Category: Ballistics

Shooter – Ballistics Calculator for Android Review

Shooter, the ballistic calculator designed for Android phones has changed the way I shoot as well as use a ballistic calculator. While the calculations it does are not new or revolutionary, the fact that it is on my phone is. In the past I had to tape drop charts to my stock. If I was changing elevation, changing bullets or loads,  or experiencing large temperature fluctuations, the drop chart changes and isn’t as accurate. Because I am constantly playing with different bullets and loads things change frequently. It would take dozens of pages of printed dropcharts to come close to the amount of information that Shooter can calculate in seconds.

If you don’t read through any of the rest of this review know two things: 1) the ballistic calculations work and are Continue reading Shooter – Ballistics Calculator for Android Review

Dynamic Research Predator 176 Grain Projectile

The Predator Projectile from Dynamic Research is designed to take the 308 Winchester to the next level.

While I was at an NRA Regional Long Range F-Class match in Missoula, MT I met a man named Stephen Damron with Dynamic Research LLC. He was shooting a 308 Winchester with an unusual bullet. I asked him more about it and found  that he was shooting a monolithic lathe turned projectile that he is producing from a proprietary copper alloy. It was designed by a man in Australia named Bruce Wellington. Dynamic Research has bought the rights to produce and manufacture his design in the US. It weighs 176 grains and has an advertised BC of .590.

A major feature of these bullets is an  Continue reading Dynamic Research Predator 176 Grain Projectile

Reduced 308 Cast Bullet Loads for Long Range Practice

In the early 1900’s it was common to do a lot of what was referred to as Gallery Practice. This is shooting on a short range, usually indoors, with reduced loads out of the exact same rifle that is going to be shot at long range. Townsend Whelen who was captain of the US Army Infantry Rifle Team during this same time period talks about this type of practice in a pamphlet he wrote for the military called Suggestions to Military Rifleman. These loads were often loaded with cast bullets and fast pistol powder. The range they were shot at was generally 50 yards.

To practice I use a light cast bullet load with 13 grains of 2400 in a 308 case and a bullet cast out of a Lee 173 grain mold. Commercial Cast bullets such as those from The Oregon Trail Bullet Company can also be used if the shooter doesn’t have the means to cast his own.

It is important that the long range shooter becomes as Continue reading Reduced 308 Cast Bullet Loads for Long Range Practice

Using and Understanding Minute of Angle (MOA)

The following explanation and examples are intended to teach how to apply Minute of Angle (MOA) terminology to shooting, not how to do the Trigonometry involved in calculating Minute of Angle (MOA).
If you would like to learn how Minute of Angle (MOA) is calculated and where the term comes from please visit this Wikipedia link.

If you are already a Minute of Angle Expert, take our Minute of Angle Quiz

You should understand that an English inch and a Minute of Angle (MOA) is not the same thing. They are units of measurement that happen to be extremely close in value. However, they are close enough together that for the rest of this explanation please simply round down to an inch. Continue reading Using and Understanding Minute of Angle (MOA)

Ballistic Calculators

In speaking with both experienced and inexperienced shooters I have come to the conclusion that the majority of shooters have no idea what their bullet does after it leaves their gun. It is essential in good shooting and sportsmanlike hunting to understand your bullets trajectory. To really get first-rate information it’s important to use an accurate ballistics calculator. There is no good excuse for not knowing what your bullet does as there are many free exterior ballistic calculators and websites available that can give you very accurate information. If you are going to shoot at game it is also important to verify the information out to at least the range you would shoot at game. By verify I mean take your gun and the loads you will be hunting with and shoot them at the ranges you will be hunting at to make sure the ballistic calculator matches what your bullet does in the real world. Continue reading Ballistic Calculators