A gun is nothing without a bullet. In early times, bullets were often made of iron, and could pierce armor, but later, lead was adopted because it was easier to mold. The bullet-shaped projectile was developed only in the 19th century, and so too was the cartridge.
The powder-and-ball era
To achieve any sort of accuracy, the ball fred from a smooth-bore gun had to be spherical and of an exact size. Rifing improved matters, but made the weapon slow to load; the problem was solved by the expanding bullet.
Transitional cartridges
Nineteenth-century gunmakers experimented with cartridges containing both propellant and projectile, which could be loaded whole. Wrapped in paper, skin, or fabric, they posed a problem for breech-loading guns, whose breeches had to be sealed. The solution was to switch to cartridge cases made of brass, into which the primer was integrated. This meant that the empty case had to be removed, but that was a small price to pay for perfect obturation (breech-sealing).
Musket/rifle balls The size of the ball was expressed in “bore,” being the number of balls of a set size that could be cast from 0.45 kg (1 lb) of lead.
Expanding bullets
These bullets had a hollow base. The force of the powder detonating caused the bullets’ skirts to expand and take the rifing.
Belted balls
To improve accuracy, barrels were “rifed” with pairs of grooves into which the belt on the ball ftted.
Teat-fire Cartridge
These were produced as a way around Smith & Wesson’s monopoly of the bored-through cylinder. The bullet is entirely contained.
Pin-fire Cartridge
The gun’s hammer falls vertically on the pin, driving it into the primer that is contained in the base of the cartridge case.
Sharps’ Cartridge
This case is made of linen. Its base was cut off by the edge of the breech-block when the action was closed.
Burnside Cartridge
Burnside’s breech-loading carbine incorporated a drop-down breech, loaded from the front. It was chambered for this unique tapering cartridge.
Westley richards “Monkey tail” Cartridge
This paper-wrapped carbine cartridge incorporated a greased felt wad at the rear, which remained in the breech until expelled ahead of the following round.
Snider-enfield cartridge
The cartridge developed by Colonel Boxer for the Snider-Enfeld rife had a perforated iron base and walls built up from coiled brass strips.
Paper-Wrapped Cartridges
The frst cartridges were nothing more than paper packages containing a measured charge of powder and a ball.
Rife cartridges
For a rife to fre accurately, its ammunition must be properly formulated. Bullet weight and caliber must be matched accurately with the weight of the propellant charge.
. 450 Martini-Henry
The Martini-Henry rifle’s cartridge was loaded with 85 grains (5.5 g) of black powder. The bullet weighed 480 grains (31 g).
.45-70 Springfield
The cartridge devised for the Springfield rifle was loaded with 70 grains (4.53 g) of powder and a 405-grain (26.25 g) bullet.
.30-30 Winchester
The .30-30 Winchester cartridge was the frst “civilian” round to be charged with smokeless powder; it had 30 grains (1.94 g) of it.
.303 Mk V
Until the 1890s, rife bullets were blunt-nosed. The British Army’s Lee-Metfords and Lee-Enfelds were chambered for the one shown.
.56-50 spencer
This is the rimfre black-powder round for which the Civil War-era Spencer carbine, the frst effective repeater rife, was chambered.
11MM Chassepot
After the Franco-Prussian War, the cartridge developed for the Mauser M/71 rife was adapted for the Chassepot rifle, which was converted to take it.
5.2MM X 68 Mondragon
This early attempt at producing a high-velocity round in a miniature caliber was designed in Switzerland for the Mexican Mondragon rife.
Pistol cartridges
In all cartridges, dimensional accuracy is essential. Cases that are even minutely undersize may split on fring, making them diffcult to extract. This is easily rectifed in a revolver, but less so with a self-loading pistol.
.44 Henry
This rimfire round had primer arranged around the base of its case. It was soon superseded by the center-fre cartridge.
.476 Webley
The .577 in revolver was unwieldy and a replacement in .476 in caliber was adopted instead. It, too, was short-lived.
.455 Webley
Webley’s first smokeless powder cartridge was more powerful than earlier types, allowing a further reduction in bullet weight.
