Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Rifle preferring NON Boattail Bullets?

Been playing around most of the summer with a Christensen Arms Ridgeline 270 win. (Warne Mnt Tac Rings, NF 3-10X42 scope, action professionally bedded)

I have approx. 200 rounds down it in the last couple months and what I have noticed is it doesn't like boat tail based bullets nearly as much as a standard base bullet? I first started with 140 accubonds and 145 ELD X bullets (h4831sc) and I could for the most part get 1.25-1.5" groups every range session (multiple seating depths and powder charges - 3 and 5 shot 100 yard groups) but that wasn't how expected this rifle to perform.

So I went old school and tested 130 partitions and 150 partitions - again with H4831sc. Just about every load thru workup and seating depth adjustments was under MOA and most in the .5-.75 moa at 100 yards. I worked up and have settled on 150 partition, 56.9 of H4831sc, Win Brass, CCI 200 primers for an average of 2990 FPS and on three separate range trips will put 5 in under 1" at 100 with velocity and BC checked/verified at both 400 and 600 yard gongs. (Should be a heck of a mule deer, antelope, elk load)

Have you ever ran into a rifle not liking boat tail bullets?

I haven’t seen that sorta difference myself in one gun just shooting FB bullets that much better but believe it’s possible.

With your 150 grain Partition load I cannot see any reason I’d mess with the other two either though. H4831 and 150 Partitions would have to be about as dependable as a good pair of boots. Ain’t much of anything I wouldn’t hunt with it.

I’m using the same gun but in 300 RUM and man alive does it shoot 220 Scenars. Just over 3000 and it shoots like it has eyes.

Maybe Mule Deer will chime in here but IIRC he had an article on boattails in one of the Gun Gacks. At any rate, boat tails are inherently not more accurate than FB bullets and in fact I believe the opposite is true. I believe they are more sensitive to any crown irregularity than FB bullets too.

Yes. Sample of one, don't normally use boattails anyway, but have a .308 Savage 99F that hates them.

Harder to make a boattail bullet that is as consistent as a flat based bullet. I had a 270 that was a 2-3" shooter with Gamekings and a 1/2" gun with factory or flat based bullets. My current 6mm is a 3/4"+ gun with boattails and 1/2" +/- with about any flatbase i feed it.

BT's are more finicky... however they have a LITTLE less drop at longer hunting ranges (300-500 yards)

Yes on sensitivity to crown issues. Little things like not protecting the muzzle from cleaning rods will affect BTs before flat base bullets.

One of the first things I checked was the crown and it appears just fine - even, no burrs....

I've never had a rifle not shoot BT's. But I can't afford Christiansen Arms.

It is a bit discouraging to see this out of a $1800 rifle with another $900 in optics and mounts - however this is my big game rifle for Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk, Bear so if I "have" to shoot 150 partitions - there are worse problems in the world. Also, I have the NF for a reason - if the partition is going to drop more over distance, then I'll just spin the turrets another couple clicks as needed...lol

Maybe an off the wall question for a 270, but what is the twist?

My 260 Montana hates boat tails, like 4-6” at 100 yards. It will shoot sierra flat base and hornady interlocks into 1.25” at 100 yards, so that is what I shoot.

I have a Ruger 77 MKII that doesn't like any of the boat tails I tried. My Weatherby Varmint Master 22-250 likes flat base bullets more but Weatherbys seem to have a long throat and that could be why.

Have you tried the Hornady 150 gr. Interlock flatbase? I’ve heard them called the “poor man’s” Partition. About half the price of the Partition. And yes, I have generally found it easier in my rifles to get flatbased bullets to shoot well. That said, Ballistic Tips and TTSX’s usually shoot satisfactorily.

Take a look at the popular benchrest bullets.
Those OCD dudes don't do anything without good reason.

When pure accuracy, and nothing but accuracy is the goal,
The bullets are only pointy on one end.

Have seen several rifles not "like" boattails over the years. It can be due to the crown, but suspect the cause is more often at the other end, as the bullet leaves the case, Lead-cored boattails don't "bump up" slightly in diameter when the powder gas kicks them in the butt, as many flat-base bullets do, and depending on the difference in diameter between bullet and throat, can also result in gas blow-by before they fully enter the rifling.

I had a Sako 270 that didn’t like boattail bullets. It liked 150 grain Pro Hunters best.

I've heard that before regarding better accuracy with flat base vs boat tail bullets. I have a Kimber Classic 325 WSM that doesn't like any boat tail I've tried but has shot 3 different flat base bullets very well. I think there's likely something to it...

Got a Ruger Mod. 77 Mk II Target Rifle in .25-06 that I acquired new in 1997. Did a lot of load development and noticed that my better loads all used flat base bullets. It'll shoot boat tails OK but flat base are consistently a little better. Finally settled on one load only in that gun and it uses a 117 gr. Sierra Pro-Hunter flat base. I've seen that phenomenon in other rifles as well. That's just the way it goes.

Old chambering, old powder and old bullet still getting it done.