BULLET BULLETIN: MILITARY PROJECTILES: SOME TRUTHS AND SOME MYTHS

BULLET BULLETIN

Military projectiles are held to different specifications than hunting projectiles.

MILITARY PROJECTILES: SOME TRUTHS AND SOME MYTHS

The development of fighting bullets, from lead and Minie balls to FMJs and match-grade sniper loads.

STORY BY PHIL MASSARO • PHOTOS BY MASSARO MEDIA GROUP

Iwas like a kid in a candy store, giggling every time I heard the signature “ping” as the M1 Garand spit out its clip after the eighth shot. The rifle was not mine, and I was grateful for the opportunity and the experience. I was equally amazed at how well the ball ammunition performed, considering it was Second World War vintage.

I am not a veteran, but my father, grandfather and uncle served our country, so in addition to being raised among hunters and shooters, the military cartridges, guns and ammunition were frequently discussed. Both Dad and Grandpa – and later, yours truly – shot .308 Winchester due to my father’s experiences with the M14 at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri in 1968. He can be very convincing, but the tiny little groups he can still print with that rifle speak for themselves. I also remember the ball ammo Dad had hanging around for target practice and for eradicating woodchucks and other pests; a much younger, more

The US Army adopted the .45 Colt in 1873 when lead projectiles were the highest technology available.

This load from Choice Ammunition replicates the original .45 Colt, albeit with smokeless powder and non-corrosive primers. inquisitive me asked Dad what the “ball” name was all about.

THE HISTORY OF our military ammunition and projectiles is long and sordid, ranging from the pure lead balls launched from the Pennsylvania rifles and standard muskets of the Revolution up to the literal rocket science that has led to the development of our modern projectiles. With the exception of the ignition system – flintlock evolving to percussion cap – the round lead ball reigned supreme even into the Civil War. Pure lead is highly malleable, the primary reason it was chosen as the material for the earliest projectiles, and caused horrendous wounds on the battlefield. One needs to simply look through photos of Civil War veterans to see the multitude of missing limbs; the lead balls and slightly more advanced Minie balls, combined with crude medical practices, resulted in an exorbitant number of amputated legs and arms.

In the post-Civil War era, the

This Mauser stripper clip is filled with 8mm Mauser cartridges loaded with cupronickel full metal jacket bullets.

centerfire cartridges took root, and with them came the roundnosed bullets in a conformation very similar to what we see today in most levergun ammunition, though the pure lead construction still held firm. Black powder was the propellant of choice, clearly indicated in the original name of the .45-70 Government, officially known as the .45-70-405 (the .45 is the bullet diameter, the 70 is the charge weight in grains of black powder, and the 405 indicated the lead projectile weight). The same can be said for the Army-issued .45 Colt revolver; its 230- and 255-grain projectiles were of soft lead, fueled by black powder.

Cartridge development continued

These .30-caliber FMJ boattail projectiles – shown in profile and section – are perfect for the .30-06 Springfield and 7.62x51 NATO.

(FEDERAL PREMIUM)

These World War II-era .45 ACP cartridges for the M1911 pistol are loaded with 230-grain FMJ projectiles.

These 150-grain Speer TMJ (total metal jacket) bullets are a great choice for the .308 Winchester at moderate ranges. This 9mm Speer TMJ bullet is not designed to expand.

(SPEER BULLETS)

The .223-inch-diameter 55-grain FMJ bullet shown in profile and section is hugely popular in the 5.56 NATO/.223 Remington.

to be a priority throughout the late 19th century, with the projectile diameter shrinking from .45 to .30 with the Army’s adoption of the .30-40 Krag in the 1890s. This was the first military use of smokeless powder and with it came a 220-grain jacketed bullet, albeit in a roundnosed configuration. The .30-40 Krag saw action in the Spanish-American War, and the superiority of the 7mm Mauser in the hands of the Spaniards sent the Army ballisticians back to the drawing board. The immediate result was a rimless cartridge based loosely on the Mauser family, but retaining the 220-grain roundnose bullet of the Krag. The .30-03 Springfield wouldn’t be around long, but it would lead to what may be the most important rifle

The M1 Garand can be wonderfully accurate with match bullets like the Hornady A-Max shown here. (HORNADY)

Hornady’s Frontier ammunition line represents a great value, with militarystyle bullets that are acceptable for varmints and predators, as well as target work. cartridge of the 20th century: the .30-06 Springfield. With its 150-grain full metal jacket spitzer bullet, this cartridge would go on to help win two world wars, and see action in Korea and Vietnam. The next decade would see what may have been the greatest innovation in the handgun world: the M1911 pistol and the John Browningdesigned .45 ACP with its 230-grain full metal jacket ammunition.

