It’s attention-grabbing what number of army forces have experimented with varied 6mm cartridges. It appears to be a recurring theme that somebody makes an attempt to undertake some type of 6mm cartridge, however it finally falls quick for one cause or one other. The 6mm SAW was the Military’s first try to undertake a type of 6mm spherical within the Seventies.
It’s value mentioning that the Navy and Marine Corps adopted a 6mm cartridge all the best way again in 1895. The 6mm Lee Navy was an enchanting detour in American rifle cartridge improvement, however finally the Marine Corps and Navy adopted the .30-06, and the 6mm Lee Navy light away.
The Military SAWs program within the Seventies is fascinating, and I’ve written about it extensively. This system boiled all the way down to the U.S. Military looking for the correct mixture of rifle, caliber, and machine gun. They examined M14s, G3 clones from H&R, varied Colt carbines, together with the M15, a belt-fed M16, and extra. They blended squads of rifles and M60s, conducting quite a few experiments.
Commercial — Proceed Studying Beneath
This led to experimenting with cartridges and calibers, ensuing within the 6mm SAW.
Breaking It Down
SAW did stand for Squad Automated Weapon, and as you realize, ultimately FN gained the contract and the M249 SAW. The sunshine machine gun portion was solely part of the experiment, and was the one half that caught round. The 6mm SAW cartridge was an try to enhance on perceived points with the 5.56 cartridge with out getting again into the world of full-powered rifle rounds.
The 5.56 cartridge is a good rifle spherical, however is commonly thought of a substandard machine gun spherical. You need a machine gun cartridge that may present glorious long-range ballistics, particularly, so you may hold the enemy’s head down at lengthy ranges. A 5.56 machine gun has the identical functionality as a 5.56 rifle, which suggests your vary is similar.
Commercial — Proceed Studying Beneath
A machine gun with higher long-range efficiency places its head down earlier and permits troops to shut on the enemy quicker. The 7.62x51mm NATO cartridge is a good machine gun spherical, however it requires a pretty big and heavy gun to handle, and the ammo tends to be heavy as effectively. The Military had a 7.62 machine gun; it wished one thing lighter.
This led to the experimental cartridge, the 6mm SAW. The 6mm SAW provided the Military a 105-grain cartridge shifting at 2,520 toes per second.
Commercial — Proceed Studying Beneath
Why 6mm?
6mm or .243 caliber projectiles are a wonderful all-around measurement. They provide a excessive ballistic coefficient, with a great steadiness of recoil and velocity. It affords extra vary and a better diploma of penetration via cowl than 5.56, however gained’t require the load or machine gun measurement of a 7.62 cartridge.
The 6mm SAW aimed to have an efficient vary of 1000 meters from a machine gun. That’s doubtless for an space goal, which is the place machine weapons excel within the first place. The 2500 FPS velocity may appear a bit of meek, however the 6mm spherical did a implausible job of retaining power.
Commercial — Proceed Studying Beneath
The 6mm SAW cartridge used a 45mm case, very similar to the 5.56 spherical, clearly necked up for the marginally bigger spherical. What’s attention-grabbing is that the case was metal. Additionally they produced an aluminum case that was 50mm lengthy to steadiness the thicker case wall with the identical powder capability.
The case base is 10.5mm, and the case neck is 9mm. It fashioned a novel spherical that’s but to be replicated. Even the 6x45mm wildcat doesn’t replicate the 6mm SAW.
Commercial — Proceed Studying Beneath
Why metal and aluminum? The identical cause I used to purchase metal and aluminum case ammo when it was generally out there—it’s cheaper. The Military was additionally experimenting with making its ammunition cheaper.
Finish of the 6mm SAW
Finally, the 6mm SAW met its program calls for and promptly went nowhere. Why? As a result of the army already had 5.56 and seven.62, and didn’t need a third spherical. Which begs the query, why even create the cartridge within the first place?
I feel the 6mm SAW may have been profitable, however having three cartridges in a line platoon is logistically troublesome and was a lesson discovered throughout WWII.
Commercial — Proceed Studying Beneath
