But there is a big contender missing I think. Modern high-ballistic-coefficient bullets is where the .375 H&H really steps out of its traditional box. The way in which cartridge manufacturers develop rounds to overcome these forces is the twist rates of the barrels in the rifles the cartridges are chambered in, developing longer, more aerodynamic bullets with narrower ogives and case capacity. 1. . I'm trying to find the best round from the muzzle to 500yds as far as trajectory. Id consider a base of: Among these cartridges, the 25-06 offers the highest MPBR (Mean Point Blank Range) or the max distance that you can adjust a scope to and be +-3 with the most common bullet weights per caliber. Omg I wish I seen this alot earlier than I did.. Ive literally spent hours on hours on ballistics calculators trying to figure out which new cartridge was the flattest shooting but also had enough energy for an ethical kill at long range and it took me countless hours to basically come up with what your chart told me in seconds grrr.. At A Glance: Our Top 5 Picks For Long Range Calibers in 2022 Best for Beginners: 5.56mm/.223 Remington Minimal Recoil: 224 Valkyrie Best for Long Range: 243 Winchester Best for Seasoned Shooters: 6mm Creedmoor Best Value: 6.5mm Grendel UPS has officially stopped shipping guns? if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[336,280],'backfire_tv-box-4','ezslot_7',175,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-backfire_tv-box-4-0'); Spinning high B.C. Is it possible to show those on your web site list? Mag. Its like a shorter, beltless version of the .300 Winchester Magnum. Nor are we maintaining that the flattest shooting cartridge/bullet is the ultimate determinant of a good hunting round. That kind of long-range accuracy comes at a hefty price with this model starting at $11,700 from the manufacturer. Yes, the article most definitely included the 7mm Mag, but the specific cartridge mentioned by Nick is what the original article would have included as an exotic version, NOT something found chambered in most any rifle. Appropriate hunting bullets may not reach these levels of B.C. The 300 PRC in 225G exceeds this and the 338 Lapua Magnum by a noticeable difference. Hello Jim, So it ends up being a very fair comparison. They are normalized within caliber. But as with the 6.5 PRC, there are not a lot of factory-ammo options to choose from. Im going to include a few in here, and my basis for including them is going to be inclusion in Federals 2013 catalog, because thats what Im basing my numbers off. It is a flat shooting cartridge, able to hit a target at 300 yards with negligible hold over. Thank you for the time it took to work all this data up in an easy to absorb article, where are you getting your information for the bullet drop? Target Rifle- Caliber Question. bullet. Surprisingly, even with all the extra recoil and muzzle blast, this cartridge will not shoot any flatter than most 6.5s. = 3002 inches = 250 foot = 76m above target at 1000 yds now thats a challenge ! So I find it strange you dont have it on any of the lists from what I have seen. The RPM does not have a belt or the customary Weatherby radiused shoulder, and it was designed to go with an ultra-light hunting rifle. And they can change in your rifle and will change at different velocities. With the 30-06, we can only overcome 12 yards of ranging error at the same range before we miss the 6 of vitals. I believe the 6.8 SPC is that alternative. Another issue is recoil. The .204 will work quiet well at 500 yards with good shot placement. .468 BC, 1. Drop is constant at the gravitational pull of 32 feet per second accelerating at 32 fps. Danny. 6.5-300 WBY (-204) I was once hunting plains game in Africa when my PH told me, holding a rangefinder, that the wildebeest was 155 yards away. Shooters have no real idea how much drop a bullet has at long ranges like 1500 yards. Not many of us can afford the ammo, let alone the rifles and scopes that chamber it, in such calibers as 375 CheyTac, 408 CheyTac, or 416 Barrett. Only a handful of .277-caliber cartridges are made today, but the .270 Winchester is still by far the most popular, given all the guns and loads out there for it. All three cartridges also offer ample case capacity, allowing enough powder to send bullets at drag-defying velocities. I took multiple loads from each, but identical sources. These cartridges all drop less than 255 at 1,000 yards. This lets you focus on having only one caliber to maintain. It will push a 90-grain Fusion bullet to 500 yardswhich is probably