and in my Powley Computer I use:
In the U.S., voluntary pressure standards for rifle cartridges are set by SAAMI, a member of ANSI. Most other countries in the world follow the standards of Europe's CIP (Commission Internationale Permanente pour l'Epreuve des Armes à Feu Portatives or Permanent International Commission for the Proof of Small-arms, sometimes referred to as the International Proof Commission).
The pressures in the table below are rounded up to the nearest ksi, ie 1000 psi. Cartridges are arranged, approximately, in order of bullet diameter and then by case volume. Use the copper crusher numbers with the Powley Computer.
piezo crusher
SAAMI CIP SAAMI CIP other
.17 Mach 2 : 24 26
.17 HMR : 26 26
.17 WSM : 33 32
.17 Hornet 50
.17 Mach 4 60* 52
.17 Fireball 55
.17 Rem 63 62 52 53
.204 Ruger 58 59
.22 Short : 21 15 10
.22 Long : 24
.22 LR : 24 25 12
.22 WR : 20 15
.22 WMRF : 24 23
5.6x35R 39 35
.22 Hornet 49 44 43 41?
.218 Bee 46 40 41
.22 Rem Jet 37 40
.221 Rem 46 52
5.6x50R 49 44
.222 50 54 46 46
.222 Mag. 59 50 51
.223 55 62 52 54
.219 Zip. 41 37
.225 Win. 57 50 49
.22-250 65 59 53 51
.220 Swift 62 62 54 54
.224 Wea 64
.223 WSSM 65 65
5.6x61R v.H. 55
5.6x52R 48 42
.22 Sav. 48 42 49
6x70R 38
6x45 55
6x50R 64
6x52R Bret. 48
.243 WSSM 65 65
.243 Win. 60 60 52 52
6 Rem. 65 62 52 54
.240 Wea. 64 55
6x62 62 54
6x62R 62 54
.240 Fl.NE 46 41
.25-20 39 28 35 21/29
.25-20 S.S. 22
.256 Win. 51 43 44
.25-36 Marlin 31
.25-35 44 37 39 33
.25 Rem. 36 35
.250 Sav. 53 45 46 52?
.25 WSSM 65
.257 Rob. 54 51 45 45
" +P 58 50
.25-06 63 65 53 56
.257 Wea 64 55
6.5 Grendel 52
6.5x52R 36 32
6.5 Jap. 43 38
6.5x50R 53 46
6.5x70R 41 36
6.5x52 Car. 41
6.5x53R 46* 41
6.5x54 M-S 53 46
6.5x54 Mauser 44 39
.260 Rem 60 60
6.5x55 51 55 46
6.5x58R 41 36
6.5x57 57 49
6.5x58 Mauser 51 45
6.5x57R 48 42
6.5 Creedm 52 63
6.5x70R 41
6.5x72R 55* 48
6.5-06 A-S 65
6.5 Rem Mag 63 53 54
.264 Win Mag 64 62 54 54
6.8 SPC 55 59
.270 65 62 52 54
.270 WSM 65 65
.270 Wea 63 64
7x50R 53
7-30 Wat. 45 49 40
7x72R 41 36
7-08 61 60 52
7x57 51 57 46 49
7x57R 49 44
7 Fl.Mag. 48 42
7x65R 55 48
7x75R v.H. 60 52
.284 Win 56 64 54 55
.280 Rem 60 59 50 51
7 WSM 65
7 Rem Mag 61 62 52 54
7 Wea 65 64
7 STW 65
.280 Fl.NE 43 38
.30 Carb. 40 46 40
.30-357 AeT 44
.30 Rem AR 55
.30-30 42 46 38 41 38
.30 Rem 41 35 36
.300 Sav 47 53 46 46
.308 Marlin 48
.30 Fl.Purdey 46 41
.30-40 47 40 41 38
.307 Win 60 52 52
.308 Win 62 60 52 52
.30-06 60 59 50 51
.30 R Blaser 59 51
.300 WSM 65
.30 Super Belt 53
.300 RCM 65
.300 H&H 58 62 54 54
.300 Win 64 62 54 54
.300 WSM 64
.30 Super Fl. 46 41
.308 Norma 64
.300 Wea 65 64 55 55
.300 RUM 65 65
.300 Lap Mag 68
.30-378 Wea 64
7.62x39 45
.303 Sav 39 34 35 43?
.303 Brit 49 53 45 46
7.62x53R 57
7.62x54R 57 46
.32 H & R 21 21 24
.32-20 30 16 28 18/26
.327 Fed 45
8x72R 41 36
.32-40 34 30 30 18/35
.32 Spl. 42 44 38 39
.32 Rem 43 37 38
8x50R 51! 45!
