is not certain). .32
Winchester Self-Loading round’s main claim to fame however, is that it was the
cartridge upon which the .30 Carbine round was based.
The .32 Winchester Self-Loading is virtually impossible to find these
days, and can probably be found only in handloaded form.
The round was never popular; neither range nor damaging potential are
exceptional.
Other Names: .32
Winchester Self-Loading Rifle, .32 WSL
Nominal Size:
8x33mm
Actual Size:
8.13x32.51mm
Case Type:
Straight
Weight: 1.69 kg
per box of 100; Price: $54 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.014 kg |
5-round box: 0.13 kg |
10-round box: 0.24 kg |
|
.32 Winchester Special
Notes: This
round was one of the original smokeless powder designs.
It was introduced in 1902 for the Winchester 1894 lever-action rifle.
Because of the rimmed design, it has never been used in anything but
lever-action and single-shot rifles.
Until recently, Federal, Remington, and Winchester made factory loads in
.32 Winchester Special, but this has since stopped.
The flat-nosed bullet does not lend itself well to ballistics, and the
case design does not allow much variation in propellant load, but modern loads
can easily beat out the .30-30. It
can also be used as a blackpowder cartridge.
Nominal Size:
8x52mm
Actual Size:
8.15x51.82mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 33.75 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $540
Magazines:
Per round: 0.027 kg |
|
|
|
.33 BSA
Notes: This
round was introduced in 1921 by Birmingham Small Arms company for its sporting
rifle based on the 1914 Enfield rifle.
It was not a popular cartridge, and it was quickly discontinued.
The problem with the round is its light bullet; it tends to lose velocity
rapidly and fail to penetrate properly on heavy and even medium game.
Handloaders using heavier bullets had better luck, but this was a rare
modification that tended to rapidly wear out the rifle.
This is now an extremely rare cartridge, the province of a few
handloaders.
Other Names: .33
Belted Rimless, .330 BSA
Nominal Size:
8.38x61mm
Actual Size:
8.59x60.96mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.41 kg
per box of 100; Price: $142 per box
Magazine:
Per round: 0.035 kg |
5-round clip: 0.18 kg |
|
|
.33 Newton
Notes: This
proprietary round was, like the .30 and .35 Newton, was developed by Charles
Newton in the early 20th century for Newton’s short-lived series of
rifles. It has the same history as
the Newton rifle and the other Newton cartridges – introduced in 1915, and
finally disappearing in 1936 after Newton went out of business after three tries
at building and re-building his company.
It is essentially a necked-up .30 Newton cartridge, and is really not
must different in size than the .35 or .30 Newton cartridges.
It also suffered from the same shortcomings as the other Newton rounds –
too powerful for North American or European game, and too powerful for the light
weight of the rifle Newton developed. The .33 Newton round today is pretty much
only going to be found handloaded – and few people, if any, are handloading any
of the Newton cartridges these days.
Nominal Size:
9x64mm
Actual Size:
8.59x64mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.27 kg
per box of 100; Price: $119 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.03 kg |
5-round clip: 0.15 kg |
|
|
.35 Newton
Notes: This is
another proprietary cartridge used by Charles Newton for his short-lived rifles.
It was introduced in 1915 (manufactured for Newton by Western Cartridge),
but withdrawn in 1936 after Newton went out of business for the last time.
It is basically a necked-up .30 Newton.
The .35 Newton round is really too powerful for hunting in North America,
and is better used against African game.
The Newton rifles were also too light for the power of the cartridge.
Virtually the only way to get a .35 Newton round these days is through
handloading, which is described as extremely difficult.
Nominal Size:
9.09x64mm
Actual Size:
9.09x64mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.65 kg
per box of 100; Price: $133 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.033 kg |
5-round clip: 0.17 kg |
|
|
.35 Remington
Notes: This is
an old round first introduced for the Remington 8 semiautomatic rifle in 1906.
For a while, it was a rather popular round, with about a dozen rifles
chambered for it. However, Marlin
is currently the only company that chambers rifles for it, and Remington’s
XP-100 and Thompson/Center’s single-shot handguns also fire the .35 Remington.
.35 Remington ammunition is still being made, but not in the numbers it
once was. The .35 Remington has
better striking power than the .30-30 Winchester, due to the heavier bullet, but
the range is not exceptional.
Other Names:
.35-30 Remington
Nominal Size:
9x49mm
Actual Size:
9.09x48.77mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.95 per
box of 100; Price: $126 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.032 kg |
4-round box: 0.26 kg |
5-round box: 0.31 kg |
|
.35 Whelan
Notes: There is
some controversy as to whether Colonel Townsend Whelan actually was involved in
the creation of this round, or James Howe simply named the round after Colonel
Whelan, who was a noted gun authority at the time.
It began as a wildcat round that was simply a necked up .30-06
Springfield round, without any other significant changes.
Ackley later improved the round, changing the case to eliminate headspace
problems, underpowering in the propellant charge, and poor ballistics.
Though Remington chose to manufacture the earlier, inferior version in
1987, they later switched to the improved version.
The .35 Whelan is good for hunting game on the smallish-side of medium up
to large North American game, and is easily handloaded.
Nominal Size:
9x64mm
Actual Size:
9.09x63.5mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 5.15 kg per
box of 100; Price: $164 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.041 kg |
|
|
|
.35 Winchester
Notes: This
round was introduced in 1903 as a new chambering for Winchester’s Model 1895
lever-action rifle. It was later
put into some bolt-action rifles.
Winchester discontinued manufacture of the round in 1936, but it was listed for
sale as late as 1962 in a British ammunition catalog.
The .35 Winchester is based on a necked-up version of the .30-40 Krag
case. The round is useful against
almost all North American game, but many newer cartridges are better in range
and stopping power.
Nominal Size:
9x61mm
Actual Size:
9.09x61.21mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.96 kg
per box of 100; Price: $158 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.004 kg |
5-round clip: 0.2 kg |
|
|
.35 Winchester Self-Loading
Notes: This
round was designed for use in the Winchester Model 1905 semiautomatic rifle.
The Model 1905 was the only firearm to use the .35 Winchester
Self-loading round, and the round is so poor that when the round was
discontinued in 1920, with the rifle itself following soon thereafter.
It is effective against small game, and marginally effective against
medium game, but only at short ranges.
It is underpowered and it was also too expensive at the time it was
offered for sale. It is an
interesting note that most revolvers chambered for .357 Magnum/.38 Special can
also chamber and fire the .35 Winchester Self-Loading round without a problem,
though why one would want to do this is unknown since the .357 Magnum and .38
Special rounds are both more effective.
Any .35 Winchester Self-Loading rounds in existence today are probably
handloads.
