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September 25th, 2008
Forum member Andy (aka GreyMist) has completed an interesting test, with five (5) different types of .243 Winchester Brass. He collected Federal, Lapua, Remington, and two different lots of Winchester-brand brass. Then he selected ten (10) cases at random from each brand and measured their weights. To ascertain case capacity, three (3) cases from each brand/lot that were closest to the average weight for that brand/lot were selected. The results were surprising: there was less than one (1) grain capacity difference between all the cases, even with a 14.7 grain maximum difference in case weight!
Measuring Procedures
The cases were sized in a Redding body die then primed with a spent primer. All were weighed before and after filling them with distilled water. The capacity shown is an average of all three (3) cases from that lot and represents grains of water. Note, I tested two lots of Winchester brass. Lot A was purchased in 1999. Lot B was from factory .243 ammo. There is a rather large disparity in case weight between the two lots. For more info and to see the weights of individual tested cases, visit GreyMist’s webpage.
| Brand |
Federal |
Lapua |
Remington |
Winchester A |
Winchester B |
| Capacity |
53.9 |
54.4 |
53.7 |
54.8 |
54.8 |
| Aver. Weight |
173.28 |
173.13 |
165.34 |
158.58 |
166.44 |
| SD¹ |
0.46 |
0.39 |
0.17 |
0.58 |
0.42 |
| Range² |
1.70 |
1.10 |
0.40 |
1.80 |
1.40 |
| % of Avg.³ |
0.98% |
0.64% |
0.24% |
1.14% |
0.84% |
1) Standard Deviation in grains.
2) Range is the difference in weight between the heaviest and lightest cases in the test.
3) Case range weight divided by the average weight.
 What the Numbers Mean
… And Some Speculations
Andy observes: “It certainly seems there is a huge difference in case weight between Winchester lot A and any other brand of 243 tested. What is also surprising is that there was less than one (1) grain capacity difference between all the cases, even with a 14.7 grain difference in case weight!
Should one be wary of trying the same loads that were initially tested in the light weight Winchester brass even though the capacity difference is small? I have had some interesting results with one brand brass that I cannot pass on yet, except to say I sent that company a sample of the lot I have been using. The Remington brass weight range was very low. These were taken from a box of once-fired factory ammo. I will have to acquire some more and measure it.”
Results of Larger Lapua Sample
In a previous session Andy weighed all 100 Lapua cases he had on hand. His measurements showed a total variation of 2.1 grains, with the weight range being 172.5 to 174.6 grains. That is a 1.2 percent spread. The most that came in at the same weight were 11 cases at 173.5 grains.
September 21st, 2008
 In some areas of the country, for environmental reasons, shooters and hunters are not allowed to use solid lead or lead-cored bullets. One of the options available for these shooters is the new E-Tip® bullet from Nosler. The E-Tip features a plastic tip, an expansion cavity, and a patent-pending alloy construction that Nosler claims provides less fouling, and better bullet-weight retention than traditional pure copper designs. Nosler claims that the E-Tip’s Expansion Cavity allows for immediate and uniform expansion yet retains 95%+ weight for improved penetration.
As a “September Special”, Midsouth Shooters Supply, is offering E-Tip bullets at discounted prices. Four bullet weights are offered in three calibers. The prices shown below are for 50-count boxes.
