My take away on all this number crunching? The .300 Norma Magnum was introduced in 2009, and soon, it has begun to gain popularity in the long-range shooting community. Subscriber Services. There is a lot more to it than inital velocity. 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. Combining the large case capacity of its parent . No howitzers or tanks.). 270. He has continuously improved his firearms skills and knowledge, which is a never-ending journey. 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. Contributing Editor for RifleShooter Magazine, Brad Fitzpatrick gives us a review of this modernized version of an iconic favorite. These numbers indicate that one of the flattest shooting commercial cartridge at sensible hunting ranges is the 220 Swift. Roy Weatherby was one of the pioneering cartridge designers of the 20th century, and his line of ultra-fast cartridges have been popular with long-range hunters for decades. Depending on the bullet style, it can be argued that the .22 Nosler is the fastest- and flattest-shooting AR-15 cartridge. They have 1 particular cartridge thats something of a hot-shot for flat shooting, long distance devastation; the Weatherby .30-378. Mag., a cartridge that the Western also outperforms ballistically. bullet. The 338-378 Weatherby Magnum started as the wildcat cartridge using the .378 Weatherby Magnum as a parent case by necking it down to .338 inches. That makes the 6.8 Western a legitimate elk and moose cartridge and also makes it suitable for hunting sheep at long range without being so abusive that its overkill for whitetails and antelope. bullet twice that far. We are not going to include here the esoteric military sniping rounds engineered for 1,000 yards, 2,000 yards, even 3,000 yards. Both are of course bolt-action rifle cartridges. The .260 Rem is an outstanding mid-range cartridge developed from a .308 Win by necking case throat down to .264 caliber. The Creedmoor was. While that incredibly fast 6.5-300 Wby. Just what the perfect balance between MV and BC is remains unanswered by me. For example, the .50BMG and the 6.5 Creedmoor both launch bullets at approximately the same muzzle velocity of 2,700fps. Barrel length will change MV. The BC calculations are made in relation to the particular standard projectile shapes by measuring how efficiently they overcome air resistance in flight and how well retain velocity and energy as they travel downrange. No exotics just yet, theyll come later. Choosing the flattest shooting rifle cartridge in each caliber category seems fair, fun, and revealing, so well do that before identifying the all time top dog. When you havent time to engage a laser rangefinder, knowing you can reach the kill zone with a dead-center hold at any distance out to 373 yards is pretty comforting. 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. This means we can first determine the fastest cartridge in each caliber, then compare it against the fastest in others. Those features are granted to the high velocity of 3,000 fps and 230gr Berger Hybrid bullet with an incredible 0.743 Ballistic Coefficient (BC). Thats true, but the bullets have been vetted. Zeroing for 100 yards or farther will change drop significantly. Also know that not all manufacturer-claimed B.C. Although the .25-caliber bullets belong to a lighter category, they typically have high ballistic coefficients resulting in a perfect wind bucking ability as well as retaining kinetic energy down-range. Noslers 175-grain AccuBond LR ammunition at a muzzle velocity of 3,125 fps carries 3,794 foot-pounds of muzzle energy and retains more than 2,000 foot-pounds of energy at 600 yards. But it is also a fact that it can't compete with the modern cartridge ranges designed for flat shooting. The .277 bullet earns a lower B.C. Noslers first proprietary cartridge is basically a steroid-monster 6.5 Creedmoor. Just dont try to enumerate its downsides to anyone who knows anything, because there arent any that matter. Nor could most of us scrape up a good excuse for owning one. The Creedmoors detractors will say that it wont do anything that existing cartridges wouldnt do as well or better, but thats not exactly true. Roy Weatherby was one of the pioneering cartridge designers of the 20th century, and his line of ultra-fast cartridges have been popular with long-range hunters for decades. during their trips downrange. Its well-suited for long-range target shooting, especially since there are numerous 140+ grain bullet options and plenty of factory rifles available. First, some boundaries. It will push a 90-grain Fusion bullet to 500 yardswhich is probably the limit for big game with this cartridgewhile still retaining enough velocity to initiate expansion. Yeah, yeah, I know theyre cartridges and not calibers, but lots of people call them calibers so I thought Id roll with it. This cartridge existed in a cloak of obscurity for a long time; only recently have hunters began to see the potential it offers. There are a number of a common long-range, dual-purpose rifle chambered in calibers fully capable of making shots at distances up to 1,000 yards and regularly harvest big game with right shot placement. Despite its relatively low B.C. One