120mm M1028 Canister Cartridge: Data Sheet
The M1028 is the 120mm canister cartridge for the M1 Abrams tank, essentially a giant shotgun shell for the main gun. It was developed for close-in defense of the tank against massed infantry assaults and ambushes. Instead of a single projectile, it fires a dense cloud of tungsten balls that spreads after leaving the muzzle and is effective out to about 500 meters.
Canister is one of the oldest ideas in gunnery: Civil War cannon fired tin cans of iron balls at charging infantry, and US tanks carried canister rounds in World War II and Vietnam. The M1028 brought the idea to the Abrams' 120mm smoothbore.
Our life-size, 100% plastic M1028 replica.
At a glance
| Designation | Cartridge, 120mm: Canister, M1028 |
|---|---|
| Purpose | Anti-personnel, close-in defense of the tank |
| Effective range | 200 to 500 meters |
| Payload | Tungsten balls |
| Cartridge length | 780 mm (30.7 in.) |
| Cartridge weight | 22.9 kg (50.5 lb) |
| Projectile length | 317.5 mm (12.5 in.) |
| Projectile weight | 11 kg (24.3 lb) |
| Muzzle velocity | 1,410 m/s (4,626 ft/sec) |
| Cartridge case | Combustible case on a steel case base; modified M125 primer (rubber coated) |
| Propellant | Double base |
| Fired from | M256 120mm smoothbore (M1 Abrams) |
Figures from the manufacturer's data sheet (General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems), approved for public release.
How it works
The projectile body is a thin canister packed with tungsten balls. On firing it breaks apart at the muzzle and releases the payload in a spreading cone. That gives the tank an answer to infantry and RPG teams at close range that a single armor-piercing or high-explosive round can't match.
Why it's not in TM 43-0001-28
Our main source for artillery and tank rounds, the Army's TM 43-0001-28 data sheets, was last changed in 2003. The M1028 came after that, so the figures here come from the manufacturer's public data sheet instead.
The replica
Our 120mm M1028 canister round is life size, 3D printed and 100% plastic. See every round in the M1 Abrams tank ammunition collection, or read the data sheet for its armor-piercing partner, the M829A1 "Silver Bullet".
Sources
- General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems, 120mm M1028 Canister Cartridge product data sheet (approved for public release, 29 April 2010).
Redleg3D makes 100% plastic, inert display replicas. This page is for history, collecting and identification only. If you ever find real ordnance, don't touch it: leave the area and call 911.