Other Names: .35
WSL, .35 Winchester Auto
Nominal Size:
9x29mm
Actual Size:
8.92x28.96mm
Case Type:
Straight
Weight: 1.81 kg
per box of 100; Price: $58 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.015 kg |
5-round box: 0.14 kg |
10-round box: 0.25 kg |
|
.38-50 Ballard
Notes: Though
long considered obsolete for most purposes, the rifles chambered for the .38-50
Ballard can still be found from time to time.
The .38-50 Ballard was introduced in 1876 as a blackpowder round, but
later made the transition to smokeless powder after the cases were strengthened
by making the walls thicker (the so-called “Everlasting” case).
The .38-50 Ballard was for the most part replaced by a later version in
1884 (the .38-55 Ballard). Though
Lyman makes small quantities of these cartridges as factory loads, for the most
part the .38-50 Ballard is in the realm of handloaders.
It should be noted that bullet molds for this round must be ordered or
made very carefully, as most rifle-caliber “.38” rounds use a bullet that is
actually .375 caliber, while the .38-50 Ballard uses a bullet that is
.379-caliber and is a bit longer than the average .38-caliber rifle bullet.
Modern cases for the .38-55 Ballard (available from several sources) can
be used for reloading, suitably trimmed in length.
The .38-50 Ballard round is quite similar to its later descendant in
performance, especially when loaded with heavier bullets than an equivalent
.38-55 Ballard rifle.
Other Names:
.38-50 Ballard Perfection, .38-50 Everlasting
Nominal Size:
9.65x51mm
Actual Size:
9.55x50.8mm
Case Type:
Straight
Weight: 3.2 kg
per box of 100; Price: $116 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.029 kg |
|
|
|
.38-55 Ballard
Notes: The
.38-55 Ballard was originally developed in 1884 as a target-shooting cartridge,
based on the earlier .38-50 Ballard cartridge.
The .38-55 was dropped from most ammunition catalogs and rifle
chamberings around 1940 when Winchester stopped making the Model 94 lever-action
rifle in .38-55 Ballard (which they called .38-55 Winchester), and Winchester
stopped producing factory loads in 1970.
In the late 1990s Winchester reintroduced a .38-55 Ballard chambering for
the Model 94, and a few other modern rifles are also now chambered for this
round; Winchester is therefore again producing the .38-55 Ballard round, both in
smokeless powder and blackpowder versions (the statistics below are for the
smokeless powder version, but both rounds are designed to produce equivalent
ballistics). The .38-55 Ballard is
a hard-hitting round capable of taking down medium and some large North American
and European game, but as current smokeless powder factory lots are not
recommended for use in antique rifles, lots of handloaders are also making the
.38-55 Ballard. As with the .38-50
Ballard, molds must be made or chosen carefully, as the bullet is not what is
normally considered a “.38” caliber rifle bullet.
Twilight 2000
Notes: In the Twilight 2000 timeline, factory-made case lots are rare and rather
old; in addition, the cost of this round should be doubled for the Twilight 2000
timeline, and the GM should use box lots.
Other Names:
.38-55 Winchester, .38-55 Perfection, .38-55 Everlasting, .38-55 Winchester &
Ballard
Nominal Size:
9.65x54mm
Actual Size:
9.55x53.85mm
Case Type:
Straight
Weight: 33.99 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $620 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.031 kg |
|
|
|
.38-72 Winchester
Notes:
This round was designed specifically for the Winchester Model 1895
lever-action rifle. The cartridge
was considered obsolete along with the rifle and discontinued in 1936.
It was never really a popular cartridge.
It was advertised by Winchester as being a very powerful .38 caliber
cartridge; it was, in fact, only moderately powerful, and is ballistically only
a mediocre round. Handloading is
very difficult, and very few cartridges of this type exist today.
Nominal Size:
9.5x65mm
Actual Size:
9.6x65.53mm
Case Type:
Straight
Weight: 4.74 kg
per box of 100; Price: $152 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.038 kg |
5-round clip: 0.19 kg |
|
|
.300 Blackout
Notes: Though
there is military and police interest in the .300 Whisper cartridge, an unnamed
US military customer approached AAC in 2006, asking AAC if they could come up
with a round to handle perceived shortcomings with the .300 Whisper round.
Some of these shortcomings included lack of full suppressor
compatibility, lower than expected lethality, and less quietness when suppressed
than expected. AAC has been cagey
about who this customer is, and even other ammunition companies do not want to
talk about it. The .300 Blackout
round can, with heavy bullets, deliver effective suppression at subsonic
velocities or, with lighter bullets, deliver supersonic rounds with lethality
and range similar to that of the 7.62mm Kalashnikov round.
Robert Silvers of AAC came up with the round, but was reportedly working
on the .300 Blackout before the 2006 request for it.
The .300 Blackout is essentially an improved .300 Whisper round.
Right now, Remington makes the actual ammunition.
Other Names:
.300 AAC Blackout, .300 AAC-BLK, .300 BLK
Nominal Size:
7.62x35mm
Actual Size:
7.85x34.75mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
2.1 kg per case of 100; Price: $67 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.017 kg |
5-round box: 0.16 kg |
10-round box: 0.29 kg |
20-round box: 0.55 kg |
30-round box: 0.81 kg |
|
|
|
.300 Dakota
Notes: This
round is based on the .404 Jeffrey case, shortened to create a cartridge of
.30-06 length, and a large rim. It
is, of course, necked down to 7.62mm.
The result is a relatively short magnum cartridge that duplicates the
performance of some longer magnums.
Other Names:
.300 Dakota Magnum
Nominal Size:
7.62x65mm
Actual Size:
7.82x64.77mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.89 kg
per box of 100; Price: $124 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.031 kg |
|
|
|
.300 Fireball
Notes:
The .300 Fireball was based on the .221 Fireball; however, instead of
being based on the .223 Remington, the .300 Fireball was based on the .300
Whisper round, shortened, given a lighter bullet, and a heavy charge of
propellant, like the .221 Fireball.
This gives the .300 Fireball superior range, muzzle velocity, speed, and a
flatter trajectory than the .308 Winchester.
However, the .300 Fireball has not yet received SAAMI certification, and
is considered a wildcat round, with few rifles chambered for it as of yet.
The .300 Fireball can be used with standard AR-15 magazines (with a new
follower and a lesser capacity); it can also be used with 7.62mm Kalashnikov
magazines (though not drums) without a new follower.
The rifle in question must be designed for the magazines in question. The
.300 Fireball does well with a suppressor, particularly with a sub-load.
Other Names:
300/221 Fireball
Nominal Size:
7.62x40mm
Actual Size:
7.59x40.33mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 18.2 kg
per box of 100; Price: $730 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.018 kg |
3-round box: 0.12 kg |
5-round box: 0.18 kg |
7-round box: 0.23 kg |
10-round box: 0.32 kg |
15-round box: 0.46 kg |
20-round box: 0.6 kg |
22-round box: 0.65 kg |
30-round box: 0.87 kg |
|
|
|
.300 H&H Magnum
Notes: This
round was introduced by Holland & Holland in 1925 as Holland’s Super 30, and it
was quickly picked up by the US firm of Western Cartridge Co.
