Ammo maker takes aim at weight savings with plastic cartridge casings
By PlasticsToday Staff
Published: September 29th, 2011
Published: September 29th, 2011
Plastics have long played a role in fire arms, seeing use in everything from stocks to handgun frames but now they're looking to get inside the barrel with polymer-based cartridge casings. Earlier this year PCP Ammunition (Winter Park, FL) launched a line of lightweight polymer-cased ammunition, creating rounds that reportedly offer comparable performance to brass cartridges with weight savings of more than 50% for the case and 25%-30% of loaded brass ammunition.
The creators also claim the new casings solve many of the issues that affected previous attempts at polymer-based cartridges through new patented designs and material selection. PCP says the cartridges can be loaded using standard loading equipment with a wide range of bullets for ground and air tactical units. There are currently five calibers available ranging all the way up to .50 cal.
The ammunition satisfies Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Institute (SAAMI) specifications, while reportedly matching or exceeding brass ammunition's performance characteristics. On its website, the company said it's currently ramping up production to meet anticipated demand while establishing supplier/dealer relationships. "This technology has the potential to revolutionize small arms ammunition. We are excited to work with the U.S. Military and reach out to the Sportsman Community to introduce our new products."
Previous misfires
Others have attempted plastics casings before, with mixed results. Amtech Inc., which became NATEC Inc. (Plattsburgh, NY) came to the market in 2006 with a patented, high pressure, polymer-cased ammunition (PCA). That company, and its president and CEO, Nabil Husseini, enlisted the help of DuPont to create cartridges that could withstand the high pressures and temperatures associated with rifle ammunition. NATEC's intellectual property cited patents from the '70s, '50s and even a 1926 one from DuPont (that company's history with ammunition goes back to 1802 when it began making gun powder in Wilmington, DE). The military has been interested in the technology going back to the 1960s, hoping to lighten the load, literally, for its ground forces.
According to the March 2006 issue of The Small Arms Review, NATEC's PCA-Spectrum ammunition, which was 34% lighter than standard brass-cased ammunition, was created via insert injection molding where the projectile was molded into the casing for a self sealing cartridge.
If it is plastic and can be
If it is plastic and can be used as ammunition quality and does not reduce the function of the bullets that were usually made of metal, why not? I think this is a fairly new innovation save production costs. Scan.com - Buy Best AntiVirus Software Reviews 2012, Compare, Buy, Deals on Top Anti Virus Softwares.
I'm sorry if we did not reply
I'm sorry if we did not reply to your request. I will be happy to speak to you to give you more detailed information for your article but I cannot divulge the actual blend we are using. I realize this is probably the detail your audience is most concerned with, but we need to protect our IP as well as possible. We plan to have product on the market in March and I will be happy to arrange for you to test it if you like.
Best Regards
Tony - PCP Ammunition
I'm not an engineer I'm a
I'm not an engineer I'm a gunsmith,classicly trained;however every other member of my family has an extensive enginering background.Right now I'm working on a specific problem,namely the 10mm automatic.It is a fantastic service cartrige but is arguably the most poorly designed cartrige in modern history.The parent case is the 30 Remington from the turn of the 20th century.It's wide extraction groove in consert with the use of large primers makes it an extreemly weak design considering the preasure developed by modern loadings.I started by attempting to induce the ammo makers to produce cases w/small primer pockets.I was amazed to learn this had been done but for the wrong reasons there were runs of range ammo produced at lowered projectile velocity.Thereafter there was an outcry from commercial reloaders,as the small pockets would jam their machines.
Now I'm attempting a larger view improvement of small arms cartrige cases. At first I wanted to monkey w/higher concentrations of brass strengthening alloy material...apparently this has been tried.Then I explored the use of aluminum. I'm still convinced that we may have overlooked the correct combination to adress the lack of heat conductivity,primary culprit in random combustion at high temp/pressure.
Ultimatly I considered plastic.Even though there have been noted failures...I can't help but feel that the near limitless combinations of this material make any presumption of prior failure premature to say the least.ANYONE WANT TO CONTRIBUTE TO THIS CONVERSATION-wethrob@gmail.com
I appreciate the feedback,
I appreciate the feedback, good and bad, it helps me do my job better. I reached out to the company who is making the casings but have not heard back. It's an item I continue to pursue, if/when I get more information, I will update the story.
Thanks,
Tony Deligio
Your audience is plastics
Your audience is plastics professionals, not the general public! This article lacks scientific content. What is the material, and how are the components inserted and sealed? This was a lazy job of reporting!