| Caliber |
Bullet |
Midsouth Product ID |
Price for 50 |
| .270 Win (.277) |
130gr Spitzer |
115-59298 |
$28.29 |
| 7mm (.284) |
150gr Spitzer |
115-59426 |
$29.73 |
| 30 Cal (.308) |
150gr Spitzer |
115-59378 |
$29.73 |
| 30 Cal (.308) |
180gr Spitzer |
115-59180 |
$31.80 |
September 16th, 2008
The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) reports that, less than a decade after entering the ammunition market, Minneapolis-based Alliant Techsystems (NYSE:ATK) has become the nation’s largest ammo manufacturer. The company said it is on track to deliver 1.4 billion rounds of ammunition in fiscal year 2009. Yep, that’s BILLION with a ‘B’. ATK-made ammunition now generates more revenue than all other commercial ammo brands, including Winchester and Remington. While military sales make up almost 70 percent of revenues for ATK’s $1.6 billion Armament Systems Division, ATK is aggressively working to increase its sales to target shooters and hunters, according to Business Week:
“[ATK] pushed its way into small-caliber ammunition in 2000 with an aggressive bid to run the U.S. Army’s Lake City Ammunition Plant in Independence, Mo., that made it the military’s biggest ammo supplier. It has since moved swiftly into the civilian sphere, wooing hunters and police officers with creative marketing and bold promises of better performance. Military sales make up almost 70% of revenues for ATK’s $1.6 billion Armament Systems Div., one of ATK’s fastest-growing units. On Aug. 7 the unit reported a 32% increase in sales for the last quarter, to $442 million, while profits jumped 53%, to $44 million.”
ATK’s strategies are paying off, not only in the military sector, but in the civilian sport and hunting markets as well. As a result, ATK’s stock value has more than doubled in the last 5 years, showing robust growth when many companies’ stock prices are being hammered.
ATK Expands Lake City Production Facililty
ATK announced it has received an additional $104.3 million in military small-caliber ammunition orders from the U.S. Army. Work on the contracts will be performed by ATK at the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant (LCAAP) in Independence, Missouri. Working in partnership with the Army, ATK has expanded manufacturing capacity at the plant.
September 9th, 2008
UPDATE: ALL SOLD OUT as of noon, 9/9/2008
Right now Bruno Shooters Supply has special edition 100-Year Anniversary 30-06 brass on sale for just $49.00 per hundred cases (item 4HH7067). This is first-quality Lapua brass, produced as a special run for Dakota Arms in 2006. To some, this relatively rare brass is worth buying for collector purposes. For others, it’s just a heck of a deal. Bruno’s regular price on standard Lapua 30-06 brass (item 4PH7068) is $67.00 per hundred cases, and you’ll see the same Lapua-headstamp brass sold for up to $100.99 per hundred elsewhere (MidwayUSA price).
There are less than 1500 pieces available at this price, so act quickly. Call Bruno’s at (623) 587-7641 and ask Amy or Lester for the special “100 Years” Lapua brass. Kudos go to German Salazar for spotting this great deal on unique Lapua brass.
September 7th, 2008
We recently spoke to Dennis DeMille, General Manager of Creedmoor® Sports and two-time NRA National High Power Rifle Champion. Dennis has been one of the driving forces in the creation of the new 6.5 Creedmoor round (see video below). He alerted us to a recent change in the 120gr version of the factory-loaded 6.5 Creedmoor ammunition.
 120gr Load Changed to Reduce Pressure
Hornady sells two types of 6.5 Creedmoor ammunition, one loaded with 140gr Amax bullets and a second loaded with 120gr Amax bullets. Hornady has changed the 120gr load because there were some reports of pressure issues — stiff bolt lift and primer cratering — with the “first generation” load. The new load for the 120-grainers uses 40.3 grains of Hodgdon Varget. Previously Hornady was pushing the 120s with 44.5 grains of Hodgdon H4350. The old load was rated at 3020 fps from a 28″ barrel. According to Hornady, the new 120gr Varget load “sacrifices about 75 fps”, which means the Varget load should offer about 2945 fps velocity.
New 120gr Load Accurate and Easy on the Shoulder
Dennis DeMille recently tested the new 120gr 6.5 Creedmoor ammunition at the Camp Pendleton range. He tells us: “At 200 and 300 yards, this Varget 120gr load gives up nothing in accuracy to the previous 120gr ammunition. Shooting prone with iron sights, I was able to shoot ‘cleans’ at 200 rapid-fire. The new load is easier on the shoulder too. The 75fps reduction in velocity reduces recoil considerably. The reduced kick was pretty noticeable.”
