I noticed that boattail bullets are quite a bit mor accurate than regular bullets, but I read something the other day saying that they should not be used for hunting or not as near as good as a regular bullet for hunting.Is this true or am I going crazy?

It's called fishing not catching

Not true. As for boat tail bullets being more accurate, I believe that is true for farther distances. That is one area in which I want to do a "real world" study, it's just hard to come up with the time lately. Flat base bullets are very accurate at shorter distances, I have heard many say out to 200 yards. I have had many acquaintances claim they are more accurate at these distances than boat tails. Where a boat tail has the advantage is when you start reaching farther out. The inverted flare creates less drag on the bullet, which helps it retain velocity downrange as well as stabilizes its rotation along the way. What it does is keep it from wobbling as quickly. This helps when distance shooting when you have so many other variables to consider like wind, spin drift(magnus effect), incline/decline...etc.

I'd be willing to bet that most benchrest shooters shoot BT bullets due to the fact that their drag coefficient is lower and therefore they are less affected by wind currents. That would make them more accurate at any range. Sierra Matchking bullets are probably the most commonly used bullet in high power shooting, and they are a boattail bullet.

how can a boattail bullet be more accurate at further distances if a flat base bullet is more accurate then a boattail at short distances?

i am misunderstanding something.

It's not more accurate at short distances (flat base), that's why.

[This message has been edited by tx4guns (edited 7/16/2007 1:57p).]

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how can a boattail bullet be more accurate at further distances if a flat base bullet is more accurate then a boattail at short distances?

i am misunderstanding something.

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I'm not 100% sure on the entire picture, but here's my take:

The flat backed projectiles are slightly more accurate at closer ranges because they stabilize coming out of the barrel faster than a boat tail design does. However, given the fact that they are inferior in aerodynamic design, they destablize in flight much faster than a boattail projectile does. So, after a much shorter distance, they lose their stabilizing spin and begin wobbling/tumbling, thus losing their accuracy.

A boattail projectile takes longer to fully stabilize in flight, thereby making it's close range accuracy not as good as a flat backed projectile design. However, because once stabilized, they tend to stay stabilized much longer (due to the more aerodynamic design), they are accurate at much longer ranges than a regular flat backed projectile would be. Because they have a better aerodynamic design, their slipstream is minimized and they carry their velocity and inertia much farther than the other type of projectile will.

There is probably somebody that can explain it better than this, but this is my understanding of the physics involved in the two different types of projectiles.

And FWIW, the 8mm Mauser projectile is considered to be a "perfect" ballistic design, which is why the early rocket designs were based off of it's projectile shape and geometry.

Different guns will shoot different bullet types differently as well. My .300 win mag does not like boattail bullets. I haven't completely settled on a round but a 165 grain nosler partition seems to shoot much better.

From what I have been told by a few competitive shooters, that is a pretty good description, schmellba99. Like I said before, I've never done a head to head comparison but I would like to sometime.

It's all based on rate of twist. If you have the right barrel for the bullet, it won't matter what range you're shooting or what type of bullet you're shooting. The Swift A-Frame and Nosler Partitions are flat back bullet designs, but they are proven at long ranges for big game. The Nosler Ballistic Tips, Swift Sirocco, etc are all BT bullets and have great short range accuracy. I think this arguement is about splitting hairs, and I mean tiny, thin ones. Every BT bullet I've used has shot sub-half MOA in reloads at 100 yards, so it would be hard to convince me that they don't perform at short range. I've shot Rem Core-Loc bullets (flat back) for sub MOA out to 200 yards, so they do just fine, too. Again, it's more about finding the pet load for the rifle than blaming it on the bullet. There are lots of factors besides bullets that determine accuracy, and most of the time it's going to be the rifle's barrel (fit, pressure, load resonance) you can point to as a problem.

Actually, I never said boattail bullets don't shoot well at short distances. I use boattails nearly exclusively(except for Partitions, I like em to MasterAggie!)for all ranges. Most of the input I have on this particular subject is from guys who deal in a hair's breadth to win a match. It doesn't make much difference to the average shooter or hunter.
Another reply to the original post: There are many bullets of boat tail design that are excellent hunting bullets like the aforementioned Swift Scirocco, the Barnes Triple Shock and Nosler Accubond. Heck, the Nosler Ballistic tip is a good hunting bullet(for deer) as far as I'm concerned. I have killed more deer with that particular bullet than any other

Doesn't the major difference show up between the two once you drop below the speed of sound and therefore putting it in an area that the average hunter shouldn't worry about?

[This message has been edited by sunchaser (edited 7/16/2007 8:30p).]