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Common uses: Hunting, Big Game
| Type | rifle (centerfire) |
| Typical load | 200gr reference load |
| Muzzle velocity | 2170 fps |
| Muzzle energy | 2090 ft-lb |
| Published G1 ballistic coefficient | 0.253 |
| Case length | 56 mm |
| Overall length | 79.5 mm |
| Range (yd) | Velocity (fps) | Energy (ft-lb) | Drop (in) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 2170 | 2091 | -1.5 |
| 100 | 1862 | 1539 | 0 |
| 200 | 1585 | 1115 | -8.6 |
| 300 | 1348 | 807 | -31.2 |
| 400 | 1164 | 601 | -73 |
| 500 | 1040 | 481 | -140.6 |
A retained-energy reference only — not a shoot/don't-shoot distance. Real effective range depends on your accuracy, shot placement, bullet construction, and conditions. The ~1,000 ft-lb (deer-sized) and ~1,500 ft-lb (elk-sized) figures are commonly cited rules of thumb, not standards.
This reference load is not verified factory-load data; confirm the displayed inputs against a reliable published source where available, and verify modeled results with your own rifle.
This is a classic early-20th-century European stalking cartridge, remembered more for the fine Mannlicher-Schönauer rifles that chambered it than for any ballistic advantage over its contemporaries. With heavy-for-caliber bullets in the roughly 200-grain class launched at moderate velocity, it was built for reliable penetration and clean kills on medium and large game such as red deer, boar, and similar animals at short to moderate woodland ranges rather than for flat-shooting reach. Its modest muzzle velocity and heavy round-nose bullets give it a rainbow trajectory by modern standards, so it is best regarded as a deliberate, close-to-mid-range game cartridge. Today it is essentially obsolete and a collector's caliber: factory ammunition is scarce, most owners handload, and its appeal lies chiefly with those who own and shoot the original Steyr rifles.
The 8x56 Mannlicher-Schönauer was introduced in 1908 by the Austrian firm Steyr for its Mannlicher-Schönauer Model 1908 sporting rifle, and it belongs to the family of proprietary cartridges Mannlicher matched to its early rifle models, feeding through Otto Schönauer's rotary-spool magazine. It fires a .323-inch (8mm) bullet from a rimless, bottleneck case and was designed as a medium-bore hunting round for the Mannlicher-Schönauer rifles that became prized among European sportsmen. It should not be confused with the later rimmed 8x56mmR, a separate cartridge; the 8x56 M-S remained a sporting number tied to the Steyr-made rifles.
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