how do the grooves kill BC? does any air even touch the sides of the bullet when it's supersonic?
I have read on this very board about the grooves causing a loss of B.C. from no less than a former employee of Barnes. But I didnt feel that within 300 yards it would make much difference, until 2 years ago when a buddy and I were at the end of a hunt way up in the mountains of Utah. It was the last day of the hunt and we decided to take a liitle shooting practice. I had loaded, chronographed, and sighted in for both his and my rifles. I had loaded a 130gr. Barnes TSX at 3100 for mine, and for his a 130gr nosler partition also at 3100. Now our target for this shoot was a water jug we placed on the valley floor about 150 yards away, and we were probably shooting at a 30 degree downward angle. These rifles were sighted dead on at 200 yards at the range. Any way shooting down on the target, 50 yards less than the range at which they were sighted for should have you shooting a bit high. Not the case with my TSX I was kicking up dirt in front of the target, but yet my buddies was going over the target like you would suspect. Both of us ended up hitting the target after adjusting, but my first 3 shots of a dead on hold grouped within 2 inches were all low, should have been the opposite. Later when back home I took the same rifle and loads back to the range and what do you know it was still sighted dead on at 200 yards. Remember that I had sighted both rifles myself and in the exact same way before we left.
I think Barnes are good bullets, but I will take one without grooves thank you.
