In Part One, we shot some glass rated for pistols.
Today, we will test some glass rated for rifles.
This piece of glass is very heavy.
Here's the set-up, with the glass supported on three sides.
It is rated NIJ III for Rifles, and is 20 X 20 inches, and 2 inches thick, and weighs 70 pounds.
That's heavy.
We already know that this sheet of glass will withstand 5 rounds of .308, as that is what is required to be certified as NIJ III glass.
So, the question for today is:
What will it take to punch through this piece of glass?
How about a round of .30-06 AP (Armor Piercing), out of my Springfield 1903-A3?
I will try a round of WWII AP .30-06 Ball.
And here's the results, a big dent, but stopped.
It bulged the back, but did not cause any spalling of the glass.
We were surprised that the penetrator seemed to completely disintegrate.
We couldn't find a piece of it.
In our pistol glass test, the shotgun slug busted right through.
Let's try a shotgun round, out of my 870.
Vern got a good shot of the slug hitting the glass and the resulting spray of glass.
You can see why we used a plastic drop cloth to catch the pieces.
Here's the crater on the front, but it did not penetrate.
Well, it's time for the Big Boy.
Let's try the buffalo rifle, my Shiloh Sharps .45-70.
I will shoot a round of hard-cast, 510 grain, gas checked RNL bullet.
Ready to go.
Another good shot of the impact.
Here's the resulting crater in the front.
And although there was a big bulge in the back, it did not penetrate or throw off any spalling of the glass.
Let's try a faster and lighter .45-70 round.
This is a Jacketed Hollow Point bullet, 400 grains, at about 2,000 fps.
Here's the hit.
Here's the front.
And a bulge in the back, but only a slight piece of spalling.
No penetration.
Finally, we will shoot it till failure, exceeding the test requirements, to see what it takes to penetrate this glass.
I take another round of the 510 grain .45-70 and I will shoot it into the same crater as the first shot.
Here we go.
Notice that at impact, the witness box is knocked in the air.
You can see the hole it made as it went right through the glass.
And here's the hole in the back.
Here's the front of the witness box, with a bullet hole and glass spray.
And here's the back, where the bullet came out.
As far as we can tell, it is still on its way to Mexico, mad as a yellow jacket.
Conclusions:
Thanks to Vern for the photo help and the help with hauling this heavy stuff, and also thanks to Walt, our gun club President for his permission to do this project.
It's fun to shoot stuff.
Today, we will test some glass rated for rifles.
This piece of glass is very heavy.
Here's the set-up, with the glass supported on three sides.
It is rated NIJ III for Rifles, and is 20 X 20 inches, and 2 inches thick, and weighs 70 pounds.
That's heavy.
We already know that this sheet of glass will withstand 5 rounds of .308, as that is what is required to be certified as NIJ III glass.
So, the question for today is:
What will it take to punch through this piece of glass?
How about a round of .30-06 AP (Armor Piercing), out of my Springfield 1903-A3?
I will try a round of WWII AP .30-06 Ball.
And here's the results, a big dent, but stopped.
It bulged the back, but did not cause any spalling of the glass.
We were surprised that the penetrator seemed to completely disintegrate.
We couldn't find a piece of it.
In our pistol glass test, the shotgun slug busted right through.
Let's try a shotgun round, out of my 870.
Vern got a good shot of the slug hitting the glass and the resulting spray of glass.
You can see why we used a plastic drop cloth to catch the pieces.
Here's the crater on the front, but it did not penetrate.
Well, it's time for the Big Boy.
Let's try the buffalo rifle, my Shiloh Sharps .45-70.
I will shoot a round of hard-cast, 510 grain, gas checked RNL bullet.
Ready to go.
Another good shot of the impact.
Here's the resulting crater in the front.
And although there was a big bulge in the back, it did not penetrate or throw off any spalling of the glass.
Let's try a faster and lighter .45-70 round.
This is a Jacketed Hollow Point bullet, 400 grains, at about 2,000 fps.
Here's the hit.
Here's the front.
And a bulge in the back, but only a slight piece of spalling.
No penetration.
Finally, we will shoot it till failure, exceeding the test requirements, to see what it takes to penetrate this glass.
I take another round of the 510 grain .45-70 and I will shoot it into the same crater as the first shot.
Here we go.
Notice that at impact, the witness box is knocked in the air.
You can see the hole it made as it went right through the glass.
And here's the hole in the back.
Here's the front of the witness box, with a bullet hole and glass spray.
And here's the back, where the bullet came out.
As far as we can tell, it is still on its way to Mexico, mad as a yellow jacket.
Conclusions:
Thanks to Vern for the photo help and the help with hauling this heavy stuff, and also thanks to Walt, our gun club President for his permission to do this project.
It's fun to shoot stuff.
