To date, it is the 9x18 cartridge that is among the most popular in Russia, as well as other CIS countries. Developed more than half a century ago, he managed to prove his effectiveness - many automatic and semi-automatic weapons were developed for him. So, to learn about it in more detail is worth every person who is interested in small arms business.
Appearance story
After the end of World War II, quite a few unregistered weapons, including TT pistols, suitable for hidden carrying, turned out to be in the hands of civilians and veterans. Therefore, there was a need to develop a new cartridge, which could not be charged in the TT. In addition, law enforcement officers needed weapons that would have high lethal power with small dimensions.
It was then that a state order was formed to develop a new cartridge. They became a 9x18 mm cartridge. The designer who won the competition with this proposal was B.V.Semin. After conducting numerous tests, the cartridge was adopted in 1951. By this time, the development of new weapons for it was already actively underway.
Main characteristics
Initially, a 9x18 mm pistol cartridge had a brass sleeve. The bullet was bimetallic, having a lead core, it was pressed into a steel shell. However, subsequently, the designers made some refinement. As a result, the bimetallic bullet received a lead sheath and a steel core.
This has significantly improved the characteristics of the cartridge, and at the same time reduce the consumption of valuable lead. The likelihood of a rebound sharply decreased - when a soft lead hits a solid barrier, the soft lead shell deforms, thereby extinguishing the momentum. It is important that the opportunity appeared to pierce non-metallic barriers - wood, thin tin, as well as soft body armor. A bullet cannot penetrate solid bulletproof vest plates, but this did not become a critical flaw - most of the criminals for whom the cartridge was intended to hunt do not carry them.
A standard cartridge bullet has a mass of 6.1 grams. The large caliber provides high muzzle energy - in the region of 300 joules. Due to this, even when passing through a relatively short trunk, a rather high speed develops - 315 meters per second.
Cartridge advantages
Now that you know everything about the characteristics of the 9x18 cartridge, it’s worthwhile to briefly talk about its advantages.
The main one is the high stopping effect. Although the muzzle energy of pistols using this cartridge is lower than, for example, TT, the larger diameter, the shape of the bullet and its weight compensate for this drawback. This became especially important for police officers - it became possible to stop the criminal even by a regular hit in the arm or leg.
In addition, the relatively low muzzle power allowed the development of a compact gun with a reliable and simple automation circuit. Of course, we are talking about a Makarov pistol, designed specifically for the 9x18 cartridge.
Main disadvantages
Alas, any design solution that has certain advantages has disadvantages.
For the 9x18 PM cartridge, the main one was the short range. Although the officially considered effective range is a distance of 50 meters, experts believe that a more realistic indicator is 20-30 meters. However, the reason for this is not so much a small muzzle power, but a short sighting line of a Makarov pistol. For police officers this was not a critical disadvantage, but for army officers it made pistols with such a cartridge not very suitable - the effective shooting distance turned out to be very small.
Another disadvantage is low penetration. The large caliber of the bullet simply does not allow it to effectively penetrate any obstacles. However, this problem was solved when the experts developed a specialized cartridge - we will talk about it a little later.
Weapons using this cartridge
Many designers appreciated the benefits of ammunition, so experts from different countries took up the development of weapons for it. It was created in the USSR and other countries, and now continues in many states of the post-Soviet space. Not all developments turned out to be successful, but still, many pistols and submachine guns were adopted, used by both ordinary law enforcement officers and special forces.
Of course, the most famous weapon using 9x18 cartridges is Makarov. Good old PM, it has been in service since the mid-50s of the last century and stands now. True, rearmament is gradually being carried out - it is being replaced by other, more modern weapons. But it is safe to say that PM will be used for more than one year.
Another successful development is the APS, or Stechkin's automatic pistol. Using cartridges of caliber 9x18, it is designed for both single and automatic fire. It is no coincidence that many special forces officers prefer this weapon. It is not suitable for constant wear (self-defense in countries where it is also allowed by law enforcement officers) because of its large size and weight. However, in experienced hands in battle, he works real miracles.
The PP-19, also known as the "Bison", is quite famous in certain circles. A very successful development is a compact submachine gun with an auger magazine. It is mounted under the barrel, which reduces the dimensions of the weapon. At the same time, the store can hold up to 64 rounds of ammunition - a very good indicator, allowing an experienced fighter to fight for a long time. Of course, the range is not too great - at best, about 50-70 meters. But this weapon was developed primarily for urban battles, as well as stripping and defense of premises. And in such situations, such range is quite acceptable. Much more important here is the fact that the cartridges almost do not give ricochets.
Also in the USSR and Russia, other, less well-known weapons were developed: Cypress, Cedar, Berdysh, Pernach, PB, PBS, PP-90 and several others.
Designers from Poland, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Ukraine and other countries also paid attention to the cartridge. So, it is safe to say that the 9x18 cartridge is a pretty good find.
Cartridge for PMM
The relatively low kinetic power of a bullet fired from a standard 9x18 mm cartridge did not suit some experts for a long time.
That is why a reinforced cartridge was developed, which later became known as 9x18 PMM - it was used, among other weapons, in Makarov’s modernized pistols. But also came in handy for use with some machine guns.
The length of the cartridge was increased, and instead of a conventional bullet, a truncated cone was used. The first improvement allowed to increase the mass of the powder charge. As a result, the range of the bullet, as well as its lethal effect, increased markedly. The changed shape of the bullet additionally reduced the risk of rebounds - it was especially important when it became clear that modern battles are not conducted in an open field, but mainly in cities, in relatively small rooms.
The increased power of the cartridge made it possible to effectively fire at an enemy protected by armor. At a distance of 10 meters, the bullet began to pierce the army body armor Zh-81. When shooting at 20 meters, its power is enough to break through a sheet of three millimeter steel.
Varieties of cartridge
As already mentioned above, to eliminate certain shortcomings or develop highly specialized features, the designer worked a lot on the usual 9x18 mm cartridge. As a result, about a dozen new types of ammunition were created, though they were not as widespread as the standard cartridge, but they coped effectively with the tasks set.
The simplest example is a blank cartridge 9x18 mm. Deprived of a bullet, it is intended for civilian weapons, as well as developing the habit of firing at beginners who first took up arms.
More interesting ammunition 9x18 RG028. It is equipped with a bullet of increased penetration. The half-baked bullet was developed back in the 1970s by order of the KGB. Intended for firing at an enemy who has poor protection - body armor of 1-2 classes. When hit, the steel core does not need to overcome the resistance of the shell - it easily breaks out and flashes weak armor.
When developing the 9x18 SP7 cartridge, a different goal was pursued - it was necessary to create an ammunition with an increased stopping effect. The recess at the end of the bullet in total at an increased speed (up to 420 m / s) made it possible to effectively fire at unprotected targets, providing more dangerous and painful wounds.
To defeat targets with more reliable protection, a 9x18 7H25 cartridge was created. A special armor-piercing bullet is made of high-strength steel, the tip is pointed and protrudes from the shell, and the flight speed is increased to 480 meters per second. Such a charge easily flashes not only light body armor, but also the body of the car, leaving no chance for the target.
Conclusion
This can end the article. From it you learned about the history, advantages and disadvantages of the 9x18 mm cartridge. And at the same time we read about what weapons were developed for this cartridge, what specialized types of ammunition experts created.