14.5x114mm

The 14.5x114 mm is a heavy machine gun and anti-materiel rifle cartridge used by the Soviet Union, the former Warsaw Pact, modern Russia, and other countries.

It was originally developed for the PTRS and PTRD anti-tank rifles, but was later used as the basis for the KPV heavy machine gun that formed the basis of the ZPU series anti-aircraft guns that is also the main armament of the BTR series of armoured personnel carriers from the BTR-60 to the BTR-80.

Cartridge dimensions
The 14.5x114 mm has 42.53 ml (655 grains) H2O cartridge case capacity. The exterior shape of the case was designed to promote reliable case feeding and extraction in bolt action rifles and machine guns alike, under extreme conditions.



14.5x114 mm maximum cartridge dimensions. All sizes in millimeters (mm).

Americans would define the shoulder angle at alpha/2 ≈ 22.50 degrees. The common rifling twist rate for this cartridge is 455 mm (1 in 17.91 in), 8 grooves, Ø lands = 14.50 mm, Ø grooves = 14.95 mm.

According to the official guidelines the 14.5x114 case can handle up to 360 MPa (52213 psi) piezo pressure. In C.I.P. regulated countries every rifle cartridge combo has to be proofed at 125% of this maximum C.I.P. pressure to certify for sale to consumers.

Ammunition

 * BS - Armor-piercing incendiary original anti-tank round. The projectile weighed 65.5 grams and was 51 millimeters long with a 38.7 gram core of tungsten carbide with 1.8 grams of incendiary material in the tip. The overall round weighed approximately 200 grams and was 155 millimeters long. The projectile has a muzzle velocity of approximately 1,000 meters per second and could penetrate 30 millimeters of steel at an incidence of 60 degrees at a range of 100 meters, or 25 millimeters at a range of 500 meters.
 * B-32 - Armor-piercing incendiary full metal jacket round with a hardened steel core. Projectile weight is 64 g and  muzzle velocity is 1000 m/s. Armour penetration at 500 m is 32 mm of RHA at 90 degrees.
 * BZT - Armor-piercing incendiary tracer full metal jacket round with a steel core. Projectile weight is 59.56 g and muzzle velocity is 1,000 m/s. Tracer burns to at least 2,000 m.
 * MDZ - High-explosive incendiary bullet of instant action. Projectile weight is 59.68 g.
 * ZP - Incendiary tracer round

Cartridges use lacquered steel cases and a percussion primer. Some countries also use brass cartridge cases. The propellant consists of 28,8g smokeless powder with 7 tubes, designated as 5/7NA powder. Two different versions of bullet series are known, the earlier had a conventional bullet jacket with boat-tail. These had a long engraving portion that caused considerable barrel wear. The newer bullet types have a smaller engraving portion with a rounder boat-tail and were used from about 1957 on.

14.5x114mm ammunition has been manufactured in Bulgaria, China, Egypt, Hungary, Iraq, North Korea, Poland, Romania, Russia and the former Czechoslovakia.

Categories
Cartridge:rifles