What doeas OTM mean?

General Firearms Reloading & Ammunition
1

Like the title says, what does OTM mean? I have seen it before in regards to several ammuntion selections, and hoped you guys could educate me in its meaning. I thought I was pretty well versed in most terms, but this one elludes me.

Example:

NOTE: For general purpose LE use, if stuck with 1/9 twist barrels, the heavy 70+ gr match OTM loads are not universally accurate in all rifles and the 69 gr SMK OTM, the 68 gr Hornady OTM, the Winchester 64 gr JSP (RA223R2), or one of the new Federal 64 gr TRU (223L) JSP, Hornady 60 gr JSP, or Nosler 60 gr Partition JSP’s are the best choices to most likely run accurately in the majority of 1/9 twist rifles. You are screwed with 1/12 twists, I would probably choose the 55 gr Federal bonded JSP load (Tactical–LE223T1 or identical Premium Rifle–P223T2) in order to ensure adequate penetration.

the above excerpt was taken by a post by DocGKR on Tactical Forums about 5.56 duty loads.

Thanks in advance for the info!

-RD62

2

open tip match

3

Like Taliv said…

Basically, somewhere, someone (Military?) along the line decided not to call them “hollow point” bullets for some sort of reason. They call them open tip match as the bullets have an open tip that is part of the construction of the projectile. These bullets were not designed as a hollow point intended for expansion on impact. So they wanted to help distinguish that these are match bullets with an open tip, and not an expanding hollow point design of bullet.

So these are your Sierra Matchkings, Nosler J4’s, Hornady Match, or other match grade bullets.

4

Ohhh…

Feel kind of foolish now. :smiley:

Familiar with the bullets, and their disticntions from regular hollow point designs. Just hadn’t seen them refered to in such a manner before.

Thanks for clearing that up!

-RD62

5

Exactly.
I think because JAG didn’t like HPBT (hollow point boat tail).

6

no reason to feel foolish. sierra refers to them as “boat tail hollow point”. i don’t know anybody who calls them OTM in conversation

7

I guess not. I had an opportunity to say OTM in a conversation today but I said 77 grain match bullet and Mk 262 instead.

It’s really not a bad idea to say OTM when you mean a match bullet and hollowpoint when you mean a, um, hollowpoint. There does seem to be some silly legal difference between a hollowpoint projectile, whose opening is deliberately meant to promote expansion and thereby a larger, more destructive, and more painful wound channel, and an open tip match projectile, whose opening is just an artifact of the manufacturing process of extremely accurate bullets. The former bullet is a Bozo No-No under the Hague and Geneva Conventions, while the latter bullet practically has a papal blessing. The semi-famous JAG opinion is at

http://www.wsrpa.net/public/opentipprojectiles.doc

and as you might expect when the lawyer who wrote it was a Marine Rifleman, it reaches the right opinion to help our troops. The key passage is this:

“The purpose of the 7.62mm “open-tip” MatchKing bullet is to provide maximum accuracy at very long range. Like most 5.56mm and 7.62mm military ball bullets, it may fragment upon striking its target, although the probability of its fragmentation is not as great as some military ball bullets currently in use by some nations. Bullet fragmentation is not a design characteristic, however, nor a purpose for use of the MatchKing by United State Army snipers. Wounds caused by MatchKing ammunition are similar to those caused by a fully jacketed military ball bullet, which is legal under the law of war, when compared at the same ranges and under the same conditions. The military necessity for its use-- its ability to offer maximum accuracy at very long ranges–is complemented by the high degree of discriminate fire it offers in the hands of a trained sniper. It not only meets, but exceeds, the law of war obligations of the United States for use in combat.”

So, take your “hollowpoint” bullets to war and shoot a smelly bearded man with them, and your aiss is graiss. But take your “OTM” Sierra MatchKing bullets to war, that’s A-OK, because with that tiny opening, they are more accurate and less likely to miss. If they happen to tumble and fragment like tiny grenades, they didn’t MEAN to. Tough tamales, smelly bearded (dead) man.

As you see, the real difference between hollowpoint and OTM is the same as the difference between a Michael and a Carmichael, a Dexter and a Poindexter, a Gerald and a Fitzgerald, etc. etc. I only work here, I don’t ask questions.