the limit for . That, combined with their relatively small size, means that compared to cartridges of similar powder capacity, the 6.5s will almost always do more, in terms of external and terminal ballistics, with less recoil. The Liberty Ammunition .308 Win. 2023 Backfire LLC, a limited liability company headquartered in Utah, USA. I would think this data is slightly skewed unless the bullets are shot out of the same length of barrels and the same practices of reloading. While heavier bullets at low speed dont shoot as flat, they do carry energy further generally. Based on the now almost-forgotten .284 Winchester, the 6.5-284 Norma was originally a wildcat cartridge and a very popular one, especially in bench-rest competitions. Not to mention the different variations in grains in each individual caliber,Ogive and BC. Answer (1 of 5): Trajectory flatness is a function of muzzle velocity. There's currently no better option for the AR-15 when the range extends much past 500 yards. My take away on all this number crunching? All are welcome. Still, by using G1 across the board, we are on a level playing field. The result of this work was a flat shooting and hard hitting sniper cartridge with 200 to 400 yards of extended reach compared to the 7.62mm M118. rating, that 100-grain bullet is hanging in there. Unfortunately, the .223 WSSM has fallen by the wayside in recent years. Hornady's ELD line of bullets is considered the most precisely made, and the flattest shooting for any specific caliber. If going after larger game is the preference and the hunter is looking for real stopping power within 300-yards, then the .308 would be the go-to caliber. What Ive done with this deep dive review is use the highest Handloading Manual velocities Ive discovered, trusting that you, gentle reader, will understand that your mileage may vary. bullet to offset wind deflection. Could you add a little explanation of why/how twist/spin rate make any given bullet/velocity shoot flatter? That's impressive but misleading. Just dont try to enumerate its downsides to anyone who knows anything, because there arent any that matter. With todays ammunition, its even better. After Weatherbys 6.5-300 Magnum did not win as many hearts and minds as theyd hoped, Weatherby rethought the 6.5mm cartridge and developed the 6.5 RPM (Rebated Precision Magnum). It has flipped positions with the 6.5, losing by a mere 1.4-inches. Meantime, lets enjoy our deeper dive into flat shooting hunting cartridges (hand carried and shoulder fired. I still shoot a .270 caliber cartridge and the same 150gr bullet, but with a 3gr powder charge boost. Just $1 per month , These rounds have the reach and the power to put down big-game animals way out there, By Nosler Trophy Grade Long Range with a 129-grain AccuBond Long Range bullet at 3,400 fps. When it came out in 1925, 300 yards was considered about the max distance for shots on game, and the .270 Winchester was quickly recognized as one of, if not the, best commercial option for that. So what if we shoot further than 300? What bullet weight did you select for the .270 Winchester? Shots are usually quick. I am looking for a really flat shooting cartridge up to 500 yards for a Remington rebarrel project I have. Below is a chart indicating the three best flat-shooting cartridges and their muzzle velocity, drop, energy levels, and felt recoil. What Is The Best Hunting Cartridge To 500 yds. With those thoughts in mind, it is easy to see why the 26 Nosler, 28 Nosler and the 6.5300 Weatherby Magnums are the best flat-shooting cartridges offered to rifle shooters today. The 7mag is one of the calibers he mentioned for the original 7 in the test. But can it defend that title at 1,000 yards? So its not like the flattest shooting rifle gives you a lot more leeway on ranging errors for super long range shots. But if it isnt, go read the article again. It makes for easy reading in an \all in one place\ comparison, rather than spending time trying to find this data all over the internet. But truth be told, every Weatherby cartridge is a long-range cartridge. Recoil statistics are offered for reference. Sign up with your email address to receive news and updates. Your email address will not be published. The new Federal Premium, 130-grain Terminal Ascent load with a muzzle velocity of 2825 fps shoots flat and the bullet is tough enough to handle up close impacts while still delivering good. again. Wind also affects bullets differently, and a cartridges ability to overcome these three forces makes it better or worse for shooting flat and far. Then look at the available options for reloaders, nearly endless, bullets for every application imaginable. and .30 caliber bore . Required fields are marked *. The spin rate helps to stabilize the projectile along its path, cut through drag and higher case capacities give the projectile more velocity thus delivering the bullet to the target more quickly. The 257 Weatherby Mag. Just curious have you ever looked at the 284 Winchester for flat shooting. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. . It may be a bit rough on barrels, but this cartridge shoots so flat you probably wont care. This is more a theory question than anything. great to see bullet drops and equate them in inches of drop brings home the reality of how much impact good old gravity has on ballistics.even with the flattest cartridges still aiming the height of a house above the target @1000 yds By the way, while the 6.5-300 has been on the market just five years, Roy was shooting it in the mid-20th century. While there are not a lot of ammunition choices for the 6.8 Western, there are some good ones. Nope, pretty much matches a 308Win to 500 yards. Its just physics. Nonetheless, 7mm bullets can be extremely aerodynamic and, as legendary elephant hunter Karamojo Bell proved, effective on even the largest animals. And it gets there with a lot less powder the either of the two Weatherbys. I appreciate the kind comment. Manners thumbhole stock, trigger tech trigger at around a pound. Ive included different bullet weights/BCs for most rounds to illustrate how BC changes drop at longer ranges. To be fair to the 30-378, itmurders everything else for flatness way out there, staying feet above most other cartridges and carrying enough energy to take a deer at just over 1000 yards. So, Winchester slightly modified the .270 WSM case so it was a bit shorter and then specified barrels with a faster twist. The Nosler AccuBond is one of the best all-round big-game bullets offered, and Weatherby has smarly offered the 140-grain version for their 6.5 RPM cartridge. Flattest Shooting Hunting Bullet 257 Weatherby Vanguard 26" pipe. Heck, I cant even find agreement on maximum muzzle velocities in handloading manuals from Speer, Hornady, Nosler, Berger, Swift, Hodgdon, Norma, Sierra, Barnes Furthermore, just because the manual lists those speeds does not mean your rifle will deliver them. Mag., according to Noslers Handloading Guide 9. Now, the .280 AI is finally a SAAMI-approved cartridge, and while ammunition options are sparse, its performance is right there with the 7mm Remington Magnum. Thank you. The .277 is an oddball bullet diameter, in that it doesnt fall into the much more common 6.5mm, 7mm, or .30-caliber categories. Flattest at 500 yards Weatherbys wildly overbore 6.5-300 wins again! 17. If you had to choose one cartridge to hunt with for the rest of your life, you could do a whole lot worse than the .30-06 Springfield. Why? It is capable of sending a 55-grain bullet from the muzzle at 3,700 fps. i've heard the .17 hmr are real flat shooting. Something like a 7mm Ultramag shooting a 120 TTSX would be pretty flat shooting to 500. Lets start by acknowledging we can minimize our search by ignoring all cartridges within each caliber that dont produce maximum velocity in that caliber. Brownings 175-grain Sierra Tipped GameKing load has an advertised muzzle velocity of 2835 fps and a very high ballistic coefficient. Its drop at 1,000 yards is 330.30 and at 500 yards its drop is 50.00. For example a 308 dropping 429 at 1000 yards is ridiculous, thats 10 meters! However, it proved to be mostly a flash in the pan. Do you have any of the data on the weight of the bullets, the brand of the bullets, the BC, any of the information related to the data youre posting? Well, theres really only one option in .22-caliber and thats the .224 Valkyrie. Thanks for the chart for bullet drop but for Big Game Hunting I would rather see the down range energy. I prefer larger calibers for elk, but the .270 is perfectly adequate for elk, and I have personally used it for elk all the way to 400 yards with no problems. More hunters should get to know this fantastic round. Also, youll find more ammo options for the .308 Winchester than any of the others. I too share your endorsement of Ron, his videos are a treat each week. The .25-06 is fast, shoots flat at 200 yards, and has just a 6.5-inch drop at 300 yards. These lists are awesome to go over. Is flatest of all youve listed. What caliber rifle shoots the farthest? Think 30-30 necked down to a .25 cal. The best varmint rifles are capable