View source for Engineering:4.6×36mm

{{Short description|German rifle cartridge}}
{{Infobox firearm cartridge
| name = 4.6×36 mm
| image = 46x36.png | image_size = 100px
| caption = 
| origin = West Germany
| type = [[Engineering:Rifle|Rifle]]
<!-- Production info -->
| designer = Gunther Voss
| design_date = early 1970s
| manufacturer = Heckler & Koch
| production_date = 1970s
| number = 
| used_by = 
| wars = 
| variants = 
<!-- Specifications -->
| parent = 
| case_type = Rimless, bottleneck
| is_SI_specs = yes
| bullet = 4.65
| neck = 5.27
| shoulder = 8.48
| base = 8.94
| rim_dia = 
| rim_thick = 
| case_length = 35.61
| length = 49.16
| case_capacity = 
| primer = 
| max_pressure = 353
<!-- Ballistic Performance -->
| is_SI_ballistics = yes
| bwunit = gram
| velocity = 
| energy = 
<!-- Ballistic data, load 1 -->
| bw1 = 2.70
| btype1 = FMJ
| vel1 = 857
| en1 = 976
<!-- Ballistic data, load 2 -->
| bw2 = 3.5
| btype2 = FMJ
| vel2 = 780
| en2 = 1065
| test_barrel_length = {{convert|381|mm|in}}
<!-- Ballistics data source -->
| balsrc = Jane's Infantry Weapons 1975 <ref name=Janes>{{cite book | last = Hobart | first = Major F.W.A. | title = Jane's Infantry Weapons 1975| publisher = Jane's Yearbooks| year = 1975| location = London| pages = 239–241}}</ref>
}}

The '''4.6×36&nbsp;mm''' is a [[Engineering:Cartridge (firearms)|cartridge]] developed by Heckler & Koch for its experimental HK36 [[Engineering:Assault rifle|assault rifle]] of the 1970s. When the rifle was not taken into service by any military force, its ammunition was not used for any other weapon design. The main feature that set the bullet apart from its contemporaries was the use of a so-called "spoon tip" ([[Social:German language|German]]: ''Löffelspitz''): the tip had a concave area on one side<ref name=Janes /> which was intended to make the bullet "tumble" after hitting a target, in order to give it greater [[Physics:Stopping power|stopping power]] than such a small, high-velocity bullet would otherwise have.

==Development==
In the 1970s, ammunition for military rifles saw a reduction in calibre, largely inspired by the American 5.56×45mm round used in the [[Engineering:M16 rifle|M16]] assault rifle. In an effort to create a weapon with low recoil, low weight, a flat trajectory and a high chance of incapacitating its target,<ref name=Janes /> Heckler & Koch designed the HK36 rifle together with the 4.6×36&nbsp;mm ammunition.

==Cartridge Types==
Two variants of the round were developed, one with a soft core and another with a hard core, the former being intended for use against personnel, the latter against hard targets and to penetrate cover. Both were [[Engineering:Full metal jacket bullet|full-metal-jacketed]] rounds, the soft-cored bullet having a lead core while that of the hard-cored bullet was made from [[Chemistry:Tungsten carbide|tungsten carbide]].<ref name=Janes />

==Gallery==

<gallery>
File:46and223.png|4.6x36mm cartridge next to a .223 Remington cartridge.
</gallery>

==Notes==
{{reflist}}



{{DEFAULTSORT:4.6x36 mm}}
[[Category:Pistol and rifle cartridges]]



{{Sourceattribution|4.6×36mm}}