In order to participate in the GunBroker Member forums, you must be logged in with your GunBroker.com account. Click the sign-in button at the top right of the forums page to get connected.
Ammo ???
JesseLee
Member Posts: 1,032 ✭✭✭✭
I have been seeing a variety of ammo that has a green tip, yellow tip, black tip etc. Can anybody give me a site or list of what each color tip represents. I know for example that 223 with green tip is SS109 and has a steel core in the bullet, but I am uncertain what all of the different colors represent. Any help and info would be great. Thanks
Comments
Had a guy I know ask me this Monday :
What if I shoot a .357 sig in a .40 s&w cal. pistol ????????
My first response was : Dont try this @ home !!!!!!
I know what all ( may ) happen : ???
Any thoughts ???
Thanks !!!
Usually the tip lacquer color codes are fairly consistent within a given nation, but there are exceptions. The codes may vary depending on the cartridge to which is applied by a given nation, much less between nations.
The ONLY consistent systems of which I am aware are those imposed by an umbrella organization - e.g., NATO or the old Warsaw Pact.
Just to give you some conflicting examples - the US used a green tip on ammunition to designate various experimental loads, but the British Commonwealth used it to designate AP loadings. On 7.62x51 cartridges, there were US frangible experimentals loaded with green / white tips AND prototype "Starlight" (dim) tracers with the exact same identification scheme. There are US experimental tracers with yellow tips and US experimental HE types with yellow tips.
Ad nauseum . . . .
Usually a black tip means AP. Usually, unless you are speaking of Argentina or Hungary (both before WW2, where it designated a "spotter" round with a small HE element). Red would be tracer, unless it was an Argentine AP. There are a few references which catalog most of these variations, but there truly is no simple answer.
If you need to ID a specific round or some material you have at hand, I will try to help you. But if you are looking for a simple list, there just is no such beast!
I am specifically wondering about the 7.62x54R. I have noticed that most that is being sold has a yellow tip. I believe it is either Romanian or Yugo. Over the past several weeks I have been thinking about buying some for my M44. Any information would be great. Thanks.
These will be "heavy ball" ("Model D") - 172gr vs. the usual 147gr.
If Romanian, they will have a "22" arsenal code with the year date or the year date only.
If Yugo, they will have a "pi pi y" (the "pi" is the Greek letter) and a date.
I don't believe either nation ever loaded heavy ball, but this is outside of my specialty. I suspect this is either Hungarian or Bulgarian; both nations loaded this and substantial quantities of milsurp have come into the US over the past decade. Czech or Russian would be possible as well, but less likely.
This load was discontinued before 1970, but I've never heard of anyone having any reliability / functionality / accuracy issues with it.
Hope this helps!
Ike
Here is a great link to understanding color coding for 7.62x54R functional types of ammunition. When you see how many countries have used the 7.62x54R and then realize that not all the color coding was consistent from country to country you can begin to understand the wisdom behind Iconoclast's general statements. There is truly no easy method.
http://www.mosinnagant.net/i3tro4.asp
It isn't very obvious on this page but you can also click on the country name for a variety of information. I hope this helps promote your understanding.
Heavyiron