Photo from Wikipedia Rifle Cartridges http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cartridge_Sample_2.jpg:

“Various Cartridges Left to Right:

1) .17 HM2; 2) .17 HMR; 3) .22LR; 4) .22 WMR; 5) .17 SMc; 6) 5mm/35 SM4; 7) .22 Hornet; 8) .223 Remington; 9) .223 WSSM; 10) .243 Winchester; 11) .243 Winchester Improved (Ackley); 12) .25-06; 13) .270 Winchester; 14) .308 Winchester; 15) .30-06 Springfield; 16) .45-70 Govt; 17) .50-90 Sharps”

This list is missing many cartridges but an example nonetheless.

I grew up as a youth in a household that made summer shooting in the back yard a priority mostly with a .22 caliber rifle, a single shot with open sights. We grew up fast and jumped to the 30-30 Marlin which has moderate recoil and also to the old lever action 38-55 with a metal buttplate. These are not in the list above but we learned to shoot them well at 50 yards or less.

These rifles were a significant jump from the .22 caliber but a given because that was what was in Dad’s gun cabinet.  These were not bad choices at all as recoil was not overwhelming and accuracy was just fine with open sights out to 50 yards. Better accuracy if we had a tree nearby to brace the rifle. The key here for the dad finding a new or existing rifle for a son, daughter or wife for that matter to shoot where:

1. The rifle is light enough to carry in the deer woods and fits the shooter. The length of pull for youth is around 12 inches and adults a bit over 13 inches on average.
2. The recoil is manageable to prevent flinching
3. The cartridge and bullet have enough energy with a well structured bullet to cleanly kill a northern whitetail deer.

The ubiquitous 30-30 Winchester in a lever action is one of the best northern deer cartridges as its recoil is low and good for close hunting to 150 yards but is not a varmint rifle for long range. It will put out the lights of a Coyote in a hurry though. A fine choice.

The .308 Winchester has similar recoil and has much more versatility in a bolt action rifle and when hand loaded it has the versatility that makes this cartridge shine. An excellent choice for a 12 year old with state of the art recoil pad. I would also strongly consider the 7mm-08 which is a necked down .308 Winchester to shoot 7mm bullets and if hand loaded can be shot with  bullets and less recoil but later can be pushed up to 175 grain bullets and hunt Elk as the .308 can do. Hornady makes a Customlite™ Cartridge with a 120 grain SST® for a reduced load http://www.hornady.com/store/7mm-08-Rem-120-gr-SST-customlite/

I have written here about the .243 Winchester recently in NH Rifleman in particular because it’s recoil is very low.  In fact, recoil is lower than the above cartridges. When coupled with a 90 to 100 grain bullet the .243 Winchester can kill a deer or antelope out to 300 yards with a 90 to 100 grain bullet.

See this 10 yr old drop a nice buck with the .243 Winchester. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEQufGzShVc 

The .243 Winchester is a 6mm bullet and is also a great target cartridge, great for varmint and predator and deer alike.  And when the twist rate of the barrel is equal to or faster than 1:10 twist where the heavier 90 to 100 grain bullets are used, it is deadly on deer The 243 Winchester or the similar shooting 6mm Remington is a great all around cartridge for any shooter young or old.

A good bullet for deer in .243 Winchester is a bullet and jacket that has been bonded together, or a partition type bullet such as the Nosler or the newer all gilding copper bullets that I have tested here such as the Nosler E-Tip. I think the E-Tip is an ideal bullet because  it flares, and stays together maintaining most of its original weight.

For larger calibers such as 30 caliber and higher, the Partition and AccuBond made by Nosler are fantastic as they expand and stay together driving the bullet in and through the vitals.

Next above the .243 is the 257 Roberts, a fine light recoiling cartridge that make the jump to big game easily like the .308 Winchester but not as popular today. Today there are reduced loads that can be purchased for youth hunting too.

Other bullet manufacturers abound such as Hornady, Sierra,Speer, Barnes and more. What about the 30-06 and .270 Winchester for youth?

