What is Ball ammunition?

decee

Honest. I don't know.

robsguns

Its usually a term given to ammo that is entirely copper coated in a jacket, either pointed, or rounded like a .45 ACP round, also its mostly used to describe military ammo, that has no special tip, thus the ball ammo designation.If I am incorrect, someone please correct me, that is the best way I know of to describe it.

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SSgt Ryan E. Roberts, USMC

talon

Ball Ammo means that the bullet's jacket has no opening at the nose of the bullet. If there is a hole in the jacket at the nose it is either "hollow" (open tip bullet)or filled with lead or plastic, or copper, or something else to allow bullet to open up upon impact. Ball ammo sometimes is also called "full patch", as the jacket replaced the cloth patchs once used in years past. All US military small arms bullets are suppose to be 'ball'. It's suppose to cause less (unnecessary) damage to the enemy soldiers.

duckhunter

"BALL AMMO" IS THE TYPE OF POWDER USED.ROUND OR "BALL"

robsguns

duckhunter, you're not serious, RIGHT?

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SSgt Ryan E. Roberts, USMC

Iconoclast

Rob's only partially correct, the jacket is rarely 'copper' although it may appear that way. Most commonly in US ammo, it is gilding metal, which is a copper alloy, or gilding metal clad steel. Nickel alloy is not all that unusual and steel jackets are quite common, especially on foreign military loads. But as he & SP noted, it means that the front of the projectile is entirely enclosed by a jacket to minimize expansion, consistent w/ the requirements of the Geneva Convention.

ammo guy

The term goes back to the time period when the projectile shot from a weapon was round, thus the term "ball", now it simply means the standard military smallarms rd. being used, vs tracer, AP, etc>.

v35

I thought it was nomenclature for single projectile vs shot, buck and ball or blank rounds.