8 Lebel 51!
8x57 JRS 48 42
8x57 JS 35 57 37 49
8x60RS 49 44
8x64S 59 51
8x65RS 59 51
8x75RS 55 48
8 Rem Mag 65 67 54 57
.318 48 42
.333 Riml.NE 48 42
.338 Fed 62
.338 Marlin 46
.33 WCF 44 39 35
.338-06 A-Sq. 63 52
.338 RCM 65
.338 Win 64 62 54 54
.340 Wea 63
.338 RUM 65
.338-378 Wea 64
.348 46 40 41
.351 Win SL 53 45
9 Luger 35 34 33
" +P 39
9x57 41 36
9x57R 41 36
.38 Spl 17 22 17
" +P 20 20
.357 Mag 35 44 45
.357 Max 40 45 48
400/350 41 36
.350 No.2 48 42
.350 Mag Rigby 45
.35 Rem 34 40 35 36 35
.35 WCF 44 39 39 40
.356 Win 60 52 52
.358 Win 59 52 51
.350 Rem Mag 62 53 54
.35 Whelen 62 58 52
.358 STA 65
9x53R 49
.360 NE 2¼ 36 32
9.3x72R 29 26
9.3x57 44 38
9.3x62 57 49
9.3x64 64 55
9.3x72R 29
9.3x74R 49 44
9.3x65R 55* 48
.375 Win 55 52 55
.375 NE 2½ 32 29
9.5x57 M-S 44
.376 Steyr 62 62
.375 H&H 62 62 53 54
.375 Ruger 62
.375 Wea 64
.375 Fl.Mag. 47 41
.369 NE 44 39
.378 Wea 64 55
.38-55 35 30 31 20/32
.40 S&W 35 33
10 Auto 38 34
.38-40 17 14 15 16/22
.40-60 Win 28
.40-82 Win 24 22
.41 Rem Mag 36 44 40
.400 Jef. 41 36
450/400 3¼ 43 38
.400 H&H 64
.405 WCF 46 36 32 44
.416 Taylor 65
.416 Ruger 62
.416 Rem. 65 62 54 54
.416 Rigby 52 47 41
.404 Jef. 53 46
.44-40 11 16 13 15 14/19
.44 Spl 16 15 14
.44 Rem Mag 36 41 40
.444 42 51 44 45
.45 ACP 21 19 18
.45 Colt 14 16 14
.45 Win Mag 40
.454 Casull 57
.45-60 Win 28
.45-70 28 32 28 29 25
.45-75 Win 30
.450 Mar 44
.458 Win. 60 62 53 54
.458 Lott 63 62 54~
.450 NE 3¼ 44 39
.450 No.2 NE 41 36~
.460 Wea 64 55
.465 Belted 62
500/465 36 32
.480 Ruger 48 48
.475 Linebaugh 50
.475 Turnbull 42
.470 NE 41 39 35 35
.475 No.2 NE 40 36~
.505 Gibbs 39 35
.500 Jef. 48 41~
.500 NE 3" 41 36
.50 BMG 54
.577 3" NE 36 32
.600 NE 36 32
.700 NE 40
4 Bore Rifle 36
^ estimated from load book data (see below)
* estimated from CIP crusher value (see below)
? possible typo in original
! may reflect later military loadings
~ A-Square standard (see below)
: rimfire cartridge (generally not reloaded)
The CIP listings are more extensive. SAAMI standards are voluntary, and a small custom gun maker need not use an official proof load before selling a gun chambered for some obscure cartridge. European laws probably require every gun be proofed to some official standard.
There is a slight difference in definitions between the CIP and SAAMI, and this may explain why the CIP numbers are generally a bit higher; see the section on Statistics, below.
Pressures for shotshells are not included above. At SAAMI they run from 11 ksi for the 10 ga to 12.5 ksi for the .410 in the standard case lengths, but a few of the longest shotshells are as high as 14 ksi.
Several years ago, when they were resurrecting many of the classic African hunting cartridges, they developed modern standards for those with none at either SAAMI or CIP. Generally, they followed CIP practice, and their piezo ratings were, it appears, later adopted by the CIP. In the table above, A-Square's crusher ratings are shown in the "other" column and marked ~.
This page was first written when neither SAAMI nor CIP provided on the web any of their specifications. After obtaining written copies for my own use, I chose to summarize the information here. Also included is historical information on cartridge pressure measurement I had come across. The table above still provides a quick comparison between the two standards, where some interesting inconsistencies exist, for example the .444 Marlin, .405 Winchester, .223 Rem, and 8 Mauser.
