Cartridge 366 TCM for smoothbore weapons

Cartridge 366 TCM - an innovative ammunition of domestic production, which is intended for smooth-bore self-loading weapons. Acts as the first hunting cartridge developed in 1991 and launched into mass production after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Suitable for rifles with a partially rifled barrel.

Appointment

Caliber 366 TCM is specially designed for hunting large animals, whose weight exceeds the figure of 200 kg. Successful shooting can be carried out at a distance of more than 150 m. Moreover, the 366 TKM cartridge is suitable for training firing, training of inexperienced hunters. Also suitable for the use of weapons in self-defense.

Cartridge 366 TCM: price

Today, the cost of one cartridge of this caliber is about 30 rubles, which is an acceptable indicator for most interested hunters. At the same time, weapons that correspond to this format have the price of medium-sized semi-automatic weapons of domestic production.

Bullet energy

The energy of the cartridge is sufficient for shooting smooth-bore carbines with phenomenal accuracy. When firing at a target at a distance of up to 200 m, the bullet deviation from the original direction does not exceed 5-8 cm.

To all adds the possibility of using such ammunition in multi-shot rifles. Conducting fire in series without the need to charge a bullet in the chamber significantly increases the chances of obtaining the expected results of shooting. True, when shooting at a distance of 150 m to get into a rather small mobile target is somewhat problematic. However, this drawback is typical for hunting cartridges of almost any caliber.

Weapons under the 366 TCM

Thanks to the appearance of a cartridge in the domestic market, civilians were spared the need to operate exclusively smooth-bore weapons for 5 years, which is provided for by the legislation. Upon reaching adulthood, any hunter can use a rifled rifle, to which the 366 TCM gauge is suitable. Naturally, the lethal force of the weapon will in this case not be as high as when operating a combat sniper rifle. However, this will not be a banal gun, with which you can only walk on the average and small animals.

At present, the following weapons are suitable for the 366 TCM cartridge:

1. Smoothbore carbine VPO-208, developed on the basis of the domestic rifle Simonov model 1945 release.
2. Carbine VPO-209, the automation of which is implemented on the basis of the rifle scheme of the AKM.

Metric designations

According to the norms of the designation of the caliber of cartridges applicable to rifled weapons of domestic production, the first figure in the value corresponds to the fields of the cartridge case, the second - to its length. Carbine mark ВПО-208, which is suitable for the use of such cartridges, corresponds to 9-mm bullets with a sleeve length of 37.5 mm. Based on the above, in the metric system the 366 TCM cartridge can be designated in the format 366/37 mm.

Technical specifications

Cartridge 366 TCM is characterized by the following technical characteristics:

• Caliber - 0.366 inches;
• Bullet weight - 15 grams;
• The length of the cartridge is 37.5 mm;
• The initial speed of the cartridges at departure - up to 530 m / s;
• Kinetic energy of the bullet - up to 2040 J;
• The transverse deviation at shooting at a distance of 100 m - about 5-8 cm.

Benefits

Cartridge type 366 TCM on smoothbore carbine has a number of advantages:

1. The ability to conduct extremely accurate firing at long-range damage, which is not possible with the use of ammunition of other calibers for smooth-bore weapons.
2. Impressive energy, which can be compared with the indicators of cartridges intended for military automatic rifles and machine guns. This feature allows large caliber ammunition to be used when hunting for the largest beast.
3. The possibility of use for weapons of military type, the characteristics of which correspond to the parameters of a cartridge of this caliber.
4. Allows to legally use a smoothbore carbine to novice hunters without the need for first-time operation of pneumatic guns for several years.
5. Sufficiently acceptable cost of cartridges for the majority of consumers who are allowed to operate large-caliber smooth-bore rifles.
6. No shortage of ammunition on sale.

disadvantages

If we talk about the minuses of the cartridge of the 366 TCM caliber, here it is worth noting first of all the exclusive character of such ammunition. In other words, the manufacturer of cartridges retains a monopoly on the production of such products. Thus, in the presence of high demand, no one will prevent sellers from raising the price for cartridges of this caliber.

The manufacturer of the cartridge - the company "Tehrim" - at one time proved itself as a fairly unreliable producer. In particular, the total refusal to release cartridges of 7.62 mm caliber intended for gas pistols of the IZ brand affected the company's reputation decrease. Soon the owners of such weapons had to look for solutions for its subsequent exploitation. As a result, there was not found a worthy replacement for the cartridges of the above caliber. This fact serves as a kind of caution for the consumer, as it is common for domestic companies to repeat old mistakes.

The relative disadvantage is the proliferation of weapons designed to fire cartridges 366 TCM, at a fairly high price, often too high for the average hunter.

Further perspectives

At present, domestic developers are working hard to create an effective analogue to the sample in question. An example here are shells caliber 7.62 x 54 mm, designed for rifled hunting weapons. True, a new shotgun 366 TCM is planned to be used for penning hunting.

The accuracy of the bullets is not the most critical parameter for paddock hunting. Therefore, the main goal of the developers is to increase the energy of the cartridge. An impressive lethal force when firing from close range is especially important when the fire is fired by moving objects.

Available analogues

Today in the domestic market there is a unique analogue of the 366 TKM cartridge for shooting from smoothbore carbines, developed on the basis of 410/76 mm caliber cartridges . The manufacture of ammunition is the property of the Nizhny Novgorod enterprise AKBS. An analog is designed for use in the Mouflon-410 rifle, which serves as a modernized example of Mosin's carbine. In comparison with the same VPO-208 rifle, the rifled barrel part here is located closer to the chamber, but not at the muzzle part, which negatively affects the characteristics of the cartridge outlet.

Eventually

In conclusion, I would like to note the fact that the designers succeeded in creating an extremely efficient cartridge that is suitable for firing from self-loading hunting carbines, hitting large game at distances up to 150 m. At the same time, when firing from a distance of the order of 200 m the cartridge A few loses the classic rifled bullets according to the speed indicators, maintaining a stable trajectory and energy. In general, the cartridges of type 366 TCM are an excellent tool for conducting cased hunting.