of accurate, repeated medium to long range shots from a fixed position, and are usually found in light, fast calibers that have a flat trajectory. Aug 31, 2013. Articles may contain affiliate links which enable us to share in the revenue of any purchases made. The advent of precision rifle competitions and the laser rangefinder has increased the publics desire to go long. Flattest-Shooting Cartridges Ever Backfire 641K subscribers Subscribe 4.2K 173K views 1 year ago The flattest shooting rifle cartridges are listed in this video to help shooters determine. Since 1962, when the round was introduced in conjunction with the Remington 700, countless others have arrived at the same conclusion. I suspect Weatherby got wind of Noslers work on its superb 26 Nosler, so they released Roys old wildcat to steel some of Noslers thunder. Twenty years ago, Winchester introduced the .270 WSM (Winchester Short Magnum). You can't go wrong with a .308 for a 500 yard rifle. As magnums go, the .257 Weatherby is a mild kicker, and it's a great long-range cartridge for deer, pronghorn, sheep, and the like. Noslers first proprietary cartridge is basically a steroid-monster 6.5 Creedmoor. 28 Nosler cartridge For decades, the Nosler cartridge has ruled the world of a flat shooting range with complete dominance. Preferred Caliber For 500 To 1,000 Yards And Beyond: 6.5 Creedmoor Preferred Rifle And Optic: A Rainier Arms precision rifle chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor and enhanced by H&H Precision with an Orias chassis from Killer Innovations. The smaller calibers drop like a rock past 500 yards. Often theyre inflated. The 243 Winchester and 6mm Remington have reputations for shooting flat, but the lesser known 240 Weatherby magnum fires the same bullets at higher velocities, so its the flattest of the 24-calibers. With their Vanguard line you can do it for less than $900. Your email address will not be published. At 500 yards . Indeed, the .223 WSSM vies with the .220 Swift for the title of the centerfire rifle cartridge with the fastest bullet velocity. You can compare these numbers with your favorite cartridge using Backfires own table of flat shooting cartridges and you will see that the numbers indicated are in the absolute upper tiers. Kind of underwhelming, right? No exotics just yet, theyll come later. These are all under my extreme heading, because theyre all brutal on cost and recoil. 95% of your shots will be inside 500 yards, and probably 80% inside 300. . http://www.hornady.com/ballistics-resource/ballistics-calculator. The biggest deficit is the roughly 57 feet of drop at 1,000 yards. 6.5mm calibers Barrel twist rates spin the bullet out of the muzzle in a spiral much akin to a quarterback throwing a football. Thanks, 26 Nosler 127 gr LRX 3602 Ft./Sec. I thought Id run an article on the flattest shooting rifle cartridges to compare and contrast both whats popular, as well as a few of the high performance options out there. Not only are new loads being offered, new ARs and even bolt action rifles for the Grendel are being introduced. At 300 yards it has dropped around 13 inches, and at 500 yards it's just under 60 inches (5 feet). Considered by many to be the optimum long-range, large-game cartridge, the .300 Winchester Magnum has proven itself worldwide. Based on the old .404 Jeffery case, its the same length as the .30/06, which means it works in standard-length actions. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Nosler Trophy Grade with a 150-grain Nosler AccuBond Long Range at 3300 fps. And here they are: Flattest at 300 yards 240 Wby. Well placed shots seem to work and poorly placed shots tend to fail. This old timer remains a phenomenon, flat-shooting and effective. The article has really peaked my interest. A 30-06 will take any game on the NA Continent. You are cordially invited to any of our matches. HOWEVER after going through Cartridges of The World by Barnes and Skinner it has come to my attention that 7.21 Lazzeroni Firebird is ever more overbore. These rifles can hardly be considered to be flat shooting. bullet 12 inches at 500 yards, a low B.C. Most of the calculators out there show larger drop rates then your table. Developed form the military, Winchester . By way of comparison, the .270 Winchester (based on the .30-06 Springfield) offers a case capacity of 67 grains. RELATED: 6.5 Creedmoor: The New King of Cartridges? With a recent elevated popularity, due in no small part to the rise of the six-fives, the Grendel is now getting the attention it deserves. It has flipped positions with