SDI Guide to Projectiles

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ISBN: 978-1-945697-37-1
Content written by: Frank Vigil

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Rev. 6.21
A Brief History
The invention of black powder accelerated the
For millennia, there has been some form of evolution of the projectile more than any oth-
projectile used for hunting, self-defense, war, er contributing factor. The first “firearms” and
and even sport. The projectile may even be the cannons propelled whatever could be shoved
single greatest contributor to the development down their muzzles, including rocks, cast metal
of weapons ever. The first projectile was almost balls, and other scrap that would fit. The first
certainly a stone. Throwing rocks eventually led metal projectiles were round(ish), typically steel
to the creation of the sling and sling shot. Early or brass/bronze, and a smaller diameter than
man would also sharpen sticks or bones affixed the (smooth) bore. The projectiles would just
to long sticks, creating the first spears. Once it roll down the barrel and rest atop the powder
was discovered that some stones could be shaped charge. Eventually, paper or cloth wadding, or
and sharpened, they began affixing them to the patches, were used to provide a tighter seal of
ends of sticks, which led to the first arrows. the ball to the barrel and secure it from falling
Eventually, humans learned how to refine met- out. Soon after, the patch was replaced by a lead
al, and those rocks and stone spear heads were ball that was slightly larger than the bore and
replaced in favor of lead, copper, brass, bronze, required the operator to ram it down the barrel.
iron, and, eventually, steel projectiles.

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 Figure 1: Various Minié balls.

It wasn’t until the beginning of the 19th century Around the same time, chemists and ballisti-
that we began to see what would be considered cians from around the world were working on
a “modern” bullet design. Around 1830, we be- a replacement for black powder. These new
gin to see the first cylindrical-conical bullets. “smokeless” propellants presented new chal-
The early bullets featured a cylindrical body lenges for the hard lead cast bullet. These new
and semi-pointed nose. Around the same time, propellants created much higher pressures and
we also began to see the first breechloaders and pushed bullets to velocities not seen with black
rifled barrels. These advancements in technol- powder. The higher velocity and pressure caused
ogy were a huge improvement over the round lead bullets to begin to melt and deform in the
ball and smoothbore in both range and accuracy. bore. In 1882, Swiss Lt. Colonel Eduard Rubin
Between 1830 and 1845, several new bullet de- invented the first copper jacketed bullet. The
signs were introduced that featured hollow bases bullet featured a lead core and a thin, copper en-
and some means of forcing the base to expand. velope in calibers 7.5 mm and 8 mm. This bul-
The expanding base would seal the bullet in the let became the precursor to the bullet used in
bore and form to the barrel’s rifling. Almost all the 8 mm Lebel, the first smokeless centerfire
of these designs were abandoned for various rea- cartridge.
sons, including complications of manufacturing In the beginning of the 20th century, advanc-
and complacency with old technology. es in aerodynamics led to the creation of the
It wasn’t until 1847 that a French army cap- “spitzer,” or spire point bullet. The elongated
tain named Claude Etienne Minié created a body and sharper point of the spitzer bullet
soft lead, hollow base, conical bullet known as were better suited to defeating wind resistance
the Minié ball. The Minié ball featured an iron and drift and so extended the effective range of
plug in the base of the bullet that upon firing the modern bullet. Shortly after the introduc-
would wedge itself into the base and force the tion and adoption of the spitzer bullet, a French
body to expand and seal the bullet against the lieutenant colonel named Desaleux introduced
bore and rifling. The Minié ball was adopted by a spitzer bullet with a boat tail. This new design
the British government in 1855 for use in the further streamlined the spitzer bullet by reduc-
Enfield rifle. From around 1855 to early 1880, ing the amount of drag the bullet experienced
the Minié ball evolved from a large caliber (.50 in flight. The boat tail spitzer has remained the
and .60), somewhat blunt shape, into a slender, basic shape for rifle bullets for the major part of
pointier, smaller caliber (~.30). the 20th and 21st centuries. Small design altera-
tions have occurred, but the basic shape remains.

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 • Because of their design, ball projectiles
Bullet Types are more likely to perforate (put a hole
through) a target (most materials) than
are other bullet types. Depending on
Necessity has led to many of the current bullet the material the bullet impacts, there
types we see today. Hunting, self-defense, war, is often little to no deformation of the
and even sport shooting, have all contributed bullet. Often, the only markings found
to the many bullet types currently in use. Each on recovered bullets are the engravings
bullet type will have a specific use, while some cut by the rifling. Ball ammunition is also
types will be multi-purpose. The various bullet more likely to ricochet off hard targets
types are described below. than other bullet types. The military
• Ball – The term “ball” is very misleading. almost exclusively uses ball ammunition,
Ball projectiles are not spherical at all; in which also finds extensive use with
fact, some are long and pointed (spitzer). civilians.
The term ball applies to bullets with a • Ball ammunition is also better suited for
round nose and meplat, jacketed or solid use in semi-automatic firearms. In fact,
(monolithic). Both pistol and rifle bullets many semi-auto firearms are designed
can be found in ball configurations, with specifically for exclusive use with ball
rifle bullets typically being more pointed bullets. The round nose makes the
and pistol bullets being rounder. Ball perfect shape for use in magazines or to
ammunition is designed to be cheap and move across the feed ramp and into the
abundant, unlike hollow point, soft point, chamber. The smooth nose design does
or one of the many specialty projectiles. not feature any edges that may hang up
Ball ammunition may be solid (lead, cop- against the magazine or firearm, making
per, or brass), or jacketed (copper/brass/ ball bullets more reliable than other
steel) with a lead or other metal core. Ball bullet shapes.
ammunition can also be found in com-
posite materials designed to be frangible.

