Sub caliber spotter for artillery designed in the 1950’s for the Swiss PAK 50 and PAK 57 anti-tank gun. Although no longer produced, they are still in service with the Swiss Army infantry. Both the PAK 50 and the PAK 57 anti-tank guns are very useful in built-up...

The 7.5x58 was designed in a search for a replacement for the French 8x50R Lebel round at the end of WW 1, which, although being one of the first smokeless rounds, had a shape that was not suitable for semi-auto of full auto weapons. The French, not trusting the peace...

This was part of a ballistic study done by France based on the 50 Browning case.    

The RPG series (RPG-2, RPG7) use a vertical firing pin, hit by a swinging hammer in the trigger guard-pistol grip unit. This strikes a primer in the rocket's tail (also vertical ie, diametrical).The rocket has a positioning key located at the muzzle of the launch...

The 7.62mm Lockless Plastic Encapsulated cartridge was developed as an internal experimental cartridge by the Hughes Tool Co during 1971. The design is similar to the 5.56mm design, but according to HWS 3:424 was not submitted to any US Military agency for testing....

This is the front bullet of the 7.62mm Liquid Propellant Caseless. It is item 662 from Buttweiler Auction XII, No. 1. It is unprimed with a steel inner body and a bronze outer body. The grooves are for the polyethylene O-rings. This was a Winchester development....

This is a Portuguese development dating from 1973 used as a sub caliber training device for a rocket launcher to simulate the flight of the rocket.   ...

Type 64 submachine gun is one of the first domestically designed Chinese submachine guns. It was designed as a special purpose weapon for clandestine operations, and therefore is fitted with integral silencer (sound moderator) of significant size. Standard ammunition...

      The 7.62 Gerasimenko was developed during the early 1970’s by Vladimir Gerasimenko (1910 – 1987), a researcher from Kiev, which at that stage was still part of the old USSR. The cartridge consisted of a machines steel projectile with a...

The U.S. Air Force Armament Technology Lab modified the 221 Multi-Purpose Weapon during 1973 with a .30 Cal barrel fitted with a silencer. Three different versions were tested of which this is the third version that is, like the second version, based on the 5,56 NATO...

Spanish sub caliber training round for the M65 Instalaza rocket launcher                                   Relatively...

This was part of the US caseless design program during the late 60’ and early 70’s

During 1943 the Finnish authorities began showing a passing interest in an assault rifle/SMG concept like the 7.92 Kurz. They however did not have neither the time or the inclination to start the development of a whole new assault rifle/cartridge concept smack bang in...

This was developed at Radway Green at the request of Heckler & Koch, who were developing a rifle for silenced combat. They had previously studied the .300 Whisper cartridge but decided to develop their own as well, by shortening and necking-up the 5.56x45 case....

From an old ECRA newsletter (Feb 96) it was stated that it was a lot produced by NWM but that the headstamp was an error. It might also have been done deliberately to mask the purpose or country for which it was produced.      

This was a Gustav Genschow (GECO) project from the 1960’s. It is unsure if an assault rifle was ever produced for it, other than just test barrels for ballistic data.         Bullet at 200% scale

This was a joint development in the early 1960’s by the Dutch (NWM) and German factory (IWK) Industrie Werke Karlsruhe,A-G Germany       

   This is a replica of the 7.62x41 M43 intermediate cartridge that was the predecessor to the highly successful 7.62x39 AK-47 cartridge. The development of the 7.92 Kurz cartridge in Germany served as the basis for Russian developments starting in 1943 that...

Experimental cartridge designed by CETME (Centro de Estudios Tecnicos de Materiales Especiales - Special Materials Technical Studies Center) in 1953. The case is slightly longer than the original 7.92 X 40 CETME. During the development of the CETME rifle, it was...

This was one of various assault rifle experimentals based on the 7.62 NATO by the French Direction des Études et Fabrications d’Armament (D.E.F.A) during the late 1950’s.      

Adopted by the Czech Army in 1952, this was an assault rifle cartridge more powerful than the 7.62x39 AK that the Soviets were using at the time. Mother Russia did not take kindly to these developments and it was dropped in favour of the Warsaw pact AK47 7.62 x 39...

