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Importance: Caliber Vs. Wind Reading Skills

Some great thoughts here. Steve, thank you for the write up. Makes a lot of sense to me. Keep the thoughts coming folks, I'm enjoying seeing what everyone has to say.
 
To stir up the pot somemore, consider:

BULLET WEIGHT.

2 bullets in different cals. Same muzzle velocity. Same listed BC.

Which is better?

Jerry
 
mysticplayer said:
To stir up the pot somemore, consider:

BULLET WEIGHT.

2 bullets in different cals. Same muzzle velocity. Same listed BC.

Which is better?

Jerry

The bigger caliber one, it cuts a bigger hole on the target! ;)
 
Theoretically there should be no difference in ballistics. But BCs don't tell the whole story, particularly G1 BCs, which aren't a good fit for typical low drag small-arms projectiles. Its possible to have identical BCs but quite different velocity loss profiles. In my experience, heavier bullets tend to go better at long ranges (say > 800yds) than lighter ones with the same BC.

Alan
 
Erik Cortina said:
mysticplayer said:
To stir up the pot somemore, consider:

BULLET WEIGHT.

2 bullets in different cals. Same muzzle velocity. Same listed BC.

Which is better?

Jerry

The bigger caliber one, it cuts a bigger hole on the target! ;)

No joke on this one.

I find that markers on a windy day have more trouble finding a 6mm hole than say a 30 cal hole. The wind also seems to blow the sound of the crack of the 6mm away making it difficult for the markers to figure out if a shot has been fired. All up the net effect is greater chance of marking delays for a 6mm compared to say the 7s or 30s...important in fast moving windy conditions.
 
Erik Cortina said:
If that's the case, then why do you shoot 115's out of your CM? Wouldn't 70-85 gr bullets have less recoil?

We are playing different games thats why.

I mainly shoot steel at non square range matches like this one. http://competition-dynamics.com/steel-safari-2012/

I do shoot an occasional NRA Any Any 1,000 yard match, but not that often.

Most matches with steel targets have a 3,200-3,300 fps speed limit to cut down on damage to steel.

115 is about as heavy as I can shoot from an awkward position and still see hits/misses inside 300 yards. My 260 shooting 142s is fine, but when not prone, I get moved around enough that I cant see hits/misses when my scope is dialed up to 15-20X.

The trend these past few years has been towards the 6mm shooting 105 Hybrids and 115 DTACs. When I first brought out my 6XC to a "Tactical Match" they just laughed and said I needed a 308 or 260.

My F-TR rifle is getting a new barrel as we speak.
 
look into 7mmsaum shooting 162 grain A-max or 168 bergers, less powder than 7mm mag and less than 7mm wsm, same performance velocity wise but better efficiency, longer neck, about 3000 fps, its very good in the wind.
 
Hoser said:
Erik Cortina said:
If that's the case, then why do you shoot 115's out of your CM? Wouldn't 70-85 gr bullets have less recoil?

We are playing different games thats why.

I mainly shoot steel at non square range matches like this one. http://competition-dynamics.com/steel-safari-2012/

I do shoot an occasional NRA Any Any 1,000 yard match, but not that often.

Most matches with steel targets have a 3,200-3,300 fps speed limit to cut down on damage to steel.

115 is about as heavy as I can shoot from an awkward position and still see hits/misses inside 300 yards. My 260 shooting 142s is fine, but when not prone, I get moved around enough that I cant see hits/misses when my scope is dialed up to 15-20X.

The trend these past few years has been towards the 6mm shooting 105 Hybrids and 115 DTACs. When I first brought out my 6XC to a "Tactical Match" they just laughed and said I needed a 308 or 260.

My F-TR rifle is getting a new barrel as we speak.

I'm playing the same game as my fellow Colorado member Hoser. Hoser is one of the best at our game. We have to see our hits/misses in awkward shooting positions, no spotters, no flags. We both shoot the monthly Raton steel match. I'm shooting a 6x47/105 Hybrids/3050. I've shot a 284 a few times, challenging to maintain a sight picture. I've scored better with my 6x47.

RO has to see a hit on a 1/2 AR500 plate at 875. A 70-85 grain bullets lacks the energy to swing that plate.

A couple guys who have been shooting the Raton match from the start, 2005?, usually shoot 260's. I view them as very good wind readers, they know the terrain well and how that terrain effects the wind. Occasionally they both shoot 308's, they score better with their 260's. So ya, caliber matters.
 
steve-o said:
look into 7mmsaum shooting 162 grain A-max or 168 bergers, less powder than 7mm mag and less than 7mm wsm, same performance velocity wise but better efficiency, longer neck, about 3000 fps, its very good in the wind.
[br]
Loaded to equal pressure in the same cartridge, higher B.C. bullets will always produce less wind deflection. The two cited bullets are well below 180 Hybrids.
 
We could write a book easily on what will serve us best. In bench shooting equipment is a priority and in fclass the wind skills keep you in the game. To win at either you need both or you just can't beat the person that has it together. Your ability to tune a cartridge is a MUST in competition or nothing will work for you. Making good decisions on what equipment serves your present skills is how the outcome will be. As Steve stated that he put alot of time into learning how to shoot the heavy recoil of a magnum round. This has to be considered when you decide what YOU can do your best with.
 

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