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Sixshot6 wrote:

MiLisCer wrote:

Sixshot6 wrote:I know 7.62x54 is still used in Russian service and the like but who actually offers tracers for reloading? I've never heard of it .

Really?
Readily available in 5.56 / 7.62 & 50bmg
For reloading.

Oh ok, I've just had this conversation a few times with a friend whenever he's been sold tracer ammo if its legal to have. I guess its just a range restriction. Don't fire on a dry hot day when its not been raining for a while though .

Just checked a video of 5.56 tracer rounds and given the flames my vz58 with its brake spews out, it would be a sight to behold.

Tracer is perfectly legal to own/shoot, but as you say it requires clearance on most ranges and is often weather driven. Helped put a few fires out myself as it goes aaarggh

It only gets iffy when you start combining it with AP or Incendiary.

One thing that often gets people is the fact that tracer is usually not as bright as they expect. This is normal in daylight, the flare is easier to see (and designed to be seen) from the rear or in low light, and is designed to light up quite a distance from the barrel for obvious reasons.....so the chances of it being a sight to behold may disappoint (I should know how far this is but for the life of me I cant remember).

Gaz, you are right mate, there are issues of tracer designed for use with NV, as there are other pyrotechnics (mostly large parachute flares) used by Pave Spectre etc.

We used a 1bit mix (one ball one tracer) in our AD mix (for all arms air defence) and 1 bit 4 in standard light or SF role. AAAD was fun but you got thrown about a lot with the gun on a louch pole.

The idea was that any pilot who thought he was being engaged with 1 bit 4 would be concerned and bugger off....

I have never seen .303 (.311) tracer bullets for sale, but if anyone finds any surplus, keep me a couple will you as they would go down a treat for the old scrap collection

One story I heard (Off post but tracer related) was from a harrier pilot who got engaged by an Argie Blowpipe. The Shorts blowpipe carried a bright red 4 tube flare that actually got brighter as it got further down range (the theory was it gave us something constant to track...it worked). He said he just saw the brightest red flight he had ever seen go screaming past on a divergent course (good drills). Turns out they had bought them but not trained with them and the crews thought they were IR tracked....and not manually guided by a thumb joystick as they were....even better drills!!

PS....hope this was slightly more constructive than bitching about the term heads...."Head" does fit, but only prefixed by other words. The guy knew what he meant FFS

I think what it boils down to with .311 (303) tracers is since its no longer in military use that brings down the demand for its use. You're right about it being not so bright in daylight but I guess like many things you need to do it at night (not many places let you do that).

Maggot wrote:
Tracer is perfectly legal to own/shoot, but as you say it requires clearance on most ranges and is often weather driven. Helped put a few fires out myself as it goes aaarggh

It only gets iffy when you start combining it with AP or Incendiary.

Iffy isn't the word for it, combine it with AP or Incendiary and you could wind up as Mr Bigs Tuesday boy if you were to get caught with them!.

I have contacted the main UK importers of 54r milsurp and have been told that the problem with 54r tracer is that in Eastern European warehouses it is mixed in with API and incendiary rounds and the problem comes down to getting somebody to sort it out and the fact most UK shooters of 54r only want the standard light ball ammo their Mosins so the demand for 54r tracer rounds would be relatively small in comparison and possibly not worth importing it.

snayperskaya wrote:

Maggot wrote:
Tracer is perfectly legal to own/shoot, but as you say it requires clearance on most ranges and is often weather driven. Helped put a few fires out myself as it goes aaarggh

It only gets iffy when you start combining it with AP or Incendiary.

Iffy isn't the word for it, combine it with AP or Incendiary and you could wind up as Mr Bigs Tuesday boy if you were to get caught with them!.

I have contacted the main UK importers of 54r milsurp and have been told that the problem with 54r tracer is that in Eastern European warehouses it is mixed in with API and incendiary rounds and the problem comes down to getting somebody to sort it out and the fact most UK shooters of 54r only want the standard light ball ammo their Mosins so the demand for 54r tracer rounds would be relatively small in comparison and possibly not worth importing it.

And squeaky bum inducing time also.

snayperskaya wrote:

Maggot wrote:
Tracer is perfectly legal to own/shoot, but as you say it requires clearance on most ranges and is often weather driven. Helped put a few fires out myself as it goes aaarggh

It only gets iffy when you start combining it with AP or Incendiary.

Iffy isn't the word for it, combine it with AP or Incendiary and you could wind up as Mr Bigs Tuesday boy if you were to get caught with them!.

I have contacted the main UK importers of 54r milsurp and have been told that the problem with 54r tracer is that in Eastern European warehouses it is mixed in with API and incendiary rounds and the problem comes down to getting somebody to sort it out and the fact most UK shooters of 54r only want the standard light ball ammo their Mosins so the demand for 54r tracer rounds would be relatively small in comparison and possibly not worth importing it.

It would be good to know what the minimum worthwhile order would be. I bet we could easily order 10K rounds on this forum between us.

I would be up for 1000 54r tracer rounds if we could import them, I know of others who would be keen as well!

Charlotte the flyer wrote:
It would be good to know what the minimum worthwhile order would be. I bet we could easily order 10K rounds on this forum between us.

I would hazard a guess at 10 times that at least to make it worthwhile for someone to sort it and import it.Some importers in Europe deal in millions of rounds rather than tens or even hundreds of thousands.Arms dealers buy it literally by the ton!, everyone from target shooters like us to foreign armies are after the same stuff.

It's surprisingly cheap to import a pallet from Europe, and these guys have 54R tracer in stock.....>LINK<

DanTheMan wrote:It's surprisingly cheap to import a pallet from Europe, and these guys have 54R tracer in stock.....>LINK<

interesting, going by the case it looks as though itsT-46 Late Version (7.62 T-46. GSZ.) Hungarian tracer .Russian would be copper-washed steel cases, same as a light ball case.

T-46 fourth from left

snayperskaya wrote:

DanTheMan wrote:It's surprisingly cheap to import a pallet from Europe, and these guys have 54R tracer in stock.....>LINK<

interesting, going by the case it looks as though itsT-46 Late Version (7.62 T-46. GSZ.) Hungarian tracer .Russian would be copper-washed steel cases, same as a light ball case.

T-46 fourth from left

Is that all 7.62x54? The last one looks shorter?