The UK's Finest Independent Forum for Shooters and Gun Owners. Est 2010.

Polchraine wrote:

Gun Pimp wrote: ... but the manufacturer also found it was more accurate than their brass cased ammo.

More accurate? Any ammunition can be accurate. Surely it is the predictability and repeatability of the round that is important.

Any ammunition can be accurate? No. For accurate 'bottleneck' rifle ammunition, the case must be very uniform in thickness. It's just not possible to load accurate ammo. on some brass.

When you think about it - on firing, the case expands to totally 'match' the chamber wall. If the brass case was very poor in uniform wall-thickness, then it would be like having a chamber that was out of 'round' - who would accept that on a supposedly accurate rifle? Maybe it's easier to form a 'true' plastic case than a drawn brass case.

Vince

25Pdr wrote:Plastic Ammo??? A reloaders nightmare.

Might be OK for the forces though, less weight to carry.

Except that is the Royal Navy....Their hair spray and nail varnish remover would just melt the cases. :lol:

OI!

You've got your forces mixed up - the Brycreme boys have moved across to hairspray now!


Have you ever felt the weight of a 4.5" case? The RN could save a few tonnes on a destroyer ... and make more room for the Pink Gins!

I have seen a US Naval gun in action - 14" maybe, where there the "case" was fabric! Load the projectile, then two shaped bags of propellant, then the "primer".

OK

Which of the 2 costs more, brass or plastic?

The polymer/plastic rounds, apart from the weight saving, will be MUCH cheaper to produce

GECO/RWS have some under R&D - I was reading about it on the 68forum a couple of years or so back

saddler wrote:OK

Which of the 2 costs more, brass or plastic?

The polymer/plastic rounds, apart from the weight saving, will be MUCH cheaper to produce

GECO/RWS have some under R&D - I was reading about it on the 68forum a couple of years or so back

Production costs will be about the same or maybe slightly less for polymer, but material costs will in large quantities be less for the polymer.

So, in the long term, ex-factory you should see the polymers being cheaper, and then when they get to the shop the percentage difference should be even more as the transport costs will again be lower.

In the short term, I would say there will be no difference retail, and slightly more expensive ex-factory as there will be investment need in machinery, tooling, training and development costs to recoup.

Polchraine wrote:

saddler wrote:OK

Which of the 2 costs more, brass or plastic?

The polymer/plastic rounds, apart from the weight saving, will be MUCH cheaper to produce

GECO/RWS have some under R&D - I was reading about it on the 68forum a couple of years or so back

Production costs will be about the same or maybe slightly less for polymer, but material costs will in large quantities be less for the polymer.

So, in the long term, ex-factory you should see the polymers being cheaper, and then when they get to the shop the percentage difference should be even more as the transport costs will again be lower.

In the short term, I would say there will be no difference retail, and slightly more expensive ex-factory as there will be investment need in machinery, tooling, training and development costs to recoup.

The live rounds would NOT see any major saving in transport as they go hazardous courier regardless...
ALL ammo has a background of R&D costs & tooling, etc. - though some ammo I have used would raise questions on WHAT R&D was carried out!

Once a major military adopts the technology - wait & see what the prices are
I'd guess one bonus that folk aint yet mentioned may be that IF its adopted then there may be a wholesale dumping of stocks of brass cased ammo on the civilian market as the end-users adopt the newer/cheaper technology (remember that most military decisions involve a team of accountants)

I do remember reading something about German experiments with plastic/caseless ammo bring shelved after the guns overheated. Brass cases happen to make a good heatsink apparently.

I've said all along that brass cases were a passing fad.

dromia wrote:I've said all along that brass cases were a passing fad.

...that's only coz ya started with paper cases back when you was a yoof