7.62×39mm
Encyclopedia
The 7.62×39mm round is a rifle cartridge of Soviet
origin that was designed during World War II
. It was first used in the RPD
machine gun
. Due to the worldwide proliferation of the SKS
and AK-47
pattern rifles, the cartridge is utilized by both militaries and civilians alike.
The 7.62×39mm cartridge was likely influenced by a variety of foreign developments, especially the pre-war German GeCo, 7.75×39mm experimental round, and its developements in the German late-war Intermediate cartridge trials in calibers 7.9mm and 7.62mm. The German adopted 8×33mm Kurz by Polte did not influence developement.
Shortly after the war, the world's most recognized military pattern rifle was designed for this cartridge: the AK-47
. The cartridge remained the Soviet standard until the 1970s, and is still one of the most common intermediate rifle cartridges used around the world. It was replaced in Russian service by the 5.45×39mm cartridge which is used by the current issue AK-74
and variants.
The 7.62×39mm cartridge produces significant wounding in cases where the bullet tumbles and fragments in tissue, but produces relatively minor wounds in cases where the bullet exits before beginning to yaw. In the absence of yaw, the M43 load can pencil through lung tissue with relatively little injury.
The original Soviet M43 bullets are boat-tail bullets with a copper-plated steel jacket, a large steel core, and some lead between the core and the jacket. The cartridge itself consists of a berdan-primed, highly tapered (usually steel) case which seats the bullet and contains the powder charge. The taper makes it very easy to feed and extract the round, since there is little contact with the chamber walls until the round is fully seated. This taper is what causes the AK-47
to have distinctively curved magazines (helping to distinguish AK-47s from AK-74s, which feed from a much straighter magazine). While the bullet design has gone through a few redesigns, the cartridge itself remains largely unchanged.
Even when fragmentation occurs as the bullet yaws, the wounding potential of M67 is mostly limited to the small permanent wound channel the bullet itself makes . The real damage of the M67 is when it yaws. Meanwhile a fragmenting round (like the 5.56x45mm NATO
) might cause massive tissue trauma and blood loss (and thus rapid incapacitation) on a lung or abdominal hit, the M67 has a greater chance of merely wounding the target. However, the 5.56x45 will only reliably fragment in close ranges below 125 metres (410.1 ft).
Many contemporary Russian-made 7.62×39 cartridges, such as those sold under the brand names Wolf Ammunition
and Golden Tiger, feature a modified M67 bullet with an airspace cast into the nose or similar ballistic-enhancing tip design (e.g. 8m3) which improve fragmentation and/or tumbling tendencies.
(35.6 grains
H2O) cartridge case capacity.
7.62×39mm maximum C.I.P. cartridge dimensions. All sizes in millimeters (mm).
Americans would define the shoulder angle at alpha/2 ≈ 16.4 degrees. The common rifling
twist rate for this cartridge is 240 mm (1 in 9.45 in), 4 grooves, Ø lands = 7.62 millimetre (0.3 in), Ø grooves = 7.92 millimetre (0.311811023622047 in), land width = 3.81 millimetre (0.15 in) and the primer type
is small rifle.
According to an American source some barrels can however have a non C.I.P. conform grooves diameter of 7.82 millimetre (0.307874015748032 in).
According to the official C.I.P. (Commission Internationale Permanente pour l'Epreuve des Armes à Feu Portatives) guidelines the 7.62×39mm case can handle up to 355 MPa (51,488 psi) piezo pressure. In C.I.P. regulated countries every rifle cartridge combo has to be proofed at 125% of this maximum C.I.P. pressure to certify for sale to consumers.
(or WP) being analogous to 5.56 NATO, or 7.62 mm ComBloc. It was also known in the United States
as .30 Short Russian/ComBloc; the "Short" was to distinguish it from the older .30 Russian, which was the 7.62x54mmR.
round, and has a similar ballistic profile. Large numbers of inexpensive imported semiautomatic rifles, like the SKS
and AK-47
clones and variants, are available in this caliber.
In addition, several AR15 manufacturers such as Olympic Arms
, Del-Ton Inc, and ModelOne Sales are producing 16" carbines and 20" to 24" rifle length firearms that can often get very good accuracy to about 1" groups at 100 yards.
Ruger produces the Mini-30 as a 7.62×39mm version of their popular Mini-14
rifle. They also once had their M77 Mark II available in this caliber.