It remained, however, a rare and exotic round until about 1935, when Ben
Comfort won the Wimbledon Cup Match with a rifle chambered for the .300 H&H
Magnum, and it then became an “overnight” sensation.
British, American, and European rifles chambered for the cartridge
proliferated, and it is still one of the standard chamberings for European
rifles, though it is now a rather rare American chambering.
The .300 H&H Magnum has a lot of power and is not generally used for game
smaller than antelope. It has
suffered in comparison to the .300 Winchester Magnum and .300 Weatherby Magnum,
due to the heavier weight of the ammunition and similar striking power.
Other Names:
.300 Holland & Holland Magnum, .300 H&H Super, Holland’s Super 30
Nominal Size:
7.8x72mm
Actual Size:
7.82x72.39mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 43.5 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $700 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.035 kg |
4-round box: 0.29 kg |
5-round box: 0.34 kg |
|
.300 Pegasus
Notes:
Introduced in 1994, the .300 Pegasus is essentially a beltless version of the
.378 Weatherby Magnum round necked down to .300.
This gives the .300 Pegasus bullet phenomenal velocity, though the choice
of bullets is small – a selection of 150-grain and 180-grain bullets.
The rifle to fire the .300 Pegasus must be chosen with care and have
rather strong innards – the .300 Pegasus develops over 62,000 psi of chamber
pressure. The .300 Pegasus shoots
flat and has great penetration and striking power, even at the long ranges that
the round can deliver.
Nominal Size:
7.62x76mm
Actual Size:
7.82x75.95mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.02 kg
per box of 100; Price: $146 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.037 kg |
|
|
|
.300 Remington Short-Action UltraMag
Notes: This
round was introduced in 2001 as a competitor to Winchester’s .300 Short Magnum.
It is the same basic idea, being a short, fat cartridge with much more
propellant than is normal for a cartridge of its length.
It is uses a bullet similar to that of the .308 Winchester (7.62mm NATO),
and may be thought of as a “wildcat” 7.62mm NATO cartridge.
Right now, not many rifles chamber it, but popularity is growing.
Twilight 2000
Notes: This round does not exist.
Other Names:
.300 RSAUM, .300 Short Action UltraMag, .300 SAUM
Nominal Size:
7.62x51mm
Actual Size:
7.82x51.18mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 38.4 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $490 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.031 kg |
5-round box: 0.27 kg |
9-round box: 0.39 kg |
|
.300 Savage
Notes: Once a
very popular cartridge, the .300 Savage was introduced in 1920 for the Savage 99
lever-action rifle. The .300 Savage
was meant to produce ballistics similar to that of the .30-06 Springfield, but
in a medium-length cartridge.
Savage and Remington chambered several rifles for the .300 Savage over the
years, but it fell out of favor when the .308 Winchester (7.62mm NATO) cartridge
was introduced. However, since so
many rifles chambered for the .300 Savage cartridge still exist, ammunition is
still being made.
Nominal Size:
7.62x48mm
Actual Size:
7.82x47.5mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 28.5 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $460 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.023 kg |
4-round box: 0.19 kg |
5-round box: 0.22 kg |
|
.300 Remington Short-Action UltraMag
Notes: The
Remington Short-Action UltraMag was introduced in 2001, pretty much for no other
reason than to compete with the .300 Winchester Short Magnum round, in their
rifles and as many other manufacturer’s rifles as possible.
Therefore, the performance of the Remington and Winchester rounds is
virtually identical. The
Short-Action round is, like the .300 Remington UltraMag round, is based on a
necked-down and shortened .404 Jeffery round, and is basically a shorter version
of the .300 Remington UltraMag, and produces similar performance in a shorter
rifle action.
Twilight 2000
Notes: This round does not exist in the Twilight 2000 timeline.
Other Names:
.300 RSAUM, .300 Short-Action Ultra-Magnum/UltraMagnum, .300 SAUM
Nominal Size:
7.8x52mm
Actual Size:
7.82x51.82mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 27.39 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $500 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.025 kg |
10-round box: 0.43 kg |
20-round box: 0.82 kg |
|
.300 Remington UltraMag
Notes: This
round was introduced in 1999. It
began a trend towards big, beltless magnum rounds.
The .300 UltraMag retains more energy throughout its flight than either
the .300 Weatherby Magnum or the .300 Winchester Magnum.
The case is based on a necked-down .404 Jeffery case, with a rebated rim.
It has been known to achieve a 100% kill rate against game as big as
moose.
Twilight 2000
Notes: This round does not exist.
Other Names:
.300 UltraMag (or UltraMagnum), .300 Ultra Magnum, .300 Remington Ultra Magnum
Nominal Size:
7.8x72mm
Actual Size:
7.82x72.26mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 43.4 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $1380 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.035 kg |
3-round box: 0.23 kg |
|
|
.300 Weatherby Magnum
Notes: This
round is Weatherby’s most popular cartridge.
It was developed in 1944, and first sold commercially in 1948.
The .300 Weatherby Magnum is one of the most popular chamberings for
custom rifle makers, and other rifle manufacturers have offered the chambering
on and off, but only Weatherby offers rifles chambered for the .300 Weatherby
Magnum on a regular basis.
Ammunition is a bit easier to find, being made by Weatherby, Norma, Remington,
and PMC. The .300 Weatherby Magnum
can be difficult to work with; it’s high-velocity round leads to a lot of barrel
wear, it doesn’t function well in shorter barrels, and recoil can be stiff.
It is, however, a powerful and effective cartridge.
Nominal Size:
7.8x72mm
Actual Size:
7.82x71.76mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 43.13 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $690 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.035 kg |
3-round box: 0.23 kg |
4-round box: 0.28 kg |
5-round box: 0.34 kg |
.300 Whisper
Notes: The .300
Whisper was originally conceived as a .308 round that would work well with
silencers and suppressors, as in its original configuration and loadings, is
natively subsonic, but heavy and with decent penetration.
Since then, some supersonic loadings have been design, but it retains
it’s original design of a relatively short case firing a long, heavy, boattailed
bullet. The .300 Whisper was the
result of experimentation by JD Jones, known to many as the “mad scientist of
ammunition,” and known for wildcat rounds that almost always result in
performance increases. The .300
Whisper was based on several rounds used by metallic silhouette shooters, and
proved capable of punching through thick steel targets (like those used by
metallic silhouette shooters…) at short to medium ranges.
A secondary
consideration was the ability to use rifle rounds in short-barreled rifles and
submachineguns; this is part of the reason why the round was kept short.
During
development, the .300 Whisper was sometimes known as the .300/221, as the round
a modified .221 Fireball case to fire a .308 bullet.
The .300 Whisper had a lot of growing pains, something Mr. Jones still
smiles about. Fitting the .308
bullet into a .221 Fireball case, in particular, produced many cracked case
heads, tilted case heads, split cases, and bulged shoulders.
