NEW Berger 30cal 155.5gr BT Palma Bullet Test

[Eric Stecker]

We are looking for some good shooters who have tight shooting 308 rifles. We are experimenting with a new bullet specifically design for Palma shooting. Let me be clear that the results from these tests will determine whether or not we add this bullet to the Berger line. If you will not be able to shoot these bullets in the next 6 weeks then please do not request to be a part of this test.

The new bullet is a 308 cal 155.5 gr BT. It has a tangent ogive which should shoot at any (or a wide span of) COAL. The special thing about this bullet is that the ogive is long enough to produce a BC even higher than our 155 gr VLD. The differences are as follows:

Berger 30 cal 155 gr BT = .453 BC
Berger 30 cal 155 gr VLD = .472 BC
NEW Berger 30 cal 155.5gr BT Palma = .486 BC

If you have the gear to be able to shoot this bullet and can do so by April 1st, 2008 then please send an email to michelle.gallagher@bergerbullets.com. Please include your address, phone number, email address and a brief description of your rifle and its capabilities. We will be collecting these emails until Friday Feb. 15th. Those selected for this test will be shipped one box of 155.5 gr bullets on Monday Feb. 18th.

I encourage you to share your results (good or bad) on the forums. If the bullets don't shoot we will go back to the drawing board. Either way those who participated in the testing (and provide testing results before April 1st 2008) will be able to purchase up to 5 boxes (of any Bergers) at 50% off our retail price to help offset your cost of consumables used in this testing.

Any questions should be posted here so everyone can see the answers.

Regards,
Eric

 

[Travelor]

Oh yes

Email on the way

George

 

[paul t]

pics

Have you any pics of new 155g bullet along with present berger 155 line up for comparisson, thanks paul.

 

[Eric Stecker]

I don't have any pics but will encourage those who receive them to take pics and post them. I am techno-challenged and unless someone does it for us I am not qualified to make these images available on line.

Give me a bullet press and I will make it sing. Ask me to upload the song to the internet and all you will get is silence. How Wilbur does it is a mystery to me.

Regards,
Eric

 

[JeffVN]

eric

Excellent. Keep up the good work, you guys are doing the right thing in constantly pushing the envelope to stay on top.

JeffVN

 

[Eric Stecker]

Pic

Eric asked me to post a picture of the new 155.5 gr. BT bullet. Here it is!

Thanks,
Michelle Gallagher

 

[oneeyedmac]

Loads?

I finally got to the range today with some of these rounds. I'm afraid I've been ill and in the hospital and then we got 20" of snow so I've gotten a late start.

Today I was using 44 gr of Varget, CCI primers and Lapua brass at 100 yards. That's all the range I had available as the rest of the range is underwater due to melting snow.

I couldn't seem to get the bullets to group. I also shot some 168 gr SMK's today and they grouped OK but I think I'm having scope issues. I'll put another scope on and head back out tomorrow for another try.

Has anyone else been out with these and what have your experiences been? What loads would you recommend for these rounds?

 

[particle]

(This is my first post to this forum - I hope this is the right spot to place my review)

Several of us were lucky enough to receive a box of bullets for the new Berger bullet test, and I was one of those lucky recipients. This is my (non-professional) review...

Berger Bullets
BT-Palma
30 Cal 155.5 Grain
Match Grade
Ballistic Coefficient = .486
For 1 in 14" twist or faster
www.bergerbullets.com

Before I get too far, here is a picture of the range I've been shooting at. It's in Sangar, Texas. It's definitely low-budget, but I love it. I love that there is no range officer, I love that you call your own seize-fire, I love that there are cow-turds all over the place, and most of all, I love that it's never very crowded!! And the fact that it reaches out to 200 yards is great for a range like this (shown, though not very well, indicated on the photograph)

(Taken with my camera phone)

First off, I was overall pleased with the results of these bullets. My groups weren't anything stellar - but I wasn't really hoping for much since I didn't have access to my favorite brass (it's currently loaded with another recipe), and my eyes were bothering me a bit today. With a wife and two young children, trips to the range don't come as often as I like - so when an opportunity comes along, I take it! So, earlier this week I picked up a box of (50) Hornady Match brass. What brass is my favorite (so far in my limited reloading experience)? BHA Match. I've gotten excellent groupings with Hornady A-Max and Varget powder - with .3 MOA easily attainable under most circumstances.

I wasn't so lucky today.

When I started loading the Bergers for my test, I was initially just going to load them all with the same charge @ a couple of grains shy of the max charge recommended by the various load books. Given that the bullets were donated for testing purposes, I figured I should put a bit more effort into my results.

Since the bullets are supposed to perform under various conditions and charge weights (they're not supposed to be picky), I figured I would load 50 rounds in my brand new, trimmed, prep'd Hornady Match brass, and the remaining 50 rounds in LC military brass. This should, in my opinion, demonstrate the flexibility of the bullets...

I loaded 20 rounds each at the following charge weights of Varget powder (10 rounds in Hornady Match brass, and 10 rounds in LC military brass):

43.1 gr
43.5 gr
44.0 gr
44.5 gr
45.0 gr

I then made up two large targets - each with 10 smaller targets. One target was designated for the Hornady brass, and the other for the LC brass. From there, I took the round-robin approach, and fired one round of each charge weight at 100 yards until I'd made my way around the entire target, and then I repeated the process until I'd fired all 50 rounds. This, of course, was after I'd fired two fouling shots at another target using some other rounds that I previously loaded with inconsistent charge weights (they were dumped with the Uniflow Powder Measure, but I failed to verify the charge weights as I went, and noticed later that it was not 'uniflow' at all!!).

After I fired the first 50 rounds of Hornady Match brass, I cleaned the rifle, and then returned to the firing line for the LC brass test, repeating the round-robin method. The LC brass was not chambering very well - some were very stiff when I tried to lock the bolt, and some wouldn't lock at all - those are shown in this picture.

My best (5) shot group with the Hornady brass was .362 MOA at 100 yards, shown here*.

*I swear - there really is (5) shots in that group!

My best (4) shot group with the LC military brass was .269 MOA at 100 yards. I actually fired (5) shots at that particular target, but I lost count at one point because my rounds weren't chambering, so I accidentally shot one of the bullets from another charge weight, which is the one hanging out to the left.

Finally, for comparison, here is my Hornady target.

And here is my LC target.

(Bear in mind, each of those targets is a different charge weight - I was approacing this as if I were trying to find the OCW for this particular bullet and powder charge.)

All in all, I'm very pleased with my results, and I found a couple of excellent OCW starting points that produced some very respectable groups. Also, I think I could do even better if my eyes weren't acting up, and I had a better scope with better optical clarity (to compensate for decreasing eyesight resulting from age, and a car wreck last year that left me with a scratched cornea from flying glass shards).

Would I continue using these bullets for my preferred load recipe? Hmm, that's a tough one. Obviously, they're only designed for target shooting. Personally, I like the versatility of the Hornady A-Max 168 Grain bullets because they produced excellent groupings with my rifle, and they can also be used for hunting thin-skinned game - this means I can taylor one recipe that works great at the range and in the field, and not have to fiddle with multiple load recipies for my rifle. However, I would certainly try these again - especially if I were preparing for a match or wanted to reach out well beyond what my current local ranges allow.

In closing, I had a great time loading these bullets, shooting them, and doing this review. I came away from this with another 100+ rounds under my belt, and 4+ hours relaxing with the cows and absolutely perfect weather (though it was a tad windy), and I even met a couple new people at the range that are just getting started in precision shooting too. The backside of my leg, and the tops of my arms are on the way to an excellent farmer's tan, and I'm logging off so I can track down the Aloe Vera!

Test Rifle:
Howa 1500 .308
24" factory heavy barrel
B&C Medalist stock, bedded
Nikon Buckmaster 4.5-14x40
EGW 20 moa base
Leupold PRW rings
Harris 6-9 swivel bi-pod
Flip Rest FR2

 

[chuck furniss]

Eric. re:155.5 gr. bullet test.
This is my first experience with 155 gr. bullets having always used 168 to 185 range.I hope the following is of some value to you.

The barrel is a Broughton 30" 1-12. 5-c heavy varmit.
Chamber is 308 match set up for 175 gr. smk's.
Shooting from bench with front rest and rear bag.
Projectiles seated out to col.2.885.
Powder=varget, brass=new winchester, primer=fed. match.
crono=Oehler mod. 35 P.
Conditions=5-15 mph wind.
Range=250 yds.
Results as follows.

load ------ avg. vel.--group size,vert/horz.
44.0 ------ 2780 ---------- 1.333x1.900
44.5 ------ 2805 ---------- 1.220x1.890
45.0 ------ 2854 ---------- 1.200x2.100
45.5 ------ 2905 ---------- 1.160x1.950
46.0 ------ 2915 ---------- 1.280x1.500

I noticed a slight taper in the bearing surface of .0003 .Is there a plan here?.
Weights were were between 155.4 and 155.6 gr.
NICE BULLETS!
Chuck

P.S.I Was informed this morning that my buddys range is 250 not 300 yds.Still good bullets.
sorry about that.
Chuck

 

[Travelor]

155.5 gr BT Berger Bulelt test

First thanks for allowing me to participate in the bullet test - what an honor!

Upon receiving the bullets I first inspected the noses of the bullets as this is the point that causes me the most concern with Sierra MatchKing bullets - result was that all noses were perfectly formed and no misshapen bullets were found. I then weighed the bullets and using my electronic scale, none were off even.1 grain. Then I measured the length from the case to the ogive - again all were the same. This is very different that I have experienced with the Sierra MatchKing bullets,

I loaded the test lot of ammunition with 46.5 grains of Varget with a Winchester match prepared case using Federal 210Match primers. All the bullets were seated to a fit of .010" jam into the rifling. The reason for this load and seating was that this is the load I use with 155 gr, Sierra MatchKing bullets. My impression at this point was that the Berger bullets were much more uniform that the Sierra Palma bullet and when seated to the the same depth in relation to the ogive of the bullet vs the lands of the barrel, the resultant rounds was approximately .25" longer than the Sierra's - this is a good thing as it allows for more case capacity with the same seating depth.

The weather finally turned good today after blustery and rainy days here in Arkansas, and my wife and I took our rifles to our Club's 600 yard range (conditions were initially calm with a temperature of 35 degrees) with high expectations for the new Berger's. I initially fired a test 5-shot group with the Sierra MatchKing's at 100 yards to confirm zero and get a feel for the exact state of the rifle ( a custom built Palma rifle built by Larry Racine with a Krieger 30" 1:13 twist barrel with a Leupold 8.5x25x50 scope with target dot) and shooter (me) prior to testing the new bullets. The 5 shot group at 100 yards measured slightly under .4".

I then settled in to test and fired a 10 shot test group with the Berger 155.5 grain bullet which measured 3.00" CTC (center to center) at 600 yards. Then I fired a like number of 155 grain Sierra MatchKing's with a group measuring the same 3.00" CTC. The velocity average for the Berger was 2936 fps and for the Sierra the average velocity was 2956 fps and each had a standard deviation under 10 fps. All pressure signs appeared to reflect a very slight increased pressure with the Berger BT bullet. Also, both groups impacted to the same point on the target. As far as I am concerned, a 1/2 MOA is GREAT at 600 yards as this performance would allow for a maximum possible score with all X's in NRA F-Class competition. At this point advantage did not go to either bullet, but looking at the groups, the Berger's definitely had a majority of the bullets grouped tighter than the Sierra MatchKing's.

Next we worked with a Junior shooter new to reloading and long range shooting as well as tested loads for another gun, a 6mmBR. While this was taking place, the wind came up to 3-6 mph at 3 o'clock relative to the firing direction and the temperature rose to 55 sunny degrees.

I then fired two 10 shot groups each with the Berger 155.5 grain BT bullets and with the 155 grain Sierra MatchKing's with no attempt to hold or adjust for wind. The rationale being to determine if either round held an advantage over the other with respect to wind "bucking" ability. The Berger bullets shot into a 6" group that was 2.5" high and 5.5" horizontally. The Sierra bullets did not fare as well, grouping into 7.5" CTC area that was 3.5" high and 7 " wide. Results indicate the the Berger held up better in the wind that the Sierra BT bullet.