Figure 2: Various FMJ, TMJ and CMJ projectiles.

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• Full Metal Jacket (FMJ)/Total Metal • Hollow Point – The hollow point bul-
Jacket (TMJ)/Complete Metal Jacket let is appropriately named because of
(CMJ) – The full metal, total metal, or the large cavity in the nose of the bullet.
complete metal jacketed bullet is a varia- The hollow point bullet is designed to
tion of the ball round. The terms FMJ, limit penetration and prevent perfora-
TMJ, and CMJ are used to describe ball tion. When a hollow point bullet con-
bullets, which are jacketed or covered. tacts a soft target (animal or human),
The FMJ utilizes a jacket that encom- the hydraulic pressure created inside the
passes everything but the base of the cavity forces the material surrounding it
bullet, while a TMJ covers the bullet outward, forcing the mouth of the open-
completely. CMJ bullets do not techni- ing to expand and roll over itself. As the
cally utilize a jacket; rather the solid, bullet expands as it moves through the
swaged core is coated (electroplated) target, the increased surface area will dra-
with a very thin layer of copper. There matically slow the projectile. The bullet’s
are quite a few benefits of jacketed or expansion is what prevents it from perfo-
covered ball ammunition. A jacketed rating the target and possibly damaging
bullet can be fired at higher velocities or injuring (or worse) something behind
than its non-jacketed counterpart and it. When a hollow point bullet impacts
will experience less deformation upon any other material, it may fail to expand,
impact of certain targets than its non- or will distort unexpectedly. Some mate-
jacketed counterparts (the CMJ is the rials may clog the cavity of the bullet and
exception). Jacketed and coated bullets prevent it from expanding because of the
are more popular than non-jacketed sol- lack of hydraulic force. The traditional
id bullets. The typical FMJ/TMJ/CMJ hollow point bullet is manufactured with
bullet features a copper/brass envelope a copper/brass jacket and a lead core.
and a lead core. Sometimes, other soft Modern hollow point bullets are moving
metals, like zinc and tin, may be used for toward solid copper/brass construction.
core materials.

Figure 3: Various hollow point projectiles.

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 Figure 4: Various soft point projectiles.

The hollow point bullet may be solid • Soft Point – The soft point is so named
or jacketed. When solid hollow points because of the exposed, malleable core
expand (under hydraulic pressure) and that protrudes from the jacket at the
the mouth rolls over, the recovered bullet nose of the bullet. With soft point bul-
may look like a mushroom. This is where lets, the jacket (copper) will typically
the term “mushrooming” comes from. cover the base completely and extend
Jacketed hollow points typically feature upward, stopping just short of the tip.
a jacket that extends up to the mouth of The core (lead) of the bullet will fill
the cavity, or slightly short of it but nev- the jacket completely and protrude up-
er inside of it. The jacket may be solid, ward from the opening in the front of
or it may be scored or pre-stressed so the jacket. The exposed core, protrud-
that upon impact, the jacket will expand, ing from the jacket, will form a semi-
split, and form “petals.” These petals pointed/round/flat tip. The soft tip is
are devastating to soft tissue and create designed to promote deformation and
enough drag to stop the projectile inside expansion. When the bullet impacts the
the target. target, the first point to hit is the soft
tip. The tip will begin to deform and
The hollow point bullet is used almost push back into the jacket, forcing the
exclusively by law enforcement and civil- nose of the jacket to expand and deform.
ians for self-defense. The use of hollow The soft point bullet is not as finicky as
point bullets by the military is prohibited the hollow point bullet and will expand
by The Hague Convention. The hollow through a variety of conditions.
point’s design makes it the perfect choice
when over-penetration or perforation is The soft point is designed to be more
a concern, especially with hunting and aerodynamic than a hollow point bullet
self-defense. Because of the increase in and experiences greater expansion and
quality control and cost of manufactur- deformation than a ball bullet. The soft
ing, hollow point ammunition is often point bullet will also penetrate deeper
two to three times more expensive than than a traditional hollow point. The rate
ball ammunition.

7
 of expansion is dependent on the alloy of Match bullets are only the beginning of
the core, the velocity of the bullet upon match ammunition. As is often the case,
impact, and the material that is being im- propellant and primer are all of a higher
pacted. If the material is too soft, the soft quality and manufactured more consis-
point may not expand and will perforate tently. Match bullets are utilized primar-
the target similar to a round nose bullet. ily by competition and target shooters.