In the past few
years, interest in the .300 Whisper took off, including some military and police
interest. The US military in
particular were, and reportedly still are, interested in the .300 Whisper for
Special Operations use.
In the end,
major manufacturers like Winchester and Nosler became interested enough to
mass-produce the .300 Whisper.
Nominal Size:
7.62x35mm
Actual Size:
7.82x34.02mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 2.04 kg
per case of 100; Price: $65 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.016 kg |
5-round box: 0.16 kg |
10-round box: 0.28 kg |
20-round box: 0.53 kg |
30-round box: 0.78 kg |
|
|
|
.300 Winchester Magnum
Notes: This
round was first introduced in 1963 for the Winchester M-70 bolt-action rifle,
and most American and European sporting rifle manufacturers have since chambered
rifles for it. It is also slowly
becoming a replacement round in some countries for the 7.62mm NATO round for
sniping purposes. It is a round
with excellent range and decent hitting power, though some studies suggest that
it is not the best round for penetrating body armor.
Nominal Size:
7.62x66mm
Actual Size:
7.82x66.55mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
40 kg per case of 1000; Price:
$640 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.032 kg |
2-round box: 0.17 kg |
3-round box: 0.21 kg |
4-round box: 0.26 kg |
5-round box: 0.31 kg |
6-round box: 0.36 kg |
7-round box: 0.41 kg |
8-round box: 0.46 kg |
9-round box: 0.51 kg |
10-round box: 0.56 kg |
20-round box: 1.05 kg |
|
.300 Winchester Short Magnum
Notes: This
round, introduced in 2000, was one of the first rounds to feature the short, fat
case to allow magnum performance in a short-action rifle.
It virtually duplicates the velocity of a .300 Winchester Magnum round
while delivering somewhat better performance and utilizing some 10% less
propellant. The cartridge draws
upon decades of wildcat experiments, but is an original Winchester design.
It should be noted that while the .300 Winchester Short Magnum will
sometimes chamber in a rifle designed to fire .300 RSAUM ammunition, doing so
will almost invariably lead to a chamber explosion, as the headspace is
different.
Twilight 2000
Notes: This round does not exist in the Twilight 2000 timeline.
Other Names:
.300 WSM
Nominal Size:
7.62x53mm
Actual Size:
7.82x53.34mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 35.2 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $510 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.026 kg |
3-round box: 0.19 kg |
5-round box: 0.28 kg |
10-round box: 0.51 kg |
.303 British
Necked:
One of the longest-lived military cartridges in history, the .303 British
round was adopted in 1888 and remained in British military service until
replaces by the 7.72mm NATO round in 1957.
Originally a blackpowder round, the .303 British successfully made the
leap to smokeless powder. The .303
British is the round that gave rise to the term “Dum-Dum Bullet;” a British Army
captain perfected an expanding for use against Indian tribesmen, primarily by
cutting away the bullet jacket to expose the lead core.
When this was declared illegal for war use, the bullet was changed so
that it was literally too long for its weight, so it would tumble upon impact
with flesh. The jacketed bullets
still tend to break up on impact, causing further damage to an enemy or game.
The .303 British round is still being made in the US and by Norma of
Sweden.
Other Names:
7.7x56Rmm, .303 Lee-Enfield, 7mm Type 897, 7mm Arisaka
Nominal Size:
7.7x56mm
Actual Size:
7.9x56.13mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
34.38 kg per case of 1000; Price: $550 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.028 kg |
5-round box: 0.27 kg |
5-round clip: 0.14 kg |
10-round box: 0.48 kg |
25-round box: 1.11 kg |
30-round box: 1.32 kg |
40-round box: 1.74 kg |
47-round pan: 2.04 kg |
97-round pan: 4.14 kg |
250-round belt: 6.88 kg |
|
|
.303 Savage
Notes: The .303
Savage was originally designed for a military cartridge competition in 1895.
It failed in that regard, but it was used as one of the chamberings for
the Savage Model 1899 lever-action rifle, and was later chambered in the Savage
99 rifle. After World War 2, Savage
decided to drop this round, and production has never resumed commercially.
The .303 Savage is similar in appearance to the .30-30 Winchester, but
they are not interchangeable, and the .303 Savage round is more powerful than
the .30-30 Winchester. The .303
Savage is, however, ballistically quite inferior to the .30-30 Winchester due to
its blunt nose; Savage never tried pointed bullets in the round, though many
wildcatters have in the intervening years.
The British call this round the .301 Savage.
Other Names:
.301 Savage
Nominal Size:
7.62x51mm
Actual Size:
7.9x51.18mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 3.14 kg
per box of 100; Price: $100 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.025 kg |
|
|
|
.307 Winchester
Notes: This
cartridge was developed in 1980, made for the Winchester M-94XTR rifle.
The “.307” measurement is somewhat of a misnomer; the .307 Winchester
round is actually a rimmed version of the .308 Winchester (7.62mm NATO in the
Twilight 2000 game) with a slight difference in cartridge length.
The rimmed cartridge works better than the 7.62mm NATO round in a
lever-action rifle. It is actually
possible to chamber and fire 7.62mm NATO cartridges in some rifles designed for
the .307 Winchester round; however, this is considered a dangerous and unsafe
practice.
Nominal Size:
7.6x51mm
Actual Size:
7.82x51.31mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
30.75 kg per case of 1000; Price:
$490 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.025 kg |
|
|
|
.308 Marlin Express
Notes:
Essentially meant to be a ballistic match for the 7.62mm NATO/.308 Winchester
round but with a little hotter performance, the .308 Marlin Express is also
meant to be a round which will feed reliably in virtually all lever-action
rifles (most lever-actions have to be specially-designed to be able to fire
something like the 7.62mm NATO and most other pointed bullets).
Marlin teamed up with Hornady on this one; Hornady designed what was
essentially a semi-rimmed version of the 7.62mm NATO/.308 Winchester round, with
Hornady’s patented spire-pointed flex-tip LEVERevolution tip.
(This is a pointed round, but has a semi-flexible synthetic “ballistic
cap,” eliminating the danger of one round setting off another inside a tubular
magazine.) The .308 Marlin Express
round actually is factory-loaded with 2 grains less propellant than a standard
civilian .308 Winchester round, but the design of the round is such that the
ballistics are virtually identical, and it actually slightly out-ranges and hits
harder than the 7.72mm NATO/.308 Winchester.
The .308 Marlin Express and the rifles which fire it are only now (as of
mid-February 2007) becoming available, and the only company that makes the round
is Hornady.
Twilight 2000
Notes: the .308 Marlin Express round in not available in the Twilight 2000
timeline.
