11-01-2012, 07:08 PM
I have argued for 100 grain bullets in the context of line infantry applications because of flatter trajectories and the size of targets.
Nothing I know of changes my thoughts for that application. Medium game hunting, however, adds two factors that push the optimal weight higher.
[INDENT]1) Heavy, high BC bullets tend to minimize the odds of missing in moderate winds.
2) Heavy for caliber bullets tend to have better terminal effectiveness than lighter bullets. The all-copper expanding bullets are no exception but tend to penetrate deeper than lead-copper bullets because they lose so little weight and tend to hold together better.[/INDENT]
The result is that 120-130 gr bullets appear to be closer to an optimum than lighter bullets.
Nothing I know of changes my thoughts for that application. Medium game hunting, however, adds two factors that push the optimal weight higher.
[INDENT]1) Heavy, high BC bullets tend to minimize the odds of missing in moderate winds.
2) Heavy for caliber bullets tend to have better terminal effectiveness than lighter bullets. The all-copper expanding bullets are no exception but tend to penetrate deeper than lead-copper bullets because they lose so little weight and tend to hold together better.[/INDENT]
The result is that 120-130 gr bullets appear to be closer to an optimum than lighter bullets.