I bought a box of tracers at a gunshow about a year ago, its a 20 round box labeled TRACER 5.56 MM M196.  The cases are have the nato headstamp and are marked LC 75.  I've fired a few of them and I haven't seen anything.  Do tracers have a shelf life and is is possible that none of them are going to work?

What range were you fireing them at?  Generally the tracers won't light right out of the barrel.  They have a delay of 50-100 or so yards to make a half-assed attempt at not totally giving away the shooters position.  You may have better luck if you try shooting at a 200 yard range or more.  

Then again, you could have some dud's, but I'm not too sure why they would go bad.  If they were remanufactured that could be the cause of it, but it doesn't seem like it from what you are saying.


-K

I have been firing them from about 100 yards, so I guess I should try firing them at longer distances.  They are not remanufactured from what I can figure out.  

Quoted: I have been firing them from about 100 yards, so I guess I should try firing them at longer distances.

At 3000 fps+ velocity,  they moving so fast, that by the time they start to light and your eye recognize it, they hitting the berm...  I've fire same from a 7.5" barrel, and with them moving soooo much slower (22-2300 fps), I can pick them up at maybe 50yd and watch them fly breifly into the dirt.


More fun if you have the room to do it (like the bottom of WV in the hills) is to hike the rifle up in elevation and aim towards the big mountain,   fire and watch them burn out in flight.  I did some M-856's,  and got call from  friends daddy wanting to know if it was me shooting tracer...  he was 2 mile to the right of my flight path (he was seeing them go from left to right)