No accurate conversion between crusher and true pressure exists, but approximations can be made. In all the conversions here, pressures are in ksi. Expect errors of several ksi, or about 15%, with such formulas. Many factors determine how much the indicated pressure reading from a crusher misses the true pressure, and the error varies among cartridges and even among different loads for one cartridge. The following conversions might be accurate enough for many practical purposes.
In Denton Bramwell's article, he offers a formula he derived using a basic statistical analysis of SAAMI's ratings, covering only pressures between 28,000 and 54,000 CUP :
piezo = 1.52 * crusher - 18He also shows that within this pressure range, the CIP appears to have generally used a simple conversion between their crusher and piezo ratings, roughly equal to:
piezo = 1.21 * crusher - 2.8CIP pressures are multiples of 50 bar (about 700 psi), probably rounded after the conversion. (Please note that CIP crusher readings should not be equated with SAAMI CUP crusher readings; see below.)
However, I will note the author of the internal ballisitics simulator QuickLoad has written the CIP had no need for a conversion forumla.
In the 09/1968 issue of Handloader, Lloyd Brownell presents test data (crusher, but not necessarily CUP) for a rifle cartridge which suggests to me a linear conversion formula is not the best choice,
and in my Powley Computer I use:
piezo = crusher * ( 1 + ( crusher^2.2 )/30000 )From 0 to about 60 ksi crusher, it fits both SAAMI's ratings and Brownell's data well, but it is low at the high end of Brownell's data. Brownell's data shows little to no error below 20 ksi, and a curve fit to only his data between 20 and 67 ksi crusher is:
piezo = crusher + ( (crusher - 20) ^ 2.3 ) / 210
Under SAAMI specifications, reference ammunition is required only for the qualification of new pressure barrels. A new pressure barrel must demonstrate it generates nearly the same pressure and velocity as existing SAAMI spec. pressure barrels. Reference ammunition is as uniform as possible, and ideally all pressure barrels will show the same indicated pressure and velocity. If one barrel is found to be different, something is off in either the barrel or its sensors.
Reference ammunition is not used to calibrate pressure sensors. Piezo systems are calibrated hydraulically. Crushers are calibrated by the manufacturer. (The use of reference ammunition to try to correct crusher measurements is listed as "optional.") To quote SAAMI: "Reference Ammunition cannot guarantee the absolute accuracy of any test system."
CIP procedures permit the use of reference ammunition to correct pressure readings taken at any one lab. The reference ammo has been fired at several trusted labs, and the average of these readings is the reference value. Reference cartridge pressures measured at any other lab are compared to the reference value, and if the difference is less than 10%, the offset can be used as the correction in subsequent tests at that lab.
For rifles, SAAMI recommends a proof load between 33 and 44 percent over the nominal rating, and the CIP today requires 25 percent over their rating (an older standard called for 30% over). While SAAMI requires only a single proof firing, the CIP wants two firings, except in long guns designed for low pressure cartridges (under 26 ksi), where only a single proof cartridge need be fired.
For handguns, the CIP uses 30 percent over, while SAAMI varies the proof load with the rated pressure. For cartridges rated over 20 ksi, SAAMI uses the same overloads as with rifles, but low pressure cartridges have a higher overload, with those rated under 15 ksi having a minimum of 44% over.
To conduct a proper proof, one would ideally need precise gauges to verify no stressed part has yielded (ie, taken a permanent deformation) in the slightest. If no yielding occurs at the proof pressure, then the gun should have an adequate fatigue life at normal operating pressures. I've read that in practice, visual inspections are permitted on production guns; however, British guns are measured before and after test firing at a proof house.
Interestingly, the same percentage overload is used with both piezo and crusher ratings at SAAMI. Above, it was noted there is evidence that crusher's underestimation of pressure grows ever worse as the true pressure rises. One curious side effect is that rifles proofed with crushers may well be proofed to a higher standard than those proofed with piezo.
Under the British base crusher standards described below, proof loads ran 30 to 45% above normal. To maximize breech thrust, proof cartridges were oiled before firing.
(This section is necessarily heavy in jargon.)
More than with many physical measurements, that of chamber pressure displays a large scatter. For this reason, SAAMI defines pressure ratings in statistical terms.