Nominal Size:
7.8x50mm
Actual Size:
7.82x48.39mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 25.52 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $460 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.023 kg |
|
|
|
.308 Norma Magnum
Notes: The .308
Norma Magnum was introduced in Sweden in 1960; it was basically a commercial
version of a wildcat round, and at the time no commercially-manufactured rifles
were chambered for it. Manufactured
rifles came later, but today, the .308 Norma Magnum is largely a round for
custom rifles (though a few commercial rifles are chambered for it).
It is ballistically almost identical to the .30-338 wildcat round (a
necked-down .338 Winchester Magnum).
The .308 Norma Magnum is adequate for most North American and European
game and does well against most African game as well.
Nominal Size:
7.62x65mm
Actual Size:
7.82x65mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 39 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $620 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.031 kg |
3-round box: 0.21 kg |
4-round box: 0.26 kg |
5-round box: 0.3 kg |
10-round box: 0.54 kg |
|
|
|
.325 Winchester Short Magnum
Notes:
Introduced in 2005, the .325 Short Magnum round was designed to bridge the gap
between the .300 Winchester Short Magnum round and heavier magnum rounds, as
well as to provide a larger-caliber short magnum round capable of downing the
largest North American game. Damage
and penetration are similar to the .338 Winchester Magnum, while range potential
is greater, and a shorter case and action can be used.
This allows for an overall more compact and lighter rifle with excellent
stopping power. Trajectory tends to
be quite flat, even at medium-long ranges.
The .325 Winchester Short Magnum is capable of downing even some of the
smaller African animals and most game and predators found in Europe, to say
nothing of a human being.
Twilight 2000
Notes: The .325 Winchester Short Magnum round does not exist in the Twilight
2000 timeline.
Other Names:
.325 WSM
Nominal Size:
8.25x53mm
Actual Size:
8.2x53.34mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 38.8 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $665 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.028 kg |
4-round box: 0.23 kg |
5-round box: 0.31 kg |
|
.330 Dakota
Notes: This is
basically a necked-down and shortened .404 Jeffrey case, to accept a .338
bullet. It is, however, more
effective than the .338 Winchester Magnum, and most rifles that are chambered
for the .338 Winchester Magnum can be converted to fire .330 Dakota.
Other Names:
.330 Dakota Magnum
Nominal Size:
8.38x65mm
Actual Size:
8.61x65.28mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.75 kg
per box of 100; Price: $76 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.038 kg |
|
|
|
.338 A-Square
Notes: This
design was created in 1978 by necking down a .378 Weatherby Magnum to take a
.338 caliber bullet. The idea was
to produce a medium game cartridge with a flat trajectory at most ranges.
Most rifles with 3.65-inch bolt actions can be easily modified to accept
this cartridge. The ballistics are
good, but the .338 A-Square does have some difficulty at feeding from all but
specially-modified magazines. The
round is normally manufactured only by A-Square, and only in small numbers.
Nominal Size:
8.6x72mm
Actual Size:
8.58x72.39mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 5.24 kg
per box of 100; Price: $168 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.042 kg |
|
|
|
.338-06 A-Square
Notes: This
round has its genesis in a long-time wildcat round developed in 1945 called the
.333 OKH, which was a .30-06 Springfield case necked up and elongated to accept
a .333-caliber bullet. Though a
very good cartridge, the .333 OKH suffered from the relative scarcity of decent
.333 bullets. When Winchester
introduced their .338 Magnum cartridge, several individuals individually got the
idea of further necking up the base .30-06 case to accept the bullet of the .338
Winchester Magnum. Thus, the
.338-06 A-Square cartridge is essentially a wildcat that went mainstream,
becoming a factory-made round in 1998.
The difference between the performance of the original .333 OKH round and
the .338-06 A-Square is close to indistinguishable, both being powerful,
hard-hitting rounds.
Twilight 2000
Notes: The .338-06 A-Square round does not exist as a factory loading in the
Twilight 2000 timeline, though it is a fairly common wildcat round. (In the
Twilight 2000 timeline, the .338-06 is sold only in small amounts for at least
double the prices below.)
Nominal Size:
8.58x63mm
Actual Size:
8.58x63.35mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 40.26 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $1460 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.037 kg |
4-round box: 0.3 kg |
|
|
.338 Federal
Notes: The .338
Federal round is a necked-up .308 Winchester/7.62mm NATO round that is hotloaded
to make it into what is essentially a sort of short magnum round.
Unlike an actual short magnum round, the .338 Federal has the advantage
of not needing a widened magazine, and it therefore will fit into most
standard-type magazines. The .338
Federal cartridge uses a long, lightweight bullet that gives it a flat
trajectory and excellent range and penetration.
Though the .338 Federal has yet to achieve much market penetration (and
very few rifles are factory-chambered for it), it is still a very new cartridge
and it shows signs of picking up interest.
Twilight 2000
Notes: The .338 Federal is not available in the Twilight 2000 timeline.
Other Names:
.338 Federal Magnum
Nominal Size:
8.6x51mm
Actual Size:
8.58x51.05mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 25.96 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $940 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.024 kg |
4-round box: 0.21 kg |
|
|
.338 Lapua Magnum
Notes: Though
perfected by Lapua of Finland, the development of this round actually began in
1983 with experiments by the Research Armament Company in the US to develop a
new, long-range sniping round. The
round is essentially a necked-down .416 Rigby case to accept a .338 bullet, and
hot-loaded to produce high velocities.
The round is very effective in penetrating both body armor and light
vehicle armor, and has a satisfying range, and more military and police agencies
are picking up rifles chambered for the .338 Lapua Magnum than ever before.
Other Names:
8.58x71mm Finnish
Nominal Size:
8.58x71mm
Actual Size:
8.61x69.2mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 50.38 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $810 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.04 kg |
3-round box: 0.27 kg |
4-round box: 0.33 kg |
5-round box: 0.39 kg |
8-round box: 0.58 kg |
10-round box: 0.7 kg |
|
|
.338 Remington UltraMag
Notes: One of
the most power .338-caliber rounds available, the .338 Remington UltraMag is,
like most of the Remington UltraMag series, is wider than the standard .338
Magnum case, to contain more propellant.
The result is a round which delivers some 25% more muzzle energy than the
.338 Winchester Magnum and has a much flatter trajectory.
The .338 Remington UltraMag was introduced in 2002, along with the rest
of the Remington UltraMag family.
It is easily capable of taking down North American and European game, even at
long ranges, and with proper shot placement, is even suitable for African game.
Not to mention what it would do to a person…
Twilight 2000
Notes: The .338 Remington UltraMag is not available in the Twilight 2000
timeline.
Other Names:
.338 Remington Ultra Magnum (or UltraMagnum), .338 UltraMag (or Ultra Magnum, or
UltraMagnum),
.338 RUM
Nominal Size:
8.58x72mm
Actual Size:
8.58x70.1mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 44.55 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $810 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.045 kg |
4-round box: 0.33 kg |
|
|
.338 Spectre
Notes: The .338
Spectre round was designed by AR-15-clone manufacturer Teppo Jutsu to provide a
round able to bridge the gap between overgrown pistol rounds like the .50
Beowulf and rifle rounds like the 7.62mm Kalashnikov.
