Wilhelm Brenneke
Encyclopedia
Wilhelm Brenneke was a German inventor of smallarms ammunition, including the Brenneke shotgun slug
. He was born in 1865 in Hanover
and died in 1951, from natural causes. The Brenneke
company remains in his family's hands and is still successful.
rifles, to obtain extra muzzle velocity.
cartridge.This cartridge is an example of a de novo rifle cartridge (the 8x64mm S has no other cartridge as parent case) intended as a ballistic upgrade option for the Mauser Gewehr 98 rifles that were then standard issue in the German military. The exteriour cartridge case dimensions like overall length and slightly larger case head diameter compared to the German 8x57mm IS military cartridge coupled with a moderate increase in maximum pressure were chosen with easy conversion of Gewehr 98 rifles for the 8x64mm S in mind. The German military chose however to stick to their 8x57mm IS rifle cartridge avoiding rechambering their service rifles for a cartridge that due to its more favourable bore area to case volume ratio ballistically would outperform the .30-06 Springfield
cartridge of the United States Army
.
Brenneke’s engineering concept to enlarge exteriour cartridge case dimensions compared to the German 8x57mm IS military cartridge case coupled to an increase in maximum pressure to create new for those days very powerful cartridges was essentially sound and he persisted in the development of new cartridges along this line.
and achieved a major commercial success. The 7x64mm offered compared to the 7x57mm about 10 to 12 % extra muzzle velocity. This results in a flatter trajectory and better performance at longer range. In the years between World War I and World War II the 7x64mm was often regarded by German hunters as a “miracle cartridge” and dozens of different factory loads where available on the German market. It was that highly regarded the German Wehrmacht
(Army) during the 1930s even considered replacing the 8x57mm IS in favour for the 7x64mm for their sniper
s. The Wehrmacht decided - just like the German army in 1912 - to stick to the 8x57mm IS cartridge for their Mauser Karabiner 98k
to keep things as simple as possible in their logistical chain.
Beside the 7x64mm rifle cartridge Brenneke also designed a rimmed version for break action rifles of the cartridge in 1917. The rimmed 7x65mm R variant of the cartridge was also immediately a commercial success.
cartridge de novo (the 9.3x64mm Brenneke has no other cartridge as parent case). This big game cartridge was commercially introduced in 1927 and is the most powerful cartridge Brenneke designed. The 9.3x64mm Brenneke was designed to have the largest possible case capacity without any shape or dimensional drawbacks that would hamper its chambering and perfect functioning in Mauser M 98 bolt actions used in the Gewehr 98 rifles that were then standard issue in the German military.
In the 21st century the Russian military developed the semi-armour piercing 9SN cartridge for the 9.3 x 64 Brenneke SVDK
variant of the Dragunov sniper rifle. This cartridge has a 16.6 g (256 gr) pointed boat-tailed FMJ bullet with steel core and achieves a muzzle velocity of 770 m/s (2520 ft/s). The 9SN cartridge should be able to defeat body armor at ranges up to 600 meters (660 yd).
Shotgun slug
A shotgun slug is a heavy lead projectile, that may have pre-cut rifling, intended for use in a shotgun and often used for hunting large game. The first effective shotgun slug was introduced by Wilhelm Brenneke in 1898, and his design remains in use today...
. He was born in 1865 in Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
and died in 1951, from natural causes. The Brenneke
Brenneke
Brenneke GmbH is a German manufacturer of ammunition and bullets, based in Langenhagen, Lower Saxony.The company was founded by Wilhelm Brenneke in 1895 and is currently owned and run by his great-grandson, Dr. Peter Mank....
company remains in his family's hands and is still successful.
Cartridge designs
At the start of the 20th century Brenneke was experimenting with the engineering concept of lengthening and other dimensional changes regarding standard cartridge cases like the M/88 cartridge case, then used by the German military in their Mauser Gewehr 98Gewehr 98
The Gewehr 98 is a German bolt action Mauser rifle firing the 8x57mm cartridge from a 5 round internal clip-loaded magazine that was the German service rifle from 1898 to 1935, when it was replaced by the Karabiner 98k. It was hence the main rifle of the German infantry during World War I...
rifles, to obtain extra muzzle velocity.
8x64mm S
In 1912 Brenneke designed the commercially rather unsuccessful 8x64mm S8x64mm S
The 8x64mm S is a rimless bottlenecked centerfire cartridge developed as a military service round for the German Army who never issued it...
cartridge.This cartridge is an example of a de novo rifle cartridge (the 8x64mm S has no other cartridge as parent case) intended as a ballistic upgrade option for the Mauser Gewehr 98 rifles that were then standard issue in the German military. The exteriour cartridge case dimensions like overall length and slightly larger case head diameter compared to the German 8x57mm IS military cartridge coupled with a moderate increase in maximum pressure were chosen with easy conversion of Gewehr 98 rifles for the 8x64mm S in mind. The German military chose however to stick to their 8x57mm IS rifle cartridge avoiding rechambering their service rifles for a cartridge that due to its more favourable bore area to case volume ratio ballistically would outperform the .30-06 Springfield
.30-06 Springfield
The .30-06 Springfield cartridge or 7.62×63mm in metric notation, was introduced to the United States Army in 1906 and standardized, and was in use until the 1960s and early 1970s. It replaced the .30-03, 6 mm Lee Navy, and .30 US Army...
cartridge of the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
.
Brenneke’s engineering concept to enlarge exteriour cartridge case dimensions compared to the German 8x57mm IS military cartridge case coupled to an increase in maximum pressure to create new for those days very powerful cartridges was essentially sound and he persisted in the development of new cartridges along this line.
7x64mm
In 1917 Brenneke necked down his 8x64mm S design of 1912 to 7 mm calibre and introduced it as 7x64mm7x64mm
The 7x64mm is a rimless bottlenecked centerfire cartridge developed for hunting. As is customary in European cartridges the 7 denotes the 7 mm bullet caliber and the 64 denotes the case length...
and achieved a major commercial success. The 7x64mm offered compared to the 7x57mm about 10 to 12 % extra muzzle velocity. This results in a flatter trajectory and better performance at longer range. In the years between World War I and World War II the 7x64mm was often regarded by German hunters as a “miracle cartridge” and dozens of different factory loads where available on the German market. It was that highly regarded the German Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
(Army) during the 1930s even considered replacing the 8x57mm IS in favour for the 7x64mm for their sniper
Sniper
A sniper is a marksman who shoots targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the capabilities of regular personnel. Snipers typically have specialized training and distinct high-precision rifles....
s. The Wehrmacht decided - just like the German army in 1912 - to stick to the 8x57mm IS cartridge for their Mauser Karabiner 98k
Karabiner 98k
The Karabiner 98 Kurz was a bolt action rifle chambered for the 8x57mm IS/7.92×57mm IS cartridge that was adopted as the standard service rifle in 1935 by the German Wehrmacht. It was one of the final developments in the long line of Mauser military rifles...
to keep things as simple as possible in their logistical chain.
Beside the 7x64mm rifle cartridge Brenneke also designed a rimmed version for break action rifles of the cartridge in 1917. The rimmed 7x65mm R variant of the cartridge was also immediately a commercial success.
9.3x64mm Brenneke
In 1927 Brenneke designed the 9.3x64mm Brenneke9.3x64mm Brenneke
The 9.3x64mm Brenneke is a rimless bottlenecked centerfire cartridge developed for big game hunting. As is customary in European cartridges the 9.3 denotes the 9.3 mm bullet diameter and the 64 denotes the 64 mm case length. Using the bullet diameter is unusual in German cartridge...
cartridge de novo (the 9.3x64mm Brenneke has no other cartridge as parent case). This big game cartridge was commercially introduced in 1927 and is the most powerful cartridge Brenneke designed. The 9.3x64mm Brenneke was designed to have the largest possible case capacity without any shape or dimensional drawbacks that would hamper its chambering and perfect functioning in Mauser M 98 bolt actions used in the Gewehr 98 rifles that were then standard issue in the German military.
In the 21st century the Russian military developed the semi-armour piercing 9SN cartridge for the 9.3 x 64 Brenneke SVDK
SVDK
SVDK is a Russian sniper rifle from the Dragunov sniper rifles family chambered for the 9.3x64mm Brenneke cartridge.The Dragunov SVDK large caliber sniper rifle is a somewhat controversial weapon, recently adopted by Russian army...
variant of the Dragunov sniper rifle. This cartridge has a 16.6 g (256 gr) pointed boat-tailed FMJ bullet with steel core and achieves a muzzle velocity of 770 m/s (2520 ft/s). The 9SN cartridge should be able to defeat body armor at ranges up to 600 meters (660 yd).