In the table above, SAAMI's Maximum Average Pressure (MAP) is listed. This is the number often quoted as the SAAMI "pressure rating," and SAAMI states the MAP "is the recommended maximum pressure level for loading commercial sporting ammunition." When loads are worked up either for production or for presentation in load books, they will be limited to the MAP, and for most practical purposes, this is the cartridge's rating.
The MAP can be a bit lower than the average in a large lot of ammunition. To determine pressure, SAAMI recommends 10 rounds be tested and averaged. With such a sampling size, there is a chance this average pressure could be below that of the larger lot. Basic statistical considerations would place the average for large lots to likely be within 2 "standard errors" of this smaller sampling. For ammunition testing, SAAMI suggests 2 standard errors will be about 2.5% of the MAP, and adding this to the MAP gives SAAMI's Maximum Probable Lot Mean (MPLM).
This MPLM is the pressure for which a gun should be designed since it is possible large runs of ammunition could average this pressure. The MPLM is, then, the actual pressure rating of the cartridge, and the SAAMI proof loads are defined relative to MPLM, specifically between 30 and 40 percent over MPLM. (Since MPLM is 2.5% over the 10 shot MAP, the compounded result is proof loads are between 33 and 44 percent of the MAP shown in the table.)
An average over 10 rounds could be below the MPLM, or it could be above the MPLM. When testing a lot of production ammunition, SAAMI recommends no 10 round average exceed the Maximum Probable Sample Mean (MPSM). Based again on statistics, the MPSM is taken to be 6.3% over the MAP.
Lastly, there is the Maximum Extreme Variation (MEV). There is a small chance that in a very large lot of ammunition, a single sample might test much higher than the averages. From statistics, SAAMI recommends an MEV no more than 20.6% above the MAP. Keep in mind that though a single cartridge might approach MEV, averages over 10 cartridges must continue to fall near MPLM (and below MPSM), so it is unlikely any significant number of cartridges approaching MEV will pass through.
To summarize, SAAMI pressure ratings reflect load development done with pressures limited to the MAP. In large production lots, the average could be a bit higher but likely will be below the MPLM. The worst case sampling of 10 in the production lot shouldn't exceed the MPSM, and the worst case single cartridge shouldn't exceed the MEV.
The CIP ratings are equivalent to SAAMI's MPLM, and this difference in definitions for the pressure rating likely explains why the CIP numbers are generally a bit higher than SAAMI's (again, MPLM is 2.5% over MAP). The CIP equivalent to SAAMI's MEV is 15% over the rating (relative to MPLM, SAAMI's MEV is 17.7% over). CIP proofs are 25% over the rating (SAAMI wants at least 30% over MPLM).
By 1861, the US Ordnance Dept. was using an early pressure gauge for cartridges. A hole was drilled in the cartridge case, and paper covered the hole to prevent spilling of powder while the cartridge was assembled. This hole was aligned with one in the barrel, and in the barrel's hole was a gas check, a piston, and a hardened steel knife. The knife pressed into a copper plate supported by a steel plate. After firing, pressure was applied to the knife elsewhere on the copper plate until the same cut was made, and the pressure presumed from this.
This method was soon replaced by "crushers," developed by Nobel in Europe at about the same time. Crushers are copper or lead cylinders deformed by the piston. The deformed length of the crusher is measured and compared to a table supplied by their maker with each lot of crushers. The pressure is read directly from this table. With older U.S. military tests—and perhaps with all other crusher standards as well—these tables make no allowance for dynamic effects, namely the fact the pressure peak is so brief that the crusher and its piston cannot track it. Instead, stable (usually called "static") pressures are applied to sample crushers, and the deformed lengths are recorded. After a gun firing, the length of the crusher is measured and compared to those found in the static tests.
Even in the 1800's, it was known that crushers did not accurately measure pressure. This was discovered by measuring the recoil acceleration of cannons, by marking a foil strip with a stylus on a tuning fork. Even though engraving and rotational forces on the projectile were not measured, the recoil clearly showed the pressure was higher than the crusher indicated.
Because the indicated pressure from crushers is known to be off, SAAMI many decades ago began referring to the indicated pressure from their tests as "Copper Units of Pressure," a clumsy name commonly shortened to "CUP." For low pressure cartridges such as shotshells, lead is used for the crusher, and SAAMI refers to these numbers as "LUP." Strictly speaking, such units should only be used to identify crusher readings taken in accordance with SAAMI procedures.
CUP is measured in psi. "CUP" effectively means "psi as measured by a system known to be inaccurate." The ballistician William Davis wrote he cared little for the CUP label. He preferred something such as "psi(c)" to note the psi reading was taken from copper crushers.
