AJHP: Aluminum Jacketed Hollow Point.

AP: Armor Piercing. Military bullets with steel or tungsten core that penetrates
steel armor. Bullet's tip is usually painted black for easier identification.
API: Armor Piercing Incendiary. Designed to penetrate armor and set target on
fire. Tips are usually painted light blue.
Barnes Expander. Delivers superior expansion for maximum energy transfer on
target and ideal performance on deer. Its all copper design provides high weight
retention for great stopping power and consistent performance.
Barnes Expander Tipped Sabot Slug. Controlled expansion, high velocity (1900
FPS) slug capable of 2 inch groups or better at 100 yards.
BB: Bevel Base.
BBWC: Bevel Base Wad Cutter. Pistol bullet that's flat on both ends; has beveled
base to increase accuracy similar to a boat-tail bullet.
BC: Bonded Core.
BCHP: Bonded Core Hollow Point.
BCSP: Bonded Core Soft Point.
BEB: Brass Enclosed Base. Pistol bullet with brass plug over exposed lead base
to reduce lead exposure. Many indoor ranges now specify use of this bullet to
decrease lead contamination.
BJHP: Brass Jacketed Hollow Point. Defensive pistol bullet that controls
mushrooming and energy release over longer distances.
BRPT: Bronze Point. Bronze insert in tip improves trajectory, velocity and
energy transfer at extreme ranges. Tip expands rapidly when driven back through
bullet. Excellent design for hunting long-range medium-size game.
BST: Ballistic Silvertip. Used with hunting rifles, this Winchester bullet has a soft
metal tip that causes rapid expansion and penetration of bullet. Typically used for
varminting and hunting light- and medium- size game.
BT: Boat Tail. Rifle bullet with truncated conical shape at base of bullet.
Streamlining stabilizes bullet and increases accuracy.
BTHP: Boat Tail Hollow Point. Same as plain boat-tail but with a hollow point,
which generates rapid expansion and penetration.
BTSP: Boat Tail Soft Point. Like the plain boat-tail but with a soft point to
increase penetration and expansion from exposed lead tip.
CastCore. Heavy-weight, flat-nosed, hard cast lead bullet that smashes through
bone, without breaking apart.
CC: Copper Coated. Same as full-metal-jacket. Copper coating prevents bullet

deformation in feed mechanism and barrel, reduces misfires and lowers risk of
barrel damage.
CL: Core-Lokt. Remington's premier bonded bullet. Retains up to 95% of original
weight with maximum penetration and energy transfer. Progressively tapered
jacket initiates and controls expansion nearly 2x. Unique design and bonded lead
core delivers performance from 50 to 500 yards.
CP: Copper Plated. Lead bullet dipped in copper; reduces lead fouling and is
cheaper than copper coating.
DEWC: Double Ended Wad Cutter.
EFMJ: Expanding Full Metal Jacket. Federal's answer to areas with restrictions on
hollow points. A regular full-metal-jacket bullet with front rubber core covered by
a copper jacket. When fired into target media, copper jacket collapses along
serrations, produces petal-like expansion and delivers energy without overpenetration.
ENCAP or E: Encapsulated. Totally plated on all sides to decrease environmental
lead contamination. Many indoor ranges use this ammunition exclusively to
reduce lead clean-up costs.
EP: Expanding Point. Winchester-developed bullet for .25ACP for better stopping
power for small calibers. Hollow point with round lead ball inserted into cavity
ensures positive feed, increases expansion and transfers energy rapidly.
ERBT: Extended Range Boat Tail. Remington bullet that produces long-range
accuracy along with superior stopping power required for hunting.
FB: Flat Base.
FMC: Full Metal Case. Lead core fully enclosed with copper, nickel, brass or
steel.
FMHSWC: Full Metal Jacket Semi-Wad Cutter. Designed primarily for target and
competition shooting, this bullet exhibits superior accuracy. Its swagged lead core
is enclosed by a metal jacket, eliminating barrel leading.
FMJ: Full Metal Jacket. Military round specified by Geneva Convention. Lead core
is enclosed by a strong metal jacket on this non-expanding, deep-penetrating,
general-purpose bullet. Provides smooth, reliable feeding in all types of semi-auto
handguns. Not recommended for hunting, the primary use of the FMJ is target
shooting.
FMJBT: Full Metal Jacket Boat Tail. Like FMJ but has a boat-tail to reduce
turbulence and increase accuracy.
FMJE: Full Metal Jacket Encapsulated. Like FMJ but also has covered base and
doesn't expose any lead.
FMJFP: Full Metal Jacket Flat Point. Non-expanding and deep penetrating, this
general purpose bullet is a good choice for target use because of its accuracy. Its
lead core is enclosed by a metal jacket, which eliminates barrel leading. Provides
smooth, reliable feeding in semi-sutomatic handguns.