The military began to refer to their ammunition as “ball” ammunition, as in the .30-06 designation of “cartridge, ball, caliber 30, Model of 1906.” This hearkens back to the basic differences in muzzleloading firearms; they were either loaded with ball or shot, and anything that wasn’t shot (as in birdshot) was referenced as ball ammunition.

IF YOU’VE NOTICED the shift in projectile construction from the expanding lead to fully jacketed lead-core bullets at the turn of the century, you’re not wrong. I’ve heard – and personally misquoted

Speer’s 110-grain .30-caliber TMJ bullets are absolutely perfect for the .30 M1 Carbine cartridge.

– that the Geneva Convention is what prevents armies from using expanding projectiles in battle. The truth is that it is the Hague Convention of 1899 that is actually the source, and it is ironic that the United States is not a signatory party. The agreement prevents the use of “bullets which expand or flatten easily in the human body,” taking the traditional jacketed softpoint bullet out of the equation, as they are clearly designed for expansion.

The result was our military – in an apparent voluntary manner – adopting full metal jacket projectiles for the majority of our issued ammunition. I say the “majority” because many of our most renowned snipers use match-grade bullets to best fulfill their duties. While technically against the rules (but remember, the US did not sign that document) regarding bullets designed to expand or flatten easily, these projectiles do not rely upon the expansion, but rather the precise construction and conformation to provide the best accuracy possible for a distant kill shot. In other words, these aren’t intended to maim, but instead to kill, and kill precisely. Bullets like the Sierra Match King, Hornady A-Max and their new A-Tip, and the Berger OTM Hybrid are all shining examples of a projectile that would be – and has been – chosen by a military sniper.

So with the majority of our military projectiles being of the full metal jacket conformation, another popular line I’ve heard for quite some time is that these bullets are designed to tumble, especially those fired from the 5.56 NATO cartridge. This simply isn’t true, or perhaps I should say that it isn’t by design. The common 5.56 NATO spitzer boattail projectile – from the original 55-grain FMJ to the modern lead-free 62-grain projectile – has its center of gravity nearer to the base than to the front, and upon contact with soft tissue will tend to flip, putting the heaviest part forward. It is for this reason that the bullet will tend to exit with the base forward.

Hunters often see this problem with expanding bullets, which have a rearward center of gravity; the bullet’s path can be erratic. I’ve had monometal bullets hit an animal broadside, right behind the shoulder, only to deflect upward and break the spine. The classic safari cartridges that depended on straight-line penetration to keep the hunter alive most often used long, heavy-for-caliber roundnosed bullets because they deliver that needed penetration. While that style of bullet was once employed by our military (think back to the 220-grain roundnose slugs of the .3040 Krag and .30-03 Springfield), they simply don’t retain enough velocity for

Federal loads their 150-grain FMJ bullet in their American Eagle line, mimicking a military loading.

Hornady’s Match ammo for the .308 Winchester features a 168-grain boattail hollowpoint, and could be a viable choice for a sniper at moderate ranges.

American Eagle’s 5.56x45mm NATO 62-grain FMJ load replicates the famous military “green tip” load.

American Eagle’s 124-grain 9mm Luger load is built around the FMJ projectile. The .300 Norma shown here is loaded with 230-grain Berger Hybrid Target bullets, and is a combination any sniper would be happy with.

a flat trajectory and enough energy to penetrate helmets and armor.

THERE ARE MANY military-style projectiles available in both factory-loaded ammunition and as components for those who handload their ammunition. From Sierra’s line of FMJ projectiles in .45 and 9mm for handguns and the .223 and .308 choices for rifles, to Speer TMJ (total metal jacket) projectiles, to the Hornady FMJ stuff available in .223-, .308-, .310- (for the 7.62x39mm) and .311-inch (for the .303 British), the handloader can replicate their favorite military load. You may be hardpressed to find the armor-piercing projectiles, but hey, that’s life. And of course, there is nothing stopping you from picking up a set of bullet molds and casting your own lead projectiles to feed your Trapdoor Springfield and Colt Peacemaker.

If loading ammunition for the autoloading rifles, look to some specialized reloading tools, like Redding’s taper crimp die, which will help combat the violent action of the cartridge being picked up from the magazine and slammed into the rifle’s chamber. This can result in the bullet “pulling” slightly out of the mouth of the case, changing the seating depth and affecting accuracy. If you are using a military-style rifle for precision work, this is a bad thing, and Redding’s tool is a worthy investment.

From heavy pure lead balls and tri-corn hats, to the copper alloy projectiles and match-grade sniper bullets, American military projectiles have always been the best available, and will continue to be so. Our military has always adopted the newest cutting-edge technology, and I’m eager to see what’s coming as we get deeper into the 21st century. 

The mighty .50 BMG, shown here with a Cutting Edge Single Feed Match/ Tactical 802-grain monometal bullet, has been used as a sniper rifle more than once.

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