Future of Ammo

[FLhunter7]

How do you think rounds will progress with new advancements in telescoped and telescoped caseless ammo do you think these will have any use outside of the military. Im thinking self defense but for hunting where you arent carrying so many rounds that there weight is as much of a factor im having a hard time coming up with a use for hunting. And besides the hydroshock bullets havent really seen any improvement to the actual bullet Ive been thinking about some things like a half hollow point and some sort of sabot but currently cant think of any improvement. How do you guys feel bullets will progress if at all in the next couple decades and what would you like to see improved upon the traditional design.

Was also wondering what you guys thought of a fin stabilized round for big game like 375 and up. Smaller rounds dont produce pressures that make fin stabilization effective but some of theses larger rounds i feel could appropriately use fins and smoothbores which would increase the speeds at which these rounds currently fire. Sabots could also be utilized in this configuration for the largest bullets but wont sure if the smaller caliber size and reduced weight would be to much of a drawback for the increased speed.

 

[Red Devil]

Well...

See high Sectional Density rounds, at moderate velocities, making a comeback. (Eg. 6.5 CM/6.5x55mm and 9.3x62mm.)

As for the future?

Magrail technology may find its way to the marketplace - followed by the, "...phased plasma rifle in the 40 watt range."






Red

 

[tarbe]

I see lots of cast lead with Unique, in my future!

 

[mark-hunter]

non-metallic casing (polymer).

 

[Opposite Pole]

non-metallic casing (polymer).

http://www.truevelocityinc.com/

 

[Alistair]

Biggest change in the near future? Non-lead ammo. It's already in market, but I think it's only a matter of time before it becomes the norm, if not the only legal option for many. This'll have implications for future case design (longer necks to minimise lost case volume with long for calibre bulets) and also rifles (Longer throats and faster twist rates as standard).

More focus on BC will probably be a focus for at least a few years, with a subsequent increase in average bullet length and the use/popularity of VLD designs. This will also drive the trends described above.

Otherwise, it's mostly just marketing gimmickry in all but the most specialist applications. For the average deer hunter, the main benefit will be improvements in bonding technology, materials and manufacturing control. After all, current generation bullets work just fine for this type of stuff at the ranges that most hunt, you just need to trust that it will shoot straight and expand exactly as advertised.

Looking further out, I don't see much coming into the civilian market. Lots of stuff for the military re. polymer cases, caseless ammo, electrical ignition systems, sabots etc, but not a lot that will be applicable or appeal to hunters, especially if they reload. Maybe an adoption of electrical ignition systems might become more accepted once the 'old guard' start hanging up their rifles, but it's hard to see any real tangible benefit to most hunters, so perhaps it'll be limited to comp shooters who'd actually benefit from the decreased lock time.

A continued move towards smaller calibres and cases might also be in our future if bullets do improve, especially in markets like the UK where there is police pressure towards the smallest allowable calibres like for instance .243 for deer. Wouldn't be surprised if the use of .223 with heavy for calibre bullets starts to be widely seen in more hunting applications within a decade or so, especailly with ammo availability being what it is.

 

[Hogpatrol]

non-metallic casing (polymer).

.223/5.56mm was made with polymer cases and metal heads for a few years. It fell by the wayside. IIRC, the accuracy wasn't good.