a bullet would penetrate in water, and still be capable of inflicting harm. Answer: Water is frequently used to gather fired bullets
in ballistic laboratories, when they want to match the groove patterns with that of another bullet. Of course, it will not show the temporary cavity (wound channel), expansion in flesh, and penetration in flesh. As with much testing, we look to the military for an-
swers. The U.S. Army Ordnance Department determined that a .30-06 bullet of 150 grains, fired into water at an angle of incidence of 90 degrees at 2,720 feet per second would be slowed to just 140 feet per second after traveling through 3½ feet of water. They also said that at 140 feet per second, the bullet would have just 100 foot-pounds of energy left, which they said was the minimum to bruise a body. Note that they said to bruise, not penetrate. Furthermore, they concluded that 4 feet was deep enough to be completely safe. They also noted that all bullets, regardless of what
angle they were fired at the water, yawed nearly 90 degrees and tumbled. This effect was present even with bullets of various shapes. Of course, this discussion just gives details on one car-
tridge, but we can assume that water penetration is not very deep and not as deadly as the movies would have us believe. Finally, as they say on the Mythbusters TV show, don’t try this at home and shoot at someone in the water. Question from a young reader in Oregon: My dad says I am not pulling the trigger right. How should it be done? Answer: You did not mention what your father says you
are doing wrong, but the most common error is to tighten up just before pulling the trigger because of the expected noise and recoil. This causes jerking of the trigger and that in turn moves the barrel from where it should point. Just the slight- est movement will alter the striking point by a huge amount, the extent depending on the range. What you need to do is learn to pull the trigger to
release the firing pin without any movement of the gun. Pull the trigger rather slowly with a gradual increase in the pressure that your finger has on the trigger. When things look perfect, resist the temptation to jerk back the trigger as the sights move about on the target. Concentrate on squeez- ing the trigger, not on the movement. Do not be too slow, as that may cause you to get tired and increase the wobble. Squeeze gradually and hold a second if the sights drift away, then when the picture looks good, continue the squeeze so the shot is fired as the sights are lined up on the intended striking point. Also, don’t hold the gun too tightly. Of course it must
be held firmly, but an iron grip will make things worse in- stead of better. Hunting, or shooting at a moving target, follows the
same principle, except that it all must be done quickly. Using a shotgun on trap or skeet is excellent practice for shooting at moving targets, and the basic idea can be adapted to rifle shooting at a running deer or varmint. As you can certainly understand, this all takes practice. Don’t expect to be proficient at the beginning. Question by email: Could you please tell me the maxi-
mum range of a .30-06 with a 150-grain bullet, a .22-250 with a 55-grain bullet, and a .270 Weatherby Magnum, with a
www.varminthunter.org Page 123
140-grain spitzer. All fired at 45 degrees for best range. Answer: The maximum range of the .30-06 with the
150-grain bullet is about 3,400 yards at an angle of 30 degrees. Forty-five degrees will give the greatest range in a vacuum, but in the atmosphere, air resistance plays a role. With no air, maximum range would be at a 45 degree
elevation angle and the only point to consider would be velocity. In this case, divide the velocity by ten and square the result for an answer in yards. Thus, under vacuum con- ditions, a projectile at a 2,060 fps muzzle velocity would go about 14,145 yards. This is a theoretical vacuum range, and remember that the bullet is pulled down by gravity. This is only for academic knowledge, because unless
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