Any danger to shooting Blemished bullets?

[Ghost Magnum]

Any danger to shooting Blemished 5.56?
I found some at a great price. I want to know if there is any possibility of jamming my Tavor.

 

[Mike SC Hunter]

No..........Fire away!

 

[k22fan]

My quick reaction was "no" but we may need a definition for "blemished." Does that mean the brass is turning green from damp storage? If the cartridges were stored in damp conditions for a long time and their primers were not sealed then missifires or in the worst case hangfires are a possibility. With normal safe gun handling neither should be dangerous.

 

[Ghost Magnum]

My quick reaction was "no" but we may need a definition for "blemished." Does that mean the brass is turning green from damp storage? If the cartridges were stored in damp conditions for a long time and their primers were not sealed then missifires or in the worst case hangfires are a possibility. With normal safe gun handling neither should be dangerous.

It doesn't say, but it is from a reputable provider.

If safe, then I'm going to snatch it up as soon as I get paid. It's a box of 120.

 

[johngalt]

If blemished just means discolored/tarnished, I don't think you will have problems. If the bullets are deformed in some way (such as dented), you will probably have accuracy issues at longer ranges.

 

[Ghost Magnum]

If blemished just means discolored/tarnished, I don't think you will have problems. If the bullets are deformed in some way (such as dented), you will probably have accuracy issues at longer ranges.

I will snatch it up as soon as I can. But I visually check every bullet before I feed it to my gun any way.

 

[WR Moore]

When you say "bullets" do you mean loaded ammo or just the projectile?

Way back when, the only .224 bullets I bought were WW blemished FMJBTs. What I mainly saw was some slight discoloration on the jacket, some inconsistency in cannelure location and some other minor stuff that made no significant difference over 200 yards/meters. They also had a markedly different ogive than other FMJs in that caliber. Don't know if that was a part of the "blemish" or not.

Loaded ammo can open a whole new kettle of fish, but if you're talking about minor discoloration of the case it's not really an issue. If it looks like it's growing moss or fungus, pass.

 

[Frank46]

Sierra sells their blems by the pound. A guy I Knew used to buy their 168 & 175 blem matchkings and used them for practice ammo. After awhile he felt thst they shot so well that he'd use them in regular matches. Won a few as I recall. Frank

 

[Pisgah]

On most of those "blems" you won't even be able to see a defect; the defects you can see will be purely cosmetic. Fire away.

 

[k22fan]

I believe the original question was about old cartridges that discolored with age but "blems" or factory seconds from bullet manufacturers is an interesting topic. During the early 1970s I bought Speer factory seconds from a gun shop in Lewiston where they are made. The then popular 200 grain .45 flying ash trays were 3 cents each. I forget what I paid for 9 MM seconds but they cost less. The great majority either had a tiny amount of lead smeared back from the hollow point onto the outside of the jacket or had no defect that I could find. The gun shop's owner who had been in Speer's plant said the latter were swept up off Speer's floor. I was among the most accurate pistol shooters at the ranges I used and I could not demonstrate any accuracy difference between Speer's seconds and the same bullets bought in retail stores. I was not reloading for rifles yet so I do not even remember if Speer sold rifle bullet factory seconds.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

Most times I can't even tell why they are blems.

Besides, the lawyers wouldn't let them sell those bullets if there was even a slight chance they were dangerous.

 

[LoboGunLeather]

About 15 years ago I caught a deal on "pull down" bullets, military ammunition that had been disassembled and the bullets salvaged. Pull down was done with a collet-style puller, leaving light markings on the bullets. These were FN-brand 7.62mm NATO rounds with 147-grain FMJ-BT bullets. I purchased two boxes of 1000 each, which I have been loading in .30-06 as practice ammo for my M1 Garand rifles. Completely satisfactory in every way, and at $49.00 per 1000 (with free shipping at the time!) these are right at the top of my list of best buys ever.

The need for high-end precision bullets is one thing, but the need for economical practice ammo is always there.

Take advantage while you can.

 

[HorizontalMike]

The only thing I would add to all the above, in the realm of "blemished" would be to watch out for split cartridge necks in older ammo. Some of what I imaged below, while discolored with age (circa 1959), were still good in that the reloaded cartridges were still NOT split. Those intact cartridges even shot within 2in at 200yd some 50yr later.

 

[Old&Retired]

I believe the original question was about old cartridges that discolored with age but "blems" or factory seconds from bullet manufacturers is an interesting topic.

Hate to disagree, but the OP specifically asked about "BULLETS", not cartridges.

I would hope that most people on this forum would know the difference between bullet, case and cartridge. Numerous reloading suppliers offer "blemished" factory bullets in bulk at discounted prices. Never shot them myself, but have several acquaintances at my local club that use them all the time.

 

[k22fan]

Hate to disagree, but the OP specifically asked about "BULLETS", not cartridges.

I would hope that most people on this forum would know the difference between bullet, case and cartridge. [...]

I have misunderstood what I've read many times but reread this quote from the original poster.

I will snatch it up as soon as I can. But I visually check every bullet before I feed it to my gun any way.

It's up to him to clarify this.

By the way, the only injury I've seen from firing a cartridge that had deteriorated from age occurred while firing a Remington or Peters .30-06 hunting factory cartridge in a Remington 1903A3 Springfield. Brass hardens as it ages. The case head split. I watched the puff of gas hit the shooter's face. He was not wearing glasses. He had to have tiny particles that I think were powder surgically removed from his eye ball. I do not remember for sure but I think the cartridge was made by Peters before their merge with Remington. To give you an idea of its age the injury occurred in the mid to late 1980s.

 

[crstrode]

The OP said bullets - at this point, who knows what he meant. Since there has not been a clarification, it is possible there is some chagrin involved.

Bullets are bullets.
Most cartridges have bullets, some do not.
Some guns even shoot bullets without using cartridges.

 

[Old&Retired]

I have misunderstood what I've read many times but reread this quote from the original poster. It's up to him to clarify this.

By the way, the only injury I've seen from firing a cartridge that had deteriorated from age occurred while firing a Remington or Peters .30-06 hunting factory cartridge in a Remington 1903A3 Springfield. Brass hardens as it ages. The case head split. I watched the puff of gas hit the shooter's face. He was not wearing glasses. He had to have tiny particles that I think were powder surgically removed from his eye ball. I do not remember for sure but I think the cartridge was made by Peters before their merge with Remington. To give you an idea of its age the injury occurred in the mid to late 1980s.

I agree that the OP needs to clarify if he's talking about bullets or cartridges. If cartridges, then the level of blemishing will have an impact on whether or not I would use it. If bullets, then buy em, load em and shoot em!!