Dennis also told us: “The new 120gr (Varget-loaded) ammo had exactly the same point of impact at 300 yards as the 140gr loaded ammo. The zero was pretty much identical at this distance.”
The new 6.5 Creedmoor 120gr ammo should be available shortly. Creedmoor Sports expects to receive supplies of the Varget-loaded 120gr ammo by the end of September. Creedmoor Sports has 6.5 Creedmoor brass, Amax bullets, and 6.5 Creedmoor reloading dies in stock right now. Click on Video below to learn more about the 6.5 Creedmore cartridge.
September 2nd, 2008
 One of our readers asked: “Is it OK to clean live, loaded ammo in a vibratory tumbler?” The basic answer is NO, do NOT tumble live ammo in a vibratory tumbler. There are serious potential safety hazards that can result from tumbling live ammo. Since it is really NOT necessary to tumble loaded ammo, why take the risk?
Tumbling Can Alter Powder Burn Properties
The main reason to avoid tumbling loaded ammo is that tumbling can break down the powder kernels inside the case and/or alter the burn-rate retarding coatings on the outside of the kernels. This can alter the powder’s burning properties, with dangerous consequences. If you vibrate loaded rounds for a long time, you can both grind or shear the kernels and alter the kernels’ external coatings. Read the warnings on a can of powder, it says do not shake (for that reason).
While we are aware that some hand-loaders, particularly pistol shooters, tumble loaded ammo to remove residual lube or just to make their ammo nice and shiny, this is NOT a sensible procedure. RCBS and most ammo-makers specifically warn against tumbling live ammo in a vibratory tumbler. Hodgdon’s official policy is: “Completed ammo should not be tumbled. The powder will degrade and increase in burn speed.” (From Mike Daly, Customer Satisfaction Manager, Hodgdon/IMR.)
Consider this commentary from the Fr. Frog website:
Q. Is tumbling loaded ammunition dangerous?
Answer: “…Extensive tumbling can cause the breakdown of the powder grains. This would have two major effects. First, smaller grains will ignite more quickly than larger grains, and second the deterrent coating on the outside of the grains may be rubbed off and will be absent from any fractured edges which will cause the powder to burn more quickly raising pressures.
Tests run some years ago by a commercial entity did indicate that potentially dangerous changes in powder charge burning characteristics do take place after PROLONGED periods in either a vibratory or a tumbling cleaner.
The key word here is prolonged. Many manufacturers of ammunition do a final cleaning of their product either by tumbling or a vibratory process before boxing it for shipment. In no case is this allowed to exceed more than just a couple of minutes. The intent is not so much to “polish” but to remove any traces of contaminants which might in time leave marks on the finished product. There seems to be a consensus among the ammunition manufacturing engineers that a minute or two of vibratory cleaning has no discernable effect on burning rates, especially for loads that are compressed, or nearly so. However, all have emphasized the need for EXTREME CAUTION not to overdo the process.
They also pointed out that there is a considerable difference in effect on the powder charge depending on whether the process is by ‘tumbling’ or ‘vibrating’. It would appear that tumbling has less effect on the powder than vibrating, though this is mostly a matter of degree. The admonition to use EXTREME CAUTION to insure that the process never exceeds a couple of minutes applies equally to either process.”
August 31st, 2008
Federal Premium Ammunition has completely updated its website with many great new features for shooters. The new site is so rich, it takes a while to find all the new options. (Check out the Federal SITEMAP below.) For rifle shooters and hunters, two new features really stand out. First there is an interactive ammo information page that provides load components and ballistic data for all Federal ammo. Second, the upgraded Federal website is now “video-rich” with many high-quality product videos.
CLICK HERE for Federal Ammunition SITEMAP showing all content.
Ammo Information Page
The new Interactive Ammo Info Page gives you detailed data for every type of ammunition Federal makes. Choose a chambering and load, then the web page will switch to detailed entries, with velocity (fps), energy (ft/lbs), wind drift (10 mph 90°), and calculated drop out to 500 yards. Data is provided for six distances: muzzle, 100, 200, 300, 400, and 500 yards. Click on a thumbnail chart and you can see the data presented in a graphical format (x,y axes).
