why is it called a "FULL" metal jacket?

Factual Questions
1

So, why are bullets with a hard shell around the tip and sides called a full metal jacket, rather than just jacketed? Was there ever a partial metal jacket that had less covering (but more than a regular bullet)?

What made me curious was hearing about the “total metal jacket”. The existence of an even more jacketed round makes FMJ sound even more like a misnomer or usage of a superfluous adjective (I’m not a grammar nazi or anything, but adding an extra word with the extra writing, word space and effort it brings, for no benefit strikes me as odd, even for humans).

(Insert obligatory movie reference here)

2

Yes, there were and are such bullets. They’re called semi-jacketed bullets.

3

Take a look here for more information than you ever thought possible about bullet design:

http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/mediapages/ArticleDetail.aspx?mediaid=17

4

Thanks. Between the two answers, I was able to discover that the full order is:
[ol]
[li] Semi Jacketed: Copper casing on sides only (tip and base exposed)[/li][li] Full Metal Jacket: Copper casing on tip and sides[/li][li] Total Metal Jacket: Copper casing around entire bullet (sides, tip, and base)[/li][/ol]

I also know from a David Weber novel that jacketing bullets is a nigh-impossible without advanced metallurgy techniques, due to the differing contraction rates of metals as they cool.

5

One wouldn’t really think there would be much difference or advancement in bullet technology after all these years, but bullet and ammo companies keep making advancements regarding accuracy, expansion, penetration and other desired characteristics. I quickly looked at the bullets Hornady (just one of the major bullet and ammo manufacturers) makes for one caliber and weight (.30 caliber, 150 grain) on a website, and they make 17 different bullets for just this one weight/caliber (projectiles, not loaded cartridges) ranging in price from 19 cents to 60 cents per bullet. Some of the variation is gimmickry, designed to attract the hunter or shooter who wants the latest cool technology, but some of it is valid.

6

I’m not sure I would believe science-fiction and fantasy author David Weber’s opinion of how difficult is to manufacture jacketed bullets. just sayin’.

Billions of bullets are being produced every year using standard tool-making techniques. A) Press copper/brass into the form of a bullet jacket, pour hot lead or a lead/tin/antimony mixture into the formed jacket. B) Cut copper tubing to length, swage lead wire into the copper tube, and swage bullet to final shape. Modern techniques include electoplating a very thin layer of copper over a lead mixture. A more advance technique is to turn (on a lathe) a copper slug to shape. You could then drill a cavity into the rear of the copper and add a lead or tungsten slug for added weight.

There’s nothing difficult about making jacket bullets if you have the right equipment.