Subject: Ballistics 101
Date: 94-12-29 03:13:38 EST
From: dickbash@combatarms.com (Dickbash)
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Dear friends:


    Forgive the presumptuousness on my part, but it seems that this is a
particularly good time to provide the following file on basic
ballistics. This is a handout I made for a group of police officers I
was teaching. I believe you may find it a good review. This material
stretches over this and the next two messages. I learned early on
that most law enforcement personnel know zippo about ballistics. It is
n=o=t because they were incapable of learning it. It was because no one
ever taught them the material. Because there is a possibility that such
a level of [mis]understanding might exist among my colleagues here as
well, I offer you the following. Your constructive ideas for the
improvement of this material are invited, either here in the list or by
e-mail to me. Thank you for your attention.



Regards,


Richard Bash


    +.........................................................+
    . dickbash@combatarms.com                 Combat Arms BBS .
    . Voice: 1-503-223-3160                      P.O. Box 913 .
    . BBS:   1-503-221-1777                Portland, OR 97201 .
    +.........................................................+


                            -=-=-=-=-=-


                              Combat Arms BBS
                               P.O. Box 913
                        Portland, Oregon 97207-0913
                           Voice: (503) 223-3160
                            BBS: (503) 221-1777


                     Ŀ
                       Introduction to Ballistics  
                              May 11, 1993         
                     


1.   What is "ballistics"?

     a.   A science which studies projectiles in motion.

          [1]  Interior ballistics - The study of events that occur
               inside the gun from the time the weapon is fired until
               the bullet leaves the muzzle end of the barrel.

          [2]  Exterior ballistics - The study of the motion of a
               projectile after it leaves the barrel of the weapon.

2.   Why is the study of ballistics important to a street police
     officer?

     a.   It can be lifesaving knowledge and greatly aids an
          investigation. The information will also make you a better
          witness in court and a better shot on the range.

3.   Definitions.

     a.   Bullet.

          [1]  The projectile that is shot from the barrel of the
               weapon. It is normally composed of lead and may be
               surrounded completely or in part by a covering called a
               "jacket." Bullet types vary according to the shooting
               need. The common ones are described below.

          [2]  Full metal jacket (FMJ) or full metal case (FMC)
               bullets have thick, tough coverings variously made of
               copper, nickel, silver, brass or even clad steel. The
               terms FMJ and FMC are identical.

          [3]  Jacketed hollow point (JHP) are either jacketed to the
               tip of the hollow point by a copper jacket or they may
               be jacketed just half way up the bullet with lead
               exposed the remainder, in which case they are called
               "semi-jacketed hollow points." The depth of the hollow
               point is important to its expansion ability. In the
               past these were called "dum dum" bullets (after a plant
               in India where they were originally made). Hollow point
               bullets are the ones normally carried by police
               officers. A hollow point bullet peels back at the
               hollow point much like a banana, thereby exposing a
               greater cross-sectional area and causing more tissue
               damage as the bullet moves through the target. A good
               hollow point, such as the Winchester Silvertips, expand
               in diameter up to 160% of their original size. A .357
               bullet is actually 0.358" in diameter and 160% of this
               is 0.5728" in diameter. As you will see when we later
               get into caliber, this is now a bullet that is bigger
               in diameter than a .50 caliber machine gun round! That
               is exactly what you want.

          [4]  Wadcutter bullets have no pointed cone to them and are
               flush with the top of the case. They are commonly used
               in target practice because, by virtue of their design,
               they make a very neat, clean circle in the target. That
               makes for easier scoring. They are usually sold in the
               form of reloads and are comparatively inexpensive,
               costing 1/2 to 1/3 the price of a factory assembled FMJ
               round. The bullet is made entirely of a lead and
               antimony (antimony is used to make the bullet harder)
               mixture and has no jacket.

          [5]  Semi-wadcutter bullets are more conical, thus making it
               substantially easier to use a speedloader with them
               when reloading a revolver. They are made entirely of
               lead and antimony. I see a lot of police officers who
               mistakenly believe that it is smart to hand load their
               own bullets and use semi-wadcutters but install them
               backwards in the mistaken belief that it is a more
               effective round. If you are doing this now or have a
               friend considering it, please don't. Instead, see item
               a[3] on the previous page regarding Winchester
               Silvertips.

          [6]  Specialty bullets include armor piercing, incendiary,
               Glaser Safety Slugs, rifled lead one ounce slugs for
               use in shotguns, shot shells for use in handguns, and
               tracers. It would be rare to see most of these in the
               hands of a civilian. Note that while armor piercing
               handguns rounds and all incendiary rounds are illegal
               in California, they are commonly available through less
               than legal sources. Experience indicates that criminals
               seldom have the ingenuity to obtain these rounds.
               Glaser Safety Slugs are available and may be the most
               potent round available to civilians.


                  -= PART II IS CONTINUED IN NEXT MESSAGE =-


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From: dickbash@combatarms.com (Dickbash)
Subject: Ballistics 101
Date: Thu, 29 Dec 1994 05:36:10 GMT
Message-Id: <941228224718301@combatarms.com>
Organization: Combat Arms BBS - Portland, OR
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