8×68mm S

The German ammunition manufacturer Rheinisch-Westfälische Sprengstoff-Fabriken (RWS) [de] introduced both cartridges commercially in the spring of 1939. With the official certification of the .375 Hölderlin and the 8.5×68mm Fanzoj this German 68 mm "family" of magnum rifle cartridges that all share the same basic cartridge case got expanded in the 21st century.

The cartridges in this German 68 mm cartridge "family" are, in the order of development:

• 8×68mm S (1939)
• 6.5×68mm (1939)
• .375 Hölderlin (9.5×68mm) (2007)
• 8.5×68mm Fanzoj (2012)

The M 98 bolt actions and magazine boxes of standard military Mauser 98 rifles have to be adapted by a competent gunsmith to function properly with 8×68mm S cartridges, since the M98 internal magazine boxes feature an internal magazine length of 84 mm (3.31 in) and 8×68mm S cartridge cases have a significantly larger diameter than 8×57mm IS service cartridges. In properly adapted standard military Gewehr 98 or Karabiner 98k service rifles the large 8×68mm S cartridges are however praised for very smooth and reliable feeding.

The widespread availability of standard size Mauser 98 rifles and the fact that the .375 H&H Magnum cartridge and its necked down version the .300 H&H Magnum with approximately 72 mm (2.83 in) case length were too long to fit in standard sized Mauser 98 bolt-action rifles makes the shorter 8×68mm S, 6.5×68mm and .375 Hölderlin interesting chambering options.

World War II spoiled the commercial introduction and spread of the 8×68mm S amongst German hunters. The cartridge became popular due to its high performance and flat trajectory popular after World War II when German hunters in the 1950s were again allowed to own and hunt with full bore rifles. The 8×68mm S performance was also made available to hunters who previously had problems with handling magnum cartridge recoil and had stepped down to less powerful but for German conditions adequate medium cartridges like the 8×57mm IS, 7×64mm (Brenneke) or .30-06 Springfield (also known as the 7.62×63mm in metric countries). This was accomplished by fitting an efficient muzzle brake to significantly reduce the amount of recoil for recoil sensitive shooters. With the help of a muzzle brake the 8×68mm S recoil is reduced to tolerable levels.

Extremely thick brass results in 'only' 5.58 ml (86 grains) H₂O cartridge case capacity for the 8×68mm S. A rare feature of this German rimless bottlenecked centerfire cartridge design is that it has a slightly rebated rim (P1 - R1 = 0.3 mm). A sign of the era in which the 8×68mm S was developed are the gently sloped shoulders. The exterior shape of the case was designed to promote reliable case feeding and extraction in bolt-action rifles, under extreme conditions.

8×68mm S maximum C.I.P. cartridge dimensions. All sizes in millimetres (mm).

Americans would define the shoulder angle at alpha/2 ≈ 14.53 degrees. The common rifling twist rate for this cartridge is 280 mm (1 in 11.02 in), 4 grooves, Ø lands = 7.89 mm, Ø grooves = 8.20 mm, land width = 4.40 mm and the primer type is large rifle magnum.

According to the official C.I.P. (Commission Internationale Permanente pour l'Epreuve des Armes à Feu Portatives) guidelines the 8×68mm S case can handle up to 440.00 MPa (63,817 psi) piezo pressure. In C.I.P. regulated countries every rifle cartridge combo has to be proofed at 125% of this maximum C.I.P. pressure to certify for sale to consumers.

This means that 8×68mm S chambered arms in C.I.P. regulated countries are currently (2014) proof tested at 550.00 MPa (79,771 psi) PE piezo pressure.^[2]

The American .325 WSM cartridge introduced in 2005 is probably the closest ballistic twin of the 8×68mm S. The .325 WSM is considerably shorter and fatter and has a more radical rebated rim (P1 -R 1 = 0.51 mm), much steeper shoulder angle (70 degrees / 35 degrees for Americans) and a shorter neck (7.82 mm). This makes the 8×68mm S case with its 9.11 mm long neck better suited for loading long heavier bullets and due to its sleeker exterior shape bound to cycle more reliably in bolt-action rifles in extreme situations.

