Flat shooting?

[Joe in FWA]

I often see "flat shooting" in the description of some handguns. What exactly does that mean?

Joe

 

[Litlratt]

Recoil.
Long gun, bullet trajectory.

 

[rockydog]

Fast, or longer range, but usually, not as much bullet drop @ normal distances

 

[XtremeVel]

Bullet trajectory, less bullet drop. A few examples in more traditional handgun calibers would be .41 mag, .44 mag, 10mm , .357 mag and Sig.

 

[shibumiseeker]

Generally speaking, the higher the bullet velocity, the flatter it shoots since the arc of the bullet trajectory is a function of its initial velocity and the ballistic coefficient of the bullet.

 

[Joe in FWA]

Got it. Thanks guys!

Joe

 

[HighStrung]

Bullet trajectory, less bullet drop. A few examples in more traditional handgun calibers would be .41 mag, .44 mag, 10mm , .357 mag and Sig.

Okay, so what are some of the more notorious calibers for having a greater bullet drop. This isn't a sarcastic post, I'm seriously interested. I'm new to the .40 S&W and am still learning this round, havn't got a ton of experience at a variety of distances. So I'm really wondering how much I may have to compensate say, from 3 to 25 yrds.

 

[XtremeVel]

Nothing wrong at all with the calibers with much more bullet drop. The .45 acp ( slow and heavy) is a great round. Actually, I find for closer range target shooting, I find the .45 to be as accurate if not more than the calibers mentioned earlier. (At least for me ) As for compensating from 3 to 25 yards.... Well, honestly I wouldn't know. All would depend on many factors... Bullet weight, velocity, trigger control. Best way to find out would be to take it to a range and see first hand. At just 25 yards, might not show at all. Remember, the bullet leaves your barrel under recoil. So, this means the elevation of the muzzle is different depending on the velocity of your round. For years, I had this wrong. The slower the velocity, the higher the impact. ( bullet leaves barrel with muzzle higher)

 

[Marc]

just in case you didnt get... bullet drop and trajectory

 

[ghitch75]

seen a .38 special 2" hit a 12"sq. plate @ 200 yards shooyin' it upside with there pinky finger.....that proved to me any rd can be shot at long ranges...

 

[XtremeVel]

seen a .38 special 2" hit a 12"sq. plate @ 200 yards shooyin' it upside with there pinky finger.....that proved to me any rd can be shot at long ranges...

Yes... And EVERY rounds starts to drop the instant it leaves the end of the barrel... Some just at a much faster rate than others.

 

[ghitch75]

gravity!!!!!...

 

[snapping turtle]

Look at it like a football QB. Some rounds leave the barrel like Patyon manning throws the out route. Fast and flat. Some rounds leave the barrel like brett farve on the bomb pass with much arch. Both can get to the 50 yard line and the catch can be made.

 

[XtremeVel]

Look at it like a football QB. Some rounds leave the barrel like Patyon manning throws the out route. Fast and flat. Some rounds leave the barrel like brett farve on the bomb pass with much arch. Both can get to the 50 yard line and the catch can be made.

Great point ! I remember back in the 80's, actually had a DI that tried to tell us that the bullet out of a M16 that was sighted in a battle site zero would rise and peak at 200 yards and would drop back in at 300 yds.

 

[shibumiseeker]

Yes... And EVERY rounds starts to drop the instant it leaves the end of the barrel... Some just at a much faster rate than others.

Every round drops at the exact same rate. Some just travel farther than others before they hit the ground. Point in fact, a bullet fired from a gun perpendicular to the ground will hit the ground at the same instant a bullet that was dropped straight down from the same height as the barrel at the same instant.

 

[shibumiseeker]

Okay, so what are some of the more notorious calibers for having a greater bullet drop. This isn't a sarcastic post, I'm seriously interested. I'm new to the .40 S&W and am still learning this round, havn't got a ton of experience at a variety of distances. So I'm really wondering how much I may have to compensate say, from 3 to 25 yrds.

The slower the bullet and the lower the ballistic coefficient, the more it will drop at a given distance. Slow heavy bullets like a 250 grain .45acp (running around 780fps). The more cross sectional diameter a bullet has for the same aerodynamic shape, the faster it will decelerate so the greater the curve of the arc of its drop.

From 3-25 yards you won't notice much drop for the above bullet, maybe 5-6 inches and will be going about 760fps.

 

[Yamaha]

25-50 it can come into play..... I noticed 40's seem to drop faster than 9mm, and .380 drops like crazy past 50.....