of the calibers with the flattest trajectory is the .17 Winchester Super Magnum, a sub-caliber rimfire cartridge. . A relatively large case capacity enabled the 6.5 Creedmoor to use very long, high BC bullets, without projectiles base intrusion into powder capacity. Below is a chart indicating the three best flat-shooting cartridges and their muzzle velocity, drop, energy levels, and felt recoil. Muzzle blast is fearsome, but recoil is manageable and less than the various .300 magnums. For example, a .308 Winchester round loaded with a 150-grain round-nose .308 bullet and fired at 2,810 fps will have a BC rating of about .186, whereas the same chambering loaded with a 150-grain pointed .308 bullet is rated BC .435. Created from the ground up for competition and very little hunting, the 6.5 Creedmoor has several advantages over the .308 and the other .30-caliber cartridges. You can argue that you can get the 243 WSSM shooting flatter, but that cartridge is already considered obsolete. Sweet Scents of Gun Solvents and Oils: 12 Perfumes for Firearms, 10 Great .22 Mag Bolt-Action Rifles Right Now, 11 Top Hunting Rifles Chambered in .350 Legend, Mossberg Patriot Long-Range Hunter Bolt-Action Rifle: Full Review, 7 Top .17 HMR (Hornady Magnum Rimfire) Rifles, How to Clean a Rifle Barrel the Effective and Harmless Way, 6.5 PRC (Precision Rifle Cartridge) is another Hornady creation, The new 6.5-300 Weatherby is the sole belted magnum, 6.8 Western cartridge offerings from Winchester, Kimber Hunter Pro Desolve Blak - A Lightweight Heavy Hitter, Browning BLR Lightweight '81 Stainless Takedown Lever Rifle, Mossberg Patriot Predator 6.5 PRC Rifle Review, Review: Springfield Armory M1A Loaded Rifle in 6.5 Creedmoor, RCBS ChargeMaster Lite Review: Not 'Lite' on Ability, Remington Model Seven SS HS Bolt-Action Rifle Review. The advent of precision rifle competitions and the laser rangefinder has increased the publics desire to go long. So its not like the flattest shooting rifle gives you a lot more leeway on ranging errors for super long range shots. | As we all know, the long-range accuracy is a combination of the rifle, the ammunition, and the shooter. 535-yard plates in the shadows are no challenge for the 22 CM. etc. The 27 Nosler bests the .270 Winchester by about 400 fps with 150-grain bullets. Weatherby. The non-bonded bullet should deliver good terminal performance up close and at distance. A flat shooting cartridge matters. Even an average shooter can reliably hit a target from hundreds of yards away using this caliber, and the flat-shooting ability of the cartridge makes it a fan-favorite amongst hunters of varying experience levels. For example, at 1,000 yards, the 6.5 CM 140-grain ELD bullet with ballistic coefficient 0.646 has 4 feet less drop when you compare it to the .308 Winchester a .308 Win 168-grain ELD bullet with 0.523 BC. But what are the flattest shooting rifle cartridges? Also, I used something called G1 B.C. Kind regards. Before the arrival of other 6.5mm rounds like 6.547 Lapua and 6.5 Creedmoor, the .260 Rem was once the dominant 6.5mm cartridge in competitions out to 1,000 yards. . Beth Shimanski of Savage introduces their all new straight-pull rifle. bullet. Released in 2007 by Hornady's team, the 6.5 Creedmoor is named in honor of the oldest shooting competition in North America, the Creedmoor Match. Shot from SAAMI-mandated 1-8 twist barrels, the 6.5s long, slender bullets seem to almost defy wind and gravity and allow this cartridge to deliver clean kills at distance. Only B.C. Dear Adriel, please be so kind to provide statistics on the following calibers as well: 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. Almost 80 years later the company introduced the .270 WSM, which has also been successful, but recently the company unveiled the newest member of its .277-lineup, the 6.8 Western. The .308 Winchester is a very popular caliber and is . bullet faster than did the larger volume 30-378 Wby. .300 Win. With todays ammunition, its even better. It was introduced by Remington in 1962 to the commercial market in an age of "magnum-mania,". I ran the numbers with the 180 grain Ballistic tip at 3420 fps. 6.5-300 Weatherby Magnum. But the PRC also competes well against older .30 caliber rounds, too. Mag. Hornady's Precision Hunter 145-grain ELD-X at 2,950 fps is the flattest-shooting .270 Winchester load. The .338-378 Weatherby Magnum is one of the flattest shooting and hardest-hitting calibers, most useful for long-range shooting and transferring energy into targets. Recoil statistics are offered for reference. Sign up for Field & Streams newsletter to receive the latest and greatest gear reviews and expert hunting and fishing advice. J. Scott Rupp takes a first look at the Springfield M1A Loaded rifle chambered in the popular 6.5 Creedmoor. Im going to bookmark your website and keep checking for new details about once a week. This is the allure and benefit of a flat shooting bullet. .223 Remington/5.56 NATO - Old Faithful. Yeah, 6.5s are all the rage, and their blinding popularity has taken some shine off the old .270, but the latter is still one of the very best long-range hunting cartridges. numbers which are not quite as accurate as G7 numbers