Do Exposed Lead Tips of Bullets Melt During Flight?

[RBrowning]

I believe when a bullet doesn't make it to it's intended target, you will find one of two causes.

First, with high velocity, and especially a fast twist rate barrell, some bullets are spinning fast enough that the centrifigual force is greater than the yield strength of the jacket, thus the jacket opens and the bullet comes apart in flight. Look at the FEA that Varmint Al has on his web page.

Secondly, you cant shoot straight! [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

[Kevin]

I would say no lead tips do not melt. Lead has a higher melting point than plastic so if lead tip bullets melt than surely the plastic ones would. An interesting note along the same lines. The smaller and pointier the tip the hotter it gets. Most of the time the plastic tip bullets are pointier than lead, thus even more heat would build up on the tip. Many of us would look at a missile and ask why don't they put a pointier tip on it to reduce drag. It is because it would get to hot.