M829
American armor-piercing tank round
The M829 is an American armor-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot (APFSDS) kinetic energy penetrator tank round. Modeling was done at the Ballistic Research Laboratory at Aberdeen Proving Ground, which was incorporated into the Army Research Laboratory in 1992. The round is specifically designed for the 120 mm M256 main gun on the Abrams M1A1 and M1A2 main battle tanks. The penetrator is carried by a sabot during its acceleration in the gun barrel.
Variants
M829
The M829 dart has a ballistic nose and six tail fins made of aluminum. It is carried in the gun tube by a four-piece aluminum sabot, which separates into four "petals" soon after the round leaves the gun tube. The propulsion system uses an obturating case base with a semi-combustible cartridge wall. It has a total weight of 41.1 lb (18.6 kg) and a 627 mm (24.7 in) DU penetrator with a 27 mm (1.1 in) rod diameter, which reaches a muzzle velocity of 1,670 meters per second (5,500 ft/s) using 8.1 kg (18 lb) of JA-2 propellant. Its maximum effective range is 3,000 m (3,300 yd). According to Jane's, the M829 is capable of penetrating 540 mm (21 in) of RHA steel armor at up to a 2,000 m (2,200 yd) range.
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