My overall impression of the new Berger 155.5 grain BT bullets is that it is superior to the respected 155 Grain Sierra MatchKing BT Palma bullet. Great job Berger!

Will I buy the Berger bullets over the Sierra MatchKing? Yes!

I certainly hope that this report will help Berger make the decision to produce this bullet for retail sales as I would want to be one of the first few in line for them.

Here is my 600 yard no wind target. The far right bullet hole was a called right shot by me - hey, I'm OLD.

George

 

[milanuk]

Rifle information:

Savage 12 F/TR, 30" factory 1-12" twist, ~ 600rds thru it, fire-lapped approx. 100rds ago. Aftermarket saddle cheekpiece.

Nightforce 12-42x BR scope w/ CH-3 reticle, Burris Signature Zee rings on Farrell 30 moa base.

Harris BRMS 6-9" bipod w/ PodPaws, PodLoc, etc.

Ammo info:

Lapua .308 brass, full match prep - weight sorted, neck-turned, the works. 4x firings going into this test. Cases in this batch weighed 172.8-172.9gr. Primers - Fed GM210M. Powder - Varget, 46.8gr. Bullet - 155.5gr BT seated 0.040" off the lands.

All rounds fired from bipod. 100 & 300yd rounds fired from bench; 600yd rounds fired from ground.

100yd test target:

300yd test target:

600yd test target:

Items of interest:

This is the same powder charge that I've been using w/ the Berger 155gr BT (old style) and the 155gr VLDs in this gun. There is a large and visible difference between the OAL of this bullet seated 40 thou off the lands, and the 155gr VLD seated 10 thou into the lands; the 155.5 is noticeably longer. I measured the 155.5 just sitting on top of the case - basically if I were to seat them to jam length, I'd have barely 0.090" of shank inside the neck. I seated them back 0.040", and could probably seat them back even further - I can hear powder rattling around inside the case now (this was previously a compressed load with the 155gr VLDs).

The one 'low' shot in the right hand group @ 600yds was called bad at the time of the shot. Because I didn't have any target pullers, flags, etc. and our range basically shoots across a big draw... I had to shoot, drive down to check the targets, come back, and guesstimate a correction. The POI @ 300yds was approx. 1/2 moa higher than the 155gr BTs I had shot previously. The POI @ 600yds was closer to 3/4 moa higher than the 155gr BTs.

Overall, the bullets seem to shoot good elevation on target. I'm hoping to try the remainder during one day either @ Rattlesnake or Douglas Ridge in May.

Thanks,

Monte

 

[LRCampos]

Please, could you tell me which Software did you use to measure the targets?

Thank you.

 

[milanuk]

A nifty little program I found here on benchrest.com...

http://ontargetshooting.com/

 

[LRCampos]

Thank you very much Milanuk!!!! I loved this little software! I passed the last hour learning and scanning some targets...

Great tool!

 

[vinconco]

cool tool

 

[Baron Graham]

Test Results

I tested the New Berger 155.5 Palma in three different rifles and the results of the testing are attached in the Excel file. The scanned targets are from the testing w/ the 700 VSSF.308 Win. I normally shoot 180 to 190 class bullets with this rifle and have sub MOA results out to 600 yards. All of the testing with this bullet was done at 100 yards. The wind has not been on my side. Baron

 

[jnclement]

Well...

Happens every time, they want Good shooters. Man, I was that close..........

 

[Magical_Merlin]

I dont see to many posts that show if they jammed or jumped these bullets.

What did you do and what were the results?

Thanks.

 

[milanuk]

Michael,

There's more details in the thread over on long-range.com, but I was jumping 45 thou to the lands.

Monte

 

[criver600]

Palma Ammunition

Lots of work only one "real" Palma rifle. The node for most Palma rifles is 2950 to 3000. The Winchester brass fed210gm load is almost there....... tip the can get it over 2950 everything will be better