Bullet Wipe
Definition
Greyish to brownish ring of lubricant, lead and copper rubbed off the bullet onto the margin of an entry hole in clothing. Present at all ranges, including distant, where it is often the only visible residue.
- Appearance
- Greyish to brownish ring
- Composition
- Lubricant, lead, copper residue
- Location
- Margin of the entry hole in clothing
- Present at
- All ranges, including distant
- Field
- Range of fire determination
Common questions
Why is bullet wipe forensically useful for distant-range shots?+
At distant range, gunshot residue and soot from the muzzle rarely reach the target, so the faint ring of bullet wipe is often the only physical evidence confirming a hole is a genuine bullet entry rather than an unrelated tear.
Can bullet wipe be mistaken for other marks on fabric?+
Yes, a similar-looking discoloured ring can result from friction or staining unrelated to a gunshot, so examiners confirm bullet wipe with chemical testing for lead or copper rather than visual appearance alone.
Related terms
- Contact Shot
- Muzzle pressed against skin or clothing at the moment of firing. Hallmarks are a stellate (star-shaped) wound from sub-dermal gas tracking, a...
- Modified Griess Test
- A contact-transfer colour chemistry test for nitrite-containing propellant combustion residue. Sulphanilic acid undergoes diazotisation with nitrous acid (from NO2 on the target...
- Powder Tattooing
- Stippling pattern of unburned and partially burned propellant grains embedded in the skin around an entry wound. Cannot be wiped off. Pathognomonic...
- Range of Firing
- The distance from the muzzle of the firearm to the target at the moment of discharge. Estimated from wound geometry, soot pattern,...
- Sodium Rhodizonate Test
- Colour test for lead. The cloth is treated with sodium rhodizonate followed by buffer; lead deposits give a pink-to-red colour, confirmed with...
- Soot (Blackening)
- Submicrometre carbon-rich particles from incomplete propellant combustion, deposited on the garment or skin surface around the entry hole at contact and near-contact...
- Walker Test
- Filter-paper transfer test for nitrites in propellant residue. The cloth is pressed against desensitised filter paper, sprayed with sulphanilic acid and alpha-naphthylamine,...