With new styles of ammunition being introduced in the market each year, the amount of ammo variations is becoming hard to follow, especially to newcomers.  And why not? The more advanced the technology gets, the better the rounds will be. However, for newbies to the world of shooting, and reloading, the different variations of ammunitions can be daunting to remember. With this guide of projectile types and terms, you’ll be better informed on picking the round that best suits your shooting needs.

Parts and Terms

To understand each style of round, it’s important to understand the construction of the cartridge itself.

• Caliber-Describes the diameter inside the barrel of a gun, thus determining the size of the bullet the gun can fire.
• Cartridge-Describes the entire object you load into the gun
• Casing-Often made of brass or aluminum, the casing houses the powder, primer, and bottom portion of the bullet.
• Bullet-The portion of the cartridge the leaves the gun. It is placed at the tip of the cartridge. Also, it is commonly referred to as the round.
• Primer-Its placed on the bottom of the cartridge. When struck, the primer ignites the powder and sends the bullet out of the gun.

Projectile Styles

FMJ (Full Metal Jacket)

This type of round is often referred to as a “ball round.” Its construction includes a soft core, usually lead, cased in a harder shell, often copper. A FMJ round is often used on the range simply because it provides little stopping ability to a threat. It is less likely to expand on impact while fully penetrating the target. The leads to a less severe wound while causing potential damage to anything behind the target.

HP (Hollow Points)

This is the go-to round for any shooter looking to deal as much damage to the threat as possible. The name comes from the open area at the top of the round, hence it being called hollow. This design allows the bullet to expand on impact, increasing the amount of damage to the threat exponentially. Also, with the bullets expansion, the likelihood of the round going completely through the target diminishes.

JHP (Jacketed Hollow Points)

JHP rounds are hollow points on steroids. Instead of leaving the lead bullet exposed on the hollow point rounds, JHP rounds simply put a jacket of a harder metal, copper or steel alloy, over the lead bullet. This will drastically cut the chances of your gun succumbing to lead fouling. Also, this jacket makes it easier for the rounds to feed in semi-auto guns.

Ballistic Tip

Often found on rifle cartridges meant for hunting, the ballistic tip rounds are the perfect combination of the FMJ and HP rounds. These rounds have superior aerodynamics, making them perfect for long-distance shooting, while having the stopping power that a hollow point round provides. You’ll also notice the bottom of the bullet is slightly beveled. Called the “boat tail,” this feature increases the ability of the round to fly accurately at long distances.

As you see, not every style of projectile will work for every shooting scenario. That’s why it is important to have a working knowledge of each to allow you to better choose the style that fits your needs.