Originally Posted by jwp475

The wound channel is created by the type of bullet and the construction of said bullet, the amount of direct applied force, the amount of momentum transferred and the amount of hydraulic pressure that is created by the bullets velocity. Kinetic energy is NOT CONSERVED IN INELASTIC COLLISIONs.

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Not if the bullet causes bone fragments, tissues, etc. to gain kinetic energy (be put into motion) by the collision.


Putting the bone fragments into motion is a transfer of momentum and is called secondary wounding and only happens at 2000 FPS and higher impact velocities

Everything you said is 100% correct, but you need to realize that the applied force, momentum transfer and hydraulic pressure are all created because of the bullet's energy.

Again, remember that when we say that kinetic energy is not perfectly conserved, it DOES NOT mean that NONE is conserved or transferred, just that not all of it is conserved.

About the 2000fps limit, I don't know if I buy that. I've seen chunks of gopher go flying out the offside due to the impact of a .22RF bullet going much slower than 2000. Also, a shotgun slug surely will displace bone fragments in an impact. It depends on the resistance of the bone in question, as well as how brittle it is, and also on the momentum of the bullet that hits it.