On Saturday, January 3, 2015 2:13:30 PM UTC-5, wrote:
On Sat, 3 Jan 2015 10:15:59 -0800 (PST), wrote:

On Saturday, January 3, 2015 10:11:48 AM UTC-5, wrote:
On Sat, 3 Jan 2015 04:29:08 -0800 (PST), wrote:

On Thursday, January 1, 2015 11:14:24 AM UTC-5, John H. wrote:
On Thu, 01 Jan 2015 10:53:37 -0500, wrote:

On Thu, 01 Jan 2015 07:39:30 -0500, Poquito Loco
wrote:


Yup. Can't use the Tula stuff at my range

Why not?

They don't allow bullets with steel therein. Sparks. That's their
story, and they're sticking to it.

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolf_Ammunition (Same factory makes Tula and Wolf)


Steel-jacketed bullets[edit]
In addition to using steel casing, certain types of Wolf rifle cartridges use steel-jacketed bullets, which are often copper-plated and cosmetically similar to standard copper-jacketed bullets. The copper exterior of the bullet is approximately .005 inch thick, with an underlying steel jacket of about 1/32 inch thick. This type of ammunition is labeled "bimetal". Indoor shooting ranges, which use backstops often constructed of steel, have accordingly widely prohibited steel-jacketed and bimetal ammunition to prevent shooters from damaging their backstops (as well as steel to steel contact from the round causing sparks, which in just the right environment could ignite unburnt powder residue in the air).

If there is enough unburnt powder residue in the air that it might
ignite, I would not enter that room without a respirator.
Until the recent anti-tobacco fad, you could smoke in most indoor
ranges. Lead is a much bigger issue in an indoor range.
I would believe they think you are hurting their bullet trap tho. I am
not sure you really would. If that is their fear, they should be
banning magnum rounds and just about anything out of a rifle.
Only 2 things ever made a mark on my 1/2" steel plate backstop.

One very hot 125gr .357 round (1725fps)

A factory .44 mag from my carbine.

That was the only CF rifle round ever fired in there.

There is an indoor range here that allows nothing hotter than a .38. Maybe if you'd have put a few thousand of those .357's or .44's in the same general area (like at a public range) you could have ultimately blown though?


This was just a small chip/dent but over time they would add up.

A thought about your bullet dissection: The wiki article did say "certain types of Wolf rifle cartridges use steel-jacketed bullets." You said "I just pulled a Tula 9mm round apart." Maybe the 9mm isn't included in the types that have steel cases.

It was a ferrous (magnetic) bullet and case. Wolf does make some
brass/copper but it is about the same price as other non-steel bulk
ammo.
The magnet test will tell you.

Yeah, I meant to write steel *bullets* (not cases), but if it failed the magnet test, it was some kind of ferrous material. Sounds like its construction was not quite as described in the wiki article.

Interesting stuff. I've shot quite a bit of the Wolf ammo in my 9x18 Mak CZ pistols, but not in anything else. I'm not interested in reloading the 9mm Mak stuff, and those CZ's are pretty much throw-aways anyway. Great for what they are.