I need a grammar lesson

[Bucephalus]

What does it mean when someone says: " My rifle likes...?" Are they referring to accuracy, precision, ease of firing, recoil, or all of the previous?

Shouldn't a good rifle be able to handle any brand, any safe load, any bullet weight for caliber?

How is "my rifle likes" determined? How does a rifle know what it "likes?"

Thank you for your replies.

 

[Hit and Run]

So, one AR I have based on rifling in barrel is more accurate with 77 or 62 grain vice 55 grain cartridges. That design intent with 1:7 twist. So, my rifle likes 77 or 62 cartriges. I have also had .22LR that had much tighter groups with specific ammo brands. It is actually really common.

 

[Glaron]

Sorry George Carlin.. The Master is gone.

(NSFW)

 

[jonnyl]

There are so many variables, that a particular load,weight,shape, etc... will work better than others for a particular rifle. When you find that combo that works the best that's what your rifle "likes"...

I'd find it surprising if two rifles that came off the same assembly line right after each other "liked" drastically different ammo but there will be minute differences in manufacturing that could have them shoot better with different ammo although I've never seen a study or experiment of this.

 

[ken792]

It's also subtle differences in the chamber dimensions or rifling rate of twist. The same ammo won't burn with the exact same pressure or with the same pressure curve in two different rifles. A rifle with a tighter chamber or throat will run at a higher pressure and likely a higher velocity.

Generally, people are referring to accuracy, but in some cases it could also be how dirty the rifle gets or if it even cycles (like subsonic ammo). You can determine what your rifle likes by trying various types of ammo and/or handloading your own to find something that works. You can do things like measure where the rifling starts so that you can set the OAL so the bullet is a certain distance off of the rifling.

 

[j_h_smith]

I believe most people mean that their rifle shoots a certain ammo better than others. My 9mm AR firearms ALL like a 147gr subsonic better than a 115 gr supersonic round. Now when some folks mention this, they're talking about MOA. Their groupings are better with a certain manufacturer than any other.

It's kinda like in the old days where some would say their car ran better on Sinclair gas than Gulf gasoline. It's just something that happens, or at least the owner perceives it to be true.

 

[sxs]

As alluded to by Ken92, some semi autos cycle better with some brands of ammo than others. Accuracy can also vary from firearm to firearm. For a prime example, 22 semi autos are notoriously finicky about ammo in regards to accuracy , feeding and extraction. That said, CCI mini mags feed well and are fairly accurate in almost everything i shot them in although some 22 firearms like other ammo even better.

Ditto what Jim Smith said. Certainly ammo weight (which translates to projectile length) is affected by rate of rifling twist. However, it even goes beyond that. 1911s, for example will usually feed most ball ammo just fine, but some 1911s have issues with hollow points. Even beyond that, however, 2 different brand of ammo, with the same nominal bullet weights and a similar bullet geometry can not only shoot more or less accurately than one another, but may group completely different requiring an adjustment in sight in. Even different lots of the same brand and make of ammo can have subtle differences from one lot to another.

 

[outrider58]

What does it mean when someone says: " My rifle likes...?" Are they referring to accuracy, precision, ease of firing, recoil, or all of the previous?

Shouldn't a good rifle be able to handle any brand, any safe load, any bullet weight for caliber?

How is "my rifle likes" determined? How does a rifle know what it "likes?"

Thank you for your replies.

I loads whats my rafle likes the bestess.

Like others have said, it usually comes down to ROT::bullet weight/length generally. BUT, when you reload, you can, through "test ladders", load ammo that one specific rifle will absolutely LOVE. A lot of that depends on what a given rifle's use will be and how much accuracy you want to wring out of that rifle.

 

[knastera]

For me, "my rifle likes" begins with feeds and shoots reliably. For example, my Savage Axis likes Remington Freedom Bucket .223. It is not fond of American Eagle .223 because apparently the primers are a bit harder. I get light strikes about 50% of the time with American Eagle. I have run an entire bucket of the Remington through it without a single problem. An example in a pistol is my Rossi R971 in .357 Magnum. I have run many brands through it with no problem, but there is something about Perfecta primers that cause them to jam up the action because a bit of the primer bulges after firing. My Wolf Distributors 9mm adapter barrel for my Glock 23Gen4 will shoot every 9mm I throw at it except for Perfecta.


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[AlanInSilverSpring]

For me, "my rifle likes" begins with feeds and shoots reliably.

This

My Marlin 60 tube fed eats (another term for you to ponder ) anything I put in it, while my Marlin 795 semi is VERY picky. Hopefully with some use it will get better but I tried 5 different brands/velocities and the best one will still jam up about once in every 25 round mag.

 

[Bucephalus]

Thanks to all who replied. You are allowing me to think this over carefully. Since I have a bolt rifle I will concentrate on how well the shots group on the target with factory ammo or hand loads. I believe this will determine the best accuracy and minimize fliers and missed targets. Very challenging to me. Thank you again for your input and sharing your experiences.

 

[knastera]

Thanks to all who replied. You are allowing me to think this over carefully. Since I have a bolt rifle I will concentrate on how well the shots group on the target with factory ammo or hand loads. I believe this will determine the best accuracy and minimize fliers and missed targets. Very challenging to me. Thank you again for your input and sharing your experiences.

I recommend that you find a forum for your particular rifle. When I first bought my Savage Axis, I found a forum for Savage bolt action shooters. I learned a lot from that group.


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[Biggfoot44]

As several have said, "likes" refers to particularly good accuracy and/ reliable, consistant operation . Ideally both at same time.

In the modern era there is the expectations for firearms to reliably go bang with most ammo of proper cal, and proper type, within broad definitions.

Because of the multiple subtle variables in ammo and firearms, there will always be specific