Development of British cannon ammuniation during WW2

On or about 27 Dec 2003 19:04:58 -0800,
(Tony Williams) allegedly uttered:


They were interested in an AP for anti-tank purposes and a
tungsten-cored 20mm APCR was developed by Janecek (of Littlejohn
squeezebore fame). Penetration was spectacular (figures range from
45-65mm) but it seems there were ballistic problems and it was never
adopted. The USAAF had a plain steel AP shot, but AFAIK the RAF never
used one.

Tony, fascinating as always, but I have to ask - APCR? Armour Piercing
mumble mumble?

TIA

---
Peter Kemp

Life is short - Drink Faster

On Sat, 27 Dec 2003 22:49:13 -0500, Peter Kemp
peter_n_kempathotmaildotcom@ wrote:

On or about 27 Dec 2003 19:04:58 -0800,
(Tony Williams) allegedly uttered:


They were interested in an AP for anti-tank purposes and a
tungsten-cored 20mm APCR was developed by Janecek (of Littlejohn
squeezebore fame). Penetration was spectacular (figures range from
45-65mm) but it seems there were ballistic problems and it was never
adopted. The USAAF had a plain steel AP shot, but AFAIK the RAF never
used one.

Tony, fascinating as always, but I have to ask - APCR? Armour Piercing
mumble mumble?

Composite Rigid - a lightweight round with a small hard core
(usually tungsten alloy) for increased armor penetration.


--
"The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability
of the human mind to correlate all its contents." - H.P. Lovecraft

Peter Kemp peter_n_kempathotmaildotcom@ wrote in message . ..
On or about 27 Dec 2003 19:04:58 -0800,
(Tony Williams) allegedly uttered:


They were interested in an AP for anti-tank purposes and a
tungsten-cored 20mm APCR was developed by Janecek (of Littlejohn
squeezebore fame). Penetration was spectacular (figures range from
45-65mm) but it seems there were ballistic problems and it was never
adopted. The USAAF had a plain steel AP shot, but AFAIK the RAF never
used one.

Tony, fascinating as always, but I have to ask - APCR? Armour Piercing
mumble mumble?

http://www.quarry.nildram.co.uk/Glossary.html
APCR armour piercing, composite, rigid: shot consisting of a
penetrating core (usually of tungsten alloy) enclosed within a
light-alloy body, which travels as a unit to the target

Also you might want to take a look at this:

http://www.quarry.nildram.co.uk/WW2guneffect.htm
WORLD WAR 2 FIGHTER ARMAMENT EFFECTIVENESS

-HJC

In article ,
Peter Kemp peter_n_kempathotmaildotcom@ writes:
On or about 27 Dec 2003 19:04:58 -0800,
(Tony Williams) allegedly uttered:


They were interested in an AP for anti-tank purposes and a
tungsten-cored 20mm APCR was developed by Janecek (of Littlejohn
squeezebore fame). Penetration was spectacular (figures range from
45-65mm) but it seems there were ballistic problems and it was never
adopted. The USAAF had a plain steel AP shot, but AFAIK the RAF never
used one.

Tony, fascinating as always, but I have to ask - APCR? Armour Piercing
mumble mumble?

Armor Piercing Composite Rigid. A dense, hard, penetrating core,
surrounded by a light metal shell to flesh out the shape. It's
generally lighter than a solid shot, so the muzzle velocity is higher.
When it hits, the light sheath is stripped off, and the core, having a
high sectional density, should give more penetration for a particular
velocity. The drawhack is that the lighter shell loses velocity more
quickly than the heavier shot, so that a solid shot is often better
for long range shooting.

Realizing that you didn't really need to have the lightweight sheath
along led to the development of Armor Piercing Discarding Sabot,
(APDS), which drops the sheath (Sabot) on leaving the barrel. The
round then has a better drag/weight ratio, and doesn't lose speed as
quickly.

--
Pete Stickney
A strong conviction that something must be done is the parent of many
bad measures. -- Daniel Webster

On or about Sat, 27 Dec 2003 23:24:54 -0500,
(Peter Stickney) allegedly uttered:

Armor Piercing Composite Rigid. snip

Thanks to all who replied.

---
Peter Kemp

Life is short - Drink Faster

Peter Kemp wrote:

On or about Sat, 27 Dec 2003 23:24:54 -0500,
(Peter Stickney) allegedly uttered:

Armor Piercing Composite Rigid. snip

AKA HVAP for US tank ammo.

Guy

On Sun, 28 Dec 2003 23:02:05 GMT, Guy Alcala
wrote:

Peter Kemp wrote:

On or about Sat, 27 Dec 2003 23:24:54 -0500,
(Peter Stickney) allegedly uttered:

Armor Piercing Composite Rigid. snip

AKA HVAP for US tank ammo.

It sure beats Composite Rigid Armor Piercing.

--
"The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability
of the human mind to correlate all its contents." - H.P. Lovecraft

Johnny Bravo wrote in message . ..
On Sun, 28 Dec 2003 23:02:05 GMT, Guy Alcala
wrote:

Peter Kemp wrote:

On or about Sat, 27 Dec 2003 23:24:54 -0500,
(Peter Stickney) allegedly uttered:

Armor Piercing Composite Rigid. snip

AKA HVAP for US tank ammo.

It sure beats Composite Rigid Armor Piercing.

I have seen a contemporary document in the PRO which refers to it as
exactly that....somebody must have pointed out the obvious and they
changed it fast!

Tony Williams
Military gun and ammunition website: http://www.quarry.nildram.co.uk
Discussion forum at: http://forums.delphiforums.com/autogun/messages/