Dedicated VIDEO Player and New Product Videos
Federal’s new VIDEO PLAYER offers a variety of Product Videos. Watch “The Bullet Breakdown” to see performance of popular hunting bullets in ballistic gelatin. You can also DOWNLOAD “The Bullet Breakdown” (and other videos) to your hard drive.
August 30th, 2008
One of the great things about our Shooters’ Forum is that many uniquely talented shooters share their knowledge and test findings. One of those experts is “bsl135″ aka Bryan Litz. Bryan is no ordinary “weekend warrior”. He graduated from Penn State with a degree in Aerospace Engineering. He then began a career as a missile design engineer at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. He has written many ballistics programs and technical papers dealing with long-range flight dynamics of projectiles. Bryan is also a superb long-range shooter, holding an NRA High Master Classification. At this year’s NRA National Championships at Camp Perry, Bryan beat 258 other competitors to win the Palma Individual Trophy Match. Bryan shot a remarkable 450/26x, not dropping a single point.
Breaking News: Just today, Bryan won the Ohio State Midrange Championship, an iron sights event with 15 shots each at 300, 500, and 600 yards. Bryan shot a spectacular 450/39X. Again, Bryan didn’t drop a point and his X-count would make this a new National Record, pending certification. Congrats Bryan!
Bryan also has his own website with a number of authoritative articles. Topics include: Bullet Design, Meplat Trimming, Gyroscopic and Coreolis Drift, Palma Bullet Analysis, How Ballistics Programs Work, and Ballistic Coefficient Testing. CLICK HERE to visit BRYAN LITZ Website.
7mm Bullet BC Testing — Evaluating the Numbers
Bryan does a lot of testing for bullet-makers, evaluating the performance of various bullet types. One thing he has observed is that manufacturers’ published BCs may vary considerably even for two bullet designs that appear to be nearly identical. In our Forum, Bryan offered this interesting analysis of the 7mm Berger 180gr VLD and the similar 7mm JLK 180gr VLD:
“I’ve developed a repeatable procedure for test firing bullets to determine ballistic coefficient. If you get Precision Shooting Magazine, the March issue has one of my articles about test firing the Berger .30 cal 155gr VLD. Long story short, my test procedure uses acoustic sensors in 200-yard increments to measure time of flight out to 600 or 1000 yards. My BC measurements are repeatable to within +/- 2%, usually within +/- 1%.
I have tested several 7mm bullets. Of particular interest are the Berger 180gr and JLK 180gr bullets. If you look at these bullets side by side, it’s hard to tell a difference between them. I believe the JLK bullet dies were made from the same set of prints as the Berger VLD (Design by Bill Davis of Tioga Engineering). So … why would these bullets have different [published] BCs? They’re the same weight and the same basic shape [with very minor differences in OAL and bearing surface length]. This is just the kind of smoke and mirrors that makes shooters think there is something mysterious about BCs and exterior ballistics that’s beyond the realm of human understanding. I was pleased with the results of my testing of these two bullets: the BC is virtually the same, as expected. All is right with the world.”
Drag Models — G7 is better than G1 for long-range Bullets
Most ballistics programs use the default G1 drag model. Bryan believes the G7 standard is preferrable for long-range, low-drag bullets: “Part of the reason there is so much ‘slop’ in advertised BCs is because they’re referenced to the G1 standard which is very speed sensitive. The G7 standard is more appropriate for long range bullets. Here are the results of my testing for these two bullets:
G1 BCs, averaged between 1500 fps and 3000 fps:
Berger 180 VLD: 0.659 lb/in²
JLK 180: 0.645 lb/in²
The reason the BC for the JLK is less is mostly because the meplat was significantly larger on the particular lot that I tested (0.075″ vs 0.059″; see attached drawings).
For bullets like these, it’s much better to use the G7 standard. The following BCs are referenced to the G7 standard, and are constant for all speeds.
