180 gr Rem vs. 180 gr Win

[ThunderingWind]

Should I really expect a major difference between the major manufactures when firing the same basic round?

The 180 gr Core-Lokt Remington .30-06 is what I used to zero at 100 yds (just to start). Then the Winchester went on sale so I bought the same bullet weight.

The Winchester ammo is on track left to right but POI is 3 to 4 inches lower. The gorups are also a little wider at almost 2.75".

I am firing with the rifle resting on basic front rest, no back rest and using a concrete bench at the my local club.

I had the Remington ammo shooting 3 rd groups, all inside a 2.5" black circle at 100 yrds, and not really working to control breathing etc...just aim and squeeze. I know I can get them closer with more practice.

[str8shooter]

Let the battle begin....

I've had better luck with Remington Ammo than Winchester. Cleaner and more consistant groups. I have no ballistics data or knowledge that could explain why, but it seems to be an attribute shared by all the calibers I buy. YMMV

[Tomcat088]

Yes, what you are speaking of isn't all that uncommon. Different manufacturers will use different powders, or different blends of powders. Depending on your barrel length, it might favor one powder over another (due to the different minimum burn lengths). Because there is a wide range of velocities that the ammo can be loaded to, they will have different muzzle velocities. As a result of the velocity differences, the points of impact will be different; so yes, what you are seeing is common. You might not be aware of this, but even with the same weights of bullet and charges, different lots of powders will sometimes have different velocities. This is why competition shooters will buy as much as they can of one lot of ammunition that works well for them, because they don't want to have to change the charge later.

There will also be a difference between the bullets that they are using, even if they are the same weight; your rifle might just like one bullet over the other. The bullets will have different jacket thicknesses, different center of gravity, different sizes (diameters, thicknesses, lengths, etc); they will also have different ogives and bearing surfaces. These things not only affect the ballistic coefficient of the bullet, but how they balance, twist, and are stabilized by your barrel. Your barrel probably likes one more than the other and it's part of why you're seeing a difference in group size. This can sometimes also be related to the consistency of the powder charge, but can vary with merely bullets.

I would equate alot of the variance, just to difference in charges of powder from one manufacturer to the other. Even if they had the same powder charge and bullet weight, you would still see differences in accuracy due to the different bullets, and which one the barrel likes. The moral of the story is to basically find the ammo that shoots the best in your rifle for the money, and stick with it; or learn to reload, lol. Hope that helps.

[ThunderingWind]

Thank you very much. I knew there could be a difference in the ammunition. I just never thought it would be that different.

The Winchester rounds seem to provide a higher level of recoil over then Remington rounds.

I will shoot whats left and stay with the Remington until my load of surplus arrives from CMP. Then I'll "start over."

I guess I could start keeping shot data cards.