Bullets containing gunpowder

Enthusiast · November 25, 2023, 02:22 PM

I thought about how modern hollowpoints expand on impact, transfering its energy to the target by mushrooming, which requires that the bullet travels at high velocity.

Why didn’t we invent bullets containing gunpowder instead? I’m not talking about the bullet itself exploding (with the danger of shrapnel) or a shock-sensitive primer that detonate on impact (with the risk of not setting it off, or setting it off by accident).

But rather a hollow bullet filled with gunpowder, that have ventholes for the pressure to escape, and a fuse that ignite when the propelling charge is fired. The fuse will later ignite the gunpowder inside the bullet when the bullet is inside its target, possibly generating even more energy than a modern hollowpoint would.

Such a bullet could be very lightweight and don’t require high velocity to function.

I can’t be the only one in history who thought about this, so why didn’t the concept catch up?

Recycled bullet · November 25, 2023, 02:24 PM

It sounds like you're describing the volcanic pistol.

**Mal H** · November 25, 2023, 03:05 PM

Exploding bullets were banned first by the St. Petersburg Declaration, and then by the Geneva Convention, but the rule in the U.S. that applies to your suggestion is this quote from the DoJ:

"It is a felony to possess, manufacture, import, keep, offer, or expose for sale, give, or lend any bullet that contains or carries an explosive agent."

Closed.

November 25, 2023, 02:22 PM	#1
Enthusiast Junior Member Join Date: April 28, 2022 Posts: 6	Bullets containing gunpowder I thought about how modern hollowpoints expand on impact, transfering its energy to the target by mushrooming, which requires that the bullet travels at high velocity. Why didn’t we invent bullets containing gunpowder instead? I’m not talking about the bullet itself exploding (with the danger of shrapnel) or a shock-sensitive primer that detonate on impact (with the risk of not setting it off, or setting it off by accident). But rather a hollow bullet filled with gunpowder, that have ventholes for the pressure to escape, and a fuse that ignite when the propelling charge is fired. The fuse will later ignite the gunpowder inside the bullet when the bullet is inside its target, possibly generating even more energy than a modern hollowpoint would. Such a bullet could be very lightweight and don’t require high velocity to function. I can’t be the only one in history who thought about this, so why didn’t the concept catch up?

November 25, 2023, 02:24 PM	#2
Recycled bullet Senior Member Join Date: November 13, 2022 Posts: 345	It sounds like you're describing the volcanic pistol.

November 25, 2023, 03:05 PM	#3
Mal H Staff Join Date: March 20, 1999 Location: Somewhere in the woods of Northern Virginia Posts: 16,959	Exploding bullets were banned first by the St. Petersburg Declaration, and then by the Geneva Convention, but the rule in the U.S. that applies to your suggestion is this quote from the DoJ: "It is a felony to possess, manufacture, import, keep, offer, or expose for sale, give, or lend any bullet that contains or carries an explosive agent." Closed.