LoadAmmo.Com Topic of the Month - Sabots

Topic of the Month

Topic of the Month: March 2002
Shooting Sabots

The sabot has been around a very long time. In fact, the word sabot, pronounced say-bo, was introduced into the English language around 1607 and literally means "wooden shoe." A sabot is a sleeve (shoe) that partially envelops a projectile or bullet and positions the bullet in the barrel to prevent the escape of gases, around the bullet, when the cartridge is fired. The bullet diameter is smaller than the barrel diameter to allow room for the sabot. When the sabot is fired from the gun, the high speed of the sabot creates a large air drag on the surface of the sabot, causing the fingers on the front of the sabot, to open outward, developing an even greater drag on the sabot. The high drag pulls the sabot quickly away from the bullet, allowing the bullet to continue downrange to the target. The lightweight sabot quickly loses velocity and falls to the ground somewhere downrange while the bullet continues on to the target.

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