Huggy
Well-Known Member
It's certainly not typical for short light bullets to tolerate jump better than heavier ones, that's kinda weird. Only way I see that being the reason might be a case neck concentricity issue - but that's based purely on hypothetical reasoning, no experience to base this on. What twist? If the rifle has excessive freebore/a long throat, flat base bullets are in general less sensitive to jump (and everything else regarding internal ballistics) than boat tails. The comments about light barrels whipping harder with heavy loads are certainly apt and worth exploring. Finally, this may seem obvious, it could just be that the rifle doesnt like the particular heavyweight bullets you fed it for reasons other than weight. Have you observed this affinity for 165s and aversion for 180+ with a variety of projectiles of each weight?
This is very good information.
I'll add that some guns/barrel combinations will like a bullet by ABC company but not from XYZ company for some reason.
My rifle is a perfect example of this.
It LOVES the SGK with BT but absolutely HATES the Hornady equivalent in the 180 grain offering.
I mean it goes from a veritable tack driver to not being able to hit a barn, from INSIDE that barn!
Go figure. It might be the result of different bullet jacket construction, the way the lead core is anchored from one brand to the next or who knows what else.
All I know for sure is that experimentation is the order of the day when finding that Goldilocks equation for determining what works best in your gun.
And as I've mentioned before, the journey is all part of the enjoyment of the sport and experience. Well, that and being able to eat the results of finding the perfect combination and drawing out on a game animal.
Good Luck in your quest.