4 Responses to “Why is FMJ illegal for hunting in BC, Canada?”

1. RUGERIZMISTICNESS Bober hunter says:

   March 10, 2010 at 11:13 am

   Because the FMJ has much less potential to kill the animal because it doesn’t expand and it overpenetrates.
2. Connie Goosebung says:

   March 10, 2010 at 11:39 am

   You don`t want the game taking off and hiding somewhere it can`t be found , then dying ! You want a bullet that expands and breaks up when it enters so as to have an immediate kill , with much less chance of the animal suffering .

   This is why Full Metal Jacket is not allowed !
3. ERIC says:

   March 10, 2010 at 12:32 pm

   FMJ’s are illegal for hunting in most localities, although some jurisdictions have exceptions for furbearers and varmints.

   The reason behind this is the design of the bullet is to not expand, so it simply zips though with little damage. the bullet will start out as say a .30 cal (or whatever other size you shoot) and will exit the same size. With no expansion it makes it much less likely to cause a quick death due to the lack of damage.

   Expanding bullets, soft points being the most commonly used style for big game hunting although there are other designs, will expand on impact turning the bullet into a nice little mushroom shape. So your .30 cal bullet will end up being considerably larger in diameter. This will cause more internal damage, allowing the heart or lungs to bleed out quicker causing a much quicker more humane death. Also when the bullet expands it creates more drag which slows it down, effectively dumping more of it’s energy into the target.

   FMJ’s are great for target practice due to their low cost, they are however very poor for killing anything due to the extremely precise shot placement needed to instantly drop anything. This is actually one of the main reasons that they are used by the military, if you wound a soldier not only is he out of the bettle but it takes a few more to carry him off to receive medical attention, and the medical care costs more and uses up more of the enemies resources than a funeral does.

   If it helps to visualize this think about arrow tips. A FMJ is a lot like a target point that’s the same diameter as the rest of the arrow, while a softpoint or other expanding design is more like a mechanical broadhead that flies true but when it enters the target the surface area increases to cause more internal damage.
4. John de Witt says:

   March 10, 2010 at 1:27 pm

   The situations in which a FMJ bullet will be appropriate for hunting are few and require a lot of judgment. That’s very difficult to put into a written regulation, so it’s easier to make a blanket rule that’s a little too broad but understandable.