There is no set rule here you see. The problem becomes complicated when the shooter dislikes the recoil and fears the kick. Once that has happened you have a shooter with a flinch and it takes time to get the flinch to go away with proper training. It takes away from  the hunt too.

It is best, with say a 10 to 12 year old to be a keen observer of recoil issues and alway train them with a state of the art recoil pads such as the Pachmayr Decelerator or the Sim’s Limbsaver. They come in slip on varieties too. You may have to shorten the stock to fit the younger shooter too. Bottom line is to train with ample recoil protection. Out in the field the shooter that pulls the trigger often did not feel the recoil when a deer is in their sights as adrenaline is pumping into their body.

Good Hunting! ©

Above is a photo of the micro-groove twist rate of this 35 Marlin barrel.

First and foremost bullets that do not spin or that do not spin fast enough have no long-range accuracy. Accuracy is a relative term. If you are happy with your bullets accuracy at the distances you shoot, then all is well in the world.

On the other hand, lets say you want to elk hunt out west so you work up a load for your pet .338 Winchester Magnum shooting 250 grain bullets and you can’t get a one inch group out of any load. In fact your best load is 2 inches. Using the 6 inch rule of thumb for a kill zone that would restrict you to a 300 yard shot. True? Yes. But first let us understand why your rifle shoots the 2 inch groups with the 250 grain bullet no matter what you do with powder, bullet seating depth, bullet manufacture etc.

The fundamental question is:

Do you understand what bullet twist rates are doing to the bullets you want to shoot?

I did not for years.

What is the twist rate of your rifles? Don’t know? The truth is most of us don’t know what the twist rate is for the rifle you shoot. For those of us who are experimenters and want to understand what and why, this article is for you!

My reloading manuals talk little about twist rates and resultant effects perhaps because they are trying to sell you bullets and powder.

For years I just accepted the twist rates and tried to reload bullets and use powders to maximize or tighten my groups. In some cases, no matter what I did the groups would not shrink. Enter Sir Alfred George Greenhill.

From Wikipedia; In 1879, Greenhill developed a rule of thumb for calculating the optimal twist rate for lead-core bullets. This shortcut uses the bullet’s length, needing no allowances for weight or nose shape.^[3] Greenhill applied this theory to account for the steadiness of flight conferred upon an elongated projectile by rifling.

If I can calculate twist rate for a given bullet then I can match those bullets to my rifles twist rate.Or get another barrel to shoot the bullets I want.

If you are not sure of your rifles twist rate you can measure it with a cleaning rod and the distance it takes to rotate one full turn. You can do this by placing a tight fitting patch and rod in the muzzle end, making sure the rod spins as the patch is pushed is key here. Before pushing, take a marker and place a mark on the rod near the handle. As you push the rod the mark will begin to rotate. When the mark has made one full rotation stop and place a mark on the rod where it enters the barrel. Remove the rod and measure the distance to the patch, say ten inches. This means that your barrels twist rate is 1 in 10 inches and is displayed as 1:10 twist rate.

Armed with this knowledge in hand you can use Sir Alfred George Greenhills formula to determine what twist rate is needed to shoot the bullets YOU want to shoot.

A classic case in point is the shooter that owns an AR-15 and his groups get worse as he goes above 55 grains to either shoot long distance or hunt larger game. Finally the 70 or 80 grain bullet spin so slow as to key hole in the target.

The shooter knows the twist rate is 1:12 and finds out by using the Greenhill Formula what twist rate is needed to shoot an 80 grain bullet for his .223. 

where:

• C = 150 (use 180 for muzzle velocities higher than 2,800 f/s)
• D = bullet’s diameter in inches
• L = bullet’s length in inches
• SG = bullet’s specific gravity (10.9 for lead-core bullets, which cancels out the second half of the equation)

To make it easy on ourselves click on the red Greenhill Formula above and enter the data for an 80 grain bullet length, diameter and velocity. Lets enter 1.17 for bullet length, .223 for diameter and 2900 fps for speed and hit enter. Twist rate recommended is 1:8 twist

From the website for the Greenhill formula we enter the data.

