“Don’t use pointed bullets in tubular magazines!” We’ve all heard that warning. The reason is because the cartridges are in-line, and the point of one bullet rests against the primer of the next. The jostle and rearward force of recoil can cause the point to act as a firing pin and set off the cartridge in front of it. Even if you had such a detonation, you wouldn’t have bullets zipping around as if they were fired because the cartridges are not contained tightly as they would be in a chamber, but it would be lively at least.
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- Lebel cartridges have a deep ring around the primer where the point of the bullets in the tubular magazine rest.
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- Because of their wedge-like shape and recessed ring around the primer, cartridges in Lebel tubular magazines are cocked keeping bullet points off of primers.
Because pointed bullets have superior exterior ballistics, though, there have been efforts to make it safe to shoot pointed bullets in tubular magazines. The French Lebel is one example. Its cartridges are almost wedge-shaped and cases have an annular ring around the primer. Combined, those features cause the bullet points to ride in the rings instead of resting against the succeeding cartridge’s primer.
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- Hornady’s Flex-Tip technology in its LEVERevolution line make it safe to shoot pointed bullets from tubular magazines.
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- It should be obvious what can happen if under recoil the point of one bullet indents the primer of the next in a tubular magazine.
Remington Model 14 and 141 rifles have spirals impressed into their tubular magazines to align the cartridges more in a corkscrew fashion instead of in-line, keeping the points off of the primers.
Generally, tubular magazines must use flat-point or round-nose bullets.
The most recent effort to safely use pointed bullets in tubular magazines comes from Hornady in the form of its LEVERevolution line of ammunition. Bullets in this line have a pointed tip so you get the enhanced exterior ballistics, but the points are made of a soft synthetic that compresses under pressure. Because it compresses, it squashes instead of denting a primer.
Pointed bullets won’t make your .30-30 into a .308 Win., but they will extend your effective range.
Using pointed bullets won’t make your .30-30 into a .308 by any stretch, but using pointed bullets will extend your lethal range, and you can do it safely.
Scott Mayer
www.tacticaltshirts.com
www.john1911.com
“Shooting Guns & Having Fun”
In 2008, Mayer returned to the editorial side of publishing, this time in the digital field, as Editorial Director for Guns & Ammo, Shooting Times, Handguns and Rifleshooter online magazines. After a brief stint in 2011 as the Digital Media Director for an ABC TV affiliate, Mayer returned to the outdoors industry and Safari Club International where he is currently Assistant Publisher and Multi-Media Communications Editor.
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