"Hollowpoint" Assault Rifle rounds

offeror

I notice both .223 and 7.62x39 come in a round with a TINY hollowpoint. Anybody have any experience with them and if so what's the advantage, if any? I realize a faster bullet might expand more, but wouldn't those be more likely to fill with tissue and penetrate about the same? Would a softnose be as effective, or more effective? Heck, at least it's a gun topic.

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"The 2nd Amendment is about defense, not hunting. Long live the gun shows, and reasonable access to FFLs. Join the NRA -- I'm a Life Member."

luger01

offeror-Hydrostatic pressure is what openes up a hollowpoint bullet. Bullets driven at low velocities (like from a pistol round) require a large cavity to effectively open.HP bullets at high velocity (rifle rounds) need to control expansion more, and the small hole is just enough to cause the bullet to open to optimal expansion, at a given velocity range.That is why a .30-06 bullet will fail to open at 600 yards, but mushrooms beautifully at 200. If it had a large cavity and hole, it might work perfectly at 600 yards, but completely blow apart and cause only surficial damage - not a clean kill - at 200 yards.Hope this is enough info to satisfy you. If not, we can start the physics discussion and really bore most folks here.

v35

I think the question is whether the Russian 7.62x39 and .223 hollow point ammo expands properly. Is there any hunting experience out there with this ammo?

DENWA

Yes the 762x39 hollowpoints do not perform any different than the FMJ's.They don't expand after penetrating 2 phone books, A 2x4 ,and a piece of plywood.I could be wrong but they are not recovered and leave a perfect hole. I would never hunt with them and expect a humane kill.I have used the soft point russian made and am very pleased in accuracy and hunting applications.SOOO... Use the FMJ's and HP for practice but spend the extra $2 and buy a box of soft points for hunting.

Big Sky Redneck

I have a dumb question about these hollow points. Why is a lot of match ammo and match bullets HP?

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offeror

Thank you all for concise answers. I'll continue to trust softnose in many applications and expect to load HP or FJM only in appropriate circumstances.

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"The 2nd Amendment is about defense, not hunting. Long live the gun shows, and reasonable access to FFLs. Join the NRA -- I'm a Life Member."

JustC

7MM, the match ammo is both HP and boat tailed. The hollow point actually allows the air to enter into the cavity while in flight, this stabilizes the front of the bullet, while the boat tail stabilizes the rear of the bullet by flowing the air around it, likt the stern of a boat. The air pressure up front and the curvature of air at the back stabilizes them giving them a truer flight.At least to the best of my knowledge and reading.[This message has been edited by JustC (edited 02-15-2002).]