#Spc

In the rush to augment the infantry’s firepower with new advanced small arms technologies, we may be on the precipice of crippling their ability to fight wars. The push to equip the infantryman with more powerful rifles and machine guns risks reducing his mobility to critical levels, and “locking out” his capacity to carry powerful supporting arms. Although more potent basic infantry weapons are undeniably desirable, current attitudes towards their purpose – exemplified by the concept of “overmatch” – may compound problems that already have reached crisis levels.

On the heels of the 7.62x40mm WT, we are now going to take a look at another former wildcat based on the 5.56mm case, the .25-45 Sharps, a round I’ve discussed before. This .25 caliber round existed for years as the .25-223, a niche quarterbore caliber used mostly for predator hunting and similar rounds like John Wooters’ .25-222 Copperhead and Wayne Blackwell’s .25×47 have existed since the 1960s. However, the .25-45 Sharps is the first time the .25 caliber bore and the .222 Remington case family (in this case, .223 Remington) have been united in a factory offering, and one of the first .25 caliber rounds to be marketed to law enforcement and the tactical world, in addition to hunters. That makes it a candidate for this series, so let’s take a look at some ballistics:

The 5.56mm M855 round has received considerable criticism for its terminal characteristics. Detractors point out that the round fails to fragment when the striking velocity is too low – such as when fired from a very short barrel or when the bullet has slowed down thanks to its relatively unimpressive ogive shape – or when the bullet strikes the target at a very low angle of attack.