A buddy of mine bought a box of reloading supplies. In this box there are some NORMA .308 - 130 grain soft point bullets. the finish on these bullets is nickel , a silvery looking color. From the look of the box they are quite old. Does anyone know anything about htese bullets??

You're right thats cupro- nickel jacketing used mostly in europe till the late 60's . if they are loaded .308 Norma thats a belted magnum very similiar to a .338 winchester necked down to .308 this was a long range cartridge. The danger in that older stuff is the bi-metal reaction that occurs between the bullet and the case it kinda corrodes and sticks together this can dangerously boost pressures. As the powder burns but the bullet doesn't move till the pressures are alot higher then they should be refer to cartridges of the world or a similiar publication , even some reloading manuals have a short history on cartridges.If you just have to use them for a gun chambered in this cartridge move the bullet slightly by using a seater die in a reloading press with the die not screwed in ( like it would be for a crimp) but the bullet pusher screwed down gradually to contact the bullet slightly this will break the seal so to speak be carefull not to push the bullet into the case any farther then you have to. my advise though would be to collect them as they are. and not try to shoot them this cartridge is still available unless you live in antarctica or something.

fnuser, that's an interesting post! I read just recently that some of the new bullets (Trophy Bonded?) would have a nickle plating applied.

I’m going out on a limb here !!! (don’t count it as factual)

I would believe that a nickel plating of today’s standard would be of the electroless nickel variety and therefore should offer a degree of lubrication and also have some anti-corrosion properties.

Any metallurgist that can set this/me straight on the subject please speak up !!!

I have been using the 180 grs SP of Norma for years in my .300 WM and they always have pleased me very much. That was also a nickel plated bullet but it had a yellow plastic nose. These bullets gave me the best groupe in my FN-Mauser, but they are difficult to get nowadays.
Never have had problems with corrosion what so ever. Nickel is rather stainless and I don't think the electro potential differs so much between nickel and cupper, not enough to give a galvano-system (as f.e. cupper and iron and look at the steel cartridges combinated with FMJ bullets, maybe that's part of why these cartridges are coated)

FN...the factory .308 Norma Magnum round had the Nickel bullet with a yellow plastic tip. I tried to get some of the bullets as a component back in the early 80's but the were not procurable here in Australia.

I have one factory round in my collection...a great calibre except for the recoil...somewhere in the vicinity of 150 ft lbs of recoil I believe.

Cheers, Vince

sorry, I missed the yellow plastic nose I was referring to the older lead nose.

wait a minute, he said softpoint I think he and I are talking about the same cartridge, Y'all are talking about something else that has come about more recently.

Kinda like a round nose Ballistic tip huh?