Becoming involved with the shooting sports will make you a student of acronyms and initialisms right quick. Just mull it over a moment, we have FMJ, OTM, HP, JHP, FN, LRN, and BT, among many others.
In this post we’re going to take a look at three fairly common ones, corresponding to different bullet types, two of which are often used in the manufacture of 7.62 – full metal jacket, open tip match, and hollow point. Here’s what you should know about them.
7.62 Full Metal Jacket (FMJ)
First, we’ll start with 7.62 full metal jacket, also known as FMJ, which is everyman’s ammo.
A full metal jacket bullet has a lead core with a copper jacket that fully encloses it, except at the base.
This results in a bullet with a harder nose and relatively good radial symmetry. As a result, FMJ ammo is fairly accurate, even at intermediate ranges, and optimized for penetration characteristics and stability.
Another benefit of FMJ is that it limits lead contact with the bore, and produces very little lead fouling. A 7.62 full metal jacket bullet will produce copper fouling though, so be aware of that.
The other good thing about full metal jacket ammo is that it is highly affordable, making it ideal for teaching, training, drilling, general target practice, and most if not all high-volume shooting disciplines.
What you don’t want to do with 7.62 full metal jacket is use it for defensive applications or for hunting, as it is designed for stability and penetration, not for stopping power.
Open Tip Match (OTM)
Now let’s take a look at open tip match ammo, also known as OTM and sometimes referred to as hollow point (even though it isn’t).
At first glance you might think this was standard FMJ; on closer inspection you might consider it a hollow point. It is neither.
With an open tip match bullet, the jacket fully encloses the bullet’s core, even at the base. The only space left open is a small hole in the nose of the bullet that’s there only as a by-product of production.
Open tip match ammo therefore performs similarly to FMJ ammo, except it has higher radial symmetry, which produces much better spin stability.
As a result, open tip match ammo is highly stable and accurate, even at ridiculous ranges. It is also highly expensive.
The takeaway? This is the ammo to use for long-range shooting. Use another grade for pretty much anything else. Then again, there isn’t much 7.62x39mm OTM out there since this cartridge performs so poorly at extended ranges.
Hollow Point (HP)
Lastly, we have hollow point ammo, which has a conspicuous void in the nose of the bullet, often leaving the core (or part of it) exposed and sometimes semi-visible.
The purpose of hollow point ammo is this: to expand on contact with an intended target, producing a wider wound channel, more cavitation, and delivering unmatched stopping power potential.
Like open tip match ammo, hollow point ammo is fairly expensive, but unlike OTM, it is not particularly accurate, especially at intermediate and extended ranges
Therefore, hollow point ammo is suitable for and only for defensive applications and hunting, as it is expressly designed to ethically dispatch a target.
Where to Get 7.62×39 Ammo Online
Looking for a place where you can restock your ammo cans? Check out Bucking Horse Outpost. They carry 7.62 full metal jacket and many other types of ammo in a wide range of calibers. They also frequently run great deals and police trade-in specials, so bookmark their page and throw it in your rotation for future use.
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