There is a variation of the soft point bul- • Very Low Drag (VLD) – Very low
let known as the “partition.” The parti- drag bullets are the current pinnacle of
tion features two distinct sections of lead aerodynamic projectile design. They are
separated by a unique jacket. The nose is designed to be extremely streamlined
designed like a typical soft point while to overcome disruption from outside
the lead in the nose is partitioned from forces. The name very low drag indicates
the lead in the body of the bullet. This that the projectile will experience less air
allows the nose of the bullet to expand resistance than other projectiles of the
like a traditional soft point, while the same size and weight, with a less aerody-
body remains intact and retains some of namic form. This means the VLD bullet
its original mass. can fly farther, maintain its velocity over
a greater distance, and resist wind and
• Match – Match bullets are manufactured atmospheric conditions better than any
to a much higher tolerance than other other projectile type.
bullets. The core of the match bullet is
much more consistent in the mixture The typical VLD projectile is a jacketed
of its alloying materials and the bullets (lead core), open tip (not hollow point),
are almost always swaged for the most boat tail design. The VLD bullet tends to
uniform shape and weight. The jackets be very long and heavy for a bullet of its
are also drawn with greater precision caliber, with a longer tapered or rebated
to ensure the most uniform wall thick- boat tail, a short bearing surface, and a
ness and concentricity to the core. The very long secant or hybrid ogive nose.
machines used to manufacture match The open tip design is used to shift the
bullets are more precise and consistent projectile’s weight rearward, increasing
than machines used to manufacture bulk its stability. The VLD projectile will be
ammunition. The quality control process built to match standards and may some-
involved in manufacturing match bul- times feature a tip to further increase
lets is also more meticulous, sometimes aerodynamics. The VLD is used primar-
featuring human interaction during every ily by long-range competition shooters
step of the process. In some cases, match but can also be manufactured as a hollow
bullets are also weighed, measured, and point used for long-range hunting.
sorted for the utmost consistency be-
tween batches. • Tipped – Tipped bullets utilize a spe-
cialized tip of varying materials for dif-
Match bullets are not limited to a par- ferent purposes. The tip may be made
ticular style or type, and can be found in from hard polymer, rubber, aluminum,
both pistol and rifle bullets, ball, hollow steel, or titanium. Polymer tipped bullets
point, open tipped, tipped and many serve many purposes, including mak-
other styles. Match bullets will typically ing flat or hollow point bullets more
utilize many features to make the bul- aerodynamic, assisting hollow point bul-
let more aerodynamic, including various lets in expansion, increasing the feeding
types of tips, long ogives, and boat tails. reliability of hollow points, and making

8
 Figure 5: Various polymer tipped projectiles.

pointed (spitzer) bullets safe to load into spitzer-style bullets without the risk of
lever-actions. unintentional discharge. If a traditional
spitzer bullet were used in a tubular
The polymer tip turns flat and hol- magazine, a large enough shock (recoil)
low point bullets into more of a spitzer may cause the tip of one cartridge to
shape, making them less susceptible to strike the primer of the cartridge in front
drag, allowing them to move faster and of it, setting off a dangerous chain reac-
farther. The polymer tip may also aid tion. Rubber tips are generally used with
in (more consistent) expansion by act- pistol bullets to aid with expansion.
ing as a wedge, driving into a cavity, and
forcing the core and jacket outward. It Steel tips can be used to increase the
also makes the bullet expand more con- penetration capabilities of a certain pro-
sistently through a variety of materials jectile. The steel tip can be used for large
(wood, drywall, sheet metal, glass, heavy or dangerous game with thick hides and
clothing) rather than just expanding heavy bones. Aluminum and titanium
from hydraulic pressure. tips are generally used for their aerody-
namic advantage, while also shifting the
Some hollow point bullets utilize a bullet’s weight, making it more stable.
polymer tip with a round nose that aids Aluminum and titanium tips are also
in feeding with semi-automatic pistols. used to aid in expansion, while titanium
Because many semi-auto pistols are tips can also be utilized as a visual refer-
designed to primarily use ball ammuni- ence of impact. The titanium tip will cre-
tion, using hollow point bullets may ate a bright flash or light and spark when
cause malfunctions in the feeding cycle contacting a hard target. Titanium and
of operations. The ball tip eases the bul- steel tips are also utilized with bullets de-
let’s transition up the feed ramp and signed to penetrate armor.
into the chamber. The ball also acts as a
wedge, aiding in more consistent expan- • Bonded – The bonded bullet is designed
sion. With bullets intended for lever- to prevent jacket/core separation. Jacket
actions, the polymer tip allows the use of separation can be counterproductive to