G7 BCs:
Berger 180 VLD: 0.337 lb/in²
JLK 180: 0.330 lb/in²
Many modern ballistics programs, including the free online JBM ballistics program, are able to use BCs referenced to G7 standards. When available, these BCs are more appropriate for long range bullets.”
[Editor’s NOTE: BCs are normally reported simply as an 0.XXX number. The lb/in² tag applies to all BCs, but is commonly left off for simplicity.]
Effect of Bullet Pointing
Bryan has also tested the effect of pointing bullets. He’s determined that this does have a positive (if small) effect on ballistics. Bryan writes: “I have measured the Berger 180 VLD in both nominal and pointed meplat configurations. Pointing the meplat from 0.059″ to 0.039″ increases the G7 BC from 0.337 lb/in² to 0.344 lb/in². This results in less than 2″ difference in 1000-yard wind drift (10 mph 90°). The improvement is small, perhaps negligible for standard decimal prone targets with large scoring rings. The improvement is more significant for F-Class targets with smaller scoring rings. That being said, I do point my own Berger 180 VLDs that I shoot in prone competition. It’s fast, easy, doesn’t hurt anything, and every little bit helps.”
August 1st, 2008
With the relentless pursuit of more velocity and the “next higher node” by many reloaders, it is important to pause and think about safety. And one has to remember that most brass will not hold up to high pressure the way Lapua or RWS does. Many readers have asked us: “How does one detect excess pressure?”. Well first, one can obviously monitor the primer pockets and measure the diameter of the case near the web. Excessive stretch or pocket loosening is a sure sign you’re running too hot. There are also many visible signs of over-pressure which you can see. Reader ScottyS provided this comparison photo of cases, showing the tell-tale signs of over-pressure.
Scotty tells us: “These samples were from a lot of Federal soft-point hunting ammunition that were fired in a custom .308 with a chamber on the tight side (although still allowing a .308 Winchester GO gauge). Among the pressure symptoms were heavy recoil, sticky bolt lift, and the left case had to be manually removed from the boltface. This demonstrates why: 1) you should never assume that all lots of factory ammo are the same (and safe); and 2) you should ALWAYS wear eye protection. This also shows how high pressure can spike once you approach maximum load levels.”
Scotty noted that there was a big pressure difference between the left case and the right case, although both were fired sequentially, and both were from the same lot of ammo. So take heed–always take precautions when testing new ammo, even if it is factory-loaded.
July 14th, 2008
 Site Contributor Danny Reever has tested the bargain-priced PRVI Partizan .223 factory ammo in his 7-twist Sig 556 and AR15. He gives it a definite “thumbs-up”. Danny reports: “You should try some of the Prvi Partizan 75gr Match ammo. I was really surprised. This stuff shoots great. At 100 yards it delivered one MOA, easy, with my Sig 556. With a custom match rifle it might do even better. This is great ammo for the price, with quality brass, all boxer-primed and reloadable.”
200 rounds for $85.00 at Wideners
Wideners.com recently received large supplies of the Prvi Partizan 75gr .223 Match ammo. “This ammo is just off the boat! Brand new 2008 production that we received last week after clearing US Customs on July 2nd.” Price is $85.00 for 200 rounds (10 x 20-ct boxes), or $419.00 for 1000 rounds. The 1000-round price works out to $8.38 per 20 rounds.
Other companies have the same ammo, but it is priced higher right now. Aim Surplus has the ammo at $89.50/200 rounds, while Grafs.com is selling it for $10.99/box (shipping included, item PPA223MATCH).
Stan Widener tested the ammo and reports: “After firing, the brass was very clean and there was very little residue on the bolt carrier. Very clean powder. The ammo is made with MILAN BLAGOJEVIC powder and GINEX primers. There were no failures or misfeeds of any kind. All rounds functioned perfectly. The cases are very bright and shiny with military anneal mark.” An 8-twist or faster barrel is recommended for this 75gr Prvi Partizan ammo.
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