[Pointy Sextant]

Originally Posted by Vangelis

Flechettes might fly straight, but their wound channels are tiny, they deflect easily [SALVO / SPIW found their 5.6x53mm and 5.6x44mm flechettes could be deflected by raindrops], they're very, very expensive to produce, tend to be loud and have excessive muzzle flash, and since their range largely comes from being light and aerodynamic, their performance against armour is spotty, too; there's something to be said for rounds having high momentum rather than just high kinetic energy.

Gunmaster45: It's been argued that the Geneva Convention forbids deploying artillery flechette rounds in civilian populated areas; people argue they violate the provisions protecting non-combatants, on the basis that an arty flechette is a fragmentation round with 8,000 8-grain nails as well as bits of the casing to kill people with, and so it might kill people. As opposed to any other artillery shell you might fire at a civilian populated area which wouldn't kill anyone, I guess.

I'm confused on a kinetic energy level how a raindrop deflects a round. That sounds fantastic to me. I thought that a flecette assault rifle was in therunning to replace the M16 at one point?