Berger BC deterioration ?

[Nature Boy]

When someone sees an uptick in some future production run..........

......They will say it’s proof you’re just making the number higher for “marketing” purposes

 

[rr2030]

Well I did some reloading yesterday and thought while I had everything on hand I would make a few measurements.

5 samples from each box, I know thats not much but its what I had.

The box with the .267 BC average length was .7598" and BBTO ES was .0010"
The box with the .262 BC average length was .7566" and BBTO ES was .0015"
The box with the .254 BC average length was .7532" and BBTO ES was .0000"

I guess they are just getting shorter.

 

[Ned Ludd]

Well I did some reloading yesterday and though while I had everything on hand I would make a few measurements.

5 samples from each box, I know thats not much bit its what I had.

The box with the .267 BC average length was .7598" and BBTO ES was .0010"
The box with the .262 BC average length was .7566" and BBTO ES was .0015"
The box with the .254 BC average length was .7532" and BBTO ES was .0000"

I guess they are just getting shorter.

Getting shorter certainly fits with the reduction in BC value.

 

[mikeeg02]

I'd say they can keep getting shorter if it makes them more consistent. I would be interested in seeing what happens if you open up your sample size to say 25 or so.

 

[Murray Brook]

Last year my 52gr Berger FB .224 varmint bullet had a BC of .197. I just purchased a new box and the BC is .201 for the same bullet.

 

[AJC]

"Can someone explain why the BC keeps going down"

Thats all I asked, I'm not knocking Berger just wondering. The group of people here, thankfully, dissect any and everything to the sub atomic level, so I knew I would get many opinions. I do shoot these routinely to 600 yards so I definitely need all the help I can get.

I would not say they are going down per Sei, just a revised truth like almost anything done in science. You publish the facts as you know them, and if testing reveals better or more accurate information you go with that. If your honest.

 

[Bart B.]

Ask all the tool and die makers using machines to make chamber reamers and bullet forming dies what their dimensional tolerances are.

If they answer anything but zero, never ever buy anything made with their stuff again.

But it's OK if a given powder produces small muzzle velocity spreads across several lots for the same cartridge components and charge weight. And a given set of bullet making dies don't make them all the same shape across all lots of jacket metal.

Do all bullet makers work up loads to test their stuff when component lots change?

 

[Corey Schwanz]

This might clear up some things: http://www.bergerbullets.com/update-of-berger-bullets-performance-data/

We simply updated the BCs of the bullets, based on results from extensive testing done by Bryan Litz. All about being more accurate in the information that is being presented to shooter. Some bullets had their BCs raised, others were lowered.

 

[dcali]

As a somewhat related side note, I question the practice of sorting by BTO. With today's match grade bullets, BTO is very consistent within a single lot, where OAL is still fairly variable. Yet we insist that BTO is the way to sort... because it's more consistent? By that logic, we should sort by diameter - it's way more consistent than BTO.

Measuring cartridges by BTO makes sense to set seating depth. Sorting bullets by BTO doesn't.

 

[mikeeg02]

I think that depends on your lot of bullets, if you're shooting benchrest or not, and how competitive you want to be.

My lot of hybrids has .009" bto variance, and since I've started sorting the way I am which includes bto, I've gotten rid of unexplained fliers.

 

[dcali]

Wow. I've never had a lot vary that much. Usually, they've been closer to .002" within a lot.

 

[mikeeg02]

I just sorted, trimmed, pointed 3,500 from lot 61111 (cant remember how many 1's but its a 6 and then 1's). Not as many on the outliers, but those are the ones you really need to catch. I bought about 6,000 of the same lot last year.

 

[rardoin]

This might clear up some things: http://www.bergerbullets.com/update-of-berger-bullets-performance-data/

We simply updated the BCs of the bullets, based on results from extensive testing done by Bryan Litz. All about being more accurate in the information that is being presented to shooter. Some bullets had their BCs raised, others were lowered.

Now why did you go and mess up the potential for at least 10 pages of entertaining conspiracy theories as to why Berger has changed their published B.C.'s. Tsk Tsk Corey

 

[PAshooter20BR]

Same great bullet just ignore the floating BC on boxes. Litz never quits testing, updates to BC come often.

 

[rhovee]

The 184 hybrid has a higher BC than initially advertised by Berger. Lots and company tested it this week.