Does BC matters?

[skipglo]

You know why BC ,s. Matter to me ?
I like every little advantage , when shooting, so if in my mind ,
My bullets fly through the air the best they can , I'm happy ,
Even if it's just the thought of them doing so .

I wonder if that's how Santa figured out where to place his Reindeer? Do you think it may have been that Rudolph had the highest B.C to allow him less drag and to better cut the wind for Dasher,Dancer, ........et

 

[Swamplord]

Regardless of range, while it is NOT the only factor, "I" like my BC to be as high as possible.

you speak in riddles but I got the "high" hint in your speak ...

I've heard that BC bud is supposed to be killer, at any range from the Rockies to the Alaska Range

But, most Alaskan stoners preferred the local MTF

Sorry Feenix, I couldn't help it, lol !

 

[FEENIX]

you speak in riddles but I got the "high" hint in your speak ...

I've heard that BC bud is supposed to be killer, at any range from the Rockies to the Alaska Range

But, most Alaskan stoners preferred the local MTF

Sorry Feenix, I couldn't help it, lol !

It's all good, and just glad you got the "hint."

 

[Alex Wheeler]

Bc is great when you not giving up accuracy chasing it. Most people obsess over bc far too much. They get on the bc calculator and plug in different combos and decide what bullet they are going to shoot. When the right way is to let the target tell you what bullet to shoot. At normal hunting ranges, even extended western hunting ranges you just will not see the difference between bc in your windage. Now for the guys shooting past 700 or so it will start to become more noticeable. For my midrange rifles, which I limit to 600 yards. I do not care at all what bc the bullet is. Also I have seen when a bullet becomes to extreme it becomes very hard to tune and the accuracy falls off since its so finicky. This is very obvious when you look at long range competition like 1000yd BR or F class and what the preferred bullets are. They are not the highest bc bullets in their class.

 

[L.Sherm]

Bc is great when you not giving up accuracy chasing it. Most people obsess over bc far too much. They get on the bc calculator and plug in different combos and decide what bullet they are going to shoot. When the right way is to let the target tell you what bullet to shoot. At normal hunting ranges, even extended western hunting ranges you just will not see the difference between bc in your windage. Now for the guys shooting past 700 or so it will start to become more noticeable. For my midrange rifles, which I limit to 600 yards. I do not care at all what bc the bullet is. Also I have seen when a bullet becomes to extreme it becomes very hard to tune and the accuracy falls off since its so finicky. This is very obvious when you look at long range competition like 1000yd BR or F class and what the preferred bullets are. They are not the highest bc bullets in their class.

I'm in the same camp as Alex.
Doesn't mean much either if the bullets aren't consistent or willing to sort.

 

[Petey308]

Bc is great when you not giving up accuracy chasing it. Most people obsess over bc far too much. They get on the bc calculator and plug in different combos and decide what bullet they are going to shoot. When the right way is to let the target tell you what bullet to shoot. At normal hunting ranges, even extended western hunting ranges you just will not see the difference between bc in your windage. Now for the guys shooting past 700 or so it will start to become more noticeable. For my midrange rifles, which I limit to 600 yards. I do not care at all what bc the bullet is. Also I have seen when a bullet becomes to extreme it becomes very hard to tune and the accuracy falls off since its so finicky. This is very obvious when you look at long range competition like 1000yd BR or F class and what the preferred bullets are. They are not the highest bc bullets in their class.

I get what you're saying and agree to a point. That first sentence of yours really says it all.

I don't think people really obsess over high BC. I think for obvious reasons a high BC bullet is desirable and nowadays isn't a big ask, even for a good hunting bullet. It's simply become a new standard.

Sure, at "normal hunting ranges" drop and drift might not be a big issue at all, but it could be too if you're starting at a lower MV to begin with. A higher BC bullet starting slow would still produce less drift than a low BC bullet at the same low MV. If you're shooting a big magnum and at a fast MV, no it's not going to matter so much for the first several hundred yards. So it really depends.

High BC is more of a concern for those hunting 500 yards or more when velocities start dipping below like 2400fps or more.

And yes, your really high BC bullets tend to have long secant ogives and are inherently hard to tune to tight groups due to them being finicky with self aligning to the bore. But nowadays that problem has really been solved with things like hybrid ogive profiles and such.

Bottom line is I don't think this post, or those in it commenting the BC is important, is saying BC is so vital that we should all be using the highest BC bullets we can get, and no matter the range you're hunting to. I believe the point is just that all else accounted for (like terminal performance, consistency, etc) BC is something that is important to a lot of us and if you can get a really good terminal performing bullet, having a good amount of BC to go with it is very desirable and beneficial- particularly to those hunting beyond 600 yards.

