Do you love steel shooting? If so, you’re not alone. It is a popular discipline and the sport offers immediate auditory feedback – forget the spotting scope, you’ll know when you hit the target!
Which makes steel shooting a lot of fun, too. But you know what you should avoid doing? Shooting ammo like green tip 5.56 at steel.
Now, maybe you’ve just found a really good deal on some surplus green tip at a local shop, or perhaps online. But green tip and steel targets just don’t mix. Here’s what you need to know.
Why It’s a Problem
Well, here’s the thing about green tip 5.56 ammo. It has a steel tip in the nose of the bullet. Steel, as you might know, is much harder than copper and lead.
This gives the bullet greater dimensional stability on impact with a target, which means it is better at penetrating.
No, these are not armor piercing (like black tip, with its tungsten core, which is), as you might have heard others (who did not know what they were talking about) say. But all the same, it is optimized for penetration.
The long and short of that is that green tip 5.56 wreaks havoc on steel targets. On a mild plate at close ranges it will punch right through. On the same at intermediate ranges, it will badly deform the steel.
But this is just noted in sympathy towards your steel targets. There is a better reason to avoid mixing the two of these things, and it has to do with safety.
Green tip 5.56, with its steel tip, is much more likely to ricochet off of a steel target, which is very dangerous indoors and still considerably dangerous outdoors.
So therefore, don’t shoot green tip 5.56 at steel targets, even if you get a good deal on it.
What’s a Better Play?
If you’re shooting at steel plate, whether indoors or outdoors, it’s safer to shoot frangible bullets.
Frangible bullets are designed (basically) to shatter into dust on impact, so there are no shards left to ricochet and produce a threat. Also, they are much gentler on steel targets, as weird as it seems to combine the concept of gentility and bullets in the same thought.
Anyway, they’re more expensive, but they’re also a lot safer, too. At any rate, whether you shoot frangible or not, save the green tip for paper shooting. It’s just not worth the damage to your steel targets.
Where to Get Green Tip 5.56, Frangible Ammo, and More
Whether you’re looking for plain FMJ .223, green tip 5.56, or some high-end frangible SinterFire ammo, you can get them all at the same place.
Check out Bucking Horse Outpost online via the previous link. They have some good deals on green tip 5.56 and also sell frangible ammo, as well as regular FMJ .223 Remington, 5.56x45mm NATO and in a bunch of other calibers.
Bookmark their page. If you’re often looking for bulk deals, it won’t be long before you find something you like on their website.
