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Which .30 cal have best ballistic?
- Thread starter Kristian_Jensen
- Start date
This is such an open ended question. Best for what?
Flatlines have a .855 on their 198gr and the sierra 230 is a .8 g1 but are you shooting it in something high enough to take advantage of that or will it just act as a boat anchor for you?
Flatlines have a .855 on their 198gr and the sierra 230 is a .8 g1 but are you shooting it in something high enough to take advantage of that or will it just act as a boat anchor for you?
Yeah sorry, I’ll try to be more precise
With all the 30 cal variations out there like 308, 300wm, 300nm, 338lm and so forth, I was wondering which variation performs the best.
Best BC with the least drop and best accuracy at EDL
With all the 30 cal variations out there like 308, 300wm, 300nm, 338lm and so forth, I was wondering which variation performs the best.
Best BC with the least drop and best accuracy at EDL
I'd assume right now the best combo you'd get for a commercially available .30 cal would be .300NM, 1:8 twist with either the 198 Flatline, or the 230 SMK... depending how much you want to spend per bullet.
For "wild-cat" loads (not a true wild-cat as it's a CIP spec'ed cartridge, just not currently manufactured), the 30-.338 Lapua Mag would prob be the next best option; easy to make the brass by necking-down .338 LM brass, and Redding makes dies. But I've heard the velocity advantage over the .300NM isn't very impressive.
For "wild-cat" loads (not a true wild-cat as it's a CIP spec'ed cartridge, just not currently manufactured), the 30-.338 Lapua Mag would prob be the next best option; easy to make the brass by necking-down .338 LM brass, and Redding makes dies. But I've heard the velocity advantage over the .300NM isn't very impressive.
I currently have a 300 Norma mag, running both the 230gr Berger and the now playing with the 225gr. ELD-M. It's a 1-9" twist, though I would have gotten an 8 twist if I could have found one.
It's a killer at 3000fps with a 26" barrel. It doesn't go subsonic till 2200 yards.
It's a killer at 3000fps with a 26" barrel. It doesn't go subsonic till 2200 yards.
I have a 308 twisted for the 198 Flatline. It uses a standard "tactical" throat of 0.070 Freebore length, not anything special.
It hammers the common stuff like 175s and 178s with ease.
The 198's run a shade under 2800fps and have an avg G7 of appx 0.41 at that speed though the doppler tested data provided by Warner Tool is best used like a tiered G7 the same way that some folks are offering "custom drag curves". It's just a new marketing way of telling folks to use a tiered G7 BC...
This little 308 outperforms 300 Win Mag with conventional bullets for 1/2 the powder and a huge reduction in recoil.
In a 300 Norma Mag that same bullet can exceed 3400fps and without something the size of a 375CT there isn't a conventional bullet and cartridge combination that can touch it.
It hammers the common stuff like 175s and 178s with ease.
The 198's run a shade under 2800fps and have an avg G7 of appx 0.41 at that speed though the doppler tested data provided by Warner Tool is best used like a tiered G7 the same way that some folks are offering "custom drag curves". It's just a new marketing way of telling folks to use a tiered G7 BC...
This little 308 outperforms 300 Win Mag with conventional bullets for 1/2 the powder and a huge reduction in recoil.
In a 300 Norma Mag that same bullet can exceed 3400fps and without something the size of a 375CT there isn't a conventional bullet and cartridge combination that can touch it.
Guys,
for a bunch more on the 308 ballistic combo that Josh is talking about, see my thread here:
https://www.snipershide.com/shootin...atlines-elr-in-mt-results-from-field.6639490/
This is a crazy idea Josh and I had when his 198gr Flatlines came out. He has had it at the PRS ELR match last year and I have taken it out to MT (see above post). It has been a ton of fun.
Several things to note about the 198gr Flatlines:
(1) Form factor are crazy high on this bullet. That is where it gets it BC from, NOT from increasing its mass. I'm not aware of any other commercially available projectile with as high a form factor (maybe some of the other Warner Flatlines in caliber other than 30cal match or beat it)
(2) The bullet's friction profile thru the bore is materially reduced (by some fancy engineering work that is patented/classified). The result is materially faster muzzle velocities at safe pressures. I have never had a pressure sign from a Flatline and I have tried to get one... maybe I should try pistol powder (just joking - DO NOT DO THIS)
(3) bullet consistency is materially better than copper jacketed swagged bullets. Result is consistent MV and BCs. One Flatline bullet flies just like any other Flatline from the same weight profile. There is no such thing as "Lots" with Flatlines - the bullets are all, from any practical viewpoint, the same.
The downside are:
(1) price. They are not cheap.
(2) splash. They don't make as much visual impact on steel as the exploding lead from swagged bullets. Splash on dirt and noise is similar however.
(3) hunting. I would not recommend these bullets for hunting, at least hunting targets that aren't wearing Level IV armor.
Some guys are reporting trouble making them group at 100yds. I had precision issues with the 180gr Flatline, but the first load I shot with the 198 went into bughole so this has not been an issue for me. Now my rifle was built from ground up by a gunsmith who also is the bulletsmith, so I put myself in a position to be lucky with the 198gr. Your mileage may vary. Are they worth trying if you have the twist however? ABSOLUTELY!
jbailey, I really appreciate the detailed breakdown. The Flatlines seems to have breathed new life into the .308 - which can only be a good thing.
The flattest shooting 30 caliber and also the highest velocity 30 caliber is the .30-378 Weatherby Magnum.
30" and 8.7tw
I can get them closer to 2900fps but the rifle doesn't seem to like it as much as the 2780fps load.
Considering the performance gleaned it's not an unreasonable price tag.
There are about 11 conventional bullets worth of copper in a single 198 flatline, plus the equipment to produce them 1 at a time and they are individually inspected and hand sorted in the box.
Let's skip the comparison if you culled out the duds in a $65 box of Bergers until later and just look at the performance.
Wind call of a 300WM at 1000, wind call of a 300NM at a mile (my 308 shoots inside a 300WM at a mile using 215 Bergers)
47gr of powder vs 80-88gr
Barrel life that's 3x longer than a 300WM and about 5-6x longer than a 300NM
Fits on a standard rifle action instead of a specialty one for a Lapua mag.
Shooting regular 308 brass with a regular throat, just like you would shoot anything else.
Lower recoil, lower cost per round... and when you don't need to shoot the 198 but you just want to shoot the rifle it's an easy swap back to any other jacketed bullet you choose. I typically shoot 208 ELDm and the 198 interchangeably. I just have a set of data for the 208 ELDm based off the zero for my 198 load.
I was wondering if anyone had tried the 198 warners in a 30-06 Ackley improved. What velocity would be achievable in a 30" barrel .
Another thing what would be the optimal freebore measurement if I was to set up a 1 in 8 twist for the 198's
Another thing what would be the optimal freebore measurement if I was to set up a 1 in 8 twist for the 198's
Yes, we have but not in a 30", in a 28" they're good for an easy 2950 and that was several years ago. We have not tried them with RL23/26 but rather just IMR 7828ssc
Freebore length should be about 0.125-0.135
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