.44 sMitH & Wesson russian
The revolvers Smith & Wesson supplied to the Russian Army were chambered for a cartridge of different dimensions.
.577 Webley
Many small-caliber bullets lacked the power to stop a man. Webley addressed this with a .577 in caliber revolver.
.45 Colt (thuer)
Alexander Thuer developed a method of converting Colt “cap-and-ball” revolvers to fre this tapering brass cartridge.
.44 smith & Wesson american
This frst .44 in Smith & Wesson was unsatisfactory, as the projectile was “heel seated,” rather than crimped in the case.
10.4 MM bodeo
The cartridge for the 10.4 mm Bodeo revolver, used by the Italian Army from 1891, gave a muzzle velocity of 837 ft (255 m) per second.
.44 alleN & Wheelock
Allen & Wheelock revolvers were chambered for “lip-fre” cartridges (similar to rimfre), chiefy in small calibers.
7.63 MM bergmann
The rimless, grooveless cartridge for which the Bergmann No 3 pistol was originally chambered was extracted by pressure alone.
.45 Colt (bénét)
Colonel S.V. Bénét’s 1865 version of the center-fre cartridge formed the basis for Berdan’s later version.
Shotgun cartridges
Only the very largest shotgun cartridges were made entirely of brass. Others had cardboard bodies.
Wildfowl Cartridge
Large cartridges such as this were loaded with up to ¾ oz (20 g) of black powder and 3½ oz (100 g) of shot.
10-bore Pin-fire
Pin-fire shotguns were still common long after other such guns had disappeared.
Ammunition Since 1900 following the development of the unitary brass cartridge, which combined all three essential elements (primer, propellant, and projectile) in one package, it only remained for the nature of those elements to be improved. Primers became more effective and bullets more aerodynamic, but the most important developments were in propellant. These took place in the last decade of the 19th century, frst with the advent of smokeless powder and later of a nitroglycerine-based mixture generally known as cordite; this replaced gunpowder entirely.
Rife cartridges.
Rife bullets acquired a sharply pointed nose and a taper toward the tail, which almost doubled their effective range and improved their accuracy. In these examples, both velocity (feet per second) and energy (foot-pounds) are measured at the muzzle.
7.7 mm X 56R JAPANESE
The fully rimmed version of the round for which the Arisaka rife was chambered had a 175-grain (11.35g) bullet and a muzzle velocity of 2,350 fps.
8 mm X 58 KRAG
This is an alternative chambering for the Norwegian Krag rife, which the Danish Army adopted. A 195-grain (12.7-g) bullet left the muzzle at 2,525 fps.
.5/12.7 mm m2
Developed for the M2 machine gun and adopted as a rifle round, the M2 has a 710-grain (46-g) bullet and a muzzle velocity of 2,800 fps.
416 REmINGTON mAGNUm
A development of a cartridge produced by Rigby in 1911, the .416 Remington produces a muzzle velocity of 2,400 fps and 5,115 ft-lb of energy.
7.7 mm X 56R ITAlIAN
Almost identical to the above, the Italian 7.7 mm cartridge had a 173-grain (11.25-g) bullet and a smaller charge that produced 2,035 fps.
.30-06 SPRINGfIEld
The .30-06 remained in US service from 1906 until 1954. Its 152-grain (9.85-g) bullet leaves the muzzle at 2,910 fps with 2,820 ft-lb of energy.
7.62 mm X 54R RUSSIAN
The “3-line” cartridge developed in 1891 was loaded with a 150-grain (9.65-g) bullet that left the muzzle at 2,855 fps.
.458 WINCHESTER mAGNUm
Developed in 1956 as a “big game” round, with a 500-grain (32.4-g) bullet, it give a muzzle velocity of 2,040 fps and 4,620 ft-lb of energy.
.470 NITRO EXPRESS
“Nitro” refers to the propellant, while “Express” refers to the bullet, which is hollow at the tip. Muzzle velocity is 2,150 fps, with 5,130 ft-lb of energy.
7.92 mm X 57 mAUSER
The SmK cartridge, as it was known, was loaded with a steel-jacketed 177-grain (11.5-g) boat-tailed bullet that left the muzzle at 2,745 fps.