Remington Arms
introduced its Compact Model 799 Mini Mauser bolt action rifle chambered in 7.62×39mm in 2006, describing the Mauser action as "sought after by today’s hunters and shooters." The Mauser action is a copy of the Gewehr 98
model rifle's action.
CZ-USA
Sells the "micro length Mauser style" bolt action chambered in 7.62×39mm.
Savage Arms
has introduced (around 2010–2011) their own bolt action rifle in 7.62x39mm caliber - Model: 10 FCM Scout.
The low cost and high availability of military surplus ammunition makes this cartridge attractive for many civilian shooters, although for hunting large game, many people prefer the 154 gr soft point, which is usually labeled under the Wolf brand. A 126 grain Soft point is labeled under the MFS
Brand and features a Zn (zinc) plated steel case instead of the usual lacquer or polymer coated steel.
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
origin that was designed during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. It was first used in the RPD
RPD
The RPD is a 7.62mm light machine gun developed in the Soviet Union by Vasily Degtyaryov for the intermediate 7.62x39mm M43 cartridge. It was created as a replacement for the DP machine gun chambered for the 7.62x54mmR Mosin rifle round...
machine gun
Machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
. Due to the worldwide proliferation of the SKS
SKS
The SKS is a Soviet semi-automatic rifle chambered for the 7.62x39mm round, designed in 1943 by Sergei Gavrilovich Simonov. SKS-45 is an acronym for Samozaryadnyj Karabin sistemy Simonova, 1945 Simonov system, 1945), or SKS 45. The Sks is a scaled down version of the PTRS-41 anti-tank rifle also...
and AK-47
AK-47
The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62×39mm assault rifle, first developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova . It is also known as a Kalashnikov, an "AK", or in Russian slang, Kalash.Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year...
pattern rifles, the cartridge is utilized by both militaries and civilians alike.
The 7.62×39mm cartridge was likely influenced by a variety of foreign developments, especially the pre-war German GeCo, 7.75×39mm experimental round, and its developements in the German late-war Intermediate cartridge trials in calibers 7.9mm and 7.62mm. The German adopted 8×33mm Kurz by Polte did not influence developement.
Shortly after the war, the world's most recognized military pattern rifle was designed for this cartridge: the AK-47
AK-47
The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62×39mm assault rifle, first developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova . It is also known as a Kalashnikov, an "AK", or in Russian slang, Kalash.Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year...
. The cartridge remained the Soviet standard until the 1970s, and is still one of the most common intermediate rifle cartridges used around the world. It was replaced in Russian service by the 5.45×39mm cartridge which is used by the current issue AK-74
AK-74
The AK-74 is an assault rifle developed in the early 1970s in the Soviet Union as the replacement for the earlier AKM...
and variants.
The 7.62×39mm cartridge produces significant wounding in cases where the bullet tumbles and fragments in tissue, but produces relatively minor wounds in cases where the bullet exits before beginning to yaw. In the absence of yaw, the M43 load can pencil through lung tissue with relatively little injury.
History
AK-47
The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62×39mm assault rifle, first developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova . It is also known as a Kalashnikov, an "AK", or in Russian slang, Kalash.Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year...
to have distinctively curved magazines (helping to distinguish AK-47s from AK-74s, which feed from a much straighter magazine). While the bullet design has gone through a few redesigns, the cartridge itself remains largely unchanged.
M43
Although the new cartridge represented a great leap forward from previous designs, the initial bullet design was flawed. The complete solidity of the M43 projectile causes its only drawback—it is very stable, even while traversing tissue. It begins to yaw only after traversing nearly 26 centimetre of tissue . This greatly reduces the wounding effectiveness of the projectile against humans. These wounds were comparable to that of a small handgun round using non-expanding bullets. Unless the round struck something vital, the wound was usually non-fatal, small and quick to heal.M67
In the 1960s Yugoslavia experimented with new bullet designs to produce a round with a superior wounding profile, speed, and accuracy to the M43. The M67 projectile is shorter and flatter-based than the M43. This is mainly due to the deletion of the mild steel insert. This has the side effect of shifting the center of gravity rearward in comparison to the M43. This allows the projectile to destabilize nearly 17 cm (6.7 in) earlier in tissue. This causes a pair of large stretch cavities at a depth likely to cause effective wound trauma. When the temporary stretch cavity intersects with the skin at the exit area, a larger exit wound will result, which takes longer to heal. Additionally, when the stretch cavity intersects a stiff organ like the liver, it will cause damage to that organ.Even when fragmentation occurs as the bullet yaws, the wounding potential of M67 is mostly limited to the small permanent wound channel the bullet itself makes . The real damage of the M67 is when it yaws. Meanwhile a fragmenting round (like the 5.56x45mm NATO
5.56x45mm NATO
5.56×45mm NATO is a rifle cartridge developed in the United States and originally chambered in the M16 rifle. Under STANAG 4172, it is a standard cartridge for NATO forces as well as many non-NATO countries. It is derived from, but not identical to, the .223 Remington cartridge...
