7.62×40mm Wilson Tactical
| 7.62×40mm Wilson Tactical | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Type | Rifle | |||||||||||||||||||
| Place of origin |
 United States of America
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| Production history | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Designer | Bill Wilson | |||||||||||||||||||
| Designed | 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Manufacturer | Wilson Combat | |||||||||||||||||||
| Produced | 2011-present | |||||||||||||||||||
| Specifications | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Parent case | 5.56×45mm NATO | |||||||||||||||||||
| Case type | Rimless, bottleneck | |||||||||||||||||||
| Bullet diameter | .308 in (7.8 mm) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Base diameter | .377 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Rim diameter | .378 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Rim thickness | .045 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Case length | 1.565 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Overall length | 2.250 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Rifling twist | 1-12" | |||||||||||||||||||
| Primer type | Small rifle | |||||||||||||||||||
| Ballistic performance | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Test barrel length: 20" for the 110gr Sierra HP, 16" for all others Source(s): http://shopwilsoncombat.com/Wilson-Combat-Custom-Ammunition/products/414/ |
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The 7.62×40mm Wilson Tactical (7.62×40mm WT) is a centerfire rifle cartridge introduced in 2011 by Wilson Combat. The goal was to produce an accurate, low-recoil .30-caliber hunting cartridge that could be used in an AR-15-type rifle using as many standard components as possible.
The 7.62×40mm WT (Wilson Tactical) is based on the 7.62×40mm wildcat cartridge, the shoulder of the WT was moved .003" forward and the throat was made .001" larger to accommodate mass-production tolerances but stay within the tolerance of the original reloading die tooling of the 7.62×40mm. The parent case (5.56×45mm NATO) is trimmed down to 1.560" and is re-sized with a 7.62×40mm WT sizing die. The overall case length after the shortening and re-sizing is 1.565". The cartridge is designed to use .308" diameter bullets in weights of 110 to 150 grains, with a standard twist rate of 1-12". Wilson Combat states that heavier bullets can be used in a barrel with a 1-8" twist rate for subsonic loads.
Wilson had been hunting feral hogs with both the .30 Remington AR and .300 AAC Blackout. However, since most feral hog hunting is performed at night, he did not like looking for proprietary brass cases after he had fired them and designed the 7.62 X 40mm around the inexpensive and readily available 5.56 NATO cartridge.
The 7.62×40mm WT is designed for both tactical/defense rifles and for hunting medium-sized game. In tactical applications, the 110gr Barnes TTSX bullet can be used to penetrate tough barriers, while the soft-point and hollow-point bullets provide reliable terminal performance on soft tissue. In hunting applications, the 7.62×40mm WT delivers slightly more energy than the 7.62×39mm and is similar to the 6.8 SPC and .30-30 Winchester, making it useful for game such as deer and feral hogs, particularly for hunters who want to use an AR-15, but cannot legally use the 5.56 round, due to its low power factor on game.
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Wikipedia