caliber accuracy

[Kevin]

Good morning to ya.
I am at the range as we speak. Forgot the magazines for my Mark II so it is a revolver day. I have two 357s and my 327 blackhawk. I love the trigger on my new model vaquero but the chambers in the cylinder aren't as tight as the old model blackhawk, the other 357.

So far winning in the accuracy dept is the .327. It just seems to shoot where I point it. Which leads me to my question.

Would a particular caliber be more inherently accurate than another? For example .22's are pretty accurate and from what I understand .17s even more so. Anyway. I'm just wondering not so much about the particular gun but the caliber.

well back to shooting...

 

[Chuck 100 yd]

I am sure you can find examples of each caliber that are very accurate and some that are poor.
I find that the factory load levels originally produced in most calibers will be the most consistent in that particular caliber. Much testing being done from the git go and the best was what they sold for that caliber.
(kinda like GM spending millions on development and a shade tree mechanic thinking he can improve on it)

 

[22/45 Fan]

I am sure you can find examples of each caliber that are very accurate and some that are poor.
I find that the factory load levels originally produced in most calibers will be the most consistent in that particular caliber. Much testing being done from the git go and the best was what they sold for that caliber.
(kinda like GM spending millions on development and a shade tree mechanic thinking he can improve on it)

Yes and no. Factory loads are often developer with cost firmly in mind and great accuracy a secondary consideration. There are, of course, premium factory loads for which accuracy and performance are to major factors and the higher cost is accepted as a side effect.

Rounds used in target competition often get the most development time and effort.

 

[Kevin]

I can see what you mean. I guess I was wondering about differences between say ratios of weight to case volume from caliber to caliber. I guess it is a math problem. Does .45 have the same ratio of bumlet weight to amount of powder as say .38 or 9mm. And if not does this affect accuracy? Also the bullet profile. Are boat tail bullets as accurate as other profiles?

Maybe I'm thinking about it too hard. But then again some people like Ackley did try to improve on certain calibers. Is the .257 (and 257 AI) more accurate than the less popular 280? Which unless I'm mistaken he didn't "improve."

 

[Jimbo357mag]

When it comes to bullets I believe size (smaller is better) does matter. With a smaller diameter there is less to be out of balance and less 'nose' to be malformed. Of course the gun has a lot to do with accuracy, harmonics and all that. A single-shot test barrel with a perfect chamber would be a good place to start testing. :D :D

 

[clayflingythingy]

FWIW, in my experience the 357 magnum is superbly accurate in just about any bullet weight be it 125, 140, or 158 full magnum loads.

The 38 Special with a 148 HBWC is superb as well.

My 45 Colts do not shoot as well as either of the above.

FWIW.

YMMV.

 

[6gun]

FWIW, in my experience the 357 magnum is superbly accurate in just about any bullet weight be it 125, 140, or 158 full magnum loads.

The 38 Special with a 148 HBWC is superb as well.

My 45 Colts do not shoot as well as either of the above.

FWIW.

YMMV.

I agree and thats why my carry gun is a 357mag. rather than a 45.

 

[Kevin]

Interesting. Thanks for the input. I was sort of wondering if smaller lighter weight faster bullets would tend to be more accurate. I suppose the length of the bullet would also lead to an increase in accuracy.

6gun: What gun do you carry in 357mag? Isn't it heavy?

I guess I have always been curious about this. On my 40th birthday I talked my wife into letting me custom order a Cooper rifle and I did quite a bit of reading about the best caliber. It came down to 220 swift and 218 bee. I finally settled on the 220 swift because of speed and accuracy. And yes, the gun is very, very accurate.

 

[6gun]

Interesting. Thanks for the input. I was sort of wondering if smaller lighter weight faster bullets would tend to be more accurate. I suppose the length of the bullet would also lead to an increase in accuracy.

6gun: What gun do you carry in 357mag? Isn't it heavy?

I guess I have always been curious about this. On my 40th birthday I talked my wife into letting me custom order a Cooper rifle and I did quite a bit of reading about the best caliber. It came down to 220 swift and 218 bee. I finally settled on the 220 swift because of speed and accuracy. And yes, the gun is very, very accurate.

SP101, not heavy in a paddle holster, 357 mag. is big enough to have good knock down power, wouldn't carry anything smaller.

 

[BradB]

Good morning to ya.

Would a particular caliber be more inherently accurate than another? For example .22's are pretty accurate and from what I understand .17s even more so. Anyway. I'm just wondering not so much about the particular gun but the caliber.

well back to shooting...