A Calculator for Barrel Twist Rate

11.3  lead   
 8.9  copper 
 8.5  brass  
 7.8  steel

So that is why there are AR 15 barrels for sale at 1:8 twist.

Now you know! Me too, it was a learning experience. I hope this was helpful to New Hampshire Rifleman readers!  Shoot straight and have fun. Ed ©

The Savage Model 10 in .243 Winchester arrived 2 days ago and it arrived in a Left Hand model. So now you know it comes also in a Left Hand version.

Here it is with a Nikon 3-9×40 Coyote Special in Brush Camo with Bullet Drop Compensator BDC that I just mounted on top. Looks awesome doesn’t it but can it perform?

Description:  Model 10/110 Predator Hunter Max 1 

Calibers: 204 up to 6.5

Waiting quietly was another new box of Trophy Grade Custom Nosler .243 Winchester Ammo with 90 grain E-Tips to test from my friends at Nosler. Hunters, do not let the E-Tip name fool you, this is one of the finest bullets on the planet. It stays together flairs into deadly razor sharp petals that act like a buzz saw  and loses almost no weight, but more than that, it sports a surface of guilding metal copper so it won’t gum up your barrel with copper deposits like some other brands… and I hate scrubbing copper out.

Yesterday near dusk it was raining lightly, all was quiet at my range and the wind was cooperating. I ran a swab through the barrel as I always do.  It took me two shots, one to to get it on paper at 25 yards and the second shot to get it somewhere near the bullseye. Below is my 25 yard target and the BDC reticle. I did manage to get them closer together than this, as I was fussing with my Nikon D60 Digital Camera that took this dizzying photo.

Having done the 25 yards so well, I moved quickly in the slushy snow to get my target out to 100 yards and shoot this bad boy. Lets see what it can do with Nosler Ammo right out of the box!

The Trigger otherwise known as AccuTrigger according to my Lyman Electronic Trigger scale indicated that it was set at the factory for 2 lbs 2 oz. Click on the AccuTrigger above to learn more about its safety features.

Long before I feel the trigger itself, I am aware that I am touching the blade that sticks out of the trigger. The blade is on a spring and allows me to squeeze toward the trigger. In just a 2 pound 2 oz squeeze the bullet is on its way. Recoil of this rifle is negligible as it has a significant recoil pad and weighs in at 8.5 pounds.

I shot two groups as you can see. Group 1 was about 3/4 inch for three shots   maybe a bit less but hey a sub-MOA group on the first pass. I was having some difficulty at first holding the circle dead on a square and looking to keep the vertical and horizontal lines in perspective for a perfect shot.

So I tried for a second group thinking this rifle should maybe perform a bit better. I was astounded at second three shot group above, coming in at 1/2 inch at 100 yards. Below is the rifle close-up with the fluted barrel.

The ammo clip below is metal and the spring and latch that hold it in place are significantly strong.

Intial rating on a scale of 1 to 10 it rates a 10 for all around use by a muscular adult hunter.  For its use by youth and women hunters carrying rifles in the field, I rate it a 6 mostly because of weight. In a stand with a set of shooting sticks or brace on the fore end and it goes back to a 10 rating for any shooter. More tests are planned. © 2013

Editors Note- Twist rates for .243 are best if 1 in 10 twist or faster for deer size game. E.g. 1 in 8 twist stabilizes bullets better at 100 grain heads or heavier. The 1-10 twist limits shooters to approx 90 grains otherwise heavier bullets will not stabilize and will key hole in your target.  The .243 is a real bean field deer killer with modern day bullets that are bonded or gilding copper yet allow you to predator hunt too. A 55 grain head can come out of your barrel at 3700 fps and tip a coyote over at 300 yards too. Max range for deer is around 300 yards too with a 90 grain bullet. It is not a round to shoot in the thick stuff up north. The bullet does not have sufficient mass to hit a twig and keep its path.