The only time you see red small caliber projectile is probably on a tracer round (and even that aren’t entirely red/orange red), but the gloss red you see here is on every single projectile and no, these are no tracers, neither is the red for some vain, asesthetic purpose. The gloss red bullet is a new tech projectile called Synthetic Jacket Technology, or Syntech in short, developed by Federal Premium Ammunition/American Eagle. Four years in the making and over a million rounds expended, this glossy red projectile may look like like a lipstick lopped off its case, but it is no less deadly than any gunpowder-powered projectiles. So why does it look so much like plastic?
Well, it is actually a kind of plastic (polymer), but only as a coating and for good reasons. Compared to conventional lead counterparts, Syntech is cleaner, safer (more on this in a moment) and it is reportedly, generates 12 percent less friction in the barrel, thereby reducing the wear on the barrel and it will also produce less heat as it passes through the barrel. And since there is metal-on-metal contact, Syntech projectiles leaving the barrel will not have metal fouling. But those are not the only benefits; it is safe too, and one of the aspect of safety is minimizing “spall.”
Spall or splash-back is phenomena where a bullet’s copper jacket encapsulating the lead core shatters upon impact with hard targets like steel and the resulting fragments, which can be rather big, flat and often sharp, come flying at the shooter (hence the minimum safe shooting distance imposed by ranges). However, with the polymer-coated Syntech, the shattering produces smaller pieces that does not travel far, and therefore, it could minimize incident of range-related injuries, particularly those in indoor ranges. Then again, a person should really be certified a fool should he or she chose to shoot crazy close at an impenetrable object.
Additionally, Syntech is made even more indoor-friendly – thanks to an innovative lead-free primer. With Syntech, Federal Premium ditches traditional lead primer in favor of a Catalyst primer that provides a more reliable and consistent ignition, resulting in a cleaner burn. A more complete burn translates to less powder residue which in turns means less fouling when firing and as much as a gun lover hates to admit, an easier time cleaning the firearm (yay!). Finally, since it has no lead (on the primer), there will be no worries about lead exposure in long run too. You can find out more about the Syntech Ammunition by Federal Premium/American Eagle HERE.
Images: Federal Premium Ammunition.
Federal Premium Ammunition via Guns and Ammo.
