8 × 50 mm R Lebel
| 8 × 50 mm R Lebel | |
|---|---|
|
|
| general information | |
| caliber | 8 × 50 mm border |
| Sleeve shape | Rim cartridge |
| Dimensions | |
| Sleeve shoulder ⌀ | 11.6 mm |
| Sleeve neck ⌀ | 8.9 mm |
| Floor ⌀ | 8.3 mm |
| Cartridge bottom ⌀ | 16.0 mm |
| Sleeve length | 51 mm |
| Cartridge length | 70 mm |
| Weights | |
| Bullet weight | 12.8 g (198 grain ) |
| Powder weight | 2.9 g (46 grain ) |
| Technical specifications | |
| Speed v 0 | 730 m / s |
| Bullet energy E 0 | 3,364 y |
| Lists on the subject | |
The 8 x 50 mm R Lebel was a French gun cartridge with central ignition . It was the first military cartridge to use a low-smoke propellant charge .
history
Until its introduction, black powder was used to make ammunition . This type of propellant charge required bulky cases in order to burn off completely. In addition, the gas pressure did not develop regularly, so that cartridges could not be loaded as strongly as desired. This resulted in large-caliber ammunition with a relatively slow projectile velocity. The firing verschmauchte the weapons of powder smoke took the view and betrayed the position of the shooter.
It was only in 1884 that Paul Vieille was able to create a replacement with the Poudre B. This type of propellant was both more powerful and more predictable. This enabled faster cartridges to be developed, the projectiles of which achieved a greater range. Under pressure from Minister of War Georges Ernest Boulanger , a new rifle in the shape of the Lebel Model 1886 was created that fired this cartridge.
The original round head bullet ( balle M ) was replaced in 1898 by the world's first pointed bullet ( balle D ) with a weight of 12.8 g, a projectile with an even longer range than its predecessor. The final point was the performance-enhanced cartridge, designated ball N , which was primarily intended for machine guns . New Berthier rifles that were set up for this ammunition were marked with an N on the barrel attachment. Only in such rifles could the ammunition be safely fired.
It was replaced by the rimless 7.5 × 54 mm cartridge introduced in 1929 , but remained in use until 1945.
Effects
With the introduction of this weapon and its new ammunition, the French army gained a technological edge. This inevitably led to an arms race , and by the end of the 19th century smokeless ammunition was also feverishly developed in many countries. Under this pressure to act, states such as Switzerland , Sweden and the German Reich at least demonstrated the foresight to better exploit the potential of this new development. They introduced compact and, above all, rimless cartridges, which facilitated the later development of automatic weapons. France failed to do this. Instead of designing a radically new cartridge case, the old black powder case from the 11 mm Gras was used . The diameter of the bumper was therefore very large. That didn't matter in the Lebel rifle, because it had a tubular magazine with up to ten cartridges in a row. Cartridges with pointed projectiles, however, harbored the risk that the recoil of the weapon would cause them to hit each other, whereupon they could ignite. To prevent this from happening, a groove was made around the primer in the balle D , in which the tip of the cartridge in front of it should fit. When Berthier Model 1907 later a box magazine only three cartridges was used, one above the other fit into the first. The construction of a curve magazine turned out to be even more difficult. The strongly conical shape of the case forced such a strong curvature that the magazine of the Chauchat machine gun described a semicircle.
The 8 mm Lebel only appeared with a strap long after the First World War. The reason for this was not of a technical nature. In contrast to many other European countries, France had not signed a license agreement with Hiram Maxim , who had patented not only the Maxim machine guns of the same name , but also the ammunition feed through ammunition belts . Instead, they made do with metal strips like those used in the Hotchkiss M1914 . Together with this MG, the ammunition was in use until after the Second World War .
literature
- Ian Hogg : Military Small Arms of the 20th Century . Arms & Armor Press, 1982, ISBN 0-910676-87-9 .
Web links
- www.chuckhawks.com: The 8x50R Lebel (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Jeffrey Strickland: Handbook of Handguns . Lulu, 2014, ISBN 978-1-300-97329-4 , pp. 104–105 ( limited preview in Google Book search).