"Expired Tracer" ammo?

[Yoda]

J&G is offering 55-grain FMJ 5.56mm, with the notation that the ammo has "expired tracer bullets." The price looks good for normal ammo, but I'm not sure what I'm actually getting when it's listed as "expired tracer."

Ballistically, can you use expired tracers just like normal ammo, or will the round lose stability after a certain range, or what? The price looks good for some range ammo, but if the "tracer, expired" part could cause damage to my gun or something, maybe I should pass it up.

Any thoughts?

For those who are interested, here's the link:
http://www.jgsales.com/

- - - Yoda

 

[rcmodel]

It probably means they are so old a lot of them won't light & trace and so were declared surplus.

In fact the item description says:

This is USGI surplus 5.56mm ammo with expired tracer bullets that no longer lights. Ammo fires fine, but usually no longer traces. Occasionally a tracing round may be found so treat it accordingly .

On the other hand, you might need to know that tracers are known to cause range fires.
So unless you have a very safe place to shoot them with an earth berm backstop?
It's probably not that great a deal.

Doesn't seem like a killer deal to me anyway.
Here is fresh M855 for about .09 cents a box more and you get it in stripper clips and a GI ammo can.
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/78...round-clips-in-ammo-can-of-420-14-boxes-of-30

Here is brand new stuff for .04 cents a box more.
http://www.surplusammo.com/5-56-55-grain-fmj-xm193f-federal-20-rounds/

rc

 

[seasmoke]

Another option...

http://www.freedommunitions.com/product-p/fm556m856r.htm

 

[longdayjake]

Can I take this moment to say that you should not shoot tracers unless there is snow on the ground or you are in an area that has been designed for shooting tracers and has fire trucks to go extinguish any fires. They burn extremely hot and they ricochet everywhere.

 

[beatledog7]

Is there a way to "disarm" tracers so they simply can't ignite?

 

[SlowFuse]

It rarely snows down here, but what longdayjake said sounds like it'd be fun. The only time I feel safe shooting tracers is during or immediately after heavy rain. If there is/has been a drought or possibly just a few dry days you may be the next one everyone is talking about on the news!

 

[Crowcifier666]

They burn extremely hot and they ricochet everywhere.

+1 they are fun but kinda dangerous in short ranges, dry conditions. At least 5.56 rounds and bigger. Ricochets make me really nervous. Haven't shot any .22 tracers yet but I really wanna try em out. I hear they love propane tanks...

 

[Slamfire]

I don't have any idea about tracer shelf life, but gunpowder lifetime is finite. A rule of thumb is 20 years for double based and 45 years for single based. Gunpowder deteriorates and it deteriorates unevenly at the grain level. This causes burn rate instability which has caused Kabooms. Even if the stuff does not, performance becomes erratic.

No one should think that the military throws out perfect ammunition “just because”. Ammunition is expensive, it is kept for as long as it can be safely kept, it gets tested, and at some calendar date, it fails. Old ammunition then is more of a risk than a benefit, and it get surplused.

223 ammunition from the 60 and 70's was undoubtedly removed from inventory because it is too old and unsafe for our troops.

You should pay accordingly.

 

[HorseSoldier]

I wouldn't be comfortable betting on the tracers not igniting consistently enough that there wouldn't be fire hazard issues. I've been issued WW2 vintage .50 cal API-T ammo for training that still ignited pretty reliably -- if that stuff still worked most of the time, M196 5.56mm tracer ammo should still light up pretty consistently.

Is there a way to "disarm" tracers so they simply can't ignite?

There's not really a practical way to do it.

 

[caribou]

Nothing like being aside your Hunting partner and suprizingly watch an orange tracer lazer line into Caribou 's head ~~LOL!!~~

Sure suprized me!!

 

[Jim K]

I have been informed that my concerns are no longer valid, but some of the older tracer compounds were very hard on barrels, being corrosive and leaving hard grit in the barrels. As I say, that may no longer be true, but tracer was/is normally fired in machneguns, not rifles, where accuracy is less of a concern, and barrels more easily replaced.

Jim

 

[kBob]

Jim,

Tracer was used in the M-16A1 for night qualification and as a one in three load with ball for the designated Automatic Rifleman in each squad. When It was available some team and squad leaders had one or more tracers loaded in their magazine in the rifle to direct the fire of their team or squad with.

At under 100 meters I never noticed much difference in accuracy or point of impact. (minute of type E Silhoute)Burn out was supposedly 300 meters with the old ammo, but sometimes fires would start a good bit further out.

40 or so rifles firing 2 to 4 round bursts of straight tracer on the night qualification line at one time in the dark was neat as all get out. Getting the cease fire, lock and clear command and being told to trot down range with e tools to pat out fires was no fun though.

-kBob

 

[Mizar]

... but some of the older tracer compounds were very hard on barrels, being corrosive and leaving hard grit in the barrels...

I don't know about the new compound of tracer rounds, but the old ones, that I shot plenty of them, were definitely very hard on barrels.

As to tracer rounds being prone to ricochets - I guess that most of you fired tracers in 5.56, right? A 5.56 bullet is not really stable to begin with and tracers are really easy to see compared to a normal FMJ bullet... Add to that the typical military range full of rocks and you will get plenty of ricochets.

Boris

 

[Yoda]

OK, you all educated me...

So I guess expired tracers shouldn't be used as a cheap home defense option...

- - - Yoda

 

[longdayjake]

As to tracer rounds being prone to ricochets - I guess that most of you fired tracers in 5.56, right? A 5.56 bullet is not really stable to begin with and tracers are really easy to see compared to a normal FMJ bullet... Add to that the typical military range full of rocks and you will get plenty of ricochets.

All tracers are prone to ricochet. I have shot hundreds of .308 tracers into soft dirt berms and I can tell you that they will ricochet so easy it is insane. My guess is that normal bullets will do it to but you can't see it.