the 6.5, losing by a mere 1.4-inches. And yes, the .223/5.56 even dominates that match. My father has been shooting a 6.5300 wby we had made for him in the early 80s and it was only limited by bullet construction. No, its not a 6.5 Creedmoor, but few things are. It was also a resounding success and has remained popular with hunters looking to stretch their effective range. Thanks Jim. Thats what makes a long-range hunters heart go pitter patter, and its what has kept Weatherby in business since 1945. This cartridge is the .270 GIBBS and is based on the 30.06 case with the shoulder moved forward and at a 35 degree angle. This is one of the flattest shooting bullets available on the market, with a plethora of different size bullets available that range from 75 grains for small game, all the way up to 120 grains for deer. 3. From an external ballistics standpoint, it cannot compete with any of the cartridges on this list, but in the field where it matters, it works wonders, and only the 6.5 Creedmoor has less recoil. The 300 Win Mag is definitely on the list. This is an example of how different loads in different rifles can produce different results. Cheers. Hornady Precision Hunter 212-grain ELD-X at 2,860 fps. Bullet selection means alot. Whether or not thats true, my own success rate at 1,000 yards informs me to always stalk closer if I can and to forego shots at any distance unless Im supremely confident I can make them. At a 100 yard zero sight in the 500 yard drop is 37. Hornady Precision Hunter 143-grain ELDX at 2,960 fps. Most shots are taken at short range, but some experienced marksmen with good rifles, known distances, and good conditions may need to make connections at longer distances. Dear Adriel, please be so kind to provide statistics on the following calibers as well: If youre after deeper penetration, look at the 139-grain Barnes VOR-TX Long Range load. Know your trajectory curve and nail the shot distance with a range finder and you can offset huge rates of drop. Sight in 3" high at 100 yards and 6" low at 400 yards. As for targeting game at extreme distances, yes, I realize there are thousands of dedicated, well-trained long range shooters who are as good at 1,000 yards as many of us are at 500 yards and some of us at 200 yards. Shane Olson, nope, no sarcasm involved, simply pointing out a straight fact, which I stand by. Underwood Ammos 110-grain Lehigh Controlled Chaos bullet at 2800 fps is another great option. 4/1/2016. A relatively flat-shooting cartridge, hunters with skill regular make shots out to 400 and 500 yards with the cartridge on small gamesome hunters even farther. Not sure if the OP is considering them or not. They have 1 particular cartridge thats something of a hot-shot for flat shooting, long distance devastation; the Weatherby .30-378. At 1000 yards a .308 Winchester will have dropped around 400 inches (30 feet) where it has lost 55% of its velocity. .45-70 shoots like a Rainbow compared to even a Win 30-30. Caliber Flattest Shooting Load BC; 7mm R Mag: Hor 139 gr InBd HvMag.480: 270 WSM (1) Fed 130 gr Nosler BT.428: 300 Win Mag: Hor 150 gr InBd . Norma offers a 156-grain Oryx load that wont shoot as flat but provides great terminal performance. I have neither the scientific knowledge nor mathematical skills to figure out the perfect blend of factors that produces the flattest trajectory winner. gundata.org has done all this for you already. The wildly overbore 6.5-300 Weatherby Magnum wins or places near the top of the flat-shooter podium at most ranges to at least 1,000 yards. Ballistically, the cartridge is very similar to the 6.5 PRC, but unlike the PRC it uses a standard 0.473 rim diameter like the .308 Winchester. Most of these are all-around cartridges intended for variety of CXP2 and CXP3 class game that offer an adequately flat trajectory for antelope hunting with appropriate loads (usually the lighter weight bullets . This article covered not only objective but the subjective topics my buddies use to caliber shame my 5.56. spitting a 100-gr. (Essentially, you don't have to arc the 300 Win Mag's bullet trajectory in order to strike a target up . The good news is that these bullets might shoot even a tad flatter than these numbers indicate. For example, the 7mm Weatherby Magnum will shoot the same bullet as a 7mm Remington Magnum, but it will do it about 10 percent faster. Nosler Trophy Grade Long Range, 150-grain AccuBond Long Range at 2,930 fps. I have not identified bullet make and type because that doesnt change impact drop. Really enjoy your youtube channel. I had to