9
 the bullet’s performance, as it can cause to three-quarters of the way up the bear-
the core to fragment and limit penetra- ing surface. These rounds can be fired
tion where it is needed (vital organs). at supersonic speeds and do not foul the
The bonded bullet utilizes a mechanic bore as much as solid wadcutters. While
bond to secure the jacket to the core. the typical wadcutter design features a
This comes in the form of cannelures or completely flat face, there are variants
internal rings of material to secure the that feature small differences. Wadcutter
core inside the jacket. Bonding typically bullet designs include target (small ring
occurs around halfway down the bullet groove on the face of the bullet), hollow
to allow the nose of the bullet to expand, base, hollow point, beveled base (small
and the body of the bullet to remain bevel on the base that aids in loading the
unchanged. Bonded bullets can be found cartridge), and double-ended (a bevel on
in hollow points, soft points, and tipped. each end).
The bonded bullet is a preferred choice
of the hunter because it allows the bullet The wadcutter bullet is also not suited
to expand, causing greater tissue damage, for use in anything other than revolvers.
while maintaining as much mass as pos- The shape of the bullet creates a feed-
sible so that it can penetrate as deeply as ing nightmare for magazine-fed, semi-
possible. automatic pistols. When the wadcutter is
used in a revolver’s cylinder, there are no
• Wadcutter – The wadcutter bullet is issues, as the cartridges do not undergo a
designed primarily for use in target and “feeding cycle.” With the typical wadcut-
bullseye competition. The basic wad- ter cartridge, the bullet is set back in the
cutter (full wadcutter) bullet features a case so that the face of the bullet is flush
completely flat nose. From the bearing with the case mouth. Some cartridges
surface, the shoulder turns 90º to the feature a bullet that is seated farther out.
face. The sharp shoulder is designed to
“punch” a perfectly round hole in a piece Because of the shape of the bullet and
of paper. The idea behind the wadcutter the fact that they are typically “heavy”
design is that there is no way to dispute for a bullet of a specific caliber (there are
the score on the target because the holes no tapers, so there is more material and
are cut so precisely. Other bullet designs more mass), wadcutter bullets are some-
typically tear through paper, leaving torn times used for hunting at close distances
or serrated holes. (loaded to supersonic velocities within
~50 yd.). The increased surface area on
Because of the shape of wadcutter bul- the nose of a wadcutter will impact the
lets, they are typically limited to subsonic target harder than a similarly designed
velocities and distances of 25 yd. or less. bullet with a spitzer point, which is more
Wadcutter bullets will also typically likely to perforate the target. The wad-
feature solid construction. The subsonic cutter bullet is more likely to deliver all
velocities will not distort solid, soft (lead) of its energy to a target, rather than car-
bullets and will not melt or foul the bore rying its energy through the target. This
as if they were moving at supersonic is why the wadcutter bullet is also some-
speeds. There are jacketed wadcutter bul- times used for self-defense. Traditional
lets that feature a jacket that extends half wadcutter bullets are almost exclusively
used in revolvers.

10
Semi-Wadcutter– The semi-wadcutter Flat Nose/Truncated – The flat nose
(SWC) is similar to the wadcutter in or truncated bullet features a nose that
purpose but differs dramatically in de- is flat. Unlike the wadcutter or SWC,
sign. The wadcutter bullet utilizes the the flat nose/truncated bullet does not
sharp shoulder of the traditional wadcut- feature a sharp shoulder or rebated nose.
ter but features a nose similar to a ball The flat nose bullet serves the same pur-
round. The semi-wadcutter is designed pose as the wadcutter and SWC bullet
to cut precise holes like the traditional while displaying greater aerodynamics
wadcutter, but features enhanced aerody- and enhanced reliability when feeding in
namics like a ball round. From the shoul- semi-auto pistols. The main difference
der, the nose of the bullet is rebated (re- between the flat nose and truncated bul-
duced diameter). The shape of the nose let is the shape of their ogives. The flat
will vary greatly depending on the bullet nose bullet features an ogive similar to
design. The various semi-wadcutter de- a round nose bullet: an arc that extends
signs include button nose, conical, Keith/ from the bearing surface to the meplat.
truncated, and round nose. Unlike the round nose bullet, the meplat
of the flat nose bullet is flat with a very
The button nose semi-wadcutter features sharp shoulder from the ogive to the me-
a small button-shaped nose that proj- plat. The ogive on the truncated bullet is
ects from the face of the wadcutter. The flat. From the bearing surface, the nose
conical wadcutter features a sharp cone- of the bullet is shaped like a cone with its
shaped nose. The Keith or truncated tip cut off. The flat nose and truncated
conical wadcutter features a cone-shaped bullet may be solid or jacketed/semi-
protrusion with its nose cut off. The nose jacketed. Flat nose and truncated bullets
of the truncated wadcutter is flat but are used primarily in semi-automatic pis-
there are also some hollow point ver- tols and some rifles.
sions. The round nose wadcutter features
a nose similar to a ball round. The SWC • Specialty Bullets – Modern materials,
may be fully or partially jacketed or may design, and manufacturing have led to
utilize a gas check. an array of specialty bullets — all meant
to be the next “big thing.” Computer
A benefit of the SWC over the tradi- aided drafting (CAD), finite element
tional wadcutter is the enhanced reli- analysis (FEI), and fluid dynamic soft-
ability when feeding through semi-auto ware have made it possible to design
pistols. The nose on the SWC (specifi- and test a bullet’s performance without
cally truncated and round) is designed ever firing a single shot. Advanced tech-
to improve the bullet’s ability to travel nology has allowed designers to create
through the breech (through the maga- bullets that take advantage of physics to
zine, up the feed ramp, and into the inflict the greatest possible tissue dam-
chamber). The SWC also benefits from age, penetrate deeper, or defeat barriers
the aerodynamic advantage in the form and armor. Much of the specialty pro-
of increased effective range (100+ yd.). jectile market may be regarded as “fad”
SWC bullets may be fired at both sub- or novelty, but some designs or concepts
sonic and supersonic velocities. The take hold or lay the groundwork for
semi-wadcutter is used in both revolvers what’s to come.
and semi-automatic pistols.

