The Definitive Military Service Calibre and Rifle For the 21st Century

By Mike Staples

Introduction

Hi, my name is Mike Staples and I am an ex Australian Army Fitter Armament or to put it more simply, an Armourer. My experience takes in all Australian Military Weapons including pistols, rifles, SMGs, LMGs, HMGs, Mortars, recoilless rifle, and artillery pieces, as well as mounted guns in our Armoured vehicles that were current at the time of my service. On top of that experience is my love of shooting, which started when I was around 6 years of age and has continued to this day, some 51 years later. I have been asked by Mr. Hawks to write an article on a suitable calibre for a General Purpose Military Rifle (GPMR), and whilst the calibre is important the delivery system, a.k.a. the rifle, is equally so. That being the case, this first article will establish what I feel is a suitable calibre to replace the 5.56mm NATO round, whilst the second part will put forward suggestions on a suitable rifle.

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There has been a multitude of cartridges that have been used by the worlds Military Forces, and to compare all of them in the pursuit of the "perfect calibre" for the 21st Century would take many pages and many hours of research. Therefore, I will concentrate on those which have been used by the US, Australia, Great Britain, and NATO Forces in recent history.

Since the Vietnam War there has been a move to make one calibre "the NATO calibre," and at this point in time that calibre is the 5.56mm NATO. The main reason for this, from my perspective, is to make all aligned forces users of this calibre. NATO is a collage of many countries. When NATO forces either take up arms against an aggressor or have become an occupation force on behalf of the United Nations inside a country that has experienced a war or uprising, many soldiers from different countries make up that force. If all used a different calibre in their GPMR, ammunition re-supply would be a nightmare.


The question is then, "What makes a suitable calibre and why?"

The answer to this question will not be easy to establish, as every country and every soldier has a differing opinion. While some like one calibre and one style of rifle, others have trouble accepting those choices. They may prefer to stay with whatever their country uses, as it has become familiar, comfortable and a trusted friend.

I am told by Mr. Hawks and some of my Australian Army friends that there are moves afoot to abandon the 5.56mm calibre. (These may, of course, come to nothing--particularly as they originated with the troops, not the high command. -Ed.) Apparently the U.S. Senate is currently considering a new calibre (the 6.8mm SPC) for use by Special Forces. As the actions of the U.S. military have in the past greatly influenced the NATO countries, it is quite likely that whatever is chosen by the U.S. will eventually become the NATO standard.

Before they do, I would like to bring to the attention of the leaders of the NATO countries a calibre which is not only a suitable upgrade, but that eclipses the two best service rounds yet devised.

To do this I must compare the two standard NATO rounds used today (7.62x51mm and the 5.56mm) with what I consider to be the best choice. I will include in these comparisons the .30-06, a world record holder for all ranges prior to the advent of the .308 Winchester (7.62x51 NATO) and which was, over a number of decades, the U.S. calibre of choice.

The .30-06 was brought out in 1906 to replace the original cartridge for the Springfield rifle of 1903, which initially was chambered for the .30-03 round. Both cartridges fired a .30 calibre bullet, but the '03 had a 220 grain monster and a very long neck to accommodate it. The neck of the '06 case was shortened by .07 of an inch and became the standard military cartridge with a 150 grain spitzer projectile. The '03 and '06 signify the year of first use.

This round was used in every .30 calibre weapon in the US armoury up until the late 1950s. These included the M1 Garand, the BAR and their main LMG, the .30 calibre machine gun. At that time the .30-06 was replaced by the ballistically identical but 10% smaller .308 Winchester (7.62mm NATO) cartridge.

Why they ever abandoned these powerful cartridges, exchanging them for the .223 (5.56mm) "squib" used in the M16 Armalite rifle, is anybody's guess. (The official reasons included reducing recoil and facilitating fully automatic fire. -Ed.) That change, as far as I am concerned, did the US soldier a great disservice. More on that in the second part of this article.

Detailed tables will establish my calibre of choice and the reasons for it. The calibres I will compare in this article are as follows:

(1) .30-06 (US design) - .30 calibre, .308" projectile (military calibre)
(2) 7.62 x 51 (.308 Win.) - .30 calibre, .308" projectile (military calibre)
(3) 5.56mm (.223 Rem.) - .22 calibre, .224" projectile (military calibre)
(4) .270 Winchester - .270 calibre, .277" projectile (civilian calibre)

Before I proceed, I would like to clarify "calibre" and the fact that some projectiles appear to be the same size as the calibre.

This is a long, but very interesting article. To read the rest click HERE

To go directly to Part 2, click HERE