calculate this one out, as Weatherbys ballistics charts dont go past 500 yards. Below is the information Ive gleaned from 17-caliber through 338. A good hunting cartridge has to fit in a rifle thats comfortable to carry all day and wont kick you so hard that you cant shoot it well. This should be recommended reading for all shooters learning to shoot long range shots. Every rifle is different. It is not always the caliber that is in question. If youre after critters deer-size and up, the field is dominated by .30-caliber, 6.5mm, and 7mm cartridges, with the best long-range options remaining supersonic out to at least 1,400 yards. Obviously Weatherby and Nosler, but are there other manufacturers, vendors, builders to consider? You are using an out of date browser. I too am a huge fan of Ron Spomer. plays a major roll in trajectory, but is second in significance to muzzle velocity. drops 6.7 inches at 300 yards and just under 20 inches at 400 yards. (For anyone who gets worked up about the fact that the .30/06 isnt on this list, feel free to swap it with this one, as long as you dont mind the extra kick. Unless youre shooting really far. Montana! always means more wind deflection. Muzzle velocity certainly makes a difference in how fast the bullet reaches the target, but it is by no means the only factor to consider. A 3 mph breeze at the shooter can become a 20 mph roar in the canyon halfway to the target. Don't get me wrong, but 45-70 are very accurate and can travel quite well buckin' the wind, The rifle has five caliber offerings . But the 7mm Remington Magnum will remain supersonic out to 1,400 yards or a bit more, making a good choice for cross-canyon hunting. It may not display this or other websites correctly. bullet faster than did the larger volume 30-378 Wby. It takes a lot of practice to learn the aim point to bring the rifle on target. Federal Premium, 130-grain Terminal Ascent, .308 Winchester will win no ballistic awards. The 26 and 28 Nosler as well as the 6.5300 Weatherby Magnum all utilize heavy for caliber bullets with high ballistic coefficients that are stabilized by barrels with fast twist rates. Best Ive been able to do is run ballistic charts on many combinations, knowing that muzzle velocity is of major importance and bullet B.C. Since I have shot my .270 Winchester primarily with the Hornady 150gr spire point and I know at 500 yards it drops close to 50 inches. . Like the 26 Nosler, the 28 is based on the 404 Jeffery case and will remain supersonic out past 1,750 yards. The first category will include cartridges with a +/- 3" maximum point blank range (MPBR) of greater than 270 but less than 300 yards. Just want to extend my sincere gratitude to you for all of the hard work, time, and incredible effort that you put into this, and so many other endeavors that you have undertaken to give us so much useful information and education, and doing so in a carefully detailed and professional manner! A Canadian sniper had a record kill at over 3500 yards last year in Afghanistan. Backfire LLC owns and operates this website. What a great tool that you have built. Thanks Your email address will not be published. But dont waste your time trying to convince us a slower cartridge in any caliber can shooter flatter than the ones weve identified as category leaders. Impeccable analysis here. Top For deer and lesser critters, its a solid 500-yard cartridge. unfair comparison, Hornady makes a 139 grain BTSP for the 7mm mag very flat shooter, Great info, thanks for your difficult work. Besides recoil, the downside is the limited availability of factory ammunition and rifles. Since nearly all long-distance shooters today use a laser rangefinder, does it even matter which cartridges shoot the flattest? Flattest at 500 yards Weatherby's wildly overbore 6.5-300 wins again! etc. The .17 HMR is based upon the .22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire casing, necked down to .17 Caliber. The 6 mm ARC flattens the curve, and as a 2020 introduction, it could be nicknamed the "Corona Cartridge." . Take a look at the MPBR column and note how close they all are. Links or names greatly appreciated, Thanks! .25-06 AI with a Berger 115 VLD that's moving 3,600 fps. 270 and 30-06 carry enough power out to 700 yards, 7mm pulls a bit further, and 300 win mag pulls a bit further still. RELATED: The 10 Best Rifle Bullets for Long-Range Shooting. This newer Weatherby 6.5 combines plenty of gas with manageable recoil. The round is on the cusp of energy at 300 yards, but it is a favorite among short to mid-distance deer hunters.