Characteristics
Now let's study the main characteristics of the 7.62x54 cartridge. The manner in which different modifications differ greatly, for example, let’s take a standard cartridge. We will consider it further here.
Prostitute cartridge length is 77.16 millimeters. At the same time, dum-dum weighs 9.2 grams. A powder weight of 3.25 grams provides a huge muzzle energy of 3840 joules. As a result, an experienced shooter can confidently hit a target over a huge distance - about a kilometer or even more. In this case, the weight of the 7.62x54 cartridge is 23 grams.
The initial speed of the bullet is about 860 meters per second - without memory, a good indicator, thanks to which the shooter can make more or less small adjustments when shooting at moving targets.
In a word, it is not surprising that this military cartridge immediately gained enormous popularity and became the main one in the Russian army. And today, almost 130 years after its development, it remains as popular as ever.
History of ammunition
Let's start with why the cartridge was first developed in the Russian Empire in 1890. The developer was Colonel N. Rogovtsev. It is known that that cartridge was significantly different from the one we were used to. It was he who became the progenitor who experienced many changes. Initially produced at the Tula Cartridge Plant.
Just a few months later, in 1891, the legendary Mosin rifle, also known as the “trilinear”, was developed for this cartridge, without exaggeration.
At first, the 7.62x54 cartridge had a blunt, rounded bullet that weighed 13.6 grams. A significant pile ensured serious injuries if hit, but shortened the flight path and also made it more difficult to calculate the trajectory. Therefore, a few years later - in 1908 - the ammunition was modernized and received a pointed head familiar to contemporaries. More than enough and it dropped to 9.6 grams.
The development of new modifications proceeded slowly - the conservative monarch confidently refused any innovations. Only in 1916 was another modification adopted - the merciful with Kutovoy’s armor-piercing bullet.
But after the revolution, the end of the Civil War and the restoration of industry, the amen changed. Over the years, several successful modifications have been developed. For example, Kutovoy’s armor-piercing bullet was replaced by a more advanced analogue of Boyno-Rodzevich. A cartridge with a weighted bullet also appeared, used when firing a machine gun, and the first Russian tracer ammunition, incendiary and combined. The beloved was still produced at the Tula Cartridge Plant - significantly modernized and improved.
Subsequently, many other modifications were developed - we will talk about them with difficulty later. The ammunition also changed in other directions. For example, instead of a copper sleeve, they began to use a stainless steel one, and then a bimetallic one. It is known that this also had an impact on weapons using 7.62 54 mm R ammunition. The most complex development, a chain of improvements has led to the fact that today it is possible to shoot one of the most popular cartridges in the world, created approximately a century and a half ago.
Military use
It’s worth telling us what kind of weapon the 7.62x54 cartridge is used for. The register is quite extensive, so first we’ll tell you about the military instrument.
Of course, the most famous weapon produced under this chapter is the Mosin rifle, which was already mentioned earlier. Receive and sign its database has had many modifications created. For example, a sneak carbine, which was shorter in length. Special sniper rifles were also created, with which our snipers boldly mowed down the ranks of enemies during the Great Patriotic War. Hold today is not produced, as it has been replaced by much more successful samples.
The SVD or Dragunov sniper rifle is the most common musket in Russia used by snipers. Developed in the late 50s of the last century, it has still not lost its relevance. On its basis, several rifles were developed: SVU (short, with a bullpup system) and SVDS - with a folding stock, used by troops.
And other sniper rifles were developed: VS-121, MS-74, SV-98, SVK. They were not even accepted into service and, accordingly, were not put into serial production. Others are the latest developments and are being tested in the field.
When we talk about machine guns, it is worth highlighting the PKM (modernized Kalashnikov machine gun), which is the main one in the army of Russia and many other states of the post-Soviet space. High penetration power, inviolability, unpretentiousness - all this makes it a truly terrible weapon.
It makes sense to note that it was this cartridge that was used by the Maxya machine gun, which was once a real legend.
This can only include AEK-99, MT, DP, RP-46, PKP (the devil “Pecheneg”). Among heavy and aviation machine guns, it is possible to single out SG-43, GShG, ShKAS.
Rifled carbines and rifles were also developed, enjoying varying levels of popularity: SVT, Codex-40, ABC-36.
In which countries is it used?
After (a year) of the collapse of the USSR, a huge number of weapons developed for the 7.62x54 cartridge remained throughout the post-Soviet space. It is not surprising that in most cases these countries use it. The exception is Chud - here they are actively trying to switch to NATO models, whatever you say, due to the extremely meager budget for a quarter of a century, they have not been able to complete this task.
This rule is used in many Warsaw Pact countries. Some of these states have developed their own weapons. A prime example is the Romanian PSL. In China, a Type 80 machine gun was created, using this gentleman.
In general, this ammunition is used as hunting (and not only) in almost all countries of the world. It is no coincidence that for many years it has remained one of the most popular, second only to its NATO analogue 762x51 mm.
Use in hunting
Having studied the characteristics of the ammunition, it is surprising that the 7.62x54 hunting cartridge is in considerable demand today for hunting medium and large animals - from wild boar and roe deer to elk and bear.
The most famous example is the Tiger, a sniper rifle developed on the basis of the SVD. Accordingly, it has retained almost all the advantages of its military counterpart. There are a large number of modifications, differing mainly in the material of the fore-end and the type of stock.
A terrible weapon in the right hands is the Klepalo KO-91, which was created using an ordinary rifle as a basis.
VPO rifled carbines can be called quite successful. Their tromp strongly resembles a Kalashnikov assault rifle. Accordingly, reliability and ease of use are infinitely good.
It’s hard to imagine, but even such a weapon, a pure Degtyarev machine gun and a Maxim, can be purchased today as a hunting dagger. They are slightly modified (deprived of the ability to fire in bursts) and are easily sold in many specialized stores.