Full Metal Jacket Match. For the real competition shooter, offers accuracy and
match-grade consistency.
FMJSWC: Full Metal Jacket Semi-Wad Cutter.
Full Metal Jacket Semi-Wad Cutter Match. For the competition shooter, with a
tapered base, offers speed in loading and high accuracy.
FMJTC: Full Metal Jacket Truncated Cone. The truncated cone shape of this
bullet makes feeding smooth and reliable in semi-autos. Cannot lead barrels
because its lead core is enclosed by a metal jacket. Excellent accuracy.
FN: Flat Nose.
FNSP: Flat Nose Soft Point. Similar to the Soft Point in construction and
performance, but with a flat lead point that allows this bullet to be safely used in
tubular magazines. Designed primarily for use in the 30-30 carbine, it delivers
reliable expansion at typical 30-30 velocities.
FP: Flat Point.
FPJ: Flat Point Jacketed. FMJ with a flat point. Most .40 S&W and .30-30
Winchester rounds have this design. The .30-30 Winchester has a tubular
magazine and uses a flat-point bullet to prevent accidental detonation during
recoil, as front round's primer may come in contact with point of round following
it.
FPNN: Flat Point Penetrator.
FRAN or FG: Frangible. Prevents ricochet by breaking apart on contact. Can be
made from empty cartridge cases filled with epoxy and compressed birdshot,
metal dust or filings. Developed for air marshals to avoid over-penetration and
ricochet aboard airplanes. All energy is transferred to the target, making it a
devastating defensive bullet.
GC or GCK: Gas Check. Metallic cup or disc is attached to bottom of lead-alloy
bullet. Decreases gas blow-by, increases velocity and reduces lead fouling.
GDJHP: Gold Dot Jacketed Hollow Point. Speer's hollow point bullet with jacket
bonded to lead core to prevent separation and control expansion and
penetration.
Glaser Safety Slug. Design uses a special thin-wall jacket, and a precision
compressed lead shot core with a soft polymer tip. This construction provides
optimum balance between penetration and fragmentation. Stopping power is
maximized by the complete dispersal of the bullet energy into the intended
target with immediate shock and trauma. This rapid fragmentation delivers the
energy into a large area.
GS: Grand Slam. Speer's design for hunting big game. Jacket is 45% bigger at
base to prevent rollback and retain bullet's weight. Internal jacket flutes ensure
proper expansion. Bullet's core is a ternary (three-part) alloy, which is poured into

jacket at 900 degrees F to prevent jacket slippage.

HB: Hollow Base.
HBWC: Hollow Base Wad Cutter. Preferred by some target shooters, this flat
lead bullet with hollow base punches neat, round holes in paper targets and
makes scoring easier. Creates better gas seal to prevent gas blow-by and
increase velocity.
HC: Hard Cast.
HE: High Energy. Made by Federal.
HM: Heavy Magnum. Made by Hornady.
Hot-Cor Soft Point. Speer round for large game.
HP: Hollow Point. Hollow cavity in bullet's nose allows expansion on impact.
HPBT: Hollow Point Boat Tail. Extremely accurate hollow point bullet with
pointed, aerodynamic design. Boat tail heel further reduces drag to improve
downrange velocity. Precision balance and exceptional concentricity greatly
increase bullet stability to assure superb accuracy.
HPE: Hollow Point Expanding.
HPL: Hollow Point Lead.
HSHK: Hydra-Shok. Federal's handgun defense bullet. Unique center-post
design delivers controlled expansion. Notched jacket transfers energy efficiently
and penetrates barriers while retaining stopping power.
HSP: Hollow Soft Point. Exposed lead point and hollow cavity in nose permits
expansion on impact.
HV: High Velocity. Ammunition with velocity over 1,200 feet per second.
JFP: Jacketed Flat Point. Flat lead point and full metal jacket. All .30-30
Winchesters have this bullet design. The .30-30 Winchester has a tubular
magazine and uses a flat-point bullet to prevent accidental detonation during
recoil, as front round's primer may come in contact with point of round following
it.
JHC: Jacketed Hollow Cavity. Jacketed bullet with hole in tip to promote
expansion on impact.
JHP: Jacketed Hollow Point. The exposed lead at the tip of the PMC jacketed
hollow point rapidly initiates uniform, controlled expansion that progresses to the
depth of the hollow point cavity. Penetration is also controlled for maximum
energy transfer to the target, assuring its suitability as a hunting bullet. Excellent
accuracy and bullet integrity.

