pointed bullets, why aren't there any for pistols?

Mr. Friendly

Mr. Friendly

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a friend of mine that's a pistol enthusiast says it's probably got to do with feeding issues. doesn't make much sense that there wouldn't be some nice pointed, armor piercing hand gun rounds. I've seen the rounded FMJ rounds, like 7.62x25, but why not pointy?

the only other negative I'd see with it is possible (well, literal) over penetration of non-armored items.

thoughts? :confused:

if this is a dumb question, sorry...not a handgunner yet. :rolleyes: d:h: :rolleyes:
 
Mr. Friendly said:
a friend of mine that's a pistol enthusiast says it's probably got to do with feeding issues. doesn't make much sense that there wouldn't be some nice pointed, armor piercing hand gun rounds. I've seen the rounded FMJ rounds, like 7.62x25, but why not pointy?

the only other negative I'd see with it is possible (well, literal) over penetration of non-armored items.

thoughts? :confused:

if this is a dumb question, sorry...not a handgunner yet. :rolleyes: d:h: :rolleyes:
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Pointed bullets are made that way to provide better external ballistics (better ballistic coefficient [BC]). With low handgun bullets velocities, short bullets and lousy BC, by the very nature of the short and fat bullets, it's totally useless to go pointed. There may be feeding problems as well but these could be solved easily if there was a need. By the way, there are handguns that fire rifle rounds and these use pointed bullets.
 
I would guess that overall length would be an issue as well, since most pistols cantain the magazine in the grip. Some grips are big enough as is with short round nosed rounds.
 
Mr. Friendly said:
a friend of mine that's a pistol enthusiast says it's probably got to do with feeding issues. doesn't make much sense that there wouldn't be some nice pointed, armor piercing hand gun rounds. I've seen the rounded FMJ rounds, like 7.62x25, but why not pointy?

the only other negative I'd see with it is possible (well, literal) over penetration of non-armored items.

thoughts? :confused:

if this is a dumb question, sorry...not a handgunner yet. :rolleyes: d:h: :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Armor piercing rounds are prohibited.
 
There are a couple of rare examples of pointed handgun bullets, but the main limitations I know of are:

1. Case and mag/chamber length...
2. Stability and penetration/expansion...


The short case length means your round cannot be set back into the case without reducing the load. Pointed bullets waste "space" and reduce the overall mass of the bullet because the overall length cannot increase, so to simply mold a production length bullet into a pointed bullet would require a reduction in material used. Since handgun ammo already uses smaller charges, reducing load and mass could reduce terminal performance dramatically.

And the other related item is that reduced velocity and mass of handgun bullets mean penetration at range is already severely handicapped over a rifle bullet, so there is little benefit in trying to increase penetration through shape. You would simply reduce the terminal energy quicker, while also reducing the other advantages to bullet weight such as stability and wind resistance that much faster. The velocity necessary to cause complete expansion at range is likely not there anyway.

A handgun and it's rounds are designed to work close, and expand fast at slower speeds with the punch coming very quickly before it loses it's accuracy or velocity. A rifle and it's rounds are designed to stay stable and accurate over longer ranges, and carry that punch all the way out to a distant target.
 
I have a better understanding now. I would see the primary handicap as length of the cartridge then. didn't really think about velocity or bc though.

what are there currently available for handguns that are armor piercing? yes, I understand they're prohib in Canada, but they won't be elsewhere.
 
Since the ammunition is often controlled at the source (FN etc.) I doubt you'll find it available for civilian sale anywhere regardless of legality. Here is a short list off the top of my head with regards to currently manufactured AP handgun ammo...

4.6X30
5.7X28
7.62X25 (relatively common)
9X19 7N31
 
7.62 x 25 will shoot thru most 3a vests in the surplus loadings, but isn't in itself considered AP. There ARE AP versions of it but i've never seen them in Canada
 
Cocked&Locked said:
7.62 x 25 will shoot thru most 3a vests in the surplus loadings, but isn't in itself considered AP. There ARE AP versions of it but i've never seen them in Canada
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When I included it I was thinking of the hardened steel core bullet ammo. It seems to be fairly common in Europe and Asia from what I have read. Not so common in Canada though for obvious reasons...
 
Not to mention those rounds are not AP by any definition. Mild steel jackets/cores are a cost saving material and offer no advantage against armor of any kind. I assume he means the surplus ammo currently available for 7.62X25,39,54 etc..
 
And, in terms of terminal ballistic effectiveness - although legal Canadian paper targets really don't care about terminal ballistic effectivenss, unless they tumble - a good fat meplate seems more effective than a sharp pointy one, at typical handgun velocities. So not a lot of maufactures have a very good market for pointy handgun bullets.

And, in the real world i.e. not Canada, a handgun is still only useful for fighting your way back to the rifle you should not have been caught without, so long range external ballistics are not a very good selling point either.
 
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