The 7.62×51mm CETME is a variant of the 7.62×51mm NATO with a plastic-cored lead bullet and a reduced propellant charge. It was produced as a joint venture by the Spanish Government design and development establishment known as CETME (Centro de Estudios Técnicos de...

This cartridge was developed during the Cold War years as an alternative to the 7.62x54R Nagant for the ShKAS rifle. Although again not the real focus of this website, it is still interesting to look at the ShKAS design and history, which will maybe give a clearer...

This is the longer version of the 7.62x62mm Sjögren that was used in the 1908 trial by the National Rifle Association of England at Bisley and was designed by Swedish Gun Designer Carl Axel T Sjögren of Stockholm. (Dixon Ref. SC72)    

This cartridge was designed as a training variant for the RPG-75 68 mm rocket launcher that is designated RPG Cv-75 (Cv = Cvičný). The training cartridge is designated “7,62mm Zaměřovací vz.75” (7,62-Zm75) and it is loaded with a tracer bullet that is based on the...

The Swiss/German designation for this cartridge is 7,65 mm Leuchtspurpatrone 75 für 8,3 cm Rak Rohr Einsatzlauf. It is loaded with a tracer projectile that consists of a GM clad lead bullet with tracer compound and was designed to be used in the RL-83 Antitank Rocket...

Finnish sub caliber device from the middle 1970’s for the Carl Gustav Antitank rocket system.         

This is a dummy (manupulierpatrone) for a very early experimental machine pistol that was produced prior to 1921. It was constructed as a hollow, one-piece steel dummy.   

The experimental 1901/04 carbine was One of Ferdinand von Mannlicher’s very last firearms and was a scaled up version of the original pistol round in order to create an intermediate round for use in carbines. The mechanics of this carbine is an evolution of his...

This was a “Pistolengewehr” development dating from around 1921 by Swiss engineer Adolf Furrer, who was the director of Waffenfabrik Bern. The Pistolengewehr was a toggle-action short-recoil operated weapon with a side-mounted 30 round magazine with a wooden stock. It...

After World War II, the Mauser firearms factory was captured by French Forces and restarted to supply the French. Mauser's Department 37 development group was placed under control of the French War Department's armament group, Direction des Etudes et Fabrication...

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Experimental cartridge for a Berthier rifle, probably for Turkey.    Bullet shown at 200% scale Shown below is drawing 7021 from SFM made in June 1891 that shows the "Turkish cartridge for Mr. Berthier" with cylinder-ogival bullet and drawing 8088E showing...

Developed by Uldarique Marga, who was an official in the Belgian Infantry. He was granted patents during 1899-1902 for an M.88 rifle loosely based on the Dutch Beaumont system. The rifle also had a sliding safety catch at the back of the bolt (not unlike modern...

Completed 2017/11/13   On the page describing the history and development of the 6.5 X 52 Carcano and other 6.5mm’s, one name surfaces throughout the late 1880’s onwards in practically all facets of military rifle and cartridge research, development and...

The 7.65 Argentine Navy cartridge was designed by a Capt. Casey who used to be at DuPont who used a shortened 30-06 case and loaded with a 7.65mm bullet weighing 180gr. the prototype cases were from Frankford Arsenal. He proposed the design to the Argentine Naval...

The official Japanese service rifle was the 6.5x50 Type 30 that was adopted in 1897, right after the First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 1894 – 17 April 1895). This was in the move towards smokeless powder and the Type 30 was eventually replaced by the Type 38 in 1905,...

The official Japanese service rifle was the 6.5x50 Type 30 that was adopted in 1897, right after the First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 1894 – 17 April 1895). This was in the move towards smokeless powder and the Type 30 was eventually replaced by the Type 38 in 1905,...

   The German Heereswaffenamt (military weapons development establishment) contracted with Gustav Genschow & Co. (GeCO) during 1934 for the development of a smaller, lightweight cartridge. The Vollmer-Maschinenkarabiner 35 or M35 was developed in early...

This was a Belgian experimental round for very early M.88 testing.   

   This was one of a series of small, intermediate cartridges developed by Germany during the 1930’s. The 7.9x30 was done by Polte Armaturen und Maschinenfabrik AG at Magdeburg. Their experimental cartridges were generally shorter than the corresponding...