in predicting trajectories of todays wildly long, sleek bullets. In brief, the ballistic coefficient is a mathematical representation of how streamlined a bullet is, i.e., projectile's ability to resist air drag. Like the 6mm, the 6.5 Creedmoor with high ballistic coefficient bullets has less wind drift than other 6.5s that shoot lighter bullets, and its no secret that the 6.5 Creedmoor is very accurate. In fact, we may say that its the only thing that matters; however, factors that lead to time of flight changes are important to consider. Nosler Trophy Grade with a 150-grain Nosler AccuBond Long Range at 3300 fps. Check out more F&S long-range shooting coverage, including advice for getting started in long-range shooting competitions, the reason why rifle groups keep shrinking, how Heavey did at Gunsite Academy, and what makes long-distance shooting so difficult. 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. The 6.5 PRC (Precision Rifle Cartridge) is another Hornady creation, and like the Creedmoor it is loaded with 103-grain ELD-X bullets and 108-grain ELD Match bullets. Generally, traditional Weatherby Magnum cartridges perform slightly better than their Winchester or Remington magnum counterparts. I truly don't believe a senseable person would use ANY .22 caliber rifle for deer hunting. With the 6.5 PRC, Hornady has created a better version of the old barrel-burner. Pronghorn hunters have driven the search for flatter shooting cartridges for a long time. 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. All in all, here are six bonus cartridge, all highly capable of reaching way out there. 6.5mm and 7mm projectiles offer very high ballistic coefficients, meaning they offer excellent ability to overcome drag and wind deflection over longer distances. But if it isnt, go read the article again. By the time the 6.5 Creedmoor started gaining popularity, interest in the .270 WSM was fading. I just wanted to provide you with a quick heads up! When fired at the same muzzle velocity, a good BC means that projectiles with the highest ballistic coefficient will shoot flatter and have a longer effective range than the others. Deciding on the three best flat-shooting cartridges does not come down simply to one statistic, but a combination of all the factors inherent to a cartridge. Ive seen the cartridge flatten whitetails and caribou, and tight tolerances make it capable of excellent accuracy. 301". When I take a look at your website in Safari, it looks fine however, if opening in IE, it has some overlapping issues. The flattest shooting rifle cartridges are listed in this video to help shooters determine what cartridges have the best ballistics. Its accurate and recoil is mild, which is an important consideration when calling shots in a shooting match. unfair comparison, Hornady makes a 139 grain BTSP for the 7mm mag very flat shooter, Great info, thanks for your difficult work. 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. inspired a lot of comments, dissent, and different candidates for the title, so lets take a more detailed look at the flattest of the flat. If you want to shoot targets out to 1,000 yards or more the Nosler has the goods to get you there. 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. As for the wind drift, at 200 yards, the .17 WSM has almost reduced in half wind drift compared to the popular .17HMR. A bullet with bigger BC will fly farther and faster than one with a lower coefficient. Depending on the caliber you are using, a long-range shooting may be at 1,000 and more yards, but if you are committed to rimfires than 200-300 yards is very long-distance shooting. There are the two most common ballistic standards called the G1 and G7. Appropriate hunting bullets may not reach these levels of B.C. The .17 Remington, introduced in 1971, was the first .17-caliber cartridge offered in both factory rifles and commercial ammunition. Yet it has proven again and again that it will deliver at distance. Sign up with your email address to receive news and updates. Choosing the right caliber and understand its ballistic performance profile is extremely important if you want to get good. Based on the 7.6239/220 Russian cartridge case, the Valkyrie changes the personality of the AR-15. The newest addition to the Nosler line of proprietary cartridges is the 27 Nosler. Find out which ones made the cut. Wir verwenden Cookies um Inhalte und Anzeigen zu personalisieren, um Social-Media-Funktionen zur Verfgung zu stellen und unseren Traffic zu analysieren. By way of comparison, the .270 Winchester (based on the .30-06 Springfield) offers a case capacity of 67 grains. Any cartridge that drops less than 40 inches at 500 yards or close to 200 inches at 1000 yards should be considered a flat shooting cartridge. It functions well in bolt guns and AR-10 rifles, so if youre looking for a long-range 6mm the Creedmoor is an obvious choice. The .300 PRC was developed in 2018 when the US Army announced a competition for the new sniper system that will provide a 50-percent hit chance on a man-size target at 2,000 yards. 2,700 fps. The 6.5 Creedmoor is developed from a .30 Thompson Center (.30 TC) case, which is narrowed down to shoot .264 bullets.