New Berger BR Bullet

[CYanchycki]

And a few shot at 200 with the same load.



Shot the first one as fast as I could. About 20 secs. It was a low 4.



On this target I ended up shooting a 11:00 headwind. Silly man. The second shot made the group by dropping out the bottom. Needless to say I am pleased with what I have sen with this bit of shooting and my limited wind reading skills.

[Eric Stecker]

Eric - Could you explain, in general terms, the procedure for specifying the lot number on these new bullets?
Does a particular lot of jackets always stay together through all of the assembly procedures?
Assuming there is more than one machine, is each assembly machine segregated to produce it's own lot number?
Are there any plans to use this technology for .22's or other calibers?
Any plans for a 500 count box?

The lot number is simply our internal job order number. These numbers are sequential. For those who aren't familiar with manufacturing, when we need to make bullets we issue what is called a job order. This document specifies all the particulars for that run. This document follows the job through the entire process. When the bullets are finished we list the job order number as the lot number. As of today (7-27-12) we are over 4,600 job orders issued (this number has gone back to zero a few times in the last several years for various reasons). So anything with a lot 4637 or smaller was made before today. Any higher lot number will be made in the future. I hope that's clear.

We use very strict lot controls. When we receive copper, the lots are recorded and the copper is clearly labeled. We can use only one lot of copper to make one lot of jackets. If the copper lot changes we change the lot number of the jackets even if the tooling and set up is exactly the same. When the jackets are pulled to make bullets we can use only one lot of jackets for each job order (lot). If we need to make 100,000 bullets but we have one lot of jackets that is 35,000 and another that is 65,000 our need for 100,000 will be split into two different job orders (lots) and run separately. When jacket lots get mixed they end up in the scrap bin. I really don't like it when this happens. It doesn't happen often. We will never use more than one lot of jackets for any lot of bullets.

Each job order (lot) runs on only one machine. Since we designate one die for each bullet we can't run the same bullet on two machines even if we thought it was a good idea, which we don't. We have strict controls over how the bullets are collected, cleaned and processed through packing. This rarely produces an issue since most of the time we are running bullets that are visually very different from each other. It is hard to mix 6mm 68 gr with 30 cal 230 gr for example.

We do have plans to apply Bryan's design to both the 22 cal and 30 cal BR bullets. Keep in mind that the same process is required (thorough testing of several designs and lead column heights) so it will be a while before these bullets are available. The various 6mm BR Column designs that were tested took four years to resolve and Bryan has not designed the 22 cal and 30 cal options yet.

At this time we don't have plans for a 500 count box. I can't stress strongly enough that the bullets in one 100 count box, 5 - 100 count boxes and 1 - 1,000 count box are exactly the same in every way within a specific lot. These lot numbers are clearly marked on each box. From a performance point of view there are no gains to buying them in 100 count boxes or 1,000 count boxes. Having said that, I've been around BR long enough to know that the mind of a BR shooter is an active and fickle thing. BR shooters don't tend to believe much that is said until it is proven in their gun so for that reason we have the 1,000 count box available. If someone told me that this made a difference in their gun I will appreciate it very much if they could explain why because I can't.

Regards,
Eric

[Eric Stecker]

Any idea when Sinclair may get some of these, 1000 or 100 variety?

I've passed your question along to the person who handles Sinclair's orders on our end. I know that they order nearly all of our bullet shapes and sizes on a regular basis and I will expect that the same thing is true with the Column bullet in both quantities. I can also pass along that the 1,000 count boxes will be on our shelf next week. The first run isn't huge because we don't know how many we will sell in the 1,000 count pack but we can make more if we run out fast.

Regards,
Eric

[goodgrouper]

Thanks for the explanation Eric. Most useful post I've read in some time. Always been curious how lot numbers were created. Your method sounds easy. I wonder about Nosler and Sierra lot numbers where they have numbers two or three times longer and in two parts.

As for the BR crowd wanting 1k boxes, I think it has more to do with less packaging (empty boxes) to deal with and reduced cost by buying bulk. Even if there is no cost savings between ten 100 count boxes and one 1000 count box, it just seems like the thing to do since we buy everything else we use in bulk!

[Eric Stecker]

Great point on bulk count boxes. Buying 1,000 count boxes to reduce the number of "boxes" you have to haul makes perfect sense. There is also a slight cost advantage for our 1,000 count boxes. I also appreciate that when a BR shooter knows what he wants, 100 bullets aren't going to be nearly enough. Based on chats around the camp fire, 1,000 bullets will get you most of the way through the tight precision life of a barrel so it is easier to keep track of how many rounds you shoot if all 1,000 come out of the same box.

Regards,
Eric

[Eric Stecker]

I've passed your question along to the person who handles Sinclair's orders on our end.

100 count 6mm BR Column bullets were shipped to Sinclair on the 18th. They should have them now. We are working with them to sort out how many 1,000 count boxes they need. As I mentioned these will be available for shipping to all our resellers next week.

Regards,
Eric