Round-nose | The end of the bullet is blunted, round, allowing it to penetrate solid objects farther than other types of bullets. The most common type of bullet, usually utilized in target shooting. |
Hollow-point | The point of the bullet is hollowed out, which creates a mushrooming effect when a target is struck, causing more damage. |
Pre-Fragmented | Made up of many smaller pellets compressed into a single full-sized bullet. Designed to disintegrate on impact with a solid object and have the least penetration ability. |
Jacketed | The soft lead is surrounded by another metal, usually copper, that allows the bullet to penetrate a target more easily. |
Full Metal Jacket | Lead core is completely enclosed in the copper jacket. The only type of bullet permissible in warfare. |
Jacketed Hollow Point | Top of the bullet has an opening in the jacket, exposing a hollow lead core. On the force of impact, the bullet is forced to open up and expand, resulting in less penetration but greater damage due to the larger diameter of the now expanded bullet. |
Bonded Hollow Point | Same as the Jacketed Hollow Point, but the metal jacket has been chemically bonded to the lead core to ensure that the jacket cannot separate from it on impact. This is desirable for when a bullet may need to penetrate glass or thin metal and still remain intact. |
Jacketed Flat Point | Similar to the wadcutter, but jacketed. |
Total Metal Jacket | Same as the Full Metal Jacket, however, unlike the Full Metal Jacket where the metal jacket encloses the whole bullet except the base, the TMJ bullet's base is also enclosed by the jacket. Used for target shooting and at indoor ranges. |
Wadcutter | Cylindrical projectile composed completely of lead, the front of the bullet is flattened for use in target shooting, allowing it to cut neat and accurate wads out of the target for easier scoring. |