Tracers

[JFettig]

I'm looking for some bullets for 300/221 blasting, Wideners has some pulled tracers for really cheap, they'd be like 6-7 cents per after shipping.

Would these light? Would they be harmful to my match barrel?

Jon

[amafrank]

I've run all sorts of tracers through my Remington and SIG. All of them lit even with very light charges. (Kind of makes me wonder why guys are looking for special powder to light their tracers) I loaded the 147gr tracers made for .308 using data for the 165gr stuff and the 102gr M1carbine tracers I loaded using 125gr data. The bullets are lighter than the load I'm using but the bearing area on them is quite large for their weight. This is due of course to the core being a pressed magnesium and oxydizer rather than lead. That extra bearing area causes more drag and requires more poop to push them out. I stuck one of the 147gr tracers in the remington barrel by going light on the loading. Be careful of that.

Hope that helps
Frank

[jarhead1086]

Thanks for the tip Frank. I just got a bunch of carbine tracers to try to burn up my WCC820 powder. No full auto with a Beta drum until I know they don't stick. I unfortunately know what happens when bullets stack up. My .308 AR-10 was unknowingly sabotaged with a stuck sub fired by another shooter, I loaded a super and pulled the trigger and received a surprise. Something like Project Eldest Son in Viet Nam in the last issue of American Rifleman.

[JFettig]

Frank, how light of loading were you going?

Now to the second part of my question, are they as harmful as some say?

Jon

[amafrank]

I had tracers lighting with 7.8gr of H110. They lit with every other load I used too. Subsonic with the tracers is very inconsistant and I've had some rounds zinging off into outer space and other seem to drill right where I aim them. A little hotter load and they stabilize well. I used some 2400, 4198,Lil'gun, benchmark and thats all I can think of. All of them lit the tracers of either type in light loads. I tried a load of 7 gr with the carbine tracers and they lit very reliably.

As far as damage caused by tracers I'd say don't worry. I've fired thousands of rounds through various guns with no ill effects. The tracer compound is Magnesium and oxidizers and the material left behind after burning is magnesium oxide which is not corrosive. Tracers do not cause more heat buildup as compared to the long heavy bullets we shoot like the 220gr SMK's. The tracing compound doesn't add anything to the velocity or heat buildup but the longer jackets do have more friction.

Hope that helps.

Frank