Hey Gang:

I have always believed, and been lead to believe that a heavier bullet will be less effected by wind than a lighter bullet. I have been having a conversation with a buddy of mine about getting a long-range song dog rifle. I have been comparing the .204 Ruger with the 22-250. I am using a low tech ballistic program called Shoot!. Comparing factory loads as follows:

.204 Ruger: 40 grain ball, BC of .275 @ 3900 fps
22-250: 55 grain ball, BC of .263 @ 3680 fps

With a 15 mph cross wind, my program indicates that the 22-250 will drift 13.33 inches while the .204 will drift 11.80 inches at 300 yards. Is this due to the higher velocity of the .204 and thus shorter time period in flight, or the higher BC of the .204 bullet, a combination of the two, or something that I am clueless about?

Thanks.

There are three factors in wind drift assuming a constant 90 degree wind.....
1. time...the faster bullet (usually) allows less time for drift

2. weight...the heavier bullet offers more inertia against drift

3. area...the area of profile allows greater forces on the bullet by the wind....and greater drift

As we see the last two items cancell each other out to a degree.

The key is TIME....and you notice I used the (usually) in the first statement.

The heavier bullet actually reduces time over the long ranges by reducing decelleration caused by air resistance. It is TIME that is the place to focus.

Wind drift turns out to be more related to time than anything and the long aerodynamic boattasils of VLD profiles get there sooner even though they might start out slower.

Do your research using time of flight as your key goal!!!

Anecdotal evidence, I think you would call it, but here goes. I have a .22-250 load that pushes 52 gr. A-Max's 3500 fps. I have a .243 load that pushes 58 gr. V-Max's 3800 fps. The A-Max has a higher BC, but I have noticed that the faster V-Max seems to exhibit less drift when shooting at ranges between 400 and 550 yards.

Not anecdotal at all. You would have about 4" less @ 500yds in a 15mph 3:00 wind. Slow it down to 3600fps & they are almost identical but then again the BCs are almost identical.