bullet pointing

[mitchell chandler]

Hi all,
I was wondering if anyone has experience with bullet pointing and even meplate uniforming? is it worth the effort and what improvements have been seen?

Thanks,

[Anthony Hall]

Hi Mitchell,

Great question and you will probably get varied answers ..... some are believers, some are not....

In my experience, it depends on the projectile and the distance....  I believe that at distances of less than 300m it does not make enough difference to warrant the effort.....

With my .284 using Berger 180 grain projectiles.... there was a significant improvement in group size and a slight improvement in bullet drop at 500m (about 2")  I believe that the improvement in group size probably came from the meplat trimming and the improvement in BC came from pointing.  I would not shoot the Berger 180's at 1000 yards without pointing and trimming them.

With the 6BR and copperhead 103's, the difference was less dramatic for me.  At 300m, I can't tell the difference..... at 500m there appears to be a slight improvement in BC and group (about .75" less drop).  I think if I was using less consistent projectiles the difference would be more noticeable....

What is does for me, is gives me peace of mind that I have removed as many variables as possible, that alone makes it worth the effort.

If I were going to do only one of these, I would trim the meplats..... it is easier & cheaper to tool up for and probably provides the best improvement for the effort.

My procedure is as follows.
Sort projectiles into groups by base to Ogive first.
Set up the whidden pointing die to point them to where I am satisfied that the meplats are closed as much as possible without causing any distortion of the projectile (use a magnifying glass), then back the die off about 5 thou and point the whole batch. You will find that they are now about 4 or 5 thou longer than unpointed ones.

I then find the shortest one and set the Meplat trimmer (Wilson micrometer case trimmer with whidden meplat trimmer attachments) to take about 3 thou off that one and trim them all the same.

I then wind the pointing die back down the 5 though and point them again to clean up the edges from trimming.

It sounds complicated, but I can do 50 projectiles for a match in around an hour or so. (I have never actually timed it, but this is a fair guess)

Cheers

Anthony

[Les Fraser]

Great question Mitchell and i think Anthony has covered it very well. I have been pointing and meplat trimming since the Whidden die first came out and there was not the a great choice in meplat trimmers on the market. As it stands today there are two main bullet pointing dies.
1/ john Whidden pointing die comes with sleeves pertaining to the caliber and there are three different pointing options depending on the bullet you are intending to use the die on.
2/ Hoover pointing system: A very nice die to use however more complicated to set up because you have to move the tipping sleeve dependent on bullet length to get the point right. you also have to get the right sleeve for the caliber of bullet like the whidden system.

In my experience Anthony has given you the most indepth answer however i do things slightly different my process is.
1/Batch bullets from base to ogive for uniformity
2/ Meplat trim ( with Sinclair case trimmer with whidden meplat system)
3/moly coat projectiles
4/ weight out projectiles in batch weight to 1/10th of a grain and group them into your reloading box and following the firing order
5/ Bullet point the projectiles
5/ Then load into prepped cases.

When you consider the 500m fly shooting as trying to hit a postage stamp at 500m any edge you can get is a bonus. There is a difference in how the bullet is pointed by either maker Whidden or Hoover and again you should follow what you think would suit you best there are youtube vidoes on both so check them out.

As far as what you see on the target for both my 6x47 L and the 300WSM i will not shoot them without meplate trimming and pointing the difference on the target is dramatic but to what exact effect i can't calculate because you would need to be able to shoot bullets at a consistent range like Anthony to do the calculations so his comments would be well researched and factual.
good shooting Les

[mitchell chandler]

Thanks for the info guys,
I ordered a whidden pointer kit to do my 6mmbr projectiles (105gn scenar) and I will post what things I learn.

Thanks again,

[mitchell chandler]

Got my pointing kit last week. After stuffing a few projectiles I got half  a box pointed. Now just got to get some time to get to the range to try a few. Once I get some lead down range I will report back. Just by looking at the meplate on the scenar i think it would be a good candidate for pointing.

[Pete van Meurs]

Hi all,

Just my thoughts on this subject. If there is an improvement in accuracy it will be so slight to help the novice shooter. I have never and doubt that I will ever go to the bother.

Pete