11
These specialty designs take advantage of utilize a Venturi effect compress fluid
known physical forces from other scienc- and tissue ahead of the bullet and expel
es, such as hypervelocity, supercavitation, it outward, increasing the amount of soft
centrifugal force, and the Venturi effect. tissue damage.
Other specialty projectiles take advantage
of material science and design to create Expanding projectiles are similar to tra-
bullets that expand to diameters much ditional hollow points in that they both
larger than any hollow point, while others expand, but differentiate from traditional
are designed to fracture, creating mul- hollow points in that they do not “mush-
tiple wound channels and increasing the room.” A traditional hollow point will ex-
chances of incapacitating tissue damage. pand upon contact with fluid or soft tis-
sue, but the “petals” will continue to roll
Hypervelocity bullets are typically light or fold over back toward the body of the
for caliber, which allows them to reach projectile, decreasing the potential frontal
velocities far beyond other bullets of the area of the bullet. An expanding bul-
same caliber, typically beyond 3,000 fps. let will open up like a hollow point, but
The increase in velocity is designed to the petals will not roll back like a hollow
increase the bullet’s capability to create point. The petals will remain expanded to
hydrostatic shock. Hydrostatic shock create the greatest possible frontal area.
is a condition where light-weight, high
velocity projectiles create a pressure wave A variation of the expanding bullet is
in soft tissue that travels throughout the the fracturing bullet. The fracturing bul-
medium and causes remote damage. The let performs like an expanding bullet,
hypervelocity bullet typically features but once the petals have opened up to a
solid construction, turned from solid certain angle, they will break off of the
brass, copper, or aluminum. base and continue on in various direc-
tions, creating multiple wound channels.
Bullets designed to create a supercavita- The base, which retains the most mass,
tion effect feature a nose that creates an will also continue along the initial wound
air bubble around the projectile to limit path, typically penetrating deeper than
drag through tissue and increase its abil- any of the petals. The number of petals
ity to penetrate. Bullets designed to take may range from 3 to 9, creating up to
advantage of centrifugal force utilize a 10 wound channels (including the base).
nose design that forces tissue outward, The fracturing bullet is a variation of the
increasing tissue damage. Bullets that frangible bullet.

12
 may be a spitzer shape centered in the

Military core, or a spike (or spikes) positioned in

the rear of the core. Some AP bullets uti-
lize a hollow point design with the pen-
Military projectiles typically consist of ball, etrator exposed in the cavity, while others
rifle, and pistol bullets. However, militaries all utilize the penetrator as the tip.
around the world utilize specialty projectiles
for a variety of reasons. Some of these specialty While most soft armor will stop almost
rounds are used to defeat armor (both hard and all pistol calibers, they do not stand a
soft), identify trajectory and point of impact, chance against an AP pistol round or
or prevent penetration of hard targets. Special even a standard ball rifle round. Most
rounds include armor piercing (AP), tracer, and AP is designed to defeat hard body ar-
frangible. mor and vehicle armor. A typical ball
rifle round will fragment upon impacting
• Armor Piercing – The armor piercing hard armor, while an AP rifle round will
bullet (as its name implies), is used to often punch right through, leaving a hole
perforate both soft and hard body armor that looks like it was laser cut. AP bullets
and vehicle armor. Most AP bullets are are found in use with pistols and rifles,
constructed in a similar way to standard but there are also penetrator slugs for use
ball rounds, with the exception of a steel in shotguns.
(typically hardened) or tungsten (carbide)
penetrator. The typical AP round features • Tracer – Tracer bullets are used to iden-
a core consisting of a steel or tungsten tify trajectories when shooting at night.
spike in front of or enveloped by a lead, They produce a bright flash that creates
aluminum, or tin/bismuth core encased a trail behind the bullet. Tracers are pri-
by a full or partial jacket. Upon impact, marily used with machine guns and mini
the core and jacket will separate from the guns where the firing rate is high and
penetrator as it continues into or through aiming is often accomplished by watching
the armor. The penetrator may be shaped point of impact. In this application, trac-
like a cone in the nose of the bullet or ers are often loaded every third to tenth

Figure 6: Various AP projectiles.

13
round. When fired, the tracer will provide While the tracer is providing the shooter
a visual reference of the approximation a visual reference, it is also providing the
of impact of the shot stream. When dis- enemy with the shooter’s position.
charging at a high enough rate, it may ap-
pear as though the individual tracers are a The tracer round can also be used for
continuous stream. training purposes. The tracer can be used
to help a new shooter understand trajec-
Upon discharge, as the propellant ig- tory and teach point of aim and point of
nites inside of the case, it will also ignite impact at various distances. The tracer
chemicals compressed in the base of the round can also be used to show how
bullet. The bullet often features a deep ricochet affects the bullet’s trajectory.
cup or hollow base but remains a primar-
ily jacketed ball design. The color of the Although tracer rounds are available
tracer will depend on the chemicals used, for civilian use in most states, the use of
which are typically magnesium, phos- the tracer round can be dangerous in ir-
phorus, and another chemical that burns responsible hands. Many fires have been
a specific color. The most popular tracer created by tracers fired into environments
colors are red (from strontium nitrate in that may catch fire. Tracers should not be
the compound) and green (from barium fired into dry grass or dead trees, and are
nitrate in the compound), but other col- banned for use in most indoor ranges.
ors can be found. • Frangible – The frangible projectile is
The benefit of the tracer round is also its designed as a training round to prevent
downfall. The bright light of the tracer ricochet or shrapnel and is designed to
round can be seen from every angle. disintegrate or crumble when impacting

Figure 7: Firing tracer projectiles.

