5.8×42mm
The 5.8×42mm / DBP87 ("Dàn (弹) Bùqiāng (步枪) Pŭtōng (普通), 1987"; literally "Standard Rifle Cartridge, 1987") is a military bottlenecked intermediate cartridge developed in the People's Republic of China. There is limited information on this cartridge, although the People's Liberation Army claims that it is superior to the 5.56×45mm NATO and Soviet 5.45×39mm cartridges.
| 5.8×42mm | ||||||||||||||||
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DBP87 round | ||||||||||||||||
| Type | Rifle, carbine, designated marksman rifle, and light machine gun | |||||||||||||||
| Place of origin | People's Republic of China | |||||||||||||||
| Service history | ||||||||||||||||
| Used by | People's Liberation Army | |||||||||||||||
| Production history | ||||||||||||||||
| Designer | People's Liberation Army | |||||||||||||||
| Designed | 1979–1987 | |||||||||||||||
| Produced | 1987–present | |||||||||||||||
| Variants | 5.8×42mm DBP-87 5.8×42mm DBP-95 5.8×42mm DBP-88 heavy round 5.8×42mm DBP10 | |||||||||||||||
| Specifications | ||||||||||||||||
| Case type | bottleneck | |||||||||||||||
| Bullet diameter | 6.00 mm (0.236 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Neck diameter | 6.65 mm (0.262 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Shoulder diameter | 9.35 mm (0.368 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Base diameter | 10.40 mm (0.409 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Rim diameter | 10.42 mm (0.410 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Rim thickness | 1.42 mm (0.056 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Case length | 42.2 mm (1.66 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Overall length | 58 mm (2.3 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Case capacity | 2.11 cm3 (32.6 gr H2O) | |||||||||||||||
| Rifling twist | 240 mm or 210 mm (1 in 9.45 or 1 in 8.27) | |||||||||||||||
| Ballistic performance | ||||||||||||||||
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| Test barrel length: 557mm (21.9 in) Source(s): Anthony Williams | ||||||||||||||||
Another variant called the DBP88 "heavy round" was designed specifically for squad automatic weapons and designated marksman rifles. The 5.8×42mm "heavy round" cartridge has the same dimensions as the standard 5.8×42mm cartridge, but utilizes a longer streamlined bullet with a heavy steel core for increased performance at extended ranges and penetration. As of 2010, all 5.8×42mm cartridge variants have been succeeded by the DBP10 variant.