Alright, my son goes to NWFS Collegiate Highschool and he's doing his Capstone project on reloading. Currently his thoughts are to try to find out if he can load more accurate loads for each of his rifles than factory match ammo. My question is, is this a decent question to try answer or is there something better that he could answer within this field?

He has a Savage Axis .223 with a 20" 1/9 barrel and an AR with a 20" Saber Defense barrel(I think 1/9 as well). I just picked up a Ruger Precision Rifle in 6.5 Creedmore so I can play as well.

Thank you for your time!

Labmonkey

I have a few thoughts.

If this is going to be a true scientific experiment, it will be very difficult to accomplish while being completely objective and without producing some sort of bias.

What type of ammo would he use as a control?

Different quality and brands of factory ammo can behave significantly differently in individual guns, so putting all factory ammo under the same umbrella doesn't really work.

Would he be using a vise with some sort of mechanical trigger mechanism? Even if he does, what happens if the rifle isn't aimed at the exact same point as the previous shot? What if the wind shifts between shots? There are so many things that go into group shooting, I just don't see it as a viable option for a purely scientific experiment.



There may be some other ways to experiment with reloading, such as achieving more consistent velocity than "factory" ammo, but nothing pops out at me that can be truly objective.

Thanks for the reply. I agree, there are a lot of variables. Consider just the rifle; there are just so many things that can be changed. I suspect that most of these variables will be noted. Weather and temperature play a big role as well. As far as the control is concerned, he's researching the recommended bullet weight for the twist rate. Then purchasing different brands to test-fire.

I think he intends to shoot using sandbags and a bipod. He's keeping an open mind and understands that his project may have to alter as it progresses. That said, I think that your suggestion of looking for a more constant velocity is great!

Most such shooting by factory ammo or gun makers involves Ransom Rests or similar fixed rests with a controlled environment, in other words, indoors. Otherwise it becomes a test of the shooters skill or the chosen externals influencing the outcome, sun light, wind, humidity, altitude, etc. You can shoot such an open environment test one one day at one time at one open range but not multiple tests over many days. The problem is compounded by the fact that certain cartridges will shoot at a given range regardless of manufacturer, so you would also need to establish where the distance split occurs from accuracy to not so accurate by factory ammo.

I have done this type of testing on 22 LR ammo over many months with instruments, computers, etc., while researching a book I am still in the middle of writing. Frankly I could have finished the field testing years ago with a 75 yard indoor range. 75 yards is the split for 22LR ammo.

Now what your son could do is use a recording chronograph to show the difference in extreme spread (ES), standard deviation (SD) and average velocity. Usually a single digit ES and SD will indicate better accuracy. So say a factory round has an SD of 64 fps and a hand-load has a SD of 7 fps you my figure that the 7 SD is more accurate on average than the 64. This would be an easy accuracy test to complete on a one time, one load, one day basis with a lead sled at a range, shooting every round with a wet bore, this produces a clean bore, control, for every shot.

But do not be surprised if the lowest SD does not produce the best accuracy, it happens.
Ed

Thanks Ed, that's a lot of great information. We did purchase a Magneto Speed to capture data. I'll see about sourcing a lead sled to test with. I appreciate your time, we're both learning about reloading and there's a ton to learn!