38 spl pull down bullets - orange stuff on the base.

[markm87]

I got these 38 spl 125 gr bullets from Americanreloading.com. Mixed in is a handful of bullets with this hard orangish bead on the base. The bullets don't have exposed lead bases. Any ideas what this is?

 

[pdhntr]

I got these 38 spl 125 gr bullets from Americanreloading.com. Mixed in is a handful of bullets with this hard orangish bead on the base. The bullets don't have exposed lead bases. Any ideas what this is?

Google 38 Special tracer.

Jim

 

[markm87]

Google 38 Special tracer.

Jim

I was thinking it might be a tracer compound. I could torch one and see if it lights up.

 

[lb-ft]

Do it! Pics or it didn’t happen!!

 

[markm87]

Do it! Pics or it didn’t happen!!

I remember a video of this guy on M4carbine.net torch lighting 30 cal tracers. Not sure what his point was, but it was mildly entertaining.

 

[markm87]

Torch yielded nothing thrilling. Seemed to cook off the stuff with a mild glow. It's definitely not like military trace compound. Maybe actual live fire will show something.

 

[Bill K]

Live fire will show a light glow all the way to the target. Light commercial tracer ammo.

 

[jwv2001]

Tracers that you see in the movies only appear that way on camera. It's because of the shutter speed of the camera. That's why you see the streak.
You can get a tracer experience if you can get somewhere before dawn, put your back to the sun and fire a 45 ACP. You can see the bullet all the way to what you were aiming at.

 

[SSL]

Careful of your backstop. Back in '72 a friend rented a house out in the country. That was back when you could still (and I did) buy loose WWII milsurp for pennies. I had a 5-gallon bucket of miscellaneous .45 ACP ammo and we proceeded to shoot it into the farmer's massive corncob pile left from shelling corn. We quickly found that red-tipped bullets were tracers. That pile burned and smoldered for 5 days.

 

[M60A3TTS]

It is a tracer, only it's phosphorescent. It uses the flash of the powder to charge. Non Incendiary. Its called Streak.

 

[Park ranger]

It is a tracer, only it's phosphorescent. It uses the flash of the powder to charge. Non Incendiary. Its called Streak.

Just watched a video from tools and target on this exact same thing.

 

[markm87]

Cool. Thanks! I'll load them and set them aside for a session that's appropriate. Only ended up with about 25 or so.