how far is a 147 acurate?

[rustybayonet]

I'm running BE-86 with barry's 147 plated. My first time loading 147 normally I load 115 or 124. With 4.2 grn of BE-86 they work great at 20m I can keep a 4" group no problem. When I go out to 50m's thw round drops about 10" and the groups opens up to 6"/8". If I bring up the powder charge to raise the poi for the target at 50m, my 20m group opens up. Is it just the nature of a heavy bullet?

[IDescribe]

How far a bullet drifts off course per unit of distance traveled is not linear -- a 1-inch group at 25 yards does not imply a 2-inch group at 50 yards -- and there are factors that play almost no role at 25m that are playing a significant role at 50m. The space between 25m and 50m is where great ammo separates itself from adequate ammo. And some component selections aren't particularly appropriate for certain distances.

To answer your question, without going into all the possible ballistic variables, I'll just say that serious bullseye shooters aren't shooting plated at an distance, and they're not likely shooting 147gr at 50m.

If you really want to shoot at 50, and you want to make your life easy, buy a couple thousand 115gr JHP and load them over 1200 feet/sec. Precision Delta can be had for less than 9 cents per bullet shipped to your door IF you buy 2000 or more at a time in both 115 and 124 grain. If you want to pay a little more, Hornady and Zero are options. 115gr Hornady HAPs kick ass.

[rdinga]

Your choice of bullet has a lot to do with 50 yard accuracy. I have seen great results with the Zero 147. Clover leaf groups at 25 yards out of my AR and ringing steel at 100 yards is not even sporting. Never got the cutting edge accuracy with plated bullets at 25 yards and beyond.

YMMV

[Scootertheshooter]

I just ran plated through my 9AR and could easily ring the gong at 100. I do believe I'm at the limits of some accuracy at 100 and that was a 124g bullet

[Hi-Power Jack]

at 20m I get a 4" group . At 50m's the groups opens up to 6"/8".

An 8" group at 50 meters is BETTER than a 4" group at 20 meters.

​I'd expect the 50 meter group would be more like 10 -12 inches.

Sounds like you're doing something right with the long range shooting

[Hatchet]

I can hit about 8 of 10 at 200 yards and about 5 of 10 at 300 yards with a 147 gr Xtreme. Target is a 2 foot plate and rifle is an AR with a 5 inch barrel with a T-2. If I had a magnified optic I'm sure that I could hit them all on a calm day. If I put a magnified optic on, I would love to set up some targets to see the spread.

[BritinUSA]

I'm running BE-86 with barry's 147 plated.

Are you using Round Nose or Flat Point, I read somewhere that FP were more accurate.

[yellowfin]

Some other details start to matter in the process in terms of consistency. How consistent of a powder charge are you getting? What's the crimp you're getting on it, the outside diameter? Any of the brass stepped such as FM or Ammoload (decreases internal volume)?

[jc91087]

How far a bullet drifts off course per unit of distance traveled is not linear -- a 1-inch group at 25 yards does not imply a 2-inch group at 50 yards -- and there are factors that play almost no role at 25m that are playing a significant role at 50m. The space between 25m and 50m is where great ammo separates itself from adequate ammo. And some component selections aren't particularly appropriate for certain distances.

To answer your question, without going into all the possible ballistic variables, I'll just say that serious bullseye shooters aren't shooting plated at an distance, and they're not likely shooting 147gr at 50m.

If you really want to shoot at 50, and you want to make your life easy, buy a couple thousand 115gr JHP and load them over 1200 feet/sec. Precision Delta can be had for less than 9 cents per bullet shipped to your door IF you buy 2000 or more at a time in both 115 and 124 grain. If you want to pay a little more, Hornady and Zero are options. 115gr Hornady HAPs kick ass.

This, except that I've also found 1100-1150 fps to work very well with 115gr bullets.

OP, you could also post this over in the Bianchi section. Those are people that know what they are talking about when it comes to 50 yard shooting.

[mpeltier]

I'm running BE-86 with barry's 147 plated. My first time loading 147 normally I load 115 or 124. With 4.2 grn of BE-86 they work great at 20m I can keep a 4" group no problem. When I go out to 50m's thw round drops about 10" and the groups opens up to 6"/8". If I bring up the powder charge to raise the poi for the target at 50m, my 20m group opens up. Is it just the nature of a heavy bullet?

What velocity are you getting?

what is your Zero distance?

Are you shooting groups free hand, rested or Ransom rested?

What pistol are you using? Is it stock or modified/Customized?

Iron sights or optic?

Your group size is ok (not great but ok) at both distances but 10" of drop at 50m is much more than normal in my experiance.

[PPGMD]

At Bianchi, where 40% of the shots are 25 yards or further with no make ups, I've mostly seen other people using 115gr Zero JHP or 115gr Hornady XTP.

Edited July 4, 2016 by PPGMD