) might cause massive tissue trauma and blood loss (and thus rapid incapacitation) on a lung or abdominal hit, the M67 has a greater chance of merely wounding the target. However, the 5.56x45 will only reliably fragment in close ranges below 125 metres (410.1 ft).
Many contemporary Russian-made 7.62×39 cartridges, such as those sold under the brand names Wolf Ammunition
Wolf Ammunition
WOLF Performance Ammunition is a registered trademark owned by SSI a corporation in the USA. WOLF Performance Ammunition has several lines of ammunition which include:WOLF PolyFormance - Polymer coated steel case ammunition from Russian factories...
and Golden Tiger, feature a modified M67 bullet with an airspace cast into the nose or similar ballistic-enhancing tip design (e.g. 8m3) which improve fragmentation and/or tumbling tendencies.
Chinese steel core
Chinese military-issue ammunition in this caliber is M43 style with a mild steel core and a thin jacket of copper or brass. Chinese ammunition (as well as all other M43 ammunition) is currently banned from importation in the US. U.S. federal law classifies the round as an armor-piercing handgun round. This classification is based on materials and bullet design rather than on empirical ability to penetrate armor.Ballistics
The standard AK-47 or AKM fires the 7.62x39mm cartridge with a muzzle velocity=710 m/s (2,329 ft/s). Muzzle energy is 2,010 joules (1,480 ft·lbf). Projectile weight is normally 7.8 grams (120 gr). The AK-47 and AKM, with the 7.62×39mm cartridge, have a maximum effective range of around 400 metres (1,300 ft).Cartridge dimensions
The 7.62×39mm has 2.31 mlLitre
pic|200px|right|thumb|One litre is equivalent to this cubeEach side is 10 cm1 litre water = 1 kilogram water The litre is a metric system unit of volume equal to 1 cubic decimetre , to 1,000 cubic centimetres , and to 1/1,000 cubic metre...
(35.6 grains
Grain (measure)
A grain is a unit of measurement of mass that is nominally based upon the mass of a single seed of a cereal. From the Bronze Age into the Renaissance the average masses of wheat and barley grains were part of the legal definition of units of mass. However, there is no evidence of any country ever...
H2O) cartridge case capacity.
7.62×39mm maximum C.I.P. cartridge dimensions. All sizes in millimeters (mm).
Americans would define the shoulder angle at alpha/2 ≈ 16.4 degrees. The common rifling
Rifling
Rifling is the process of making helical grooves in the barrel of a gun or firearm, which imparts a spin to a projectile around its long axis...
twist rate for this cartridge is 240 mm (1 in 9.45 in), 4 grooves, Ø lands = 7.62 millimetre (0.3 in), Ø grooves = 7.92 millimetre (0.311811023622047 in), land width = 3.81 millimetre (0.15 in) and the primer type
Percussion cap
The percussion cap, introduced around 1830, was the crucial invention that enabled muzzleloading firearms to fire reliably in any weather.Before this development, firearms used flintlock ignition systems which produced flint-on-steel sparks to ignite a pan of priming powder and thereby fire the...
is small rifle.
According to an American source some barrels can however have a non C.I.P. conform grooves diameter of 7.82 millimetre (0.307874015748032 in).
According to the official C.I.P. (Commission Internationale Permanente pour l'Epreuve des Armes à Feu Portatives) guidelines the 7.62×39mm case can handle up to 355 MPa (51,488 psi) piezo pressure. In C.I.P. regulated countries every rifle cartridge combo has to be proofed at 125% of this maximum C.I.P. pressure to certify for sale to consumers.
Other names for 7.62×39mm
On some occasions, this ammunition is referred to as 7.62 mm Soviet, 7.62 mm Warsaw PactWarsaw Pact
The Warsaw Treaty Organization of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance , or more commonly referred to as the Warsaw Pact, was a mutual defense treaty subscribed to by eight communist states in Eastern Europe...
(or WP) being analogous to 5.56 NATO, or 7.62 mm ComBloc. It was also known in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
as .30 Short Russian/ComBloc; the "Short" was to distinguish it from the older .30 Russian, which was the 7.62x54mmR.
