Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Cartridge comparisons and evaluation

On multiple occasions people have complained about comparisons of cartridges using ballistic data, claiming they are boring and/or uninformative. For those complainers, naysayers and whiners, I have a simple question:

Without ballistic information, how do you determine the suitability of a cartridge for your needs?


No using ballistic table data of any kind, whether from calculators, reloading books or manufacturers.

I used to love pouring over ballistic data and looking for the latest greatest in all things rifle cartridge. Now, I just don’t have the bandwidth. If it’s in the realm of normal/adequate, I’m good. Some day I’ll get back to tweaking and refining

You just google "will [insert cartridge] kill an elk" and go with the search results summary.

Well, you really need to consider many practical factors.

- Availability of bullets for your velocity, distance and purpose
- magazine capacity
- Availability of quality brass
- Availability of reasonably priced dies
- Reamer availability

Well, you have this gun.
And it's your gun.
And because it's your gun,
it's the best.
And everyone should have one just like your best gun.

Because that makes you...feel better about....you!

So let's all buy a XXXX in 30-06, 270, or 243.
Scope it with a XXXXX.
And shoot XXXXX ammo.

I go with whatever a well-respected gun writer chappy thought was a good idea ten years before i was born. Plus it has to give me the warm feelers. You know, the scientific method.

Place a 257 Weatherby cartridge next to a 264 magnum cartridge

My decisions were initially determined with cartridge availability and popularity.....as in a former or present military cartridge. However, I was “only” 14 years old at the time! With a bit more cash available, I went with cartridges recommended and approved of by reputable “ole” time hunters/writers. These have performed admirably and have only gotten better with improved powders and bullets available! The newer “superstars” of the shooting world, “only” marginally perform better than some of the old standards! memtb

When I was a young person around 1970 plus or minus, I went with popular calibers and cartridges used by locals with good success. The 30/30 wasn't that good at stopping deer but the .30-06 was. The gunwriters in any magazine vouched for .30-06 so it was a natural choice. A few (very few) progressives around here acquired .270 W. but it never seemed an improvement over the -06. Now when I needed a lower recoiling semi auto rifle for flock shooting fleeing sounders of hogs I went for .223 in an AR. I learned from news reports that it was extremely deadly on fleeing students in mass killings so I figured it would work the same on pigs. Wasn't disappointed at all. So I guess The answer is I use what others have already used for a long time with good results and have already done the load research. When I bought a rifle for my daughter at age 9 I took a recommendation from our local range master and bought the thoroughly vetted .243W. Of course it's easy to see I'm not very adventurous when it comes to something as important as a deadly weapon. Of late I've been very impressed with my neighbor's 6.5 Grendel although I told him I never would have considered buying one before using his.

Get out the yardstick. We can start comparing...

i have both these cartridges and both are true buck killers at long distances too !

I've come to the conclusion that almost any cartridge from 26 caliber to 35 caliber will kill any game animal in the lower 48 with proper bullet choice. It comes down to how much recoil you're willing to tolerate, how important availability of and the price of ammo is to you, and how close you are willing to get before pulling the trigger.

There is a reason the commonly available cartridges are so common.

It depends on what your intended target is and at what ranges you'll be shooting.

Shooting competitive paper requires a lot more precision than most hunting scenarios.

Shooting gsquirrels requires more precision than shooting medium game at comparable ranges.

Shooting medium game in wide open spaces typically requires more precision than is required for still-hunting the same game in tight cover.

I've observed that most casual deer hunters in the U.S. don't have a clue about the ballistics of their rifle/cartridge/bullet combination. At shorter ranges, say under 200+/- yards, ballistics don't matter than much, particularly when you consider all of the variables that influence the outcome.

We all know that a 270 trumps all the rest of them.

[/quote]
I've observed that most casual deer hunters in the U.S. don't have a clue about the ballistics of their rifle/cartridge/bullet combination. At shorter ranges, say under 200+/- yards, ballistics don't matter than much, particularly when you consider all of the variables that influence the outcome.[/quote]

It's not uncommon for folks around here to get the ballistics from the back of the ammo box.

Wrong question. Lots of people who are choosing between two different cartridges will look at ballistic data, myself included. It's really useful for some purposes.. But evaluating how effective a cartridge will be using only ballistic data is a fool's errand. It's also something that anyone with a computer can look up on their own if they want to.

Ballistics data is also boring as hell, unless you're doing your own evaluations, for your own purposes. I'd much rather read (and heed) someone's first-hand experience with a particular cartridge or bullet than read about something I can look up on my own, if I'm interested. So maybe the question should be, are people really interested in my interpretation and comments on information they have at their fingertips?

If the answer is "yes," then fire away.

....................Simple! Prior knowledge, experience and depends on what cartridges one owns....For example. See the four cartridges below that I own? Now do ya think that I would need to consult any ballistic information tables in order to determine what their capabilities are as to satisfying whatever my particular need is?.....NUPE!

I go shoot deer, coyotes, groundhogs etc with it. If it works well, I keep it and eventually start loading for it. Lather, rinse, repeat,

This 100%. The ballistic arguments are interesting, but they've all been made before.

Your answer begs the question - How did you evaluate the cartridge before you purchased the rifle so chambered?

I don't know anyone that lays down cash without doing some analysis beforehand.