Both SAAMI and the CIP have detailed specifications for the arrangement and dimensions of the crusher. Because these two systems are not identical, the two crusher standards can not always agree. Further, as explained above, CIP crusher ratings are generally a bit higher than SAAMI's perhaps due to differences in definitions. Also, SAAMI is generally more conservative with older military rounds, such as the 8mm Mauser.
With SAAMI's arrangement, the piston is over the brass case, and the case will rupture somewhere below 20 ksi. The resulting sudden jump in pressure under the piston magnifies problems with piston inertia, and this makes the reading more sensitive to parameters such as burning rate, case strength, and true peak pressure. As one SAAMI representative put it: "Due to mechanical and metallurgical delays in the response of the piston and crusher rod to pressure forces, pressure readings were considered to reflect only 80 to 85 percent of actual peak pressure." The CIP arrangement requires the piston case be drilled at the sensor location, and one benefit is that crusher and piezo ratios are much more consistent from cartridge to cartridge, allowing them to reasonably use a conversion formula (above).
In Britain, a third set of crusher standards were developed, using a "base" crusher. The crusher was a short, thick tube placed behind a piston at the base of the cartridge, and the firing pin passed through the center. The cartridge case was well oiled before firing, to minimize cling to the chamber walls (if not oiled, the indicated pressures were about 25% lower). To prevent case rupture on set back of the base, the crusher was first deformed in a press to a pressure a bit lower than that expected in firing. The units were generally stated in British long tons per square inch, or tsi. Pressures indicated by this method run 10 to 20% below those indicated by radial crushers. Kynamco in England still rates their production cartridges with this method.
Piezo systems have been available since the 1920s and today are the accepted standard, but other systems to produce a pressure trace were tried. Vieille in France, who developed the first military smokeless powder, also "invented a rotating recording crusher gauge with which pressure could be measured as it varies with the time." I have no details on Vieille's crusher, but I've read he was the first to detect pressure waves inside the chamber. The Russian researcher Serebriakov employed in 1923 "a conical crusher" to investigate burn rates in a calorimeter—again, no further details. In the U.K., J. J. Thomson began experimenting with piezo systems during WW-I. A system demonstrated to the Springfield Armory in 1921 had the chamber piston press against "a very stout stiff steel bar, which had a polished end forming a reflecting surface to act as a mirror." A light beam was reflected onto a revolving drum of film to record the pressure trace.
Piezo systems measure the displacement of electric charge in a crystal as it is compressed. For SAAMI tests, a piston in the side of the chamber is cut to conform to the case. This leaves the brass cartridge case between the gas and the sensor, but the sensor is calibrated by hydraulically pressurizing a test chamber with a case in it, and in this way the effect of the case is known.
It is possible to measure the pressure more directly, without the conformal piston. Older VihtaVouri test data (2nd ed.) was taken with the piezo sensor just in front of the case mouth, and NATO does this as well. However, the pressure is slightly lower there, and one cannot sense the pressure until the bullet's base has passed, preventing one from seeing how smooth is the initial ignition of the charge. One can also cut a small hole in the case to align with a narrow pressure sensor port, and the CIP uses this method. Either way can expose the sensor to the hot gases, leading to shorter sensor life. However, neither a conformal piston nor calibration of the brass case is required, and these approaches will likely be less expensive than SAAMI's.
Other pressure transducers can be used in place of the piezo transducer. Once more common was one using a strain gauge. Such transducers fit where the piezo unit does in modern tests.
Strain gauges can also be used in an another fashion to measure pressure. The strain gauge is glued to the surface of the barrel, over the chamber, and the "hoop" strain is measured from the small changes in resistance in the gauge's wires. The test barrel ideally has somewhat thinner walls, allowing for greater strain during firing. One must also compute an offset to compensate for the pressure being contained by the brass of the case. In a lab, this might be done hydraulically, as with piezo, but I've read it is not. The properties of cartridge brass are fairly well known, and the measurement of the brass thickness is readily done, so it's possible to compute the offset with fair accuracy. Strain gauge systems can be quite affordable; the Pressure Trace available from RSI is marketed to the handloader. Oehler Research also sells such systems for laboratory use.
In the U.S., H.P. White long offered cartridge testing sevices, but they folded in 2020. Until about 2006, Western Powders (now owned by Hodgdon) advertised a modestly priced service to test handloads in their piezo rigs. Today, you may have to purchase a strain gauge rig (above) to test your handloads.
In Europe, the Birmingham Proof House in the U.K. will test handloads as will DEVA in Germany, and other national labs might as well.
8/2005 - 11/2023