Long Range Shooting Secrets

Bullets Tips
The twist rate of the barrel determines the best bullet weight for your gun and is the
single, most important factor for rifle accuracy (see included twist rate chart). The
manufacturer cuts the rifling to a twist rate that will stabilize the bullet designed and
tested for that cartridge. The smaller the bore diameter, the more difficult it is to stabilize
a bullet. Hea! bullets cannot be drien to the same elocities as lighter bullets in the
same barrel, so the! are also not spinning as fast leaing the muzzle and ma! not stabilize
down range. Bullet spin is a product of twist rate and velocity. " sure sign of a bullet
not spinning fast enough is a target with oal or #e!hole hits. $sing a light bullet in a
fast twist rate barrel ma! cause the bullet to s#ip across the rifling and literall! file itself,
thus larger groups. %&cess copper residue in the barrel is a clue. Tr! to duplicate factor!
loads. The! hae been e&tensiel! tested for best results. Matching the bullet weight
to the twist rate and velocity is essential for accuracy. 'f !ou need a heaier bullet
than !our twist rate will handle, !ou are probabl! using the wrong rifle.
Bullet parameters: Besides weight, there are fie measurements that should be
considered when selecting a bullet. Sectional Density( " weight to length ratio
measurement. The longer and heaier the bullet, the higher the sectional densit! thus the
deeper it will penetrate. This parameter is not important for target and armint loads but
is er! important for game hunting loads. Ballistic Coefficient (B))( The higher the
B), the more aerod!namic the bullet, thus it will drop less at long ranges and will be less
affected b! cross winds. *ue to air densit!, small diameter bullets such as a .++,-
t!picall! hae poor B)s. .mm bullets and larger start getting higher B)s. " B) of .,//
is considered er! good, .0// and higher is e&cellent. Balance: "ll rifle bullets are
heaier in the rear than the front and therefore are naturall! unstable. The more balanced,
the more stable it will be. Bore Surface is the length of the bullet that actuall! touches
the bore. The longer the bore surface, the more it dampens effects from bullet 1ump
shoc# and the more stable the bullet will be going down the barrel. This parameter is
er! important for accurac!. give is the point on the nose where the bullet first
measures full diameter. This important parameter will dictate bullet seating depth, bullet
1ump and cartridge oerall length. "ll bullets must be seated at optimum depth for best
accurac!. This usuall! occurs where the ogie is ./2/- from the rifled bore.
Conclusion( "nal!ze before loading. "lwa!s sta! within the bullet weight intended for
!our twist rate. Tr! to select a bullet with the longest bore surface, best balanced,
shortest ogie to tip measurement, highest ballistic coefficient, and best sectional densit!,
in that order. " good place to start is a boat tail with a blunt nose or hollow point. 3ost
reloading manuals list B), sectional densit!, and hae pictures of bullets so !ou can
compare important parameters. *on4t s#imp on bullets5 bu! the best 6ualit! !ou can
find. 3ost bullets sold in bul# pac#s are not uniform weight. Sta! with bo&es of 2//.
$se a Bullet Depth !auge to determine proper bullet seating depth. Bullet Depth
!auges are aailable in all cartridges with .++,, 7mm, and .8/9 diameter bullets. These
tools are er! eas! to use and come with simple instructions. $nfortunatel!, the! are
onl! aailable for guns with direct in:line chamber access such as a bolt action, single
shot, "R:20, etc.
"ifle Twist "ates
Caliber Twist "ate Bullet #eight
.27+ 2(2/ all weights
.+++ Rim ;ire 2(2. all weights, lead bullets
.++, < 0.0.mm 2(2. up to 00 grains, ,8// fps or more
2(20 up to 00 grains, ,2// = ,8// fps
2(2, up to 00 grains, less than ,2// fps
2(2+ 00 = .8 grains
2(> .8 = 7/ grains
2(9 7/ grains or more
.+,8 < .mm 2(20 up to 7/ grains
2(2, 7/ : 70 grains
2(28 70 = 90 grains
2(2+ 90 = 2// grains
2(2/ 2// grains or more
.+07 2(2, up to 7/ grains
2(28 7/ = 9/ grains
2(2+ 9/ = >/ grains
2(2/ >/ = 2// grains
2(> 2// grains or more
.+., < ..0 mm 2(> up to 28/ grains
2(9 28/ grains or more
.+7/ 2(2/ all weights
.+9, < 7mm 2(22 up to 2,/ grains
2(2/ 3agnum elocities
2(>.0 2,/ grains or more
.8/9 < 7..+mm 2(20 up to 20/ grains
2(2, 20/ = 2.9 grains
2(2+ 2.9 = 27/ grains
2(2/ 27/ = ++/ grains
2(9 ++/ grains or more
.822 < 7..0 mm 2(2/ all weights
.8+2 2(2. all weights
.8+8 < 9mm 2(2/ all weights
.889 2(2/ all weights
.8,9 2(2+ all weights
.809 2(2+ all weights
.870 2(2+ all weights
.,22 2(2, all weights
.,2. 2(2, all weights
.,+> 2(89 all weights
.,09 2(+/ all weights up to +/// fps
2(2, all weights aboe +/// fps