.303 mKVII
This version of the Lee-Enfeld cartridge, with a 180-grain (11.66-g) bullet, developed a muzzle velocity of 2,460 fps and 2,420 ft-lb of energy.
.338 WINCHESTER mAGNUm
Developed for large North American game, this cartridge can be loaded with a variety of projectiles from 175 to 300 grains (11.34g to 19.44 g) in weight.
7 mm REmINGTON mAGNUm
Loaded with 62 grains (4,02g) of propellant and a 150-grain (9.72-g) “spitzer” bullet, this produces a muzzle velocity of 3,100 fps and 3,220 ft-lb of energy.
.257 WEATHERBY mAGNUm
A “hot” round, loaded with an 87-grain (5.31-g) “varmint” bullet, this achieves a muzzle velocity of 3,825 fps and delivers 2,826 ft-lb of energy.
.243 WINCHESTER mAGNUm
This short-case round delivers less power than a normal cartridge: a 100-grain (6.48-g) bullet leaves the muzzle at 2,960 fps with 1,945 ft-lb of energy.
.22 HORNET
One of very few high-velocity miniature rounds, the .22 Hornet was developed in the 1920s. Its 45-grain (2.9-g) bullet leaves the muzzle at 2,690 fps.
.30 m1 CARBINE
This “intermediate” round developed for the US World War II-vintage M1 Carbine is loaded with a 110-grain (7.13-g) blunt-nosed bullet, good to 600 ft (180 m).
7.92 mm X 33 KURTZ
The frst effective intermediate round, it was copied by the Soviet Union in slightly smaller dimensions. It was effective to around 1,950 ft (595 m).
SS109 5.56 mm
The NATO-standard SS109 5.56 mm round has a steel-tipped projectile weighing 61.7 grains (4 g) and achieves a muzzle velocity of 3,085 fps.
7.62 mm X 51 NATO
When NATO chose a new rifle and machine gun cartridge in the early 1950s it opted for one based on the .30-06.
5.45 mm X 40 SOVIET
This replaced the Red Army’s 7.62 mm x 33 round for the AK74 family. It is similar to the 5.56 mm NATO round in performance.
Pistol cartridges
The only signifcant change in the character of pistol ammunition after 1900 was the introduction of the high-performance Magnum load.
.5 ACTION EXPRESS
Developed for the Desert Eagle pistol, this 325-grain (21-g) bullet leaves the muzzle with 1,415 ft-lb of energy.
.32 lONG
Though a popular caliber for revolvers, the original .32 cartridge was low on power. A longer version was produced in 1896.
.357 mAGNUm
Developed in 1935, this has since been produced in many varieties. Average muzzle velocity is around 1,300 fps.
9 mm PARABEllUm
Also known as 9 mm Luger, this is the most common cartridge in the world. Countless freams have been chambered for it.
.44 mAGNUm
This round was developed in 1954. A 240-grain (15.55-g) bullet leaves the muzzle at 1,500 fps with 1,200 ft-lb of energy.
.45 ACP
Another iconic pistol cartridge, the .45 Automatic Colt Pistol round was developed for the John Browning-designed M1911.
.32 AUTO
A popular caliber for small self-loading pistols, the .32 has a 60-grain (3.89-g) bullet and produces 125 ft-lb of energy.
8 mm NAmBU
The Japanese offcer’s pistols issued from 1909 onward were the only weapons ever made for this powerful round.
9 mm STEYR
There are many varieties of 9 mm revolver cartridge; this one was developed for a pistol designed by Mannlicher.
.45 mARS
This was the most powerful pistol ammunition in the world prior to the arrival of the .44 Magnum.
.380 ENfIEld/WEBlEY
Made for the Enfield Mk 1 revolver, this 200-grain (12.96-g) bullet was almost as powerful as the .455 it replaced.
9 mm mARS
Severely bottlenecked cartridges are unusual in pistols, but the designer insisted on a heavy propellant load for the 9 mm Mars.
.38 S&W
This is the least powerful .38 cartridge; it gives the 145-grain (9.4-g) bullet a muzzle velocity of 685 fps and 150 ft-lb of energy.
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