Target Shooter 1

Fullbore Bullet Ballistic Analysis Part 2
By Bryan Litz
Let’s revisit our bullet characteristics
and performance table (Figure 3), now
updated to show how the various models
stack up at long-range, before going on to
model how these results might affect scores.
Remember, the key comparative performance
measure is wind deflection, which as per the usual
convention has been calculated for a 10 mph 90°
crosswind, and shown for 600 and 1,000 yards.
The sheltered 300yd Pickering range in North Yorkshire is well-suited
to .308W and any of the eight 155gn bullets provided handloads
are accurate
60 Target Shooter
Above - 1,000yd F-Class targets at Diggle in
Lancashire – a hard test for any bullet fired from
a .308W rifle, especially in this upland range’s
strong, constantly varying winds
The other metric we need for shooting at 1,000yd
with the .308 Winchester cartridge is retained
velocity. Ideally, our bullet which starts at 3,000
fps remains comfortably supersonic (defined as
travelling above 1,120 fps in
standard conditions)
at this range as it may
encounter turbulence on
entering the transonic
velocity zone – a little
above the actual speed
of sound. (Figure 3)
For the top trio, 1,000yd
wind deflection is
predicted at 91.0”, 91.6”,
and 91.6” respectively,
practically identical
ballistically, and they
are still travelling at
a healthy ~1300 fps
velocity. At the other end of
the ‘performance league’,