Is there any way w/o a crono to estimate bullet drop having all the stats i.e. Bullet weight, B.C.,Powder,case,primer ect ?
Is there a computer program that you can input these values & get an estimated bullet drop?

Quick load will take one from data to "estimated velocity". Lots of help with tables once one has the velocity in addition to the data you listed.

One still needs verified data from a chronograph and then real world test of computer modeled bullet drop estimates.

No matter what, if you don't know the velocity, you will be guessing if using a chart to gage bullet drop. Then again, even with the velocity being known, a chart will still leave you guessing. Too many factors for a chart to give you an accurate bullet drop figure. The only way to get real bullet drop data is to shoot the ranges you want the data for. Charts may get you close, but wont get you dead on, especially at the longer ranges. In addition, many scopes may say they use 1/4 or 1/8 minute clicks, but in truth they rarely are exact. I've had 1/4 minute scopes that one click would move impact more than a half minute. Real world testing is the only way to KNOW what your gun is doing.

taz

What pointblank said.

Any load program will give you an estimated velocity or you can interpolate it by comparing different loading manuals.

If you have the time and patience you can reverse engineer actual drop data to come up with velocity but it would be far easier and cheaper to buy a cheap chrono (or borrow one).

Ray

shoot it. Then whatever a chrono says won't matter.

I use Sierra Infinity and am very happy with it.
Between actual bench shooting and using the Sierra program you can come up with a very close estimate of your velocity. For example sight in your rifle at 100 yards then shoot it at 200 and 300 and measure the drop go back and play with the figures until you find your estimated velocity.
However what I've found is that velocity really doesn't matter. If you find a very accurate and consistent load for your rifle that your rifle handles well (no pressure problems) and you shoot it at all ranges that you would ever take a shot on an animal then who cares what the speed is!

Hey Tazfla, You are getting just excellent responses. It wasn't all that long ago that people would have tried to tell you that it couldn't be done without a chronograph. Fortunately the vast majority of that foolishness has disappeared from this Board.

You can also do this:
1. Guesstimate the Velocity from your Reloading Manuals. As has been mentioned above, it will work just fine.
2. Look in the Back of the Manual and you will normally find some type of External Ballistics Tables. Along with #1, you can now Guesstimate the Drop Rate.
3. Using the info from #2, you will be able to get onto the Targets. Now you create a real Drop Chart using your specific Load in your specific rifle.

When measuring the Drop Rate, we are interested in the Average Vertical Group Distance from the Point-of-Aim. Shooting at the corner of a Black Square simplifies this task. You draw a Horizontal line across the Bottom Edge of the Black Square and measure Straight Down to the Center of each Hole you shot in the Target from that Line and determine the Average. (Do not measure to each Hole at an angle from the Corner.) And the Horizontal dispersion is not used in determining the Drop Rate.

4. Only take shots at Game if you have "practiced" at that distance. Using "Estimated Drop Charts"(Computer generated, Guessed at, etc.) are just not accurate enough for taking Ethical shots at Game.

Best of luck to you.

As always, the information & response I get on this forum is outstanding. Thank you all for your responses. As a begining handloader this site has always been a beacon in the dark. Thanks Gentlemen

Please don't forget all our brothers in arms next Monday

no, you can't do it that way...

you can take realized bullet drop and determine est. velocity, though... zero at 200, shoot at 100, 200, 300, and 400...

and then workthe forumla backwards...

or spend 70bucks for a chrono, which will RUIN all the loads you think you have and bring you into understand what they really do...

oh, yeah, deer don't know 100FPS

quote:

Originally posted by Cheechako:
...far easier and cheaper to buy a cheap chrono (or borrow one).

Ray

LMAO .. i might be cheaper to borrow one, but NOT easier, with all the confirmed kills on chronos!