JPP: Jacketed Protected Point.

JSP: Jacketed Soft Point. Exposed lead soft point initiates reliable expansion,
provides deeper penetration than hollow point bullets. Precisely engineered
copper jacket and swaged lead core provides the necessary concentricity and
balance required for top-level accuracy.
L: Lead. An all lead bullet.
LF: Lead Free (non-toxic).
LM: Light Magnum. Made by Hornady.
LRN: Lead Round Nose. Solid lead, lubricated bullet with rounded ogive for
down-range accuracy. Hard-hitting, economical, general purpose bullet for all
revolvers.
LSW/LSWC: Lead Semi-Wad Cutter. Solid lead, lubricated bullet with semipointed nose. Formed by swaging process with sharp shoulder for clean hole
punching in paper targets. Good choice for target or general purpose shooting.
LSWCHP: Lead Semi-Wad Cutter Hollow Point. Lubricated solid lead bullet with
hollow point. Swaged to form sharp shoulder to produce clean holes in paper
targets. Good choice for target practice or general shooting.
LWC: Lead Wad Cutter. The full wadcutter profile of this solid lead, lubricated
bullet cuts clean signature in paper targets for precise scoring. Consistent
accuracy results from formation by swaging process, which eliminates balancedestroying voids often found in cast bullets. Excellent choice for competitive
shooters.
Lead Wad Cutter Match. Versatile design that cuts clean holes in targets.
M or MCH: Match. Bullets with most accurate design, weight, materials and
consistencies. Used by snipers and target shooters.
MB: Multi Ball. More than one ball or bullet in cartridge to increase hit ratio.
MC: Metal Case. Same as metal-jacketed bullet.
MCOPE: Metal Case Open Point Expanding.
MCWC: Metal Cased Wad Cutter.
MK: aka Sierra MatchKing. Delivers record-breaking accuracy at long ranges.
Pictured is a boat tail variant.
MOLY: Moly Coated. Bullet is coated with molybdenum disulfide to reduce
friction and increase velocity.
MON: Monolithic Solid.
MP: Metal Point.

MRX: Maximum Range X bullet. Made by Barnes.

Nosler AccuBond. Another new loading from Federal, touts the terminal
performance of a bonded bullet with the accuracy and retained energy of a
ballistic tip.
NBT: Nosler Ballistic Tip. Nosler developed this bullet with a polycarbonate tip
that protects the bullet from damage in the magazine resulting from recoil. The
tip also stabilizes the bullet for long-range shooting and insures reliable
expansion when the bullet hits its target.
NP: Nosler Partition. Has two lead cores separated by bullet jacket. Top part of
jacket is thin and promotes expansion of bullet. Bottom part of bullet has thicker
jacket that retains bullets weight, stops fragmentation and increases
penetration.
NTF: Non-Toxic Frangible. Formed from a composite of fine copper and polymer
particles by injection molding, the PMC Green frangible bullet is lead free and
completely non-toxic. Designed to shatter into dust-sized particles upon impact
with materials harder than itself, it is much less likely to ricochet or overpenetrate. Its homogeneous construction means there is no jacket or plating to
impede disintegration. Feeding is smooth and accuracy is excellent.
OPE: Open Point Expanding.
PB: Pow'rball. Made by Cor-Bon. Polymer ball capped round with high velocity
and reduced recoil.
PEP: Positive Expanding Point. Specially designed by Winchester for extreme
accuracy and maximum impact on varmints and medium-size game.
PG: Partition Gold. Winchester's proprietary design delivers expansion and
penetration on medium- and large-size game at wide range of impact velocities.
Rear core is hard lead alloy, locked in place with a heel crimp to prevent core
slippage and maximize penetration. Patented steel cup reinforces prevents core
distortion at high-impact velocities.
PL: Power-Lokt. Remington's revolutionary varmint and small-game bullet
produces bench rest-level accuracy. Copper jacket is electrolyticly bonded to lead
core, producing near-perfect concentricity and gyroscopic balance, once available
only in custom-made match bullets. Exceptional sub-minute-of- angle accuracy
for small game at extreme ranges.
Power-Shok, Rifled Slug Hollow Point. Maximum knockdown power. One-piece
cushioned wad helps reduce recoil. For use in smooth bore barrels.
PP: Power Point. Jacketed soft nose from Winchester delivers maximum energy
on impact. Notches around jacket's mouth improve upset and ensure uniform,
rapid expansion.
PP: Protected Point.
Premium Vital-Shok Sabot. Made by Barnes. In a rifled or rifled choke tube,

sabot slugs are capable of 2 1/2" groups or better at 100 yards.

