M829 (munition)

The M829 is an American Armor-Piercing, Fin-Stabilized, Discarding Sabot (APFSDS) tank round designed specifically for the 120mm M256 main gun on the Abrams M1A1 and M1A2 main battle tanks. This sub-caliber anti-tank round is essentially a dart made of a depleted uranium (DU) alloy which gives it good penetration against nearly all known types of tank armor. The penetrator is carried by a sabot during its acceleration in the gun barrel.

Perhaps see Armour-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot, and sabot for applicable historical references.

Perhaps see Armour-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot, and sabot for applicable design references.

The M829 has a ballistic nose and five tail fins made of aluminum. It is carried in the gun tube by a four-piece aluminum sabot, which separates into four "petals" soon after the round leaves the gun tube. The propulsion system uses an obturating case base with a semi-combustible cartridge wall. It has a total weight of 41.1 lb (18.6 kg) and utilizes a 627 mm (24.7 in) DU penetrator with a 27 mm rod diameter, which will reach a muzzle velocity of 1,670 metres per second (5,500 ft/s) using of 8.1 kg (18 lb) of JA-2 propellant. Maximum effective range is 3,000 m (3,300 yd). According to Jane's, the M829 is capable of penetrating 540 mm (21 in) of RHA steel armor at up to a 2,000 m (2,200 yd) range. The original M829 is no longer in production and has been succeeded by the M829A1, M829A2, and M829A3. The corresponding training round is the M865 costing $1,121.

The M829A1 (nicknamed the "Silver Bullet" by Operation Desert Storm tank crews) proved itself in 1991 against Iraqi T-55 and T-72 tanks during Operation Desert Storm. However, its effectiveness has been reduced by modern explosive reactive armor (ERA) such as the Russian Kontakt-5, which led to the rapid development of the M829A3 round (which in turn led to the development of the newest Russian Relikt ERA). The M829A1 round weighs 20.9 kg (46 lb) and has an overall length of 984 mm (38.7 in). The 7.9 kg (17 lb) of JA-19 propellant creates a chamber pressure of 5,600 bars (~81,220 psi), which results in a muzzle velocity of 1,575 m/s (5,170 ft/s). The 684 mm (26.9 in)-long penetrator together with its sabot weighs 9 kg (20 lb). The mass of the penetrator alone is 4.6 kg (10 lb). The effective target range is 3,000 m (3,300 yd).Point-blank the M829A1 is estimated to penetrate 670 mm (26 in) of steel armor, which decreases to 620 mm (24 in) at 1,000 m (1,100 yd), and to 570 mm (22 in) at 2,000 m (2,200 yd). At 4,000 m (4,400 yd), it is believed to still be able to penetrate 460 mm (18 in) of steel armor.

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