| 8×50mmR Mannlicher, 8×50mmR M93 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Type | Military rifle cartridge | |
| Place of origin | Austria-Hungary | |
| Production history | ||
| Designed | 1893 | |
| Specifications | ||
| Bullet diameter | 0.323 inches (8.2 mm) | |
| Case length | 1.968 inches (50.0 mm) | |
| Ballistic performance | ||
| Bullet weight/type | Velocity | Energy |
| 244 gr (15.8 g) RN | 1,750 ft/s (530 m/s) | 1,658.89 ft·lbf (2,249.15 J) |
| 244 gr (15.8 g) RN | 1,950 ft/s (590 m/s) | 2,059.74 ft·lbf (2,792.63 J) |
| 244 gr (15.8 g) RN | 2,035 ft/s (620 m/s) | 2,243.22 ft·lbf (3,041.40 J) |
| Test barrel length: 30 |
||
Note: Not to be confused with the more common 8×50R Lebel cartridge.
The Austrian 8×50mmR Mannlicher or 8×50mmR M93 is an old cartridge dating back to the days of black powder.
Contents |
The 8×50mmR Mannlicher cartridge was first introduced in 1888 for the Mannlicher Repetier-Gewehr M.88. The rifle was an updated version of the Mannlicher M.86, the M.88 (and later M.88/90 and M.90) used a slightly updated version of the "wedge-lock" bolt system that the earlier M.86 rifle used. Many M.86 rifles were converted to the new cartridge, creating the M.86/88. In its initial incarnation, the round was given the designation 8 mm M.1888 scharfe Patrone. It was loaded with a 244gr round nosed bullet and a 62gr charge of compressed black powder. This gave the bullet an approximate velocity of 1,750 ft/s (530 m/s) out of the M.88's 30" barrel.
In approximately 1890 the Austro-Hungarian empire converted the round into a semi-smokeless cartridge, following upon the heels of France's 8 mm Lebel cartridge, the first smokeless military round. This new round was designated 8 mm M.1890 scharfe Patrone or "Nitro-Patrone". It was loaded with the same 244gr bullet but carried a 43gr charge of "Gewehrpulver" ("rifle powder", Austria-Hungary's name for their version of smokeless powder, which was actually a "semi-smokeless" powder). The new semi-smokeless loading pushed the bullet to a clip of 1,950 ft/s (590 m/s) in the converted M.88/90 and M.86/90 Mannlicher rifles.
In 1893 the loading was once again updated with the perfection of a completely smokeless powder by the Austro-Hungarians. This new loading was designated 8 mm M.1893 scharfe Patrone, it was loaded with the same bullet as the two previous loadings but used a 43gr charge of the new Gewehrepulver M.1892. This improved ballistics slightly to 2,035 ft/s (620 m/s) out of the long M.88/90 and later M.95 long rifles, it was about 200 ft/s (61 m/s) less out of the Repetier-Carabiner M.90 and M.95. It was later replaced (and weapons rechambered for) the 8x56mmR cartridge.[1]
The IOF.315 Sporting Rifle uses this cartridge under the title of .315 as discussed here http://indiansforguns.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=760&start=240#p39378
The 8x50mmR Mannlicher cartridge has a long history of sporting use in India, as it was a simple matter to modify the Lee-Enfield action to accommodate the 8x50mmR in place of the .303 inch cartridge, thus providing a solution to the British colonial administration's ban on civilians possessing rifles chambering British military cartridges while offering a cartridge of similar capabilities.
British gunmakers BSA produced sporting versions of the Lee-Enfield military rifle, chambered in "8mm (.315")" from well before World War I until at least the 1930s. The British-founded "Rifle Factory Ishapore" continues to manufacture Lee-Enfield sporting rifles in this chambering.
Reloadable cartridge cases can be produced by reforming and trimming 8×56mmR Mannlicher or 7.62×54mmR Mosin-Nagant Russian brass. Standard .323" 8mm S-bullets are correct for this caliber though best results will be obtained from open-base bullets that can expand to fit the .329" bore. RCBS offers both reforming and reloading matrices.
If reloading for "wedge-lock" Mannlicher rifles such as the M.88, M.86/88, M.86/90 or M.88/90 then chamber pressures should be kept low for safety. Rifles such as the Mannlicher M.95 using a stronger rotating-bolt design can be loaded to higher pressures.