Premium Vital-Shok Truball Rifled Slug. Uses a simple ball that centers the slug
in the barrel.
PRP: Protected Round Point.
PSP & PTDSP: Pointed Soft Point. Popular, time-tested bullet featuring a soft
lead point extending beyond the copper jacket that initiates bullet expansion
upon impact. Pointed design reduces aerodynamic drag, improves ballistic
coefficient rating and helps this bullet retain its velocity down range.
PTHP: Platinum Tipped Hollow Point. A Winchester design for handgun hunters.
Immediately transfers bullet's energy into target. Delivers penetration, expansion
and accuracy.
PT: Polymer Tip.
PWC: Pointed Wad Cutter. Lubricated solid lead with pointed nose. Formed by
swaging process with sharp shoulder for clean hole-punching in paper targets.
Good choice for target practice or general shooting.
RB: Round Ball.
RN: Round Nose. Round nose promotes positive, reliable feeding.
RNFP: Round Nose Flat Point.
RNL: Round Nose Lead.
RNPN: Round Nose Penetrator.
S: Solid Lead.
Sabot Hollow Point. For rifled barrels and rifled choke tubes, sabot hollow points
offer maximum penetration and excellent accuracy.
SBK: Sierra BlitzKing. Used for varmint hunting; has plastic tip inserted into
bullet cavity, which expands on impact and delivers high ballistic coefficient.
Starfire 30-30. Similar to the X-Bullet in performance because of its solid copper
construction, but with the patented rib-and flute Starfire hollow point cavity in the
nose. The broad hollow point allows this bullet to be used in tubular magazines.
Excellent expansion characteristics and bullet integrity.
Starfire Hollow Point. The Starfire hollow point's impressive performance comes
from its unique rib-and-flute cavity design. Upon impact, pressure from incoming
fluidic material creates lateral pressure on the ribs, forcing instant, extremely
reliable expansion.
SFS: Supreme Fail Safe. Hollow point bullet with lead core and steel insert.
Delivers controlled expansion, deeper penetration and bullet weight retention.
SGK: Sierra GameKing. Long range round for varmints to big game animals.
Boat-tail design provides extremely flat trajectories. Design also give it a higher
downrange velocity for more energy at point of impact.

Shotgun shells: Shotguns come in gauges 10, 12, 16, 20, 28 and .410 (which is
named for its bore size and isn't even a gauge). There are four types of
ammunition that can be used, bird shot, buck shot (which is larger than bird
shot), slugs (solid projectiles) and sabots.
Bird shot size shells range in size (smallest to largest) from 9, 8, 7 1/2, 6, 5, 4, 3,
2, 1, BB and BBB.
Buck shot size shells range in size (smallest to largest) from 4, 3, 2, 1, 0
(pronounced one-aught), 00 (pronounced double-aught) and 000 (pronounced
triple-aught).
SIL: Silhouette.
SJ: Short Jacket.
SJHP: Semi Jacketed Hollow Point. Exposed lead tip expands more rapidly than
jacketed hollow point design. Controlled penetration provides maximum energy
transfer, making it suitable for hunting.
SJSP: Semi Jacketed Soft Point. Exposed lead soft point with reliable expansion
and deeper penetration than hollow point bullets. Copper jacket and swaged lead
core improve concentricity, balance and accuracy.
SJWC Semi-Jacketed Wad Cutter.
SLD: Solid. Usually made from copper, bronze or brass alloy - but no lead.
Designed for deep penetration in thick-skinned animals.
SMP: Semi-Pointed. Same penetration as a round nose with better trajectory,
higher velocity and energy transfer, better expansion control and deeper
penetration than a hollow point. At close range, usually offers better penetration
and more controlled expansion. Excellent accuracy potential and often used for
short-to medium-range hunting.
SOL: Solid.
SP: Soft Point. Exposed lead tip on this bullet and broader point diameter
provides rapid, controlled expansion at somewhat lower velocities than the PSP.
Broad wound channel results from expansion up to 200% of original bullet
diameter.
SPBT: Soft Point Boat Tail. This bullet combines the aerodynamic pointed nose
with a boat tail heel for improved flight characteristics and retained velocity
downrange. Typical of Sierra construction, it embodies near-perfect balance and
concentricity. Exposed lead tip for controlled expansion.
SPCE: Soft Point Cutting Edge. Semi-jacketed with cut-through jacket edge to
partially lock in lead core. Deforms less in light game than heavy game. Used for
clawed game hunting.
SPCL: Soft Point Core-Lokt. Locks progressively heavier jacketed mid-section to
lead core, preventing separation but allowing maximum energy transfer. Stays

