Long-Range Ammunition Anatomy

Set two boxes of target rifle ammunition next to each other, and it’s hard to see much difference between them. Take a round out of each box, and you still probably won’t. You could even send a couple downrange at 100 yards, and you’d likely wind up with two tightly spaced holes in paper.

But then start shooting more than a couple rounds and stretch those distances out hundreds of yards father. Shoot them in varied weather conditions and at different elevations. Suddenly the difference will be abundantly clear.

For decades, Federal has loaded Gold Medal rifle ammunition with the finest match projectiles, and the result has been accuracy and consistency of handloads out of factory-loaded ammunition. But how does that happen? What’s actually built into a competition-level round like Federal Premium Gold Medal CenterStrike that’s not part of standard ammunition? Let’s take a look.

Jacket Thickness

All target bullets consist of two primary parts—a lead core and a copper jacket. The thickness of that jacket and how much it varies has a tremendous impact on precision and accuracy. When there are bullet-to-bullet variations in jacket thickness, or the thickness varies excessively within any individual bullet, flight suffers and groups open up.

So, consistency is king. Jacket sidewall variation must be extremely low to enable shooters to hit their targets reliably at extended distances. The CenterStrike OTM bullet’s construction process minimizes variations, and the quality control process eliminates any projectiles that fall out of specification.

Overall Cartridge Length

Most of us go to our graves thinking the firearm chamber for a given cartridge is identical rifle to rifle, and that all rounds of a given cartridge are the same length. A 223 Rem. is a 223 Rem. But neither is true. Chambers vary from gun to gun, as do cartridges.

This matters not only because of shot-to-shot consistency, but also because of “bullet jump.” It’s not a concept most shooters visualize or think about, but the physical reality is that when any cartridge is fired and the bullet begins to leave the case, it must pass through a small but meaningful air space before the bullet engages the lands and grooves of the barrel’s rifling.

If there are variations in overall cartridge length, that gap will vary shot to shot, and this will affect bullet flight. This is why Federal loads CenterStrike and other Gold Medal loads to forgiving overall lengths and then keeps that length extremely consistent thanks to advanced manufacturing techniques and a gauntlet of special testing reserved for such loads.

Ballistic Coefficient

When distances are measured in football fields, little things start to make a big difference. Ballistic coefficient, known as BC, is one of them. This measurement of how well a bullet penetrates the air doesn’t necessarily translate to a round’s accuracy or precision. Fired through the right rifle, even the least aerodynamic projectiles can print tight groups, and those with the highest ballistic coefficients can flop.

Where BC really comes into play is how a bullet behaves at extreme distance. High-BC bullets will drop less and are pushed less by wind than bullets with a lower BC, which means they are more forgiving of slight errors in range estimation and wind calls, and shooters have to compensate less for these factors. And the less you need to compensate, the less there is to go wrong.

So, it’s only natural that high-end competition-grade target ammunition like Gold Medal CenterStrike is loaded with long, sleek heavy-for-caliber bullets that post high BCs. But more important than the precise BC is how consistent that number is bullet-to-bullet. A sky-high BC doesn’t mean anything if it varies from one projectile to the next. Depending on the circumstances, those miniscule differences might result in feet worth of point of impact shift at extended ranges.

That’s why Federal uses advanced manufacturing techniques and the most stringent quality control processes to ensure CenterStrike projectiles have BCs that are both high and consistent.

Low Standard Deviation For Velocity

The faster a bullet travels, the less it will drop over a known distance. But like BC, what matters more is not so much a round’s velocity but the consistency of it, also termed standard deviation.

First, realize that it’s impossible for every single round of a given cartridge-bullet combination to produce identical velocities. Imperceptibly small variations in powder charge, bullet weight, seating depth and countless other factors related to ammunition, the rifle and even atmospheric conditions will inevitably cause round-to-round velocity variations. The idea is to minimize these variations to the point they don’t affect one’s ability to hit the target.

So, whether they reload or shoot factory ammo, competitive shooters like Federal ambassador Jim Gilliland strive for a standard deviation of less than 10. By carefully selecting temperature-stable propellants, using Gold Medal primers, and tightly controlling and monitoring every aspect of loading, Federal builds Gold Medal CenterStrike to fall within that tight window and produce the lowest standard deviations in the industry.

Components

A common thread runs through all of this. Ultimately, any ammunition is only as consistent and precise as the pieces with which it’s made. Brass cases, primers, propellant and bullets must all be crafted with the best materials and held to the tightest quality control specifications in the first place.

Again, that’s where loads like Gold Medal CenterStrike separate from the pack. Built with only the best components, they deliver the accuracy, precision and consistency competition shooters need to win.