Steel Core Bullet Question?

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pull a bullet out of the case with some pliers and see if a magnet sticks or reacts to the bullet. Some bullets have cores made of other hardened but not-so-ferrous material, usually designed to penetrate body armor but I think Sportsman's would be crowing about it in either case. Most likely they are not steel core (the case is steel, just not the projectile.)

The range cares about the projectiles not the case.

also, says it's corrosive so read up on how to clean up after shooting that.
 
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Thanks much.

I shot my Mosin yesterday and man was it loud. Already cleaned her up from the corrosive ammo.
 
I read the responses so far and I thought I would try.

Those bullets you bought have lead cores, steel jackets, and a copper wash or thin coating on the outside to keep the wear to the barrel down somewhat. Since the rifle is not a precision rifle the wear and tear from the firing of the bullets will not be significant but there is wear or erosion from every shot.

Steel core ammo, like US issue green tip(M-193?) has a steel core or penetrator rod. A cheap copy of the original FN 5.56 that had a tungsten core.

Anyhow, neither the steel jacketed nor the steel core is appropriate for any indoor range (or outdoor for that matter) that uses steel backstops to redirect the spent or shot round. Neither should be shot at steel targets, armor plate or not, but the steel jacketed won't do as much damage. (it is designed to be cheap not good.) For outdoor ranges with earth berms and impact surfaces, either should be equally okay. Ranges that have sand or dirt covering sloping concrete (i.e. Gunsite's south range) my vote is no but the NRA Range manual says okay.

Hope I haven't confused the issue.

Steve
 
Thanks much. When I went shooting two days ago I was on BLM land shooting into a dirt hill side with scattered rocks. A few of the bullets ricochet off the rocks.

The gun range I will be going to is outside and pretty much every type of gun is allowed their. Your fire into dirt hill sides with scattered rocks. Only limits are what I posted above.
 
The only steel core ammo I've seen is some of the Chinese 7.62 x 39 that was imported in the early 90's along with the AKs and SKSs that were coming in from China at that time. I even bought a few boxes back when you could buy a box of 20 rounds for ~$2.50. IIRC steel core ammo importation was outlawed in the mid 90's because it could penetrate body armor. Most everything that's come in since then has been lead core ammo.

Steel is lighter than lead so I would assume that steel core ammo would probably not be as accurate as lead core ammo.
 
All bullets can ricochet it really depends on a number of other factors. First and foremost is velocity, second is angle of the impact or hit and finally the construction of the bullet. The .22 rimfire is really guilty as the velocity is so low. On the other hand the .223 remington / 5.56mm usually self destructs at close range, say out to 100 yds. A hard cast load doing say 2000fps is a sure ricochet candidate.

There are lots of steel core bullets on the maketplace but haven't had a case lately where I have had to research imports.

Often confused with a true ricochet / deflection is a round fired into a impact berm already loaded with spent rounds. These hit previously expended rounds and sort of like a pool ball it is then knocked out of the dirt. This is very common in relatively slow moving pistol rounds.

And to answer the obvious question, this is what I do for a living.

Steve
 
wcdu said:
And to answer the obvious question, this is what I do for a living.

Steve
Click to expand...

I do to it seems.... but on the other end of it.

The first was a BB gun bouncing off some hard wood and hitting my lip.

The second was a 5.56 Fired at a short section of 4 foot diameter pipe sitting on end. It took some meat off the top of my shoulder and spun me around. I don't know if it bounced directly off the steel or followed the curve of the pipe back at me? I've always wondered.

The third was a 9mm shot into the top of a tank turret that came back and stuck into my arm a little bit.

Ricochets are very real!!
 
007 said:
I do to it seems.... but on the other end of it.

The first was a BB gun bouncing off some hard wood and hitting my lip.

The second was a 5.56 Fired at a short section of 4 foot diameter pipe sitting on end. It took some meat off the top of my shoulder and spun me around. I don't know if it bounced directly off the steel or followed the curve of the pipe back at me? I've always wondered.

The third was a 9mm shot into the top of a tank turret that came back and stuck into my arm a little bit.

Ricochets are very real!!
Click to expand...

What about firing at a target 100-1,000 yards away. Can one expect to be hit by a ricochet?

Like this guy....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ABGIJwiGBc



.
 
modelbuilder said:
Thanks much. When I went shooting two days ago I was on BLM land shooting into a dirt hill side with scattered rocks. A few of the bullets ricochet off the rocks.

The gun range I will be going to is outside and pretty much every type of gun is allowed their. Your fire into dirt hill sides with scattered rocks. Only limits are what I posted above.
Click to expand...
I thought steel core ammo is verboten on USFS and BLM land because it sparks easily, which starts fires. Just FYI. Also some Wolf ammo is steel core, so you have to watch it. An easy way to tell if your ammo is steel core is just to see if the bullet is attracted to a magnet.
 
Just checked the website I bought it from.

They sell two types of Bulgarian Ammo...one is steel core the another is not. I got the ammo with out the steel core.
 
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John E said:
nailed it, if you're shooting at an outdoor range in SoCal, steel bullets are usually banned. I found this out myself one day when shooting up at the Angeles Forest range with my Enfield.

I was using some Sellier & Sabot ammo that was steel core, they checked it with a magnet. Their policy is to take the ammo and put it behind the counter, you pick it up on your way out. The annoying part was that nowhere on the packaging nor in the listing on the website where I bought it is the steel core mentioned. The bullets were copper coated, no way to tell without the magnet test.
Click to expand...

I am confused? How do you check if the bullet is steel core with a magnet? Both of the bullets I tested were copper coated (Full metal jacket) and both I know for sure have lead cores, yet the magnet stuck to the ammunition.
 
I'm pretty sure it's not steel core.

I found a website about ammo and it said a magnet will stick to any full metal jacket bullet. My magnet also sticks to the shell casings.

Plus the website that I bought it from has two types of Bulgarian Surplus Ammo. One steel core and the other not. I bought the ammo that is not steel core.

I also grabbed another bullet that has a lead core and the magnet stuck to that as well. The bullet was given to me by my brother who is a cop and it's for sure not a steel core. Already confirmed with him.

In addition to this I found out that a magnet will stick to all 7.62x54R ammo regardless of steel core or not. (Found this on a bunch of Mosin Forums).

Here are the two types of bullets available....

I bought this one...

http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/440-rds-bulgarian-762x54r-149-gr-fmj-ammo.aspx?a=465896

This is the Bulgarian Silver Tipped Steel Core Ammo....

http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/440-rds-762x54r-147-gr-fmj-ammo-1-tin.aspx?a=555116



.
 
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Don't confuse steel jacketed with steel core. They are not the same thing. The magnet test cannnot determine whether or not it is steel cored or steel jacketed. The ammunition you cataloged in post #1 is lead core, steel jacketed, with a copper wash. The bullets are tumbled or passed through an electrolisis process to attach a very thin copper coating to lessen wear as it travels down the bore. This also acts as a lubricant as steel on steel creates a number of problems. Both are capable of creating sparks if they strike the right materials.

The current issue battle round (5.56 mm) of the US is a copper jacketed lead bullet with a steel penetrator. Jacketing is sometimes referred to as gilding material. There are also bullets that are all copper or gilding material in the premium lines and in the really pricy stuff there are bullets that have lead stuffed into steel capsules for just the back of the bullets with the rest of the bullets copper with pre-form tips and coated with exotic materials to lessen friction even more.

The various ammunition manufactuered in any of the current or former soviet states to include China are produced to be cheap. Copper and lead are way more expensive then steel. It is like most things in life, you get what you pay for.

Steve
 
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