The round was designed to be used in an AR-15-type platform, and use a
variety of commercially-available AR-15, 7.62mm Kalashnikov, 7.62mm WT and 6.8mm
SPC magazines. The bolt has a rim
size the same as the 6.8mm SPC, and the round has a rebated rim.
The parent cartridge is the 10mm Magnum, and the .338 Spectre is subsonic
in most of its iterations. At short
and medium ranges, the ballistics are similar to the .357 Maximum round, but the
.338 Spectre offers more range, damaging power, and penetrating power.
The .338 Spectre can be used with 9mm suppressors without modification to
the barrel or suppressor.
Though currently
the only rifle which fires the .338 Spectre round is Teppo Jutsu’s AR-15-based
Spectre, Teppo Jutsu hopes to chamber the round in other rifles in the future,
including Ruger’s Mini-14, the AK and the Thompson/Center Encore.
Factory rounds are currently made only by Teppo Jutsu themselves and by
Southern Ballistic Research.
Other Names:
.338 Teppo Jutsu
Nominal Size:
8.6x39mm
Actual Size:
8.58x39.65mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 22.9 kg
per box of 100; Price: $92 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.023 kg |
3-round box: 0.15 kg |
4-round box: 0.19 kg |
5-round box: 0.22 kg |
6-round box: 0.26 kg |
8-round box: 0.33 kg |
10-round box: 0.4 kg |
13-round box: 0.5 kg |
15-round box: 0.57 kg |
20-round box: 0.75 kg |
24-round box: 0.89 kg |
30-round box: 1.1 kg |
40-round box: 1.45 kg |
|
|
|
.338-378 Weatherby Magnum
Notes: the
.338-378 was originally a wildcat round known as the .338-378 Keith-Thompson,
and was designed specifically by the great ammunition expert Elmer Keith.
The round was designed specifically to fire heavy bullets at long ranges.
Keith used the .378Weatherby Magnum case as a basis, and necked it down
to deliver a heavy version of a .338-caliber bullet.
Weatherby eventually chambered rifles for the round in 1999 as well as
manufacturing factory loads, with the round becoming commonly known as the
“.338-378 Weatherby Magnum,” though “.338-378 KT” is more proper nomenclature.
Velocity of the .338-378 is fantastic for the weight of its bullets –
with the lightest 250-grain bullet, it can easily exceed 917 meters per second.
Twilight 2000
Notes: Factory .338-378 cartridges do not exist in the Twilight 2000 timeline,
but there are plenty of wildcatters out there still making the round (which is
known exclusively as the “.338-378 KT” in the Twilight 2000 timeline), and Elmer
Keith, who survived the Twilight War, has set up a small-scale production line
for the round. They will only be
found in boxed versions, and at double the prices (divided by 10) found below.
Other Names:
.338-378 KT, .338-378 Weatherby
Nominal Size:
8.58x74mm
Actual Size:
8.58x73.66mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 46.86 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $850 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.043 kg |
|
|
|
.338 Winchester Magnum
Notes: This
round is basically a .458 Winchester Magnum round necked down to .338.
It was introduced for Winchester’s Model 70 Alaskan rifle, but has since
been picked up for chambering in several other rifles.
It is a very flat-shooting round, and can take down something as big as a
grizzly bear or a moose. Though it
is not as popular as other Magnum loads, it is nonetheless fairly common
worldwide.
Nominal Size:
8.58x63mm
Actual Size:
8.58x63.25mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
45.75 kg per case of 1000; Price:
$730 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.037 kg |
3-round box: 0.25 kg |
4-round box: 0.3 kg |
5-round box: 0.36 kg |
5-round clip: 0.18 kg |
8-round box: 0.53 kg |
|
|
.340 Weatherby Magnum
Notes: This
round was developed to compete with the .338 Winchester Magnum in 1962.
It has a larger case and higher velocity than the .338 Winchester Magnum,
and the striking power is impressive.
Like most Weatherby Magnums, barrel wear can be a problem and the round
performs best in barrels of at least 26 inches.
The .340 Weatherby Magnum can handle all North American game and most
African game as well. However, the
cases wear out fast and are good only for a few reloads.
Nominal Size:
8.5x72mm
Actual Size:
8.59x71.63mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 5.19 kg
per box of 100; Price: $166 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.042 kg |
|
|
|
.348 Winchester
Notes: This
round was developed for the Model 71 lever-action rifle in 1936.
Few other commercially-made rifles were ever chambered for this
cartridge, and the cartridge stopped manufacture in 1958.
This might have doomed the cartridge, but public interest kept it alive
in small amounts, and then in 1987 the Japanese marketed a reproduction of the
Winchester Model 71, and Remington decided to manufacture the .348 Winchester
round again in small numbers. The
.348 Winchester was basically made obsolete by later cartridges, particularly
the .358 Winchester, and the .348 Winchester also formed the basis for several
improved cartridges.
Nominal Size:
8.8x57mm
Actual Size:
8.84x57.4mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.4 kg
per box of 100; Price: $140 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.035 kg |
|
|
|
.350 Remington Magnum
Notes: The .350
Remington Magnum was introduced in 1965, but by 1971, manufacture of the round
had been discontinued by Remington as it was none too popular. However,
Remington decided to re-introduce the round in 2002 for its Model 673
bolt-action rifle, but this rifle is no longer manufactured.
The round has had a sort of checkered sales history, but is still being
manufactured by Remington. The case
is only medium sized, but is a bit fat, allowing for magnum performance.
The round is able to duplicate .35 Whelan ballistics, but from a much
shorter barrel, and is therefore useful in carbine-sized rifles.
Its large cross-section limits magazine capacities, however.
Nominal Size:
9x55mm
Actual Size:
9.09x55.12mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 5.59 kg
per box of 100; Price: $144 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.038 kg |
|
|
|
.350 Rigby
Notes:
The .350 Rigby comes in two versions, rimmed and rimless, with the rimmed
version generally being known as the .350 No. 2.
Both are essentially variants of the earlier .400/350 Rigby round, with
the rimmed version being developed first for use in express rifles, and the
rimless version a couple of months later, both in 1908.
Both are essentially smaller versions of the .400/350, and therefore the
cases are essentially variants of the old .400 Purdey case, necked down,
shortened somewhat, and using a lighter bullet but using more propellant (and
smokeless powder). Both are quite
capable of bringing down North American and most European game, and some even
used it on smaller African and Asian game *usually loaded with bullets heavier
than the standard 225-gran bullet).
Performance and ballistics fall between the .35 Whelan and .375 H&H
Magnum. Complete factory-made .350
Rigby cartridges are no longer made, but Barnes and Speer make the bullets, and
cases are easily modified from 9.3x74Rmm cases.
However, the .350 Rigby is basically a handloader’s cartridge today.
