Do you sort your bullets?

[Bowyer]

I've been reloading about 12 years mostly for hunting and now wanting to improve my accuracy. I started sorting my bullets by weight but have only seen a small increase in accuracy. I rarely shoot beyond 200 yards.

Just in case someone asks, I load for 223, 243, 25-06, 6.5 Grendel, 6.5 CM & 308.
On good days I can take any of these and shoot between 1/2" and 1" groups at 100 yards but there are always the occasional fliers. I feel like I have honed my shooting skills to the point that I know I made a good shot and the bullet hits an inch away and I have to blame the bullet.

1. Would I benefit by sorting my bullets according to bearing surface?
2. Which bullets do you guys like best for accuracy?
3.Which bullets are the most consistent with all measurements?

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[TexasRough1256]

I don't sort mine by weight but I do sort by brand. Winchester shoots pretty good for me and easy to find.

[mrc]

Don't go down that wormhole, you will start sorting by weight and ogive. Next thing you know you will be weighing brass and trimming, primer pockets and flash holes. Next thing you know you will have 5 different piles of brass and bullets and you won't know what to do with them.

[Artos]

You would be better off buying a set of windflags & learning to buck the wind and mirage over any sort of bullet sorting to improve group size...

[Bowyer]

You would be better off buying a set of windflags & learning to buck the wind and mirage over any sort of bullet sorting to improve group size...

Wind flags.
Do you just set them near the target?

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[trophy8]

Don't go down that wormhole, you will start sorting by weight and ogive. Next thing you know you will be weighing brass and trimming, primer pockets and flash holes. Next thing you know you will have 5 different piles of brass and bullets and you won't know what to do with them.

You should be prepping brass that way and weight sorting brass any if accuracy is your goal.

I don’t sort bullets. Berger is good for me. I won’t waste my time if reloads are shooting 1”. Need to be .5 or under. I’m pretty OCD about case prep and seating. Obviously quality primers and an accurate powder charge plays a large role. Do it all right or don’t do it at all is how I look at it.

[Bowyer]

You should be prepping brass that way and weight sorting brass any if accuracy is your goal.



I don’t sort bullets. Berger is good for me. I won’t waste my time if reloads are shooting 1”. Need to be .5 or under. I’m pretty OCD about case prep and seating. Obviously quality primers and an accurate powder charge plays a large role. Do it all right or don’t do it at all is how I look at it.

Thanks, I'll start sorting brass by weight.
You mentioned bullet seating, this is what brought me to my questions. While I was loading yesterday I emptied a box of bullets and opened another. The bullets in the second box had an average of .009" to .012" longer bearing surface than the first box.

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[McClain]

First question is: are you working with custom/semi-custom rifles or factory rifles? I have found that you can usually take factory rifles only to a certain level of accuracy by precision loading for the most part. To get much below 0.5 MOA groups consistently you nearly always have to work with a quality custom rig.

[WTucker]

1. Would I benefit by sorting my bullets according to bearing surface?It depends on your purpose and the rest of your loading process such as brass prep, etc.
2. Which bullets do you guys like best for accuracy? So far, Sierra MatchKing, and I am trying out Berger Hybrids in my 6.5x47.
3.Which bullets are the most consistent with all measurements?My Sierra and Bergers are both really consistent, but they will still vary from lot to lot. I have been shooting Hornady ELDM in my 6.5x47 and the bearing surface on them is not consistent within the same box. It has been causing me headaches when doing seating depth testing because the seating depth is not consistent due to this. When I sort them by bearing surface I can get each group to load dead on every time.

.

[Bowyer]

First question is: are you working with custom/semi-custom rifles or factory rifles? I have found that you can usually take factory rifles only to a certain level of accuracy by precision loading for the most part. To get much below 0.5 MOA groups consistently you nearly always have to work with a quality custom rig.

Factory rifles.
Thanks, I know you're right. It's just that sometimes I get really tight, less than .5" groups, and it makes me think at least some of my guns are capable more consistent groups.

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[crash8005]

Need more info about your equipment and process.

What dies are you using?
Are you full length resizing or neck sizing? Checking case length and trimming?
Trimming case necks for uniform thickness?
How are you weighing powder charges?

If you are 100% sure that the fliers aren't the shooters fault then you need to make sure you are weighing charges and going through every step exactly the same. I double weigh all charges just to be sure. There are other good suggestions above as well.

The devil is in the details.

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[Bowyer]

.

Thanks for your insight.
I am seeing the same thing that you are experiencing with Hornady bullets and am starting to suspect it is the culprit for wild fliers.

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[crash8005]

Also, I like Bergers, Sierras and Noslers for accuracy. Just my preference. I dont like Hornady and havent ever tried Speer or Lapua. Havent loaded a lot of Barnes either but have been told that they can be very accurate out of a bolt gun.

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[Bowyer]

Need more info about your equipment and process.

What dies are you using? "Hornady and Lee"
Are you full length resizing or neck sizing?
"Mostly neck sizing and full length every 3rd time."
Checking case length and trimming? "Yes"
Trimming case necks for uniform thickness? "No"
How are you weighing powder charges? "Balance beam RCBS M500"

If you are 100% sure that the fliers aren't the shooters fault then you need to make sure you are weighing charges and going through every step exactly the same. I double weigh all charges just to be sure. There are other good suggestions above as well.

The devil is in the details.

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[Artos]

My point is the wind & conditions will affect your group size way more easily than any bullet sorting.

You need to remember that every gun / bbl is dialed into a certain amount of obtainable accuracy. Some will never get under MOA & the hummers are few & far between...to be getting .5moa from a factory rig is outstanding & trying to chase that same gun into 1/4" consistently is likely futile.

Again, a set of windflags set up in stages from the bench to the target can really shrink groups, but would recommend getting to know them with a custom rig capable of 1/4" consistent groups to get their value.