NickC wrote: ↑17 Mar 2023, 14:25
Poiuytrewq wrote: ↑17 Mar 2023, 12:32
NickC wrote: ↑17 Mar 2023, 11:47
Better ballistics and compatibility
Please elaborate?
Bullet ballistic coefficients.
Thanks.
Firstly, don’t get too wrapped up in BCs. They are an important factor but not the only one. You also have consider muzzle velocity, recoil, chamber pressure, inherent accuracy plus how much kinetic energy the round puts on target and effectiveness at penetrating body armour etc.
Secondly, is it single shot, mag fed or belt fed. This is massively important. Generally cartridges with high chamber pressures and muzzle velocities are not ideally suited to belt fed or being fired on full auto for long periods. Just increasing chamber pressure and muzzle velocity doesn’t always make it better.
Chromium plating the barrel will help but all that heat in the throat will crack and erode the barrel steel much faster in the 6.8mm than the 7.62. In real terms that means changing the barrel more often or losing accuracy faster.
From a ballistic point of view the 6.8mm is a poor choice when compared to the 6.5mm or 7mm and in a practical sense I really don’t think it would make a decisive difference in the real world.
Of all the British Army’s priorities at the moment, this isn’t it.
However increasing the 5.56 up to 6mm or 6.5mm and replacing the 7.62 with the 8.6 would make complete sense but it really isn’t a NATO priority IMO.