[DISCLAIMER: The following text is taken from a WWII U.S. War Department
Special Series
publication. As with all wartime intelligence information, data may be incomplete or inaccurate. No
attempt has been made to update or correct the text. Any views or opinions
expressed do not necessarily represent those of the website.]
a. Introduction
The ammunition used in the Pz.B. 38 and Pz.B. 39
(antitank rifles) is of the armor-piercing type. The
round itself can be identified by the large cartridge
case, necked down to take the 7.92-mm (.312-inch) bullet.
The German labels distinguish this ammunition
from the regular 7.92-mm rifle and machine-gun
ammunition by the words "Patr. 318" in front of the
distinguishing "S.m.K." Labels having the distinguishing
"Rs." have a small amount of tear gas in the bullet.
b. Patr. 318 or Patr. 318 S.m.K.
This is the regular armor-piercing ammunition for
the Pz.B. 38 and Pz.B. 39 antitank rifles. It consists
of a large cartridge case (like the U.S. caliber .50
cartridge case) with a small projectile of 7.92-mm
(.312 inch). The projectile has a gilded metal jacket and
a tungsten carbide core. Sometimes it will have a
tracer and sometimes a small charge of tear gas in the
base of the projectile.