7.62×54mmR

Examples of 7.62×54mmR ammunition. The photo shows, reading from left to right: Sellier & Bellot hollow point boat tail; "Czech silver tip", mild steel core, light ball; Hungarian silver/yellow-tip, mild steel core, heavy ball; Wolf Ammunition Gold soft-point; USSR 1986 steel core light ball, Factory 60. [1]; Yugoslav surplus (1953); USSR 1940s lead core light ball [2]

Type

Rifle

Place of origin

Russian Empire

Service history

In service

1891–present

Used by

Wars

Production history

Designed

1891

Produced

1891–present

Specifications

Parent case

8×52mmR Mannlicher

Case type

Rimmed, Bottleneck

Bullet diameter

7.92 mm (0.312 in)

Neck diameter

8.53 mm (0.336 in)

Shoulder diameter

11.61 mm (0.457 in)

Base diameter

12.37 mm (0.487 in)

Rim diameter

14.40 mm (0.567 in)

Rim thickness

1.6 mm (0.063 in)

Case length

53.72 mm (2.115 in)

Overall length

77.16 mm (3.038 in)

Case capacity

4.16 cm³ (64.2 gr H₂O)

Rifling twist

240 mm (1 in 9.45 in)

Primer type

Berdan or Boxer Large Rifle

Maximum pressure

390.00 MPa (56,565 psi)

Ballistic performance

Bullet mass/type	Velocity	Energy
11.3 g (174 gr) HPBT	797 m/s (2,610 ft/s)	3,593 J (2,650 ft·lbf)
11.7 g (181 gr) FMJ	786 m/s (2,580 ft/s)	3,614 J (2,666 ft·lbf)
11.7 g (181 gr) SP	800 m/s (2,600 ft/s)	3,744 J (2,761 ft·lbf)
9.7 g (150 gr) FMJ	865 m/s (2,840 ft/s)	3,629 J (2,677 ft·lbf)
11.7 g (181 gr) SP	805 m/s (2,640 ft/s)	3,779 J (2,787 ft·lbf)

Test barrel length: 73 cm (28 in)
Source(s):

The 7.62×54mmR is a rimmed rifle cartridge developed by the Russian Empire and introduced as a service cartridge in 1891. Originally designed for the bolt-action Mosin–Nagant rifle, it was used during the late Tsarist era and throughout the Soviet period to the present day. The cartridge remains one of the few standard-issue rimmed cartridges still in military use and has the longest service life of all military-issued cartridges in the world.

The American Winchester Model 1895 was also chambered for this cartridge per a contract with the Russian government. The 7.62×54mmR is still in use by the Russian military in the Dragunov and other sniper rifles, as well as some modern general-purpose machine guns like the PKM. Originally, the round was designated as "Трехлинейный патрон образца 1891 года" – (Three-line cartridge model of 1891). It then became widely known under the designation "7,62мм винтовочный патрон" (7,62mm rifle cartridge). The round has erroneously come to be known as the "7.62mm Russian" (and is still often referred to as such colloquially), but, according to standards, the "R" in designation (7.62×54mmR) stands for Rimmed, in line with standard C.I.P. designations. The name is sometimes confused with the "7.62 Soviet" round, which refers to the rimless 7.62×39mm cartridge used in the SKS and AK-based (AK-47) rifles.

The 7.62×54mmR is the oldest cartridge still in regular combat service with several major armed forces in the world. In 2011, the cartridge reached 120 years in service. As of December 2013^[update] the 7.62×54mmR is mainly used in sniper rifles like the Dragunov sniper rifle and machine guns like the PKM. The .30-06 Springfield cartridge (7.62×63 mm), with its higher service pressure and case capacity, can outperform the 7.62×54mmR, especially when same-length test barrels are used in this comparison. The 7.62×54mmR's case capacity prevents it from reaching the most powerful .30-06 loads, but even with this limit, it has been used to successfully kill large bears. Because of performance similar to the iconic American .30-06 cartridge, a similarly rich military and historic heritage, and amazing longevity, the 7.62×54mmR is nicknamed "the Russian .30-06" by some. It is also one of the few (along with the .22 Hornet, .30-30 Winchester, and .303 British) bottlenecked, rimmed centerfire rifle cartridges still in common use today. Most of the bottleneck rimmed cartridges of the late 1880s and 1890s fell into disuse by the end of the First World War.

...
Wikipedia