Florida Shooters Network

In the endless chase for the next best thing in competition, I have been testing heavy (for .308)bullets. The following pics show the testing with a 215gr Berger Hybrid.

In this pic, a comparison to the other loads I shoot thru my rifle.

L to R: 215 Berger(3.075), 185 Berger BT(2.950), 175 Matchking(2.810)


215gr in comparison to the case. MV ~2400fps in my rifle.


215gr @200yds, 3/4in paster.


The 215gr testing is just for S&G's. This bullet is more suited to a magnum class rifle, but if I could get them faster in a .308 I would be all over them.

SY

In picture #1, is the cartridge length (measured at the ogive) the same for all three cartridges?

Damn fine shooting, btw.

Nice!

Flcracker,

Thx. No, the lengths shown are what I shoot those particular bullets at. The 175 SMK is at magazine length, I put it in there for perspective.

The base to ogive measurements:
215g = 2.270
185g = 2.160
175g = 1.987

The throat in my rifle is just about shot out, the 185 and 175 can no longer touch the rifling without almost falling out of the case. The 215g is shown at 20/1000ths off. Was just testing before the rebarrel.

SY

Yeah, with that crappy group, I would re-barrel too !!

Haha Dave, yeah I gotta rebarrel. Can't afford to shoot the 215's @ $27/50pcs.

SY

I'm fixin to load a batch of .358 Win for my Frontier.

Barnes 200 gr TSX.

BangFlop. But not anywhere near the accuracy you're dealing with. More like minute-of-deer.

What make's the Berger's 'hybrids' ? are they solid bullets?

Flcracker,
What vel are you looking at for the 200gr? Barnes just came out with a line of match bullets that looks interesting.

Big_Mike,
The hybrid is a cross between regular boatail design and a VLD(Very Low Drag) type bullets. In the pic, the 185 and the 175 are standard design, but notice the taper to the tip on the 215, it is more pronounced. Hope that helps.

SY

S, Bergers are shiny, no matter what. Now if I could just get the 284 to shoot I'd be good to go. Thinking about ordering a .260 barrel from Jim when he gets back from the SHOT show in Vegas. Jeff shot his first clean @ 600 yds. at the last match with one. BTW are you shooting the OBR?

That 215gr looks like my old 308 subsonic load

B,
Yep, Bergers shoot good. You ever try them in the .284? Yes, I plan on shooting the OBR if can get the barrel set back and dialed in time. Gonna do that beginning next month.

Rug,
Was your sub load that heavy? You ever get the DNZ lo's?


SY

arkhangel5 wrote:B,
Yep, Bergers shoot good. You ever try them in the .284? Yes, I plan on shooting the OBR if can get the barrel set back and dialed in time. Gonna do that beginning next month.

Rug,
Was your sub load that heavy? You ever get the DNZ lo's?


SY

Lapua used to sell 200 gr (maybe 205gr) bullet in .30 caliber with flat base specifically for loading subsonic loads.
They worked well for the purpose but price was too high to play with it regularly.
Some 150-165gr bullets work too but not always as some keyholed.

I got the low DNZ mount and tried it but I think I'm going to use the medium height as it feels more comfortable/natural for me... maybe due to my fat cheeks.

As an ex high power competitor, those are cool. I remember when we went to the long .223's

Are these a bore rider design? You can get more velocity with a bore rider but you usually need a custom chamber. These are 850 gr solid turned bronze Barnes .50 cals. (think yours are expensive?? ha) They are so long my friend can't chamber them in his State Arms rifle but they fit my McBros just fine.

Tl,
If by bore-rider, you mean jammed into the lands(rifling), then no, these are designed so you can jump them. In my rifle they are 20/1000ths off the rifling. Nice looking bullets, don't even want to know how much they go for :)

Rug,
Good info. Did you have good clearance all around with the lo's. Just asking as I prefer to the get the objective as close to the barrel as possible.

SY

Thanks for the info.

Bore rider in this case is the bullet design. The base that goes in the case is regular diameter (you can see a little of it sticking out of the case). Then it is necked down to a diameter that doesn't touch the lands (see that smaller area that starts about 1/16" in front of the case neck?). Then after about 1/2" it goes back up to standard diameter (I think in the .50 this is about .510"). So the bullet actually "rides in the bore" spported by those 2 areas. That leaves a good bit of the bullet that doesn't touch the lands thereby reducing friction and barrel wear and allowing more velocity. Those bullets are a real pretty bronze color until I spray them with moly (allows even more velocity).

This is the same principal used in very large projectiles like my 16" Iowa class HE projectile pictured below. You can't see it but it is a bit narrower from in front of the copper driving band to about 6-8 inches before the nose starts to taper down. Saves barrel wear also. Now THAT'S an expensive bullet. HA HA

Ok I get it. Sort of like a Sabot type projectile. Hehe I don't think there any need of that type of projectile in competition.

In the pic of the .50, if the front part of bullet doesnt touch the rifling, and only the rear part is touching, what does that do to the stability of the round? That is a lot of bullet sitting in the barrel only supported by the bit that is in the case. Doesnt that put some strain on the neck of the case, esp with the weight of the .50?

SY

It is full diameter at the base then smaller for about 1/2 to 3/4 inch then back to full diameter before the ogive (sp?) Notice about the middle of my finger you can see where it goes back to full diameter. So it is supported at the base and at the front of the bullet.

I agree it probably has no use in comp but I only mentioned it in regards to your heavy bullets as a means to maybe generate some more velocity. Same as spray coating them with moly will gain some velocity also.