A method is known for the assembling of a hollow charge (DE-C-3 434 847), in which the liner and the explosive charge are resiliently pressed one against the other, the explosive charge being cooled down to a temperature corresponding to the lowest operational temperature, the liner, the cooled-down explosive charge and additional components then being introduced into the jacket.
Although by this method it is possible to avoid gaps between the jacket and the explosive charge, no measures are foreseen to reliably avoid gaps also between the explosive charge and the liner, especially if the latter is not precisely conical.
It is further known to use pressure to press a body of an explosive mixture consisting of Hexogen and TNT into a pressing mold, to cool it down and then to heat the liner to 85.degree. C. to 95.degree. C. and to press it during the cooling-down process into the cavity of the body (DE-A-3 236 706). Air inclusions between the body and the insert are thus prevented, but because of the danger of detonation during the process, it is impossible to heat the entire liner. Air gaps between the liner and the body can thus hardly be avoided.
Another method for producing hollow-charge projectiles is known, in which the explosive charge is prepressed and cooled down to -30.degree. C. (FR-A-2 563 517). At ambient temperature and under high pressure, the explosive charge is pressed into the projectile jacket together with its liner. Subsequently, a mounting ring is screwed into the former, which fixes the liner by application of force. After equalization of temperature, high mechanical stresses prevail inside the projectile, which act on the separate components.
With the known methods, the explosive charge is pressed onesidedly into the body by application of pressure during the assembling of the ammunition. While the risks during the manufacturing of the projectiles are considerably less than with the method according to FR-A-2 563 517, the projectile jacket must have a wall of sufficient mechanical strength to withstand the forces prevailing during pressing. According to experience, it is therefore only possible to use projectile jackets having relatively thick walls which tend towards fragmentation. Using the above methods, it is in no case possible to produce projectiles for missiles and rocket projectiles, since it is precisely the walls of these projectiles that, because of weight considerations, must be as thin as possible.
The commonly used materials for these three components--precision charge, metallic jacket and liner--have usually different values concerning modulus of elasticity, Poisson's ratio and coefficient of thermal expansion. For the metallic jacket one uses mostly a light-metal alloy or steel, for the liner, copper is suitable, and the explosive charge is prepared from the plastics or wax-bonded explosive known as HMX (octogen=cyclotetramethylenetetranitramine)) or RDX (hexogen=cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine).