Are we splitting hairs over specific calibers??

Hello, I asked this question on an another member's post that was discussing hunting elk with a 6CM. But it probably deserves its own platform.
I'm 54, a Whitetail nut who used to live to bow hunt. As I've gotten older, I've taken an interest in nice rifles & optics but my knowledge of long range anything is limited.
So many have such strong opinions on this caliber or that caliber……like there's something magical about the one they are sold on.
Am I wrong in thinking that the same projectile ( just use a 140gr Berger VLD) traveling at the same velo, will have the same results, regardless of caliber ?? Maybe I should have said "about the same velo"……as it is not likely to get the exact same velo from 2 different calibers.
Let's say we are working with a 124gr Hammer Hunter……and just pick 2 calibers that are in the same ballpark. If a load is developed generating 3200fps muzzle velo for both calibers, is there any real difference in the 2, provided the bc is equal ??

Nope. No difference when it hits the fur.

The "hair splitting" comes down to how easy it is to get that 3200 fps, how cheap the brass is, long action or short, twist rate, etc.

Some cartridges are just "better" than others, but "better" has a different meaning to different folks.

Just don't split hairs with old cartridges and anything that ends with moor or PRC.

I learned long ago that the laws of physics do not apply to internet forum discussions regarding cartridge performance because I have been told over and over that the same bullet travelling at the same velocity will have different performance when launched from a different cartridge. Similarly, a 300 Win Mag is a 600 yard elk cartridge but a 308 Winchester is not a 400 yard elk cartridge.

Well yes and no.

Could kill whitetail clean and ethical with almost anything on the shelf of any big box sporting goods store in the nation. In that regard it appears like a lot of splitting hairs that don't need splitting.

On the other side there are certainly benefits, that although small still matter.

When the 6.5 creedmore came out I already had a custom barrel 260 fast twist and a solid stash of lapua brass. As such my paper killing needs were already met. But for guys who didn't load or who weren't going to wait for a rebarrel job, a factory 6.5 creedmore made sense. Similar to the 6.8 western, when it was released I already had a 270 wsm with a fast twist barrel and a solid stash of norma brass. The 6.8 western did and does nothing for me, but it does allow someone to off the shelf duplicate my setup.

The nature of forums is to geek out on very specific minute details. Len set this up like an online living room, so let's use my living room last night as an example. Wife now works and has a house in the major hub of our state. As such this time of year the downstairs living room and spare bedroom is full with guests more days than it isn't of folks coming and going from the farflung corners of the state. Had a friend and his two adolescent sons over, it's time they got rifles of their own. He had two specific game animals in mind and a myriad of options would work. However his tertiary concerns narrowed it down, he wanted good ammo selection if he doesn't find time to reload and quality brass if he does. His estimate of the boys recoil tolerance combined with the windswept tundra they live on sways the decisions as well.

Settled on the 6.5 prc, as ammo is available in flavors of all kind up here as well as brass from the quality mfgs. They successfully found rifles today in configurations both boys liked and the down range performance is in the vein that is just about perfect for the intended game. Honestly it could have been done with a 6.5 x 55, a 6.5x284 a 6.5 creedmore, or a 270... or 7-08, heck a 308 or 3006 could have also fit the criteria. But the 6.5 prc edged them out on the flow chart just a little better.

Absolutely splitting hairs.... but hairs that serve a purpose.

Most people will taught how good whatever they have is and that if you don't have the same you are a moron. We see it here with any post asking, what is the best caliber for whatever?
Let's take deer for an example.
You will have the needmores claiming superiority, while the rum guys saying anything else is just a joke. When in reality, pretty much anything will work, if the guy pulling the trigger does his job. So that 180gr 30 cal, coming at you at 3000 fps, doesn't really know what it came out of.....but it will trigger the owner of said weapon.
Now where did I put my 300 prcmore rum AI super long short magnum?

Even in the best case scenario, this is more an enthusiast gun forum. Less serious hunting talk compared to rokslide, and most of the professional shooters stick to snipershide.

So, people are going to be overly nuanced about cartridges that do essentially the same thing at distances that don't matter.

I mean, we could talk about any subject here; scopes for example, and people will just shout out their favorite scope regardless of the OPs requirements or budget. It's safe to say there going to be cartridge bias.

Maybe that is why I own so many different calibers and cartridges and the firearms that use them?

I've taken game with everything from 22 caliber up to and including 45's. (Excluding the 50 and 54 M/L's) I also shot 50 BMG for several years, but they were never used on game. Like so many before me and us, I have learned a lot of calibers with proper bullets and placement will deliver fatal wounds upon game, and a more modern earsplittenloudenboomer at 7-800 yards is no better than an older, boring cartridge at 5-600 yards.

Put a hole through the vitals, and most game will become deceased.

entoptics said:

Nope. No difference when it hits the fur.

The "hair splitting" comes down to how easy it is to get that 3200 fps, how cheap the brass is, long action or short, twist rate, etc.

Some cartridges are just "better" than others, but "better" has a different meaning to different folks.

Click to expand...

Well said sir!

Gday
Splitting hairs yes & no

So much comes down to the pill itself & you'll see various smaller caliber pills out preform a larger that is just factual

But move to a apples & apples point of capabilities & the larger is just more emphatic & more importantly reliable especially once critter size increases or a different shot angle increases penetration requirements

So split hairs I like but unless you use a good pill & use it where it's optimal working windows are , you are potentially not getting the best out of that combo & others are more appropriate & that could be a larger or smaller caliber

But if one's after just dead go ahead & use whatever

Jm2cw
Cheers

Called Marketing! IMO

Ah man without that us gun loonies would be bored. That's why I have a 7mg, 280 and soon a 7 saum lol.

Same caliber, same bullet, same speed? Doesn't matter what pushed it at all. 180gr NAB @ 2850 from a .30-06 or a 300SST, or a light loaded .300RUM. Physics are physics. KE=.5 x m x V2.

Smaller caliber, but same weight and speed has better Sectional Density. Aiding in penetration. Also, it should have better BC, aiding in less velocity drop and wind drift at distance for keeping that bullet on target. 6.5PRC pushing a 140 VLD @ 3000 will retain velocity and less drift better than a .270 Win pushing a 140 VLD @ 3000 or a 7-08 pushing a 140 VLD @ 3000, or a .308Win pushing a 140 @ 3000.

It has been said that twist rate has a minimal effect of terminal performance. Faster spinning bullets tend to impart more terminal damage and keep a straighter path through game. Definitely helps with bullet stability in flight too.

Same weight bullet from different calibers can perform differently.

100gr in a 25 caliber is typically a big game bullet.
100gr in a 7mm is a varmint bullet.

Sure, we could look at the 120gr bullets in both calibers.
But the velocities wouldn't be the same.
The 120gr NBT is a good bit faster in my daughter's 7X57 Mauser than 120gr from my 257 Roberts.