Hello Kevin, Speaking from experience with Ruger Bearcat .22 4"barrel and Ruger LCR .22 2" barrel. It was determined in my shooting of these two firearms that standard velocity say 40 grain all lead not necessarily "match grade" would yield very good accuracy. Anytime the higher velocity stuff was used the accuracy suffered considerably. If you shoot a lot of less expensive so called "dirty" ammo just clean the gun more often.

Many people seem concerned about that power factor so those nice labels about High Velocity up up up really sell that stuff. All that power means nothing if the target isn't hit. Same thing happened to me in short barrel .38 special. The std or low velocity lead wad cutters way better than +P higher velocity.

Handguns of .357 and .44 mag are rather "power house" compared to .38 and 44 special fired in the same guns. Anyone punching paper to get used to their firearms might want to try slowing the velocity down and don't be afraid of cleaning a gun after lead ammo.. Just a few thoughts from my range work. Good luck. Brad

 

[DGW1949]

Actual results with this or that caliber can/will vary according to many factors.
In other words, the devil is always in the details.

The above said though, as "accurate revolvers" go, it's hard to beat a good .38Spl .

DGW

 

[Rclark]

Actual results with this or that caliber can/will vary according to many factors.

Yep.... I have equally accurate revolvers in all the calibers I shoot.

 

[FastEd]

When it comes to accuracy so many things are involved,
You can have two identical pistols and they may not shoot the same.
You can have a six shooter that has one chamber that will be different.
Some pistols are just not capable of being accurate no matter what.
Overall, handloading is the best way to go if you really understand how it all works. Handloading can be boring and tiresome but when you finally hit on that perfect load for your favorite gun it really feels good.

Also, after all that work and practice you may actually learn how to shoot.
That's important too. We used to say in the old Pistol Parlor, "Some people shoot,
others know how to shoot."

 

[Jimbo357mag]

...but the question was are some calibers more inherently accurate? Say we have several guns all the same make/model in several different calibers; 22LR, 32H&R, 357mag, 41mag, 44mag and 45colt. We start out shooting a variety of ammo. At the end of the day does one caliber shoot best?
I vote for the 22LR.

When it comes to rifle shooting there is no doubt that some cartridges/calibers are more accurate than others.

 

[FastEd]

What distance are we shooting?

Any of the pistol bullets are capable of being accurate.
Best shooting hand gun I ever had was a 5.5 inch barrel Super Blackhawk converted to .45 Long Colt at 25 yards. Big bore bullets at short ranges can be extremely accurate.

With rifles the 7mm boat tail bullets are considered the best.
with the .30 caliber boat tails a close second.

 

[tulsamal]

With rifles the 7mm boat tail bullets are considered the best.

Depends on the range and whether there is wind. If you are shooting at 200 meters with zero wind and with equal quality rifles, barrels, and bullets, no 7mm is going to be able to beat a .22 PPC. Increase the range or add wind... different outcome.

I love my Sako single shot .22 PPC. With match bullets at 100 meters, it feels like it is purely aiming error that decides group size. Never fired anything else like it. The sad/ironic thing about that is I very rarely shoot it anymore. No load development to do. No doubt about how well it can shoot. And yet it doesn't make much of a varmint rifle since it has to have 50-52 grain bullets so the ever prevalent Oklahoma wind blows them all over the place. With the velocity and light bullets, it's basically a 300 meter rifle in perfect conditions. I pull it out once or twice a year when I need an absolutely precise shot at 100-200 meters but otherwise it just lives in the safe.

Gregg

 

[Snake45]

Every gun/ammo combination is a law unto itself. Any particular gun with any particular ammo might be spectacularly accurate or spectacularly inaccurate. You have no way of knowing until you shoot the thing.

That said, there do seem to be a number of "calibers" in which accurate gun/ammo combos are more plentiful than in other calibers. .22LR, .38 Spec, .45ACP, .44 Spec and Mag, .222, 6mm PPC, .243, and .308 are some of them.

I don't know why. :? :? :? :?

 

[jgt]

The short answer to your question is no.

 

[Kevin]

Hey! Now this is even more interesting. So gun aside there are some who feel a particular caliber could be inherently more accurate than another. I have often thought this is true. I have a Savage 243. Not the greatest gun poop quality scope but when I shoot it, the rifle always amazes me how accurate it is.

There must be more reasons than power than so many "sniper" rifles are chambered in 308. I suppose the bullets do travel further and the bullet weight has some knock down power. But the caliber must be "better" than 338 or than a larger 375 (which I don't believe is all thst common. )