Larry Gibson
posted this
26 December 2018
I've shot a lot of bullets backwards. with cast bullets in handguns, mostly revolvers, I found adequate accuracy for close range shooting (most often 50 ft on an indoor range) with mild loads. I did find some that would begin losing accuracy give evidence of pitch, yaw and tipping at 25 yards and beyond.
I've shot a lot of M193 (55 gr FMJBT) seated backwards over the powder charge from 45 ACPs. These ran 1500 - 1600 fps out the M16A1 and were accurate enough for small game shooting out to 50 yards +/- but mostly were used at much shorter range.
In 2017 someone posted (here or another forum) a site where 7.62 NATO bullets (147 gr FMJBT) were pulled and seated backwards over the original powder charge. I ran a test on 3 different lots of US 7.62 NATO M80 Ball (LC87, LC74 and WRA69) that I had on hand. The bullets (all 3 lots had soft steel jacketed bullets) were puled and reseated in the same case to the crimp groove and recrimped with a LFC die. A 10 shot test with each lot was done with the pressure and velocity measured and 5 shot groups at 50 and 100 yards.
No anomalies were found with the 3 different lots as issued. Velocities were consistent and pressures ran 56,000 to 59,000 psi(M43). Accuracy was 2 - 3 moa at both 50 and 100 yards. However, with the bullets seated backwards the velocities of the LC74 and WRA69 increased 50 to 100 fps and the measured psi(M43) increased 3,000 to 5,000. The LC87 jumped up to an average 68,200 psi(M43). Accuracy was again 2 - 3 moa at 50 yards but at 100 yards several shots of each group showed severe tipping increasing the group sizes to 9 - 14 moa. The bullets that did not tip were in 4 - 6 moa groups.
I don't load 7.62 NATO bullets backwards over their original powder charge anymore.
LMG
Concealment is not cover.........