Other Names:
.350 Rigby Magnum, .350 No. 2 (in its rimmed form).
Nominal Size:
8.89x70mm
Actual Size:
9.09x69.85mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.98 kg
per box of 100; Price: $181 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.045 kg |
|
|
|
.351 Winchester Self-Loading
Notes: This
round was designed to replace the deficient .35 Winchester Self-Loading
cartridge when the Model 1905 rifle was upgraded to the Model 1907 rifle.
It was also used, to a very limited extent, as a military round by the
French in World Wars 1 and 2. The
Model 1907 and the .351 Winchester Self-Loading cartridge were discontinued in
1957. The .351 Winchester
Self-Loading cartridge has more power than the .357 Magnum, but the blunt-nosed
bullet limits its range in a rifle.
Most .351 Winchester Self-Loading rounds found today are probably handloads,
though some carefully stored original rounds may exist, and it is still being
loaded by local ammunition makers in Latin America.
Other Names:
.351 WSL, .351 Winchester Auto
Nominal Size:
9x35mm
Actual Size:
8.91x35.05mm
Case Type:
Straight
Weight: 2.19 kg
per box of 100; Price: $70 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.018 kg |
5-round box: 0.17 kg |
10-round box: 0.31 kg |
|
.356 Winchester
Notes: This was
another cartridge developed by Winchester for use with its Model 94XTR
lever-action carbine. The round was
introduced in 1983. It was named so
to eliminate confusion with the .358 Winchester, but the .356 Winchester is a
similar, though rimmed round. It is
possible to chamber and fire .358 Winchester ammunition from rifles designed for
the .356 Winchester, but this is considered unsafe and dangerous.
Nominal Size:
9x51mm
Actual Size:
9.09x51.31mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.16 kg
per box of 100; Price $134 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.033 kg |
|
|
|
.358 Winchester
Notes: This
predecessor of the .356 Winchester is basically necked-up 7.62mm NATO case.
Though many European rifles are built to chamber the round, few American
rifles do anymore, though rifles chambering the .358 Winchester round were once
more common. Though it is
considered by many to be one of the best non-magnum rifle rounds ever designed,
it can be inaccurate at short ranges.
Nominal Size:
9x51mm
Actual Size:
9.09x51.05mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight:
4.14 kg per box of 100; Price:
$132 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.033 kg |
4-round box: 0.27 kg |
|
|
.358 Norma Magnum
Notes: This
round was developed by Norma of Sweden in 1959, but first introduced in the US.
It was sort of a quasi-wildcat round at first; no rifles were
manufactured to chamber the round, but several custom rifles were, and it was a
year later before manufactured rifles were available to take the .358 Norma
Magnum. It is nearly identical in
performance to the wildcat .35-338 round (a .338 Winchester Magnum necked up to
.35 caliber), though it is not related to that round.
It delivers performance comparable to the .375 H&H Magnum.
It is overpowered for the North American hunting market, except perhaps
against the Kodiak Bears of Alaska.
The .358 Norma Magnum simply lost out to other rounds, particularly newer ones,
delivering better performance or were not so overpowered.
Nominal Size:
9x64mm
Actual Size:
9.09x64mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 5.19 kg
per box of 100; Price: $166 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.042 kg |
5-round box: 0.41 kg |
|
|
.375 A-Square
Notes: This
modified .378 Weatherby Magnum was designed to allow .378 Weatherby Magnum
performance in a bolt action of 3.65 inches length.
The result was successful at duplicating the .378 Weatherby Magnum for
the most part, with only a modest loss of performance.
It is easily handloaded, and is capable of handling most of the world’s
medium to large game.
Nominal Size:
9.5x72mm
Actual Size:
9.53x72.39mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 6.45 kg
per box of 100; Price: $206 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.052 kg |
|
|
|
.375 CheyTac
Notes: The .375
CheyTac is essentially a .408 CheyTac necked down to accept a .375 bullet.
The case. Like the .408 CheyTac, has thicker walls than the average
round, something that is inherited from the .408 CheyTac, which was based on a
modified from the rare .400 Taylor Magnum.
Like the .408, factory-made .375 CheyTac rounds are made from a
proprietary copper/nickel alloy, and are designed to be low-drag, with a low
ballistic coefficient and designed to remain supersonic in excess of 2000
meters. The typical .375 CheyTac
bullet is 375 grains and remains supersonic out to 2230 meters.
Some handloads of the .375 CheyTac use very long bullets with a sort of
hot load and allows for a flat trajectory over longer ranges – but unless
handloaded just right, the bullet tends to destabilize during flight and leads
to shorter ranges than expected and keyholing in as little as 300 meters.
Another variant, with specially-designed bullets called .375 Viking
bullets, have a supersonic range of 3090 meters when everything is going right,
but field testing found that almost all shots resulted in unstable flight and
according to Oklahoma State Trooper Terry Holstine, “is useless at any velocity
or range.” Thus, factory rounds
appear to be the best fit for the rifles that fire the round; such rounds are
currently manufactured by MTM, Peterson, and DTC, along with small lots by
Cheyenne Tactical themselves. A
proper .375 CheyTac round has a flat trajectory allowed by its long supersonic
flight, is armor-piercing, and causes a pretty good amount of damage.
The .375 CheyTac is not, however, recognized by SAAMI (sort of like if
your breed of dog is not recognized by the AKA), so there is no international
standard on size or loadings of the .375 CheyTac.
However, the round was designed on computer and heavily tested before
being offered to the military, police, or civilians.
Tampering with the specs of the round is not recommended, but many
handloaders still do.
Other Names:
.375 MTM, .375 Cheyenne Tactical, .375 CheyTac DTC, .375-408 CheyTac, .375
SnipeTac, .375 SOE
Nominal Size:
9.5x77mm
Actual Size:
9.5x80.01mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 56.7 kg
per box of 100; Price: $227 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.057 kg |
5-round box: 0.56 kg |
7-round box: 0.73 kg |
|
.375 Dakota
Notes:
Like most Dakota proprietary rounds, the .375 Dakota is based on the .404
Jeffery case, shortened and necked-down, and with an enlarged rim.
The idea was to develop a magnum cartridge with performance similar to
that of the .375 H&H Magnum, but short enough to be used in actions designed for
the .30-06 Springfield cartridge and similar-sized rounds.
The cartridge can be used in modified versions of such actions, but this
generally requires that the rifle have a slightly smaller magazine capacity (or
a larger magazine). Penetration and
stopping power are similar to that of the .375 H&H Magnum, though accuracy is
somewhat better and the trajectory a bit flatter.
The .375 Dakota is generally capable of taking down virtually game in the
world.
Other Names:
.375 Dakota Magnum
Nominal Size:
9.5x65mm
Actual Size:
9.53x65.28mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 5.13 kg
per box of 100; Price: $186 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.047 kg |
|
|
|
.375 Flanged Nitro Express
Notes: This
round was introduced in 1899 primarily for use in single-shot and
double-barreled break-open rifles, though BSA did make a variation of the
Lee-Enfield Mk I chambering the .375 Flanged Nitro Express round.