14
 Figure 8: Various frangible projectiles.

a hard target. The frangible is con- One major issue with frangible bullets
structed from powdered metal (typi- is there is a chance with compressed,
cally copper) that is either compressed non-sintered rounds that they can break
or compressed and sintered. Sintering up in the bore and become jammed.
brings the individual grains of metal Newer designs utilize a solid jacket over
powder to a temperature just short of a compressed metal core to help prevent
melting. This creates a (weak) bond be- breakup in the bore. The jacket does
tween the grains. The frangible may also make the frangible perform similar to a
be constructed from metal powder that is ball round on soft targets but will still
mixed with either a glue or polymer and break up when impacting a hard target.
molded. When impacting a hard target, This makes some frangible rounds a
the individual grains or small chunks will candidate for use as a home or self-
break apart, preventing penetration, per- defense round. Frangible bullets (pro-
foration, or ricochet. jectiles) can be found in pistol, rifle, and
shotgun cartridges.
The frangible is used inside of “shoot
houses” when practicing tactics in con-
fined spaces. It allows the shooter to
train in a simulated house without fear
of shooting into another room. Frangible
rounds are also used for shooting at
close-range steel targets, which has be-
come a fairly new practice in modern
tactical training.

15
16
 the slug will feature hollow construc-

Shotgun Projectiles tion, centering most of its mass toward

the nose of the slug. There are slugs that
are designed for use with smoothbores,
Shotgun projectiles can vary more than any chokes, and rifled bores and the slug
other projectile type, but there are three major manufacturer will often recommend the
variances: slugs, buckshot, and birdshot. Slugs barrel or choke that should be used. The
are similar to bullets, with one major difference: primary use for slugs is hunting at short
they are designed to work in a smoothbore ranges, where the use of rifles is not al-
shotgun. Buckshot and birdshot consist of small lowed. Some slug designs are also meant
balls of varying sizes. Because of their smooth- for self-defense.
bore design, shotguns are also capable of firing
There are several different slug designs,
many other objects outside of their standard
but they can all be grouped into two
load, including less lethal, explosive, and armor
main categories: full bore and sabot.
piercing projectiles. The various projectiles that
Full bore slugs are appropriately named
can be fired through a smoothbore shotgun
because the diameter of their bearing
make it the most versatile firearm ever. Shotgun
surface is the same as the bore. Of all of
projectiles are used for everything from hunting
the full-bore slug variances, the Brenneke
and self-defense to sport/competition and law
and Foster slugs are the most popular.
enforcement/military use. To understand the
capabilities of shotgun ammunition, in many The Brenneke slug is the original mod-
places in Africa, the shotgun is known as the ern shotgun slug. Before the Brenneke
“poor man’s elephant gun,” although it would slug, smoothbore shotguns fired cylinder
not be the preferred method (or the smartest). diameter round balls. The need arose
Shotgun ammunition is not expressed in caliber for a more accurate, stable projectile.
or bore size like pistol and rifle cartridges; it is Introduced in 1898, the Brenneke slug
expressed in the gauge of the bore. Gauge is a was the first projectile with a more
measurement of the number of bore diameter traditional bullet shape and was used
lead balls that can be made from one pound of in smoothbore shotguns. The original
lead, which has nothing to do with the projec- Brenneke design features solid construc-
tiles used. Shotgun projectiles are measured by tion, “fins” around the circumference of
the size of a single pellet and the total weight of the bearing surface, and a paper/fiber wad
all the projectiles in the case. Weight is almost that is attached to the base of the slug.
always expressed in ounces.
The solid design of the Brenneke slug
• Slug – The slug is like a round nose bul- does not provide much stabilization and
let that is used in smoothbore shotguns. the fins do not impart very much rota-
Unlike the bullet, the slug is typically the tion as the slug moves through the bore.
same size as the bore or slightly smaller From the bearing surface to the nose of
(~.001 in. – .0005 in.). Because shot- the slug there is a sharp (~90º) shoulder
gun loads are typically very low pressure that transitions to a short, rebated round
(~11,000 psi) and the wad/gas seal ob- nose similar to a SWC. The wad is at-
turates to seal the bore, the slug does not tached to the base to shift the weight of
need to expand (but may slightly). Also, the slug forward, increasing its stabiliza-
unlike traditional round nose bullets, tion in flight. If there is any disturbance

