WFN vs SWC accuracy question

[sghart3578]

I was reading a previous thread where the OP was asking if there were any significant differences in the terminal performance between these two designs and it prompted me to ask this question.

In my Marlin 1894CS I load two different bullets. A RCBS 38-162-SWC and a Accurate 36-185M. The RCBS looks like a copy of the 358156GC and the Accurate mold is a LBT style WFN, similar to the NOE 360-180 WFN.

The RCBS LSWC weighs 172 gr with the gas check and the Accurate weighs 182 gr with a gas check.

I load both over 12.5 gr of 2400 with a standard primer. Here's my question.

Both seem to be equally accurate, 4-5 " groups at 100 yards. This is with a peep sight from a bench. I admit I am not that great a rifleman.

The POI of the heavier bullet is consistently 6-7" lower than the lighter bullet. The weights don't seem to be that much different. Is the lower POI because the WFN has more drag on it?

I realize that this is not a giant problem in the scheme of things but it has always been in the back of my head. And the experts here always have the answer.

Thanks for your time,


Steve in N CA

[megasupermagnum]

I can't give you a true answer, but I can tell you that the differences in POI are not because of increased drag. Even if one bullet was better than the other, it wouldn't be more than a difference of an inch at 100 yards.

[quilbilly]

I recently started using the NOE boolit you mentioned above in my Ruger 77/357. That plain base boolit drops from my mold at 189 gr with my alloy. Using the same powder load with both plain base and gas checked in 165 gr. SWC, the POI is very different at 40 yards. The difference is over 5". What I can't figure out is why the POI is almost the same between the NOE 189 gr WF plain base and the Lee 125 gr. RF-PB (drops at 132 gr) even though the Lee should be going faster. I really like that NOE boolit as does the rifle. I am using a 3x scope and the MV is 1320 fps from my chronograph. Both the rifle and the NOE boolit are new to me but I am getting such tight cloverleafs at 50 yards with that load, as the saying goes "If it ain't broke. don't fix it".