It should not be confused with the similarly-named .375 Flanged Magnum
round. The round is easily
handloaded; this is good, because it has not been manufactured in a very long
time. The round does have good
striking power, and is adequate for game up to North American big game size.
Other Names:
.375 Flanged Nitro Express 2 1/2”, .370 Flanged
Nominal Size:
9.5x63.5mm
Actual Size:
9.53x63.5mm
Case Type:
Straight
Weight: 4.53 kg
per box of 100; Price $144 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.036 kg |
4-round box: 0.3 kg |
|
|
.375 H&H Magnum
Notes: This was
originally developed by the British firm of Holland & Holland in 1912.
It is a belted, magnum cartridge that has formed the basis of endless
wildcat cartridges and handloadings.
It is now fired by many American and European rifles, especially those
made for big game. It has long been
considered the best cartridge for hunting in Africa, being powerful without
producing an enormously heavy weapon to fire it.
It is also popular with Alaskan hunters and wilderness guides.
Other Names:
.375 Holland & Holland Magnum, .375 Flanged Magnum, .375 Belted Rimless Magnum,
.38-55 Winchester
Nominal Size:
9.5x73mm
Actual Size:
9.53x72.39mm
Case Type: Necked
Weight:
6.45 kg per box of 100; Price: $206 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.052 kg |
3-round box: 0.35 kg |
4-round box: 0.43 kg |
4-round clip: 0.21 kg |
5-round box: 0.5 kg |
|
|
|
.375 JRS
Notes: This
round is an 8mm Remington Magnum necked up to .375 caliber.
It is easily handloaded, using a variety of cases; this is good, because
the .375 JRS has been for many years the province of wildcatters, with A-Square
only since 1990 offering commercial loads.
The .375 JRS is a bit more powerful than the .375 H&H Magnum, and the
.375 JRS is ballistically most similar to the .375 Weatherby Magnum.
Other Names:
.375 JRS Magnum
Nominal Size:
9.5x72mm
Actual Size:
9.53x72.14mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 6.44 kg per box of
100; Price: $206 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.052 kg |
|
|
|
.375 Remington UltraMag
Notes:
Introduced in 2002, the .375 Remington UltraMag is considered one of the
most powerful .375 magnum chamberings commercially available.
It is based on the other members of the Remington UltraMag cartridge
family, and is essentially a modified .300 UltraMag case with extra propellant
and necked out to take the .375-caliber bullet.
This cartridge delivers more stopping power than the .375 H&H Magnum, and
yet has much better range and a flatter trajectory.
The .375 Remington is easily capable of taking down the largest North
American and European game (not to mention people), and in the hands of a good
shot, can even stop African and Alaskan animals in their tracks.
Twilight 2000
Notes: The .375 Remington UltraMag round is not available in the Twilight 2000
timeline.
Other Names:
.375 Remington Ultra Magnum (or UltraMagnum), .375 UltraMag (or Ultra Magnum, or
UltraMagnum),
.375 RUM
Nominal Size:
9.5x72mm
Actual Size:
9.55x72.39mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 57.09 kg
per case of 1000; Price: $1040 per case
Magazines:
Per round: 0.052 kg |
4-round box: 0.43 kg |
|
|
.375 Weatherby Magnum
Notes: This
round was developed in 1944 and was first chambered in a rifle in 1945.
There are several similar rounds, both wildcat and commercial, but this
does not mean that the .375 Weatherby Magnum can be loaded into rifles not
designed for it. Manufacture
continued until about 1953, but Weatherby no longer makes this round.
It has slightly more power than the .375 H&H Magnum, but is identical for
Twilight 2000 purposes. The .375
Weatherby Magnum is, in fact, a blown out .375 H&H Magnum case with a bit more
propellant. The .375 Weatherby
Magnum was re-introduced in Finland in 2001, and limited quantities are being
manufactured again.
Nominal Size:
9.5x73mm
Actual Size:
9.53x72.39mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 6.45 kg
per box of 100; Price: $206 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.052 kg |
|
|
|
.375 Whelan
Notes: Still
listed as a wildcat cartridge as of early 2007 in most publications, the .375
Whelan round was not actually by Townsend Whelan, but named in his honor.
The .375 Whelan was actually developed by the late gunsmith LR “Bob”
Wallack in 1951, based on a necked-up .30-06 Springfield case.
There are actually two versions of this round; one has 17.5-degree
shoulder angle, and the newer and more popular version has a 40-degree shoulder
angle (and is also known as the Improved case).
The Improved case allows for slightly more propellant and better
headspace control, and most rifles chambered for the .375 Whelan round are
designed for this Improved case.
Though it does not have quite the power of the .375 H&H Magnum round, it is
still quite efficient against North American big game, and also doesn’t have
quite the recoil of an equivalent rifle chambered for .375 H&H Magnum.
Though Ackley makes factory loads of the .375 Whelan in very small
numbers, this round is still mostly the province of handloaders.
Other Names:
.375 Ackley Improved, .375 Whelan Improved (in its newer version), .375-06
Nominal Size:
9.5x64mm
Actual Size:
9.53x63.5mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 4.98 kg
per box of 100; Price: $181 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.045 kg |
|
|
|
.375 Winchester
Notes: This
round was introduced in 1978 as a new round for the Model 94 Big Bore
lever-action carbine. The case is
based on the .38-55 case, though it is shorter and the case is stronger and
heavier. The bullets are large and
heavy, as is the propellant charge.
The .375 Winchester is designed for hunting in heavy cover and vegetation and is
also designed to compete with rounds like the .35 Remington and .444 Marlin in
lever-action rifles. The .375
Winchester uses a large, flat-nosed bullet that has poor aerodynamics, and the
velocity tends to fall off fast.
Nominal Size:
9.5x51mm
Actual Size:
9.53x51.31mm
Case Type:
Straight
Weight: 3.66 kg
per box of 100; Price: $118 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.029 kg |
|
|
|
.378 Weatherby Magnum
Notes: This
round was introduced in 1953 to replace the .375 Weatherby Magnum.
Despite the similarity to the .375 Weatherby Magnum, and several other
rounds, most notably the .416 Rigby), the .378 Weatherby is a belted round not
related to any other round of the time.
In its first field testing in 1953, Roy Weatherby himself killed an
elephant with the .378 Weatherby Magnum in one shot.
The .378 Weatherby Magnum is noted for its penetration and damaging
potential; it is even capable of penetrating light armored vehicles.
Nominal Size:
9.5x74mm
Actual Size:
9.53x74.17mm
Case Type:
Necked
Weight: 6.61 kg
per box of 100; Price: $212 per box
Magazines:
Per round: 0.053 kg |
|
|
|