Re: RR, High tech and misc - was RE: [SG2] weapons

> Weight yes, width:length ratio no. For a given liner shape (usually a
cone
> or a kind of trumpet bell-shape) the length of a HEAT warhead is by
> necessity very close to proportional to its diameter. If you just
increase
> the diameter without increasing the length you have to use a flatter
cone,
> and reduces the penetration:diameter ratio.

Supposedly using gold for the liner can increase penetration without
increasing diameter or length.	Problem is gold is too expensive and
much
heaver then copper.  It might be possible for material scientists to
come up
with a better material then copper but much less expensive then gold
(and
maybe even lighter too)...

> There are plenty of two-stage RR rounds available - eg. every single
one
> fired from an RPG-7, or the modern Carl Gustaf HEAT rounds (551 and
751).
> The speed increases provided by their in-trajectory engines are
relatively
> moderate though, due to the accuracy problems mentioned above - it's
> biggest in the RPG-7 (some of its grenade types are boosted from about
100
> m/s to about 300 m/s), but the accuracy suffers accordingly.

Basebleed rounds is way to retian velocity without decreasing accuracy. 
You
reduce drag by using a pyrotechnic to fill the cavity behind the
projectile.
It's used by the South African 155mm ammunition to bost its range.  For
thoses who don't know, if you increase the velocity of a projectile
after it
leaves the barrel for unguided projectiles, that increase in velocity
will
magnify the aiming error.

> (Yes, the RPG-7 launcher is technically an RR with a caliber of 40 mm.
The
> grenades themselves have booster rocket engines however, which is why
the
> weapon is called "RPG" - Rocket Propelled *Grenade*. FWIW our AT-4 is
of
> course also an RR and its grenades don't have *any* rocket engines
> *anywhere*, in spite of the various US armed forces who insist on
calling
> it a "rocket launcher" :-/ )

Why am I not surprised...

ias