German big game hunters often use 8×68mm S rifles in Africa for hunting plains game, where American hunters would choose one of the .30 or .338 magnum cartridges. The 8×68mm S as a pure civil cartridge can be used in countries which ban civil use of former or current military ammunition.

Since there are not many factory loads available RWS^[3] currently (2007) offers 5 factory loads) and due to its good field reputation and efficiency, the 8×68mm S is often used by reloaders. For a magnum chambering it also offers a tolerable amount of barrel wear, which is important to users that fire many rounds a year. This was achieved by coupling a sensible case volume (5.58 ml) to bore area (51.78 mm²/0.5178 cm²) ratio (10.78 O_ratio). They have used this cartridge extensively to create powerful loads by handloading. Whilst staying within the 440 MPa C.I.P. limit an 8×68mm S rifle with a 650 mm (25.59 in) long barrel and appropriate modern gun propellants (Vihtavuori N560) can be handloaded to propel a 12.96 gram (200 gr) 8 mm bullet like the Sierra MatchKing to a muzzle velocity of 927 m/s (3042 ft/s).

The 8×68mm S has a good long range accuracy reputation i.e. it is not hard to develop or find loads that will shoot 1 MoA or better out of decent standard mass-produced rifles. Factory 8×68mm S rifles often have a 650 mm or 26 in barrel with a 280 mm (1 in 11 in) twist rate, which works well in daily life. This twist rate was chosen since the bullet jackets used in the 1930s were not strong enough to cope with the forces generated by the magnum muzzle velocities of the 8×68mm S. The 240 mm (1 in 9.45 in) twist rate normally found in the 8×57mm IS makes the 8×68mm S combined with modern bullets with jackets designed for magnum cartridges an excellent long range cartridge.

Reloaders use the 8×68mm S as a utility cartridge on all European game from fox, roe deer and chamois upwards to the big European game like red deer, moose and brown bear. These people realized that bullets with different characteristics can be utilized to produce varying effects on game. They also realized that from 8 mm caliber upwards the rise of sectional density and penetrating capability of practical spin stabilized rifle bullets (bullets up to 5 to 5.5 calibers in length) tends to flatten out.^[4]

This means that loaded with light, short and soft-nosed 8 mm bullets the 8×68mm S can be used on remarkably small game. Loaded with heavy, long and hard (solid copper alloy) bullets the 8×68mm S offers enough speed derived power to penetrate heavy and dangerous game. The 8×68mm S is suitable for hunting almost any game animal on the planet, though certain sub-Saharan Africa countries have a .375 in minimum caliber requirement for hunting dangerous Big Five game - i.e. leopard, lion, cape buffalo, rhinoceros and elephant.^[5][6] In African countries, where there are no ammunition limits for hunting Big Five game, the 8×68mm S is used successfully for hunting elephant. In Namibia the 8×68mm S is legal for hunting Big Five game if the loads have ≥ 5,400 J (3,983 ft⋅lbf) muzzle energy.^[7] So it often is used for cape buffalo, with bullets like the 14.26 gram (220 gr) Swift A-Frame, for example.

Maximum muzzle velocity comparison in % of the probably most proliferated European and American 8 mm rifle cartridges out of 650 mm (25.59 in) long barrels loaded with relatively light to heavy 8 mm bullets to their C.I.P. or SAAMI (Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute) sanctioned maximum pressures.

This comparison is not totally objective since the 8mm Remington Magnum operates at 460 MPa (66717 psi), the .325 Winchester Short Magnum at 435 MPa (63,091 psi), the 8 × 68 S at 440 MPa (63817 psi), the 8×64mm S at 405 MPa (58740 psi) and the 7.92×57mm Mauser at 390 MPa (56564 psi) maximum chamber piezo pressure. Higher chamber pressure results in higher muzzle velocities.

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