09 « January « 2015 « Daily Bulletin

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January 9th, 2015

Shooters’ Forum Goes Ballistic — with Help from Bryan Litz

AccurateShooter.com has added something NEW to our Shooter’s Forum. We recently launched a new Ballistics & Bullets Board, with Bryan Litz as the “Guru in Residence”. Bryan and his team at Applied Ballistics will help answer your questions about bullet trajectories, wind drift, BC values, bullet sorting methods, meplat trimming/pointing, and other general ballistics matters. This is your chance to get your questions answered by Bryan, a expert ballistician, and an ace long-range shooter. In addition, our new Ballistics Forum area features free excerpts from Applied Ballistics’ respected publications, including Applied Ballistics for Long Range Shooting, and Bryan’s new book, Modern Advancements in Long Range Shooting. CLICK HERE for FREE Samples.

If you have a ballistics question, or are simply curious about subjects such as bullet pointing, trajectory prediction, ballistics programs, ballistic coefficients, etc., then visit our Shooters’ Forum and join the discussion in our new Ballistics & Bullets Board.

Ballistics Forum Bryan Litz
Get $5.00 Off Applied Ballistics Books
As a special benefit for AccurateShooter.com Forum members, Applied Ballistics is offering $5.00 off Books and DVDs. If you haven’t acquired one of Bryan’s books yet, here’s a way to get with the program and save five bucks in the process. CLICK HERE for $5.00 discount info.

Get Answers from the Man Who Literally
‘Wrote the Book’ on Ballistics…
As an aerospace engineer, Bryan worked six years for the government on air-to-air missile designs. He is now owner of Applied Ballistics and Chief Ballistician for Berger Bullets. Bryan is also a champion long range shooter, so he brings a great deal of practical knowledge and experience to the table regarding the science of accuracy.

Ballistics Forum Bryan Litz

A Place to Share Knowledge and Advance the Science of Ballistics
Applied Ballistics is pleased to sponsor AccurateShooter.com’s new Ballistics & Bullets Board: “The new Ballistics Forum area provides an established place for shooters go and discuss ballistics-related issues in general. In addition to this basic objective of connecting shooters to each other, the staff of Applied Ballistics will frequent the Forum to provide expert advice on ballistics, and the use of ballistics programs. Bryan Litz will regularly visit the ballistics Forum, looking for ways to help shooters with ballistics questions. Beyond that, we’re eager to take suggestions on what kinds of tests we might consider for the AB Laboratory. We’re here to advance the science of ballistics, and we’d like to do that in ways that benefit the greatest amount of people. The ballistics forum gives us a place to explore these questions. We can answer the questions that we know, and formulate tests to explore those questions we don’t understand as well, then share the results online for everyone to see.”

How to Find the Ballistics & Bullets Board
To join in the discussions, visit our Shooters’ Forum. Scroll down until you see “Ballistics & Bullets Board, Presented by Bryan Litz and Applied Ballistics”. Just click on the orange title and you’re “in like Flynt”.

Guests can read all the topics. However, if you want to post or start a thread you’ll need to REGISTER with our Forum. There’s no charge (membership is FREE), and registration only takes a few minutes.

Permalink Bullets, Brass, Ammo, News 1 Comment »

January 9th, 2015

What Happens When You Load Pistol Powder in a Rifle Cartridge

This is a grim tale. A man almost lost the use of his right hand, and did suffer terrible injuries to his fingers. All because he picked the wrong bottle of powder off the shelf.

Varget Kaboom TiteGroup Hand injury reloading fingers accident

Similar Labels, Disasterous Consequences
The shooter, Denny K., was assembling some rounds for his brand new 7mm-08 Savage hunting rifle. He thought he was loading with Hodgdon Varget. Instead he had filled his powder measure with Hodgdon TiteGroup, a fast-burning pistol powder. The labels are similar, so the mistake is understandable. But the results were devastating. Here’s what 41 grains of TiteGroup can do in a 7mm-08:

Posting on the Firing Line, in a thread entitled “Lucky to Be Alive”, Denny writes:

“This is the hardest post to post. I know if I had read it a week ago my comment would have been: ‘You have no business reloading’. I had everything perfect, except pouring the wrong powder in the powder measure. I type this slowly with my left hand, embarrassed but … possibly saving someone else a tragedy or, like me, a long drive to the Emergency Room and surgery to save my finger.”

CLICK HERE for bigger, more graphic photo of injury.
Varget Kaboom TiteGroup Hand injury reloading fingers accident

The Still-Sealed Bottle of Varget
Denny did not initially comprehend exactly why the kaboom happened. He thought maybe his new Savage rifle was at fault. Then, on his return home, he discovered something…

Denny wrote: “The seven-hour period it took to go to ER, transport to Trauma Center and surgery made me think it was a Savage rifle issue. Brand new rifle, new brass, triple-checked loading data. The next day I was humbled when I realized the Varget powder was still sealed.

I knew what powder to use. I thought [Varget] was what I used. Not until the following day did I realize the Varget was still sealed.”

At that point, Denny realized what caused the accident — “operator error”. He knew he had to warn others about using the wrong powder: “I knew I needed to share my mistake, even though it is embarrassing, just to remind people. I’ve been reloading for 30 years…”

Editor’s Comment: Denny was not a novice reloader. His experience demonstrates that this kind of mistake can be made by any hand-loader, even one with decades of experience. Be safe guys, take your time when you load your ammo. Remove powders from measures after your loading sessions (pistol powders can look very similar to rifle powders). And by all means CHECK the LABEL on the jug. As the TiteGroup label says: “A little goes a long way.”

It’s not a bad idea to separate your pistol powders from your rifle powders, or perhaps even load for pistol in a separate part of your workshop.

Permalink News, Reloading 70 Comments »

January 9th, 2015

How Hornady Ammunition Is Made — Step-by-Step Process

Get an inside look at the how ammunition is made with this step-by-step production guide from Hornady. The video begins by showing the stages in production of a lead-core jacketed bullet with exposed tip, such as the Hornady Interlock. Next, at the 1:38″ time-mark, the video shows how cartridge cases are made, starting with small brass cups (photo right). The brass is lengthened in a series of stages involving annealing, drawing, polishing, and the formation of the case head with primer pocket. Finally, at the 2:40″ time mark, the video shows how bullets and powder are seated into cartridge cases on the Hornady assembly line. In the final production stages, the completed ammunition is tested and packaged.