New 53gr Hornady in slow twist barrels

300magman

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Apr 29, 2010
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Is anyone having any luck with the new 53gr hornady and its listed 0.290 BC That is a VERY high BC for a light bullet, it blows anything else I can find out of the water.
I am interested in trying it on small varmints, but I've been wondering if its BC really is that high, and more importantly, if I am likely to get it to stabilize in my rifle.

Hornady's manual states that it is best used with faster twist barrels and I think it lists 1-12 as the minimum. BUT I don't know what velocity they are thinking of; my thoughts were that perhaps I could get by with my 1-14 twist in 22-250 running fairly hot loads (as I do for varmints) because I might have a little more velocity than Hornady had been thinking of, and possibly that they may have been erroring on the side of caution with thier recommendation of a 1-12 minimum.

So if anyone has any experience with this bullet I would like to hear about it, and I welcome any educated guesses as to weather it would be worth trying a box of these bullets in my rifle or not.
 
They are currently listed as OUT OF STOCK on Midway USA. I actually have a very limited ability to obtain reloading supplies, so I'm sure one of your guys will get to try them out before I find any.

Good luck, and if you have success, I would appreciate a thumbs up back on this thread. ;-) 3700fps seems pretty obtainable, but there's only one way to know.
 
There are articles on over and under stabilized bullets. But from my years of varminting. One thing that became appearent was higher bullet rpm wreecks havoc upon impact.

You can get rpm software. You shoot over 3600 fps with a 1/10 twist and the devastation is............. The bullets just come appart and they don't even have to be hollow points.
 
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I tried the 53gr vmax in my 22/250 14 twist which shoots well below .5" and they shot a 4" group,we also tried them in my mates 22/250 same result but in a 12 twist .223 they shot in the .5's.
 
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