EFPs; the new AK-47?

[J Wolfsberger]

If I'm understanding it correctly, you have a carefully machined (would stamped work?) copper disk, a tube, high explosive (mach 6 projectile velocities were mentioned in one article; sounds like an RDX based explosive, SEMTEX or some such), a blasting cap, and the complicated bit that could be anything from wire and a battery to something involving a cellphone or some other electronic widget...

At the most basic level, it seems to me that the choke points are the copper disks and blasting caps. The tolerances of that disk and the tube can't be that high, but the shape of the copper disc requires some extra knowledge.

Most of that is important, but the real choke points are pouring the HE and getting the (military grade) detonator exactly centered. If either of those is wrong, the EFP won't form correctly - still dangerous, but not even the same ball park for effectiveness. The device container doesn't need that fine a tolerence, but the tolerance on the metal disc does. (That's all I'll say about that.)

(See Stan's comments above. He's talking about home made, imprecise systems that have to be pretty close to be very lethal. My comments are directed to high quality EFPs - 4 to 6 km/s launch velocity, good stand off and high level of penetration.)