Hunting and sport use
Since approximately 1990, the 7.62×39mm cartridge has seen some use in hunting arms in the US for hunting game up to the size of whitetail deer, as it is approximately as powerful as the .30-30 Winchester.30-30 Winchester
The .30-30 Winchester/.30 Winchester Center Fire/7.62×51mmR cartridge was first marketed in early 1895 for the Winchester Model 1894 lever-action rifle. The .30-30 , as it is most commonly known, was the USA's first small-bore, sporting rifle cartridge designed for smokeless powder. The .30-30 is...
round, and has a similar ballistic profile. Large numbers of inexpensive imported semiautomatic rifles, like the SKS
SKS
The SKS is a Soviet semi-automatic rifle chambered for the 7.62x39mm round, designed in 1943 by Sergei Gavrilovich Simonov. SKS-45 is an acronym for Samozaryadnyj Karabin sistemy Simonova, 1945 Simonov system, 1945), or SKS 45. The Sks is a scaled down version of the PTRS-41 anti-tank rifle also...
and AK-47
AK-47
The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62×39mm assault rifle, first developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova . It is also known as a Kalashnikov, an "AK", or in Russian slang, Kalash.Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year...
clones and variants, are available in this caliber.
In addition, several AR15 manufacturers such as Olympic Arms
Olympic Arms
Olympic Arms, Inc. manufactures and markets AR-15 and M16 pattern rifles, carbines and pistols. Olympic also manufactures Colt 1911 series 70 style pistols. All products currently manufactured by Olympic are sold under the Olympic Arms brand name....
, Del-Ton Inc, and ModelOne Sales are producing 16" carbines and 20" to 24" rifle length firearms that can often get very good accuracy to about 1" groups at 100 yards.
Ruger produces the Mini-30 as a 7.62×39mm version of their popular Mini-14
Mini-14
The Mini-14, Mini Thirty, and Mini-6.8 are small, lightweight semi-automatic carbines manufactured by the U.S. firearms company Sturm, Ruger. The Mini-14 non-target versions can fire both the .223 Remington cartridge and the similar military 5.56x45mm cartridge. The target model Mini-14 rifles are...
rifle. They also once had their M77 Mark II available in this caliber.
Remington Arms
Remington Arms
Remington Arms Company, Inc. was founded in 1816 by Eliphalet Remington in Ilion, New York, as E. Remington and Sons. It is the oldest company in the United States which still makes its original product, and is the oldest continuously operating manufacturer in North America. It is the only U.S....
introduced its Compact Model 799 Mini Mauser bolt action rifle chambered in 7.62×39mm in 2006, describing the Mauser action as "sought after by today’s hunters and shooters." The Mauser action is a copy of the Gewehr 98
Gewehr 98
The Gewehr 98 is a German bolt action Mauser rifle firing the 8x57mm cartridge from a 5 round internal clip-loaded magazine that was the German service rifle from 1898 to 1935, when it was replaced by the Karabiner 98k. It was hence the main rifle of the German infantry during World War I...
model rifle's action.
CZ-USA
CZ-USA
CZ-USA is the US-based subsidiary of Česká zbrojovka Uherský Brod, a Czech firearms manufacturer. CZ-USA, based in Kansas City, Kansas, is responsible for the importation and distribution of CZ products in the United States.- About CZ-USA :...
Sells the "micro length Mauser style" bolt action chambered in 7.62×39mm.
Savage Arms
Savage Arms
The Savage Arms Company is a firearms manufacturing company based in Westfield, Massachusetts, with a division located in Canada. The company makes a variety of rimfire and centerfire rifles, as well as marketing the Stevens single-shot rifles and shotguns...
has introduced (around 2010–2011) their own bolt action rifle in 7.62x39mm caliber - Model: 10 FCM Scout.
The low cost and high availability of military surplus ammunition makes this cartridge attractive for many civilian shooters, although for hunting large game, many people prefer the 154 gr soft point, which is usually labeled under the Wolf brand. A 126 grain Soft point is labeled under the MFS
MFS 2000 Inc
MFS 2000 Inc. is a Hungarian ammunition manufacturer located in Sirok. It was established in 1952 as Mátravidéki Fémművek and began to produce ammunition for the civilian market in the late 1950's. Initial military production declined during the 1960's and 1970's in favour of civilian production....
Brand and features a Zn (zinc) plated steel case instead of the usual lacquer or polymer coated steel.