Topic 4: Bullet Flashcards
refers to a cylindrical projectile propelled from a firearm utilizing the expansive force of gases coming from burning gunpowder.
Bullet
Bullet was derived from the French word boulette, which means? In police dialect, a slug is a bullet, while a ball cartridge contains bullets in government parlance. Moreover, a round projectile is called a ball or shot. In short, the ball was the original terminology for a bullet
small ball
PARTS OF A BULLET
Base
Bearing surface
Cannelure
Core
Head length
Heel
Jacket
Meplat
Point
Shoulder
Ogive
-The portion of the bullet that is most exposed to the heat coming from the burning gunpowder
- Base
The part of the bullet that comes into contact with the rifling of the firearm. The rifling marks are engraved here.
- Bearing Surface
A serrated groove or depression rolled around the body of the bullet that is usually found in a bottle neck cartridge. This is held by the cannelure of the cartridge case so that the bullet will not be easily removed or loosened. In a straight cartridge, it is called crimping. On the other hand, this is the part where wax is placed in a lead bullet.
3.Cannelure
The bulk in a bullet that is enclosed with a jacket in a jacketed type bullet as shown in the smaller picture above. This is usually made up of lead and other similar compositions.
- Core
- It refers to the length from the shoulder to the tip of the bullet
- Head Length
-The part that serves as the boundary between the base and bearing surface.
- Heel
- It is usually copper, brass, steel, and aluminum. This is the part that encloses the core to protect it from the heat of the gas produced by the combustion of gunpowder.
- Jacket
- It refers to the diameter of the point.
- Meplat
-It is the most forward portion of the bullet that first lands on the target upon impact.
- Point
-It is the boundary between the bearing surface and the head height
- Shoulder
-The tapered or curved part of the bullet beyond the bearing surface towards the tip.
- Ogive
CLASSIFICATIONS OF BULLET
Lead bullet
Jacketed bullet
This type of bullet is not used at high velocity because it will deform during acceleration. In high-velocity firearms, the load of gunpowder is of greater amount. Therefore, the gas produced is very hot, which softens the lead..
- Lead Bullet
This is a type of bullet with a core of lead covered by a jacket usually made of copper. Since it is enclosed with a harder material, it will not soften once it is exposed to the heated gas brought by the combustion of the gunpowder. Thus, it will not be deformed even if it is projected by a high velocity firearm. Moreover, this type of bullet protects the gun barrel from rusting since it is hard. Lesser particles will be deposited inside the gun barrel after the rifling engraved on its bearing surface. This is generally used for semi-auto pistols or high velocity rifles
- Jacketed Bullet
TYPES OF BULLETS
- Armor piercing
- Tracer bullet
- Incendiary bullet
- Explosive bullet
- Fragmentary bullet
- Wadcutter bullet
- Grass check bullet
- Silver tip bullet
- Dumdum bullet
- Glasser safety slug
- Truncated cone bullet
It is classified as a hard and has a steel cores. It is fired against vehicles and other armored targets Generally used for M14 rifle
- Armor Piercing
are also referred to as armor piercing or green tip ammunition.
Steel Core bullets
have a steel rod or small steel bullet surrounded by jacketed lead or a jacketed cover directly on the steel core. The tip of the bullet in SC ammunition is often dipped in a green paint, hence the name green tip ammunition. This is not to be confused with a green ballistic tip bullet. Steel core ammunition is usually prohibited at gun ranges due to the damaged caused by the bullet.
Steel core bullets
This bullet contains compounds, usually barium nitrates, at the base. This allows the emission of lights or smoke It is commonly used by aircraft and M16 rifle.
- Tracer Bullet
Contains a mixture, such as phosphorous or other materials, that can be set on fire by impact. These are used on target that will readily burn, such as aircraft or a gasoline depot
- Incendiary Bullet
It contains a high charge of explosive. Examples include the Russian 7.62 mm x54R machine gun ammunition with an internal charge of tetryl and phosphorus, and later handgun cartridges containing Pyrodex charges, with or without mercury additives.
- Explosive Bullet
This type of bullet contains a jacket that is designed to break into pieces upon impact on the target. This will create a devastating wound on the body of the person.
- Fragmentary Bullet
A cylindrical bullet designed with having a sharp shouldered nose intended to cut target paper clearly to facilitate easy and accurate scoring. Its accuracy is about the same as a conventional pointed bullet. However, its accuracy is not as good as a pointed bullet beyond fifty yards.
- Wadcutter Bullet
A type of bullet in which its base is protected with a small copper cup.
- Gas Check Bullet
the copper gas check is crimped onto the “heel” by the lubrisizer as part of the sizing operation.
Gas-check bullet
The rifle version has a lead core and a copper alloy jacket. In contrast, the handgun version has a lead core and an aluminum jacket. Both do not contain silver but are composed of two jackets. It is designed to prevent a premature expansion of the jackets and lead while the bullet penetrates the outer muscles and bones of the body. As a result, this type of bullet will result in severe and lasting damage to the victim’s body.
- Silver Tip Bullet
Includes all soft bullets, split nose bullets, hollow point bullets and jacketed bullets with exposed lead core. The expanding effects of these bullets have tremendous damage.