together on impact, expands in a controlled manner and mushrooms uniformly to

nearly twice the original diameter.
SPFN: Soft Point Flat Nose. Expands reliably and penetrates deep on light to
medium game.
SPP: Spire Point.
SPRN: Soft Point Round Nose. Features an exposed tip, good weight retention
and tapered jacket that provide controlled expansion for deep penetration. Bullet
of choice for deer and bear in heavy cover.
SPT: Spitzer. Pointed bullet normally used in modern military rifles.
SS: Semi Spitzer.
SST: Super Shock Tipped. Hornady's design incorporates a pointed polymer tip
that improves ballistic coefficient and increases velocity, accuracy and
downrange power. Specially designed jacket grips and controls expanding core,
allowing maximum expansion while retaining mass and momentum.
ST: Silvertip. Winchester's design has special aluminum-alloy nose cap to
protect lead core; delivers deep penetration and has controlled expansion in
small- and medium-size game.
STHP: Silvertip Hollow Point. Winchester's handgun bullet designed for rapid,
controlled expansion to penetrate thin skin, light muscle and bone of small- to
medium-size game.
SUB: Sub Sonic.
SW or SWC: Semi-Wad Cutter. Lubricated solid lead bullet with semi-pointed
nose. Formed by swaging process, resulting in a sharp shoulder for clean holepunching in paper targets. Good choice for target practice or general shooting.
SWCHP: Semi-Wad Cutter Hollow Point. The tapered base allows for quick
loading with high accuracy, consistency and quick expansion.
SWCL: Semi-Wad Cutter Lead.
SXT: Supreme Expansion Technology. Winchester's personal protection bullet.
Designed with reverse tapered jacket, has uniform expansion, greater accuracy
and reliable firearm functioning.
TAP: Tactical Application Police. Designed by Hornady specifically for law
enforcement. Heavier bullet weight and polymer tip provide rapid expansion and
excellent barrier penetration (without over-penetration).
TBBC: Trophy Bonded Bear Claw. Ideal for medium or large dangerous game.
100% fusion bonding for reliable expansion at any range. Claims 95% weight
retention.
TBS: Trophy Bonded Solid.
TBSS: Trophy Bonded Sledgehammer Solid. Used for the largest and most

dangerous game in the world. Maximizes stopping power and your confidence.
It's a bonded bronze solid with a flat nose that minimizes deflection off bone and
muscle for a deep, straight wound channel.
TC: Truncated Cone. Similar to an inverted cone, but with the top chopped off.
Used in defense applications where penetration through materials might be
necessary. Ensures extremely reliable feeding.
TCHP: Truncated Cone Hollow Point. Same as truncated cone but with a hole in
top to promote expansion in target.
TCSB: Truncated Cone Solid Bullet. Designed for penetration. Inverted cone aids
in feeding, while pointed solid bullet drives deep into target.
TCSP: Truncated Cone Soft Point. An excellent choice for hunting and general
shooting, the soft point of this bullet initiates uniform, controlled expansion.
Characterized by very reliable functioning in semi-autos and excellent accuracy.
THP: Tubular Hollow Point.
TL: Tumble Lube.
TMJ: Total Metal Jacket. Same as full metal jacket, except base is also jacketed.
TMWC: Target Master Wad Cutter. Wadcutter bullets made to highest tolerances
to achieve best accuracy possible.
TRI: Triad Group.
Triple Shock X Bullet. Made by Barnes.
V-Max: Varmint Express Ballistic Tip. Hornadys ballistic-tip varmint bullet has a
polymer insert that aids in rapid expansion once bullet hits target.
WLY: Woodleigh.
Woodleight Weldcore Soft Point. Bonded Australian bullet. Special heavy jacket
provides 80-85% weight retention. Used for large or dangerous game.
Woodleigh Weldcore Solid. Top choice for safari hunters and provide the energy
and penetration needed for large game.
X-B: X bullet. Made by Barnes. Solid copper bullet with pre-stressed hollow
point mushroom consistently over a wide range of velocities, and drives deeper
than lead-core bullets. Cannot shed its jacket on impact, because there is no
jacket. Holds together like a solid, retaining virtually 100% of its weight.
XPB: X pistol bullet. Made by Barnes.
XTP: Extreme Terminal Performance. Hornady bullet designed for controlled
expansion at wide range of handgun velocities. Bullet's jacket and core expansion
rates are the same, reducing separation and increasing trauma in target.