Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles Sorting hunting bullets by weight.

Hey gang,
Im sure this has been discussed but I would like to hear what you guys do when the variation in your reloading components( bullets in this case) vary by a seemingly large number. I bought 300 196 gr. prvi sp's out of the 1st 100 weighted I had 4 that weighted 196 grains on the nose. None of the 100 weighted over 196 grains. The rest and majority of the bullets weighted in at +,- .3 grains of 195.2 , some going lower than that down to a nice even 194.0. I usually dont weight every bullet in a bag. so with this much varitation in the lot I decided to sort them into 3 groups. -194.8,194.9-195.5,195.6+. I am thinking of sorting the middle group again into 194.9 to 195.2, and 195.3-195.5. Question time, should I do this and or should I even care. I am not hoping for sub moa groups here. These are for hunting and with what I do 1 inch groups or close will do the job handily. also is this method close to what you guys do with your hunting bullets? i know it is done with match shooting but wonder if everyone does this?

M8x57

Don't bother sorting! Load, shoot, enjoy. As you stated, you aren't after tiny groups, but rather, the ability to kill stuff. Those bullets will work fine.

If you care enough to sort bullets by weight, buy better bullets. You bought low quality bullets; that weight variation is not surprising. None of it matters if you're just hunting big game at reasonable ranges.

Whether the bullets shoot accurately and have good terminal performance are different questions entirely, and are much more important than sorting by weight.

By the way, are you checking the straightness of your assembled cartridges?

I dont have a runout gauge, and I understand that can be more important than variations in bullet weight. I have expensive bullets which I use and get good results but I like to try things and was thinking this much difference in bullet weight might have an effect on accuracy as much as something like differences in charge weight might. Which would slow down getting a good load. Now I know it was not the bullet being 2 grains lighter than the one before it. I might be able to focus more on finding the right charge weight of powder. Beside who doesn't want to save some money on components? I hunt deer and pigs. Which can be done with .222 using 53 grain Barnes x bullets. I dont think these are horrible bullets. Maybe as good as any other cup-n -core bullet. Going at 8x57 speeds. Even if it sheds half the lead in it and still goes through the other side of a hog.. I win. but I see your point dont expect more out of a lesser product and I am about to order a runout gauge.

Given a well developed load, small variations in powder charge weight don't matter much either at typical hunting distances.

just ordered the run out gauge. I know you guys are right. I have not weighted alot of bullets. the most I do is weight a few when I open a new bag/box of bullets to make sure they are what I ordered. never thought to much about it cause most of the ones weighed weren't too far off the stated weight. I think i weighed a few of these and they were up too 2 grains off it threw me out of whack and i went sort crazy for a few mins.. but now it is done so i will use them in weight lots see if it makes any difference.

Not to continue driving you to total OCD on your reloading, but, you might also check the length of the bullet from base to ogive.

I'd be tempted to load some of each ( light, medium, heavy, mixed) and see if it makes any measurable and repeatable difference on target.

I'm not against busy work but if I can prove to myself it makes no difference it's easier to move on to things that do make a difference.

Good luck!

Just did the same thing myself hoping for more accuracy. Sorted by weight and length, It made no difference in accuracy. I really did not think it would but wanted to prove something to myself. Self cheap bullets do not usually shoot well.

Years ago I purchased some ,223 blems that shot moa I sorted them and got sub moa.

jme

You are killing me smalls, you are killing me!

If you have to sort them by weight, you are buying the wrong bullet. I learned that a long time ago.

yea probably, but if all the effort i need to put into having decent consistency is some time to sort them, ill consider it a ok waste of time. Well call it lesson learned. ill probably go a different route next time. next step will be to load some and see if i can get some groups. Im not to afraid of having to go to the range and fire some loads to see if i lost some money . Damnit these bullets are going to make me spend more time at the range! SOB

More time at the range is a good thing, can be a learning experience when it comes to determining what matters in developing an accurate load. I have spent more time at the range these last two years developing accurate loads for my rifles. While I haven't weighed bullets, I have been checking concentricity and segregating ammo according to runout.

It probably won't affect accuracy but I would be very skeptical using them for hunting anything. There is a thread on 'Bullet Failure" and many here have experienced problems with premium bullets and now you want to use bargain basement stuff? WOW! Use them for varmints or depredation or target practice but with that kind of variation, their internal construction and their terminal performance seems dubious. It's your money.

Mauser8X57. Put the sorting aside for a minute.
What is your trigger pull set at? 2-3 pounds is best. Heavy trigger pull ruins good groups.
Range time improves groups too because you learn when the trigger is going to trip. So, no sweat on more trips to the range.
Hornady SST's are a better choice for cheap bullets.
Nosler Partitions are usually spot on weight wise. Cost is up there though.
Check out the BC and you'll make better choices in the future.
http://www.shootforum.com/forum/bulletdb.html

I think the point was that if the weight varies enough that you need to sort them, then there's probably other quality issues with those bullets too. Weight is not the only deciding factor in how well they'll shoot, not by a long shot.

I set mine for between 2-3 pounds, use timminys on the mausers and most others I have are the accue-trigger type.
I use both the sst's and partions. I am having a ball with the 129 sst in 6.5 this year in my sweed. imr4831 and right around +- moa every group. Killed a nice little buck on opening weekend. Worked like it was suppose to. The partitions seem over kill in my area. I have never had a bullet put in the right place that did not do what it was suppose to and I haven't really used any of the premium bullets. Mostly hornady interlock, nosler hunting bt's and remington cor-locs,( when you could still buy the components). The sst's are interlocks with a tip. I am not down talking the need for the really good construction bullets. it is just hard for me to say I have to have them when for what 100+ years cup and core bullets have been doing the job when pushed to reasonable speeds. if I was running a 8mm magnum or one of the newer powder blasters 26-28 nosler, or wheatherby's I would feel the need for a bit better bullet. Speed makes bullets act funny unless they are made well. I also would want a good bullet if doing a dream hunt. Elk or Moose, bear, or Africa. Which is why I have worked loads up for my mauser with the partition and barnes x bullet. I also like to shoot and kill things if I can find a reasonable price on some "decent" bullets then why not try them see if I can get them to group then poke something(pigs are my test medium) see how they work on game. M8x57

My experience with ballistic tip type bullets is they blow up inside the deer. Corelokts and partitions (etc.) mushroom. Depends on your preference. Cavity is more sloppy from tipped lung or heart shots, no big deal.
Back to your corelokts, should you run out of them, there is no shame in buying factory loads.
SST's are OK. Weight varied by .4 grains but shot decent at 100 yards.

The Privy bullets in 6.5 were funky looking but shot just fine. If I have to weigh bullets and cases to shoot a deer I think I would quit reloading and go factory. I was sorting ammo and trying to guess the age of some of the little factory fodder I have bought. Some of the boxes were 40+ years old.