- Dumdum Bullet
It uses a special jacket and compressed shot core with a plastic tip. The construction prevents break up on inanimate targets but results in disintegration in live target. In Glaser blue, it uses # 12 shot in the projectile core to minimize ricochet danger. The Glaser silver, uses # 6 shot in the projectile to minimize penetration.
- Glaser Safety Slug
The truncated cone bullet is a cone-shaped projectile that has a flat nose. This design can be used for all bullet tips, for example, soft point, jacketed or hollow point. A truncated cone bullet is the preferred projectile for target shooters. It has great aerodynamics and makes a clean hole in the target
- Truncated Cone Bullet
TYPES OF BULLETS ACCORDING TO TIP SHAPE
Full metal jacket
Soft point
Hollow point
Jacketed hollow point
Semi jacket hollow point
Flat point jacket
Bonded bullet
is a type of ball ammunition. ammunition has a soft lead core encased in a harder metal. There are several advantages of it. They feed better from the magazine into the chamber with less chance of a misteed or stoppage. These bullets can also take higher velocities without bullet disfigurement. It also can have deeper penetration compared to other types of ammunition.
Full metal jacket (FMJ)
ammunition is also known as soft-nosed. It is best described as a full metal jacketed projectile with an exposed soft nose. It is designed to make a larger diameter hole upon impact than the original bullet. This type of ammunition is usually associated with hunting. Many rifle ammunition manufacturers produce this type of projectile for hunters.
Soft point (SP)
ammunition has a hole in the top of the bullet. The basic is made of a soft material such as lead. This hollow tip allows for rapid expansion that releases a lot of energy. This release of energy reduces the chance of the projectile passing through the target and causing damage beyond it.
Hollow point (HP)
bullets are like full metal jacket projectiles except that they have a relatively shallow hole in the top toward the base. Looking into the hole will show the exposed material beneath the jacket. This is the preferred bullet type for self-defense ammunition because of the stopping power. The design allows for a more controlled expansion. The jacket keeps the projectile together until it hits the intended target. When the target is hit, the hole allows the bullet to mushroom casier.
Jacketed hollow point (JHP)
is very similar to jacketed hollow point ammunition. The jacket covering the soft core in SJHP ammunition does not extend to the top of the bullet as in jacketed hollow points. This type of ammunition has all the stopping power of jacketed hollow point bullets with deeper penetration. When semi-jacketed hollow point bullets hit the intended target, they uniformly mushroom to a very large diameter. Semi-jacketed hollow points are usually associated with revolver ammunition such as 38 Special and 357 Magnum.
- Semi-Jacketed Hollow Point (SJHP)
Bullets are actually FMJ bullets with a flat nose. These bullets are designed to improve the stopping power of the FMJ bullets. They are suitable primarily for revolver ammunition but are also used in pistol ammunition.
- Flat Point Jacket (FPJ)
is a jacketed bullet that has been chemically or molecularly bonded to a lead alloy core. It is designed for deep penetration. This can be done in self-defense hollow point ammunition or jacketed “solids” when hunting dangerous game. Bonded bullets remain intact as it penetrates the intended target
- Bonded Bullet (BB)
TYPES OF BULLETS ACCORDING TO OGIVE SHAPE
Spitzer bullet
Round nose
Flat nose
Semi-wad cutters
Wad cutter
Also commonly referred to as a spire point bullet, is primarily a small arms ballistics development of the late 19th and early 20th century, driven by military desire for aerodynamic bullet designs that will give a higher degree of accuracy and kinetic efficiency, especially at extended ranges. To achieve this the projectile must minimize air resistance in flight.
- Spitzer Bullet (SB)
Naturally, the round nose offers more penetration than a flat nose, but less expansion than a hollow point. It’s a good middle-ground shape that’s very common for plinking and varmint control ammunition.
- Round Nose (RN)
bullets are similar to truncated bullets. These bullets are accurate and easy to see when target shooting or in competition. This is beneficial because the competition shooter can see where they are hitting and can make adjustments if needed.
- Flat Nose (FN)
are the same as soft-lead truncated bullets. They are accurate and expand easily upon impact. This type of ammunition used to be use by law enforcement before semi-jacketed hollow points were introduced.
- Semi-Wad Cutters (SWC)
are unjacketed soft bullets that are flush with the cartridge casing. This type of bullet is usually used for target practice. Holes punched in paper by wad cutters are very clean. The holes look as if they were made by a hole punch.
- Wad Cutter (WC)
TYPES OF BULLETS ACCORDING TO HEEL SHAPE
Boat tail
Ballistic tip
bullets get their name from the boat-like shape-a rounded or pointed end like the bow and a tapered flat end like the stern. The tapered end is hidden in the cartridge casing when seated. The design gives the projectile great stability as it is propelled through the air. This bullet is the preferred projectile of rifle shooters
- Boat Tail (BT)
bullets are also referred to as polymer tip ammunition. Ballistic tip ammunition is a jacketed hollow point bullet with a polymer or plastic tip inserted in the hole. These types of bullets were designed for rifle cartridges in hunting. The inserted tip aids in keeping the bullet intact as it travels through the air providing a better flight path before the bullet expands upon impact.
- Ballistic Tip (BT)