 

[L.Sherm]

I think what Alex is saying people stress way to much about B.C and should be putting alot more effort into tuning there load.
The original post was does B.C matter.
An example of B.C matters is a 215 in 30 Nosler at 3100 will drift 11" at 700 yards and 25" at 1000. Theres 1 " difference at 700 than the 245 elite hunter at 2900. This is in a 5mph crosswind

 

[Petey308]

I think what Alex is saying people stress way to much about B.C and should be putting alot more effort into tuning there load.
The original post was does B.C matter.
An example of B.C matters is a 215 in 30 Nosler at 3100 will drift 11" at 700 yards and 25" at 1000. Theres 1 " difference at 700 than the 245 elite hunter at 2900. This is in a 5mph crosswind

I think it matters, yes. That's the answer to the post. That said, if you ask "Is BC everything?", that answer would be absolutely not.

Does BC always matter? Again, no.

In your example, you seem to be comparing two pretty high BC bullets. That's not a fair comparison. Compare that 245gr Berger to a 200gr Partition. The partition at 3150 will drift 15.3" at 700 yards and 35" at 1000 yards with just a 5mph wind. The Berger is 9.6" at 2900fps at 700 yards and 20.8" at 1000 yards. So that's a 6" difference at 700 yards and 15" at 1000 yards. That quite a bit for just a 5mph wind. A 10mph wind would be a difference of 11" at 700 yards and 29" at 1000 yards. That seems pretty significant to me, and more of a realistic wind. If you get that wind call wrong, you can see the possible difference that could mean with your shot placement.

And the difference with the Berger vs the Partition on that potential error is way in the favor of the Berger.

At 700 yards, the difference in a 5mph wind vs a 10mph with with the Partition is 15" alone. And it's almost 3 feet difference at 1000 yards.

It's a 9.5" difference between a 5mph vs 10mph wind at 700 yards with the Berger. It's about a 21" difference at 1000 yards. So well over a foot less in potential shot placement error there at 1000 yards.

I realize likely no one is shooting that Partition to 1000 yards though. It's just an example. Even a 6" difference at 700 yards is pretty significant and if you pull the shot under adrenaline, fatigue, cold/numb fingers, etc, that just adds to the shot placement error.

 

[Petey308]

Also, a lot of posts/comments lead me to believe some seem to think the point is many guys are just chasing a few BC points. It's not though, in my opinion. It's not really about a thought process of "I need to now switch from using the 215gr Berger to the 245gr Berger because it's a bit higher on BC and it'll help me shoot better".

If anything, BC helps retain a bit more velocity and the increase in weight also increases sectional density. Both of those Bergers are soft/frangible in construction and if you're actually using the 215gr from a fast pushing cartridge (at like 3100fps in that example above), and actually take a shot on an animal at close range, especially larger game like elk or moose, the additional sectional density of the 245gr would actually help you, and more than the additional BC it has.

So yes, it's not all about BC. It helps, but it's definitely not everything.

 

[LVJ76]

To Alex's point, example my 7mm Rem Mag will not shoot the 168gr VLDH under 1", it just won't no matter what powder, brass or primer combo you give it. But the 162gr SST under half MOA every day. I lose a bit of reach down range with the SST, but it hits where I aim, and I'm not crossing my fingers hoping the VLDH makes a good hit in the vitals/target.

 

[L.Sherm]

I shot partitions for years and anybody who has much knows that they literally die after 500 yards. Comparing a Partion to a Berger past 500 is like an Apple to an Orange.
My comparison was to show just because
you wanna jump from a 230 or 245 from a 215 or 210 because of a B.C number isn't gaining nothing really unless you want to or rifle shoots it better.
Theres more to gain if your rifle shoots say 6" or 7" groups by tuning it better at 700 to 3 to 4" groups.
The partition reminds of a cannon ball flying through the air compared to a Berger like a missile.

 

[Petey308]

To Alex's point, example my 7mm Rem Mag will not shoot the 168gr VLDH under 1", it just won't no matter what powder, brass or primer combo you give it. But the 162gr SST under half MOA every day. I lose a bit of reach down range with the SST, but it hits where I aim, and I'm not crossing my fingers hoping the VLDH makes a good hit in the vitals/target.

Right, and that's where bullet construction and profile considerations need to come in, and do come in, to play. A secant ogive VLD vs a tangent SST will mean the latter is way easier to tune. But if you switched to a newer Berger hybrid design, you could get easier tuning and more BC.

That said, if the SST is working just fine for your needs with that rifle, there's no real reason to switch, and that's not the point here anyways.

 

[FEENIX]

Also, a lot of posts/comments lead me to believe some seem to think the point is many guys are just chasing a few BC points. It's not though, in my opinion. It's not really about a thought process of "I need to now switch from using the 215gr Berger to the 245gr Berger because it's a bit higher on BC and it'll help me shoot better".

If anything, BC helps retain a bit more velocity and the increase in weight also increases sectional density. Both of those Bergers are soft/frangible in construction and if you're actually using the 215gr from a fast pushing cartridge (at like 3100fps in that example above), and actually take a shot on an animal at close range, especially larger game like elk or moose, the additional sectional density of the 245gr would actually help you, and more than the additional BC it has.

So yes, it's not all about BC. It helps, but it's definitely not everything.

OMG! Why are peeps overcomplicating it unnecessarily?

Regardless of range, while it is NOT the only factor, "I" like my BC to be as high as possible.

 

[Pdvdh]

No worries... They're all "on par". lmao