speer vs. hornady

[model 12 toby]

been shooting 110 grain tnt hp's out of 7 mm rem mag. not pushing them too fast. getting excellent groups. Have been told in the past that they might not shoot good at distances. Some told to switch to 120 grain v-maxes. I ordered some v-maxes. Although speers are flat base and hornady's are boat tail, I noticed in my sierra ballistic software that speers bc was .385 while hornady's bc was .365. Wouldn't this suggest that speers would shoot better in general? Can't wait to try the v-maxes. Haven't been shooting farther than 260 lately but am going to have opportunities soon. Any info would help. Thanks

 

[K22]

When you say "shoot better" do you mean trajectory or accuracy wise?

The small difference in BC you've listed should not be a factor with regards to trajectory. Here are some general guidelines: BT's generally shoot flatter as the distances increase beyond 250 yards or so. The heavier bullets will retain more velocity at greater distance therefore are a better choice for long range shooting (i.e., 300 yards and beyond)

When it comes to accuracy, some rifles like BT's others don't. Some rifles preferred some brands and others don't. The only way to know is to try them. Both the mfgs you mention make quality bullets. I've used V-max's for years, (Not in 7mm) and found them to be excellent.

You may want to try Sierra also, they make excellent bullets at a reasonable price.

Good shooting and good luck.

 

[6BRinNZ]

K22 has given good information.

I had a quick look on the Hornady website and the 7mm 120 V-max with a BC of .365 is still a FB...maybe I was looking at the wrong Bullet?

The easiest way I have found to compare bullets in the wind, long range etc is to stick the numbers in a ballistic app such as "BergerBallistics.exe", this allows me to do a theoretical comparison. I have found this approach great when comparing as you mention above or one situation using 75 v-maxes running at ~3350fps vs 105A-maxes at ~2900 fps, and I can play around with theoretical velocities as often the accuracy node isn't at the top end of the velocity range.

From there I make my choice/s and go see how they shoot.

Good Luck.

 

[model 12 toby]

Good info. Got some bad reports that the 110s weren't going to shoot good at 600 or so. I shot 260 the other day. Awesome groups. Bout an inch. Its hard for me to believe they won't shoot 600. Maybe not 1000. But that's a diff ball game.

 

[K22]

At those distances remember the affect of winddrift. For example, a 120 grain 7mm muzzle vel of 3300 will drift approx. as follows with a 90 degree cross wind:

10 mph - 300 yards - drift 8" ; 400 yards - drift 15" ; 500 yards - drift -24"
20 mph - 300 yards - drift 16"; 400 yards - drift 30": 500 yards - drift -49"

This gives you an idea how significant it can be. Of course, wind is not always at a perfect 90 degree but you get the idea.