| 9x57mm Mauser | ||
|---|---|---|
| Type | Rifle | |
| Place of origin | Germany | |
| Production history | ||
| Designer | Unknown | |
| Designed | 1890s | |
| Produced | 1890s-1938 | |
| Variants | 9x57mmR (rimmed) | |
| Specifications | ||
| Parent case | 7.92x57mm Mauser | |
| Case type | Rimless, bottleneck | |
| Bullet diameter | 9.1 mm (0.36 in) | |
| Neck diameter | 9.8 mm (0.39 in) | |
| Shoulder diameter | 10.9 mm (0.43 in) | |
| Base diameter | 11.9 mm (0.47 in) | |
| Rim diameter | 11.9 mm (0.47 in) | |
| Rim thickness | 1.3 mm (0.051 in) | |
| Case length | 56.8 mm (2.24 in) | |
| Overall length | 81.0 mm (3.19 in) | |
| Rifling twist | 350-400 mm (1 in 14-16 inches) | |
| Primer type | Large rifle | |
| Ballistic performance | ||
| Bullet weight/type | Velocity | Energy |
| 13.3 g (205 gr) SP | 739 m/s (2,420 ft/s) | 3,636 J (2,682 ft·lbf) |
| 15.9 g (245 gr) SP | 660 m/s (2,200 ft/s) | 3,420 J (2,520 ft·lbf) |
| 17.8 g (275 gr) SP | 560 m/s (1,800 ft/s) | 2,830 J (2,090 ft·lbf) |
| 18.2 g (281 gr) SP | 590 m/s (1,900 ft/s) | 3,098 J (2,285 ft·lbf) |
| Test barrel length: 600 mm (24 in) Source(s): Cartridges Of The World[1] |
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The 9x57mm Mauser is a cartridge based on the 7.92x57mm Mauser. It uses the identical 57 mm-long cartridge case, with the same shoulder angle, but necked up to accept a 9 mm-diameter bullet. Ballistically - but not dimensionally - it is indistinguishable from the 9x56mm Mannlicher-Schoenauer. It is currently regarded as a semi-obsolete calibre, although hand-loading keeps it alive.
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Firing a relatively heavy bullet of approximately 14-16 g (220-250 grains) at a modest velocity of about 670–700 m/s (2,200-2,300 ft/s), the 9x57mm is low in noise and recoil, pleasant to shoot, and regarded as accurate and effective on all but the very largest, most dangerous game at distances out to 250–300 m (300-350 yd).
The cartridge's low velocity combined with the heavy, poorly streamlined bullet gave the 9x57 a rather poor trajectory, which made it unsuited to accurate shooting at longer ranges. This calibre was popular as a large-deer cartridge in Germany and Central Europe; and also in German spheres of influence in Africa in the early 20th century, such as German West Africa and German East Africa, where it was widely popular among European farmers and settlers for shooting plains game.[2] It also accounted for many lions and leopards. Its popularity was gradually eclipsed by the significantly more powerful, rather flatter-shooting 9.3 x 62 Mauser cartridge. The CIP Maximum Average Pressure (MAP) for the 9X57 is 280 MPa bar (40 600 PSI)
Many beautifully made sporting rifles in 9x57mm caliber, often dating from well before 1939, are still giving their owners good service today, but dependable, recently made factory ammunition is increasingly expensive and hard to obtain, and many users must rely on handloading.
Many of these Mauser rifles were made from de-militarized WWI small ring M98 rifles by many gunsmiths throughout Germany, and usually these are rebored (oversized from 8X57). When barrels eventually wear out, 9x57 rifles are generally rebarrelled in other, more modern calibres.
The cartridge was popular around the world and was even chambered in Remington Model 30 and Winchester Model 54 rifles.[1]
The Eley-Kynoch 9x57 cartridge manufactured by the company at its Birmingham, England factory up to the 1950s used fully jacketed and soft-nosed, round-nosed, flat-based bullets weighing 16.1 grams (248 gr), with an average muzzle velocity of 690 m/s (2,300 ft/s). Factory-loaded ammunition is now increasingly hard to come by, and most users handload, using either fire-formed 9x57 brass or modified 7x57 or 8x57 cases necked up to accept 9 mm diameter bullets.
The 9.3x57mm (bullet diameter .365 in.), introduced in 1900, is closely related to the 9x57mm Mauser, even though some dimensions of the cartridge case are slightly different. The 9,3x57mm is still fairly popular among moose hunters in Scandinavia (among hunters in Sweden it is affectionately known as "potatiskastaren", "the spud gun"). Factory loaded ammunition with 232 grain (15.03 g) and 285 grain (18.47 g) bullets is available from Norma of Sweden. The 9.3x57mm Norma factory load with a 232 grain (15.03 g) bullet has a muzzle velocity of 2,362 ft/sec (720 m/sec) for 2,875 ft-lbf (3,896 J) of energy, which makes it 10-20% more powerful than the 9x57mm.[3]