17
in flight, the air resistance around the require a bullet that is a much smaller
projectile will act upon the lighter tail diameter than the bore. Twelve-gauge
and “push” it in line with the slug’s tra- Brenneke and Foster slugs typically mea-
jectory. The wad also serves to seal the sure around .729 in. – .730 in. (12-gauge
bore upon discharge. The fins are de- bore diameter is around .729 in. – .730
signed to reduce the amount of bearing in.), while a 12-gauge sabot slug mea-
surface, reducing friction and increasing sures between ~.450 in. and .630 in.
velocity. In flight, air resistance does act
upon the fins, imparting a very slow rota- The sabot slug is designed for use exclu-
tion on the projectile. The Brenneke slug sively with shotguns that utilize a rifled
is used in smoothbore shotguns and with barrel. During discharge, the sabot (not
most choke types. The Brenneke slug has the bullet) will engage the rifling. As the
an effective range of about 75 yd. sabot travels through the bore, the rifling
will impart rotation on the sabot, which
Foster slugs feature some of the char- in turn imparts rotation on the bullet.
acteristics of the Brenneke slug but are Upon exiting the muzzle, the sabot will
a newer, improved design. The Foster fall away due to air resistance while the
slug features more of a ball bullet shape, bullet will continue ahead, stable from
with a round nose that extends from the the rotation.
bearing surface and tangent ogive. The
bearing surface of a Foster slug is “rifled” The sabot slug can be found in a variety
and the base is hollow. The design of the of styles. Because the sabot protects the
Foster slug (with its hollow base) pushes bore from the projectile, sabot slugs can
all of the mass to the front of the bullet, be found with solid construction (with
eliminating the need for the wad base. a variety of material), jacketed, hollow
Once a Foster slug leaves the barrel, the point, and tipped, and may be construct-
wad quickly falls off from air resistance. ed from plastic or paper. The sabot slug
The Foster slug may or may not fea- is designed for use only with rifled bar-
ture grooves along its bearing surface. rels. When used in smoothbore shotguns,
Although the rifling is only designed to they do not receive the required stabili-
reduce friction by removing surface area zation, and as a result, accuracy suffers.
from the body of the slug, the rifling will The sabot slug has an effective range of
impart a small amount of rotation on 200+ yd.
the slug, providing slightly more stability Wad slugs are similar to the sabot slug
than a non-rifled slug. The Foster slug is with the exception that the slug itself is
used in smoothbore shotguns and with more like a smooth (non-rifled) Foster.
some choke types, and has an effective The name suggests that a wad slug is
range of about 75 – 100 yd. similar to a Brenneke slug with the wad
Sabot slugs differ greatly from full bore attached to the base, but the wad slug
slugs. Sabot slugs are more similar to a utilizes the combination wad/cup. In fact,
rifle bullet than a pistol bullet. The sabot standard buckshot/birdshot cups can
slug utilizes a jacket that acts as a vehicle be used. The slug itself features a deep
for the slug inside the bore. The sabot hollow base that is reinforced by a rib
is similar to the combination wad/cup, that runs the diameter of the bottom of
except the walls of the “cup” are much the cavity in the base. The rib prevents
thicker. The thicker walls on the sabot the slug from expanding too much and

18
creating unnecessary strain on the wad
during discharge. The wad slug also fea-
tures more of a ball nose. The diameter Shot
of the wad slug is also much closer to the
bore than a sabot slug, usually measuring Shot is a term used to describe shotgun projec-
around .690 in. for a .729 in. 12-gauge tiles that consist of a cluster of (sometimes very
barrel. small) spheres. Shot may range in size from very
tiny balls to large balls the size of a 9 mm bullet.
The wad slug is designed for use with Shot size is expressed with numbers and letters:
smoothbore shotguns but can also be the larger the number, the smaller the shot pel-
used in rifled barrels. The rifled bar- let. A #12 pellet of birdshot measures around
rel will impart rotation onto the wad, .05 in., while a 000 pellet of buckshot measures
but because its wall thickness is much around .36 in. As shot size increases, fewer pel-
thinner than a sabot slug, the wad may lets can be loaded into the hull. In a 1 oz. load,
become damaged. The wad slug makes ~2,000 #12 pellets will be loaded, while only 6
reloading slugs similar as it utilizes a 000 pellets will fit. Because of the wide range
standard wad/cup and can be used with of sizes and loads of shot, it is one of the most
various crimps. The wad slug has an ef- versatile projectiles available.
fective range of about 75 yd.
Shot can be divided into two basic categories:
Plumbata slugs are similar to Foster-style bird and buck. As the name implies, bird shot is
slugs, but function similar to a Brenneke. typically used for hunting birds, while buckshot
The plumbata slug is typically rifled is used for hunting deer and other game. Shot
and hollow like a Foster slug but utilizes can also vary in the alloy of its composition.
a wad that fits inside the hollow base. Softer shot or “chilled” shot features a higher
Working on a similar principle to the lead content than “magnum” shot that features
Brenneke slug, the plumbata slug utilizes a higher antimony (an alloying metal used to
a lightweight wad as a tail to help stabi- make shot harder) composition. Some types of
lize it in flight. The plumbata’s wad fea- shot (both bird and buck) may be plated (not
tures a wad/gas seal for its base, followed jacketed) with a harder metal. Because of the
by a buffer zone, and finally a nose that range in size of shot, there is typically a size for
fits inside the slug’s base. When exiting any type of game that may be encountered. Shot
the muzzle, the wad does not fall away is also used for competition, self-defense, law
from the slug but continues stabilizing its enforcement, and military use.
flight. It is not until impact that the wad
separates from the slug. BIRDSHOT
There is a variance of the plumbata that Of the types of shot, birdshot utilizes the small-
features a sabot/wad combination. The est sized pellets. Birdshot sizes run from #12
sabot is designed to break away from (.05 in.) to F (.22 in.). Because of its small size,
the slug, leaving the wad attached to its birdshot is best suited for hunting small birds,
base. The sabot/plumbata is designed snakes, small mammals, and pests. Birdshot in
for use in rifled barrels and the plum- sizes 12, 11, and 10 are referred to as snake/pest/
bata slug has an effective range of about dust shot because of its extensive use on nui-
75 – 100 yd. sance animals. As shot size increases, the size of
the animal that can be humanely dispatched in-
creases. Shot sizes #9 – #7 are used for most bird

19
hunting and some small game: doves, pigeons, only perforate a single layer drywall, becoming
grouse, quail, partridge, rabbits. Sizes #9 – #7 stuck in the second layer on the opposite side.
are also used for sporting purposes: trap, skeet, The shot may perforate the second wall but will
and sporting clays. Sizes #6 – #4 are best suited not typically have enough energy to cause life
for larger birds such as turkey. Sizes #3 – T are threatening injury. If the shot were to perforate
used for water fowl, such as ducks and geese, one complete wall, it would not make it through
and are also suited for many varmints, including a second. The energy and penetration from the
coyotes, fox, cougar, and bobcats. Pest shot has shot may not be enough to completely incapaci-
an effective range of about 10 yd. (max), while tate an intruder, but the tradeoff is the safety of
medium sized shot is around 40 yd. and sizes other family and friends inside the home (and
#3 – T can reach 50 – 60 yd. anyone outside of the home).
Birdshot is also perfectly suited for home de-
fense. One of the greatest considerations when BUCKSHOT
choosing home defense ammunition (or any Buckshot is much larger than birdshot, rang-
defensive ammo) is over-penetration. Walls in- ing from #4 (.24 in.) to 000 (pronounced tri-
side of a home typically consist of wood fram- ple aught) (.36 in.). Because of its larger size,
ing, sheet rock, and some insulation. There may buckshot is suited for small and large game.
also be some wire and plumbing. Most rifle and Buckshot is used to harvest everything from
handgun bullets will perforate through at least varmints to elk. Shot sizes #4 – #3 are useful for
one complete wall, endangering anyone in the large birds, such as geese, and small to medium
other room. Slugs and buckshot will produce varmints. With #2 and #1 buck, you begin to
the same results. Many of those same cartridges get into medium game territory, pronghorn, and
will perforate several walls, including exterior deer within ~40 yd. Buckshot in sizes 0 (aught),
walls (with the added layers from siding, stucco, 00 (double aught), and 000 (triple aught) is used
or brick) and continue into another dwelling. for medium to large game. Single aught is good
The small size and low mass of birdshot makes for medium game such as pronghorn, ram, and
it perfect for use inside of the home. Shot in coyote. Between double aught and triple aught
sizes #7.5, #7, and #6 are the best balance of you can harvest several types of big game, in-
shot size and weight (~1.5 grains per pellet), cluding deer, caribou, and most bears (black,
and pellet count. Shot size #7.5 will typically grizzly, polar, and brown).

Figure 9: Various shotgun projectiles.

20
Buckshot is not a responsible choice for home small projectiles alone. It will also prevent the
or self-defense (except for some of the smaller likelihood of over-penetration and perforation.
calibers) because of its larger size, pellet count, The smaller birdshot will not likely penetrate
mass, and energy. Most buckshot will perforate more than a wall, and the smaller number of
several walls inside a home and continue out- larger projectiles limits the chance of one of hit-
side. Even if you hit your intended target, there ting something unexpected in another room.
is still risk of perforation into other rooms. Outside of the specialty rounds that are avail-
Buckshot’s primary purpose is hunting medium able, there is also a category of less-lethal op-
to large game and is often too powerful for most tions. These projectiles are designed to cause
other tasks. Buckshot, typically 00 and 000, has injury and pain, but they will not typically pen-
also found extensive use with military and law etrate, let alone perforate. These less-lethal pro-
enforcement. jectiles are often shaped like slugs or buckshot
but are made from a very dense rubber. Upon
SELF-DEFENSE SHOTSHELL impact, these projectiles will often bounce off
PROJECTILES of the intended target, leaving large welts and
bruising. There are also “bean bag” projectiles
Although we have established that most buck-
that are filled with birdshot sized rubber pellets.
shot and slugs are not very well-suited for self-
or home defense, specialty loads have been de- The reason these projectiles are called less-le-
veloped by mixed slugs and shot of various sizes. thal and not non-lethal is there is still a chance
Some of these specialty loads may feature a few for severe injury or worse. Less-lethal rounds
smaller (under #1) buckshot pellets, followed by are designed to be fired below the target’s neck.
a slug that is typically half of its normal weight. If fired at the head, the impact may be enough
Other designs may use small, stacked disks to kill instead of injure. The greatest downside
(similar to a nickel) followed by larger birdshot to less-lethal projectiles is if the target is not
(B and above). Others may utilize a mixture of incapacitated and continues forward to attack.
a few smaller buck and several larger birdshot Less-lethal rounds may even be illegal to use for
(B and above) pellets. Limiting the number of self-defense in some areas. Less-lethal rounds
larger projectiles and increasing the number of are employed mostly by law enforcement and
smaller projectiles will increase the likelihood the Department of Corrections.
of a hit, while still providing more energy than

21
 Chart 1

12-Gauge Shotshell
Size Diameter in Inches Pellets per Ounce (Average)
Lead Birdshot
12 .05” 2,385
11 .06” 1,250
10 .07” 1,040
9.5 .075” 688
9 .08” 585
8.5 .085” 497
8 .09” 410
7.5 .095” 350
7 .1” 300
6 .11” 225
5 .12” 170
4 .13” 135
2 .15” 90
BB .18” 50

Steel Birdshot
8 .09” 577
7.5 .095” 490
7 .1” 420
6 .11” 317
5 .12” 247
4 .13” 192
3 .14” 154
2 .15” 125
1 .16” 103
B .17” 86
BB .18” 72
BBB .19” 61
T .2” 53
F .22” 40

Buckshot
4 .24” 22
3 .25” 19
2 .27” 15
1 .3” 11
0 .32” 9
00 .33” 8
000 .36” 6

Slug
Foster/Brenneke .729” 1

22
NOTES
NOTES