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"See" a .45 ACP being shot

slipgate
A friend of mine says if you are at the right (correct) angle to the shooter that you can actually see a .45 travel down range because it is such a slow bullet.

Has anyone ever done that?
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Comments

39 comments

Date Votes
  • Permanently deleted user
    BS!
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  • wolfdog45
    I call bull.
    You can't see a standard round going downrange from a .45 but you can see tracer rounds going downrange.
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  • jimbowby
    [8D]-Well, I think you've been watching MATRIX TO MUCH--

    --Not really, if you are alert,in mon-blinking status-your mind will realize the fleeting image of the bullet when you are almost directly behind the shooter (with ear protection)--

    --[^][^]--JIMBO
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  • HandLoad
    Well, at our gun range, I have seen many,many .22 bullets going downrange - the shooting positions are under cover, and the targets and most of the distance travelled is in bright sunshine after midday...I'll have to make it a point to observe .45 shooting, and see if I can.
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  • buschmaster
    yep... I've done it. I was at the range with a friend and I told him. he was like "bull s***!" I could see the color too, so he got some copper jacket and some silver (or nickel or whatever) and put some of each in the mag, he knew in what order, and shot them.

    I was like "copper! nickel! nickel! copper! nickel! ..."

    it shouldn't be all that amazing, because most .45 ammo does what, 850-1000 fps? a bb gun shoots bb's around 800-900 fps, and I saw those all the time over open sights- easier because you're more in the line of sight, but when standing next to someone shooting a .45, you can still see those. they're bigger.
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  • buschmaster
    and that was an indoor range with indoor lighting.
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  • Bshooter
    I shoot in my back yard toward the North. Usually in the afternoon I can shoot my 45 and see the rounds enter the bunker. The bunker has a black rubber covering which allows me to see the round. Both lead and jacketed bullets can be seen. Bshooter
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  • David Nunn
    I have seen 9mm bullets going downrange. I was taking the CHL instructor class at DPS HQ in Austin, and it was on their range. The DPS range is in the middle of Austin, so it is heavily bermed and has an overhead baffle, but it is outdoors. The sun had dropped down to where it was shining through the gaps in the baffles, sort of over my right shoulder.

    There weren't enough stations on the range for all of us, so the instructors divided us up and put two of us at each station. One was to shoot, and the other act as a coach, mainly just keep the shooter from doing anything stupid.

    I was teamed up with a lady who was shooting a 9mm Glock. She was not shooting serious ammo, but some FMJ reloads. The sun was at such an angle, that I started noticing that I could actually see the bases of her bullets as they went downrange. I could see every one of them, until the sun's position shifted and the lighting changed.

    So, call BS if you want to. I know what I saw, and I wouldn't have believed it either, except I saw it myself.
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  • dcinffxva
    Yes to .40, .45, 9mm and blackpowder.

    All it takes is the sun over the back, and the right angle to see them.
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  • ripley16
    I can't do it but this guy can,
    [img][/img]MyPictureB.jpg
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  • zipperzap
    I've seen'em going north, too!
    [8D]
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  • Grunt2
    Yep...Not unusual at all...
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  • elkoholic
    Yup. I started shooting rounds with the copper base at the indoor range and I could see them going down range. It was very distracting for a while.
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  • BHAVIN
    I have seen it in ISPC practice. The shooter was using a load on the light end and the sun was going doen you could see every shot. We quit shooting and made him shoot until the sunlight changed enough that we could not see them anymore.
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  • john carr
    Yes, I've seen .22 Target (standard velocity) bullets against the sky many times. Elmer Keith said he could see the old .455 Webley MK II bullets going straight up. No big deal.
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  • Txs
    During training we shoot .380, 9mm and .40 S&W loads that are fully jacketed, including the base. It's normal to see the streak of these rounds in flight during night fire if you're standing at the correct angle from a shooter positioned near a patrol car with it's spotlight trained on the target. At 25 yds. you'll only see about the last half of it's flight, but you can't miss it.

    I've also seen this under the conditions Nunn describes, but second his observation that angles of the shooter, sun and observer all have to be just right.
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  • bpost
    Hell yes you can.

    I see my 45's and .22's all the time. if the sun is over your shoulder and refelcts off the base of the bullet you can see it fly. It is VERY easy to see a .22 in a scope if the sun is at your 4 to 7 o'clock and you are shooting into a deep shadow.

    A 45 is a lot slower and bigger bullet; it is easier to see if you know how to position the sun. I can also see .44 mags at about 1,000 FPS.
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  • fishermanben
    I've seen .40s, and .45s. I've been called a liar for saying I've seen them too!

    Ben
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  • tazzer
    Iv seen 45-70 coming out of a thunder 5 before not a hard thing to do
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  • drobs
    Same here, seen em at some combat ispc style shoots.
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  • Warpig883
    Anyone who has been shooting more than just a few rounds a year has seen this. No big deal.
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  • pickenup
    With all this first hand experience seeing them, can I still call BS on it?

    I've seen quite a few (handgun) calibers going downrange.
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  • A J Christ
    Ive seen .223, .22, 357, 40, 45, 105mm, 155mm and 8". Surprised we hit anything at all with that thing, wobbles as it goes.

    Light's got to be right and you can see them all.
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  • Permanently deleted user
    Yep. I've seen it many times under the right conditions and while watching a fellow .45 auto shooter.
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  • pitbud5
    When shooting west in the late afternoon myself and other were amazed to actually see the 45 slugs in the air before they reached their target 45 feet out. NO BS! I've seen it more than once.
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  • Ba Sardo
    I've seen .45 and some .357 and .38 reloads travel down range, although never when I was shooting and almost never on purpose. Sometimes you're just at the right spot when the round starts headed on its way and you can spot it.
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  • Laredo Lefty
    I have seen 9mm, .38 spl, .45, and .40 in the air, but its not due to their speed, but the light conditions.

    When the light angle is right, it reflects off the back of the bullet and it can be seen. Not a big deal... seen them many times.

    I have tried to pick it up with a video camera, but it didnt work.
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  • elect1mike
    I have seen a 44 special but never a .45 acp
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  • v35
    Yes, but from above the sights. I've also seen 105mm & 155 howitzer rounds in flight.
    Bullets wobble and yaw initially but settle down after a while. I've seen that in high speed photography but not personally.
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  • tsavo303
    yes, you just need the right sun and a far enough away target
    We see our faster 9mm rounds frequently
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