All You Need To Know About Colored Tips On Ammunition
Hey all, we here at True Shot Academy wanted to go over all you need to know about colored tips on ammunition. Our mission here today is to provide a brief overview of ammunition of this type while also delving into relevant aspects and considerations. Without further ado, let’s get into it.
Which Ammunition Has Colored Tips?
On the market, one will encounter a variety of ammunition with colored tips. Military ammunition has often featured colored tips to denote certain types of loadings. These could be ammunition loadings such as tracers, incendiary, and armor piercing rounds. Some ammunition produced specifically for commercial use will also feature colored tips. These tips can either be colored by paint or by a plastic projectile tip.
Why Does Ammunition Have Colored Tips?
Simply put, colored tips help an end user identify ammunition. This comes especially useful if one is dealing with ammunition outside of factory boxes. If one has an ammo can or container full of loose ammunition, colored tips will make ammunition identification an easy task. This holds true for identifying ammunition which is already loaded into magazines. Simply put, colored tips allow for quick and easy identification of ammunition.
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Where Can You Find Ammunition with Colored Tips?
One can encounter ammunition with colored tips in a variety of places. At places such as gun shows, one will often encounter surplus ammunition from a variety of countries which feature colored tips. Modern production ammunition with colored tips can also be acquired from a variety of manufacturers such as PMC.
Different Entities – Different Color Codes
Military entities around the globe have utilized color coded ammunition. Easily identifiable ammunition is especially important for military use, making ammunition with colored tips commonplace. One thing to consider is that some of this ammunition is not commercially available to civilians with ownership being restricted. That being said, sometimes surplus black tip .30-06 Springfield armor piercing ammunition pops up at gun shows for purchase. It is just worth noting that some of the colored tipped ammunition we will be discussing is not commercially available, sometimes for legal reasons.
NATO Countries
- Red Tip – Tracer Ammunition
- Black Tip – Armor Piercing Ammunition
- Silver Tip – Armor Piercing/Incendiary Ammunition
- Green Tip – Steel Core/Light Armor Penetrator (M855) Ammunition
- Blue Tip – Incendiary Ammunition
- Yellow Tip – Observation Ammunition
- Yellow & Red Tip – Observation/Tracer Ammunition
- Orange Tip – Dark Ignition Tracer Ammunition
Russia
- Red Tip – Incendiary Ammunition
- Violet Tip – Armor Piercing Ammunition
- Black & Red Tip – Armor Piercing/Incendiary Ammunition
- Violet & Red Tip – Armor Piercing/Incendiary/Tracer Ammunition
- Green Tip – Tracer Ammunition
- White Tip – Mild Steel Bullet Core Ammunition
China
China utilized the same color-coding practices as Russia prior to 1967. Post 1967, China implemented their own color-coding system for ammunition.
- Black Tip – Armor Piercing/Incendiary Ammunition (Post 1967)
- Red Tip – Incendiary Ammunition
- Violet Tip – Armor Piercing/Incendiary/Tracer Ammunition (Post 1967)
- Black & Red Tip – Armor Piercing/Incendiary Ammunition (Pre 1967)
- Red & Violet Tip – Armor Piercing/Incendiary/Tracer Ammunition (Pre 1967)
- Green Tip – Tracer Ammunition
- White Tip – Mild Steel Bullet Core Ammunition (Pre 1967)
Israel
Like other countries, Israel color codes their bullet tips to differentiate their types of ammunition. A colored primer annulus accompanies the colored bullet tip and is utilized to identify ammunition.
- No Colored Tip & Purple Primer Annulus – Ball Ammunition
- Black Tip & Green Primer Annulus – Armor Piercing Ammunition
- Black Tip & Red Primer Annulus – Armor Piercing/Incendiary Ammunition
- Blue Tip & Green Primer Annulus – Incendiary Ammunition
- Red Tip & Green Primer Annulus – Tracer Ammunition
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Commercial Ammunition with Colored Tips
One will also encounter colored tip commercial loadings. These loadings encompass both pistol and rifle calibers such as 5.7x28mm, .300 Blackout, and .223 Remington just to name a few. These projectiles will often be in the form of A-MAX or V-MAX bullets from Hornady and Ballistic Tip bullets from Nosler. Rather than denoting things such as the ability to pierce armor, these tips are usually intended to expand and prove optimal for long range accuracy.
Common Colored Tip Ammunition
In today’s market, the M855 spec loading of PMC X-Tac 5.56x45mm NATO is one of the most common examples of colored tip ammunition. 62 grain M855 loadings are commonly referred to as “green tip” ammunition and are well-known among shooters of all types. Green tip ammunition in particular is one of our best-selling 5.56x45mm offerings, especially in bulk quantities.
Conclusion
Hopefully, we were able to effectively shed some light on some of the specificities of colored tip ammunition. We here at True Shot offer a variety of ammunition, with and without colored tips. Regardless of whether you are looking for green tip ammunition or something else, we have you covered. As always, happy shooting.
Want to read more about green tip ammunition? Here are some other blog posts from us on the subject:
M193 vs M855 5.56x45mm Ammunition: A Detailed Comparison
Understanding the Differences: SS109 vs M855 5.56 Ammo
Need bulk ammo? At True Shot Ammo, we have a wide variety of handgun ammo and rifle ammo available to purchase. Please visit our website trueshotammo.com, call us at (888) 736-6587, or you can email us at sales@trueshotammo.com for more ammo options.
