.17 Winchester Super Magnum

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17 Winchester Super Magnum
WSM + Hornets.jpg
.17 WSM (left), with .17 Hornet (center) and .22 Hornet (right)
Type Rifle
Place of origin United States
Production history
Designer Winchester
Designed2012
Produced2013–present
Specifications
Parent case.27 caliber nail gun blank cartridge
Case typeRimmed, bottleneck
Bullet diameter.172 in (4.4 mm)
Neck diameter.197 in (5.0 mm)
Shoulder diameter.269 in (6.8 mm)
Base diameter.269 in (6.8 mm)
Rim diameter.333 in (8.5 mm)
Rim thickness.066 in (1.7 mm)
Case length1.200 in (30.5 mm)
Overall length1.440 in (36.58 mm) to 1.590 in (40.39 mm) [1]
Primer type Rimfire
Maximum pressure33,000 psi (230 MPa)
Ballistic performance
Bullet mass/typeVelocityEnergy
20 gr. (1.3 g) 3,000 ft/s (910 m/s)400 ft⋅lbf (540 J)
25 gr. (1.6 g) 2,600 ft/s (790 m/s)375 ft⋅lbf (508 J)

.17 Winchester Super Magnum, commonly known as the .17 WSM, is a rimfire rifle cartridge developed by the ammunition company Winchester in 2012. It descended from a .27 caliber nail-gun blank cartridge by necking down the blank case to take a .17 caliber (4.5mm) bullet. Initial loadings were with a 20 grains (1.3 g) bullet, delivering muzzle velocities around 3,000-foot-per-second (910 m/s). [2]

Contents

Development

Winchester, in conjunction with Savage, introduced this cartridge at the 2013 SHOT Show. [3]

The brass case for this round is roughly 50% thicker than the 17 HMR, and the max average internal pressure is 33,000 psi, compared to the 17 HMR's 26,000 psi. [4] The 17 WSM is not compatible with firearms chambered in 17 HMR and vice versa as the two cartridges have different dimensions.

Factory ammunition

Factory ammunition is available from Winchester, Federal, American Eagle.

                             Federal Ammunition American Eagle 17 Win. Super Magnum cartridges are currently only available with 1.3 gram (20 grain) polymer-tipped projectiles rated at 914 m/s (3,000 fps) at the muzzle.

Several options from Winchester are available, including Varmint HV 17 Winchester Super Magnum with a 1.3 gram (20 grain) polymer-tipped projectile rated at 914 m/s (3,000 fps), Varmint HE 17 Winchester Super Magnum with a 1.6 gram (25 grain) polymer-tipped projectile rated at 793 m/s (2,600 fps), and Varmint-X 17 Winchester Super Magnum which is available with a lead-free 1 gram (15 grain) polymer tipped projectile, rated at 1,006 m/s (3,300 fps).

Firearms

Currently, rifles firing the 17 WSM are the Savage B-Mag bolt action, heavy barrel B-mag target edition. Ruger Model 77/17, Winchester 1885 Low Wall single shot, and the semi-automatic Franklin Armory F-17. [5] The F-17 is the first gas-piston operated rimfire firearm designed to handle the higher pressures of this cartridge. Also recently Jard Inc. joined this list with their J71 17 WSM AR 15 rifle. [6]

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rimfire ammunition</span> Type of ammunition that is only commonly found in small-caliber firearms

A rim-fire is a type of metallic cartridge used in firearms, where the primer is located within a hollow circumferential rim protruding from the base of its casing. When fired, the gun's firing pin will strike and crush the rim against the edge of the barrel breech, sparking the primer compound within the rim, and in turn ignite the propellant within the case. Invented in 1845, by Louis-Nicolas Flobert, the first rimfire metallic cartridge was the .22 BB Cap cartridge, which consisted of a percussion cap with a bullet attached to the top. While many other different cartridge priming methods have been tried since the early 19th century, such as teat-fire and pinfire, only small caliber rimfire and centerfire cartridges have survived to the present day with regular use. The .22 Long Rifle rimfire cartridge, introduced in 1887, is by far the most common ammunition found in the world today in terms of units manufactured and sold.

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References

  1. "American National Standard Voluntary Industry Performance Standards for Pressure and Velocity of Rimfire Sporting Ammunition for the Use of Commercial Manufacturers" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-02-02. Retrieved 2017-01-25.
  2. "The 17 Winchester Super Magnum". Archived from the original on 2013-01-28. Retrieved 2013-01-23.
  3. "Savage .17 Winchester Super Magnum Rimfire Rifle – SHOT Show 2013". 18 January 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-01-22. Retrieved 2013-01-23.
  4. "World's Fastest Rimfire Round: Winchester .17 Super Magnum". 17 January 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-01-23. Retrieved 2013-01-23.
  5. "Franklin Armory". franklinarmory.com. Archived from the original on 2021-09-15. Retrieved 2021-10-23.
  6. "First Ever Functional Gas Operated Rimfire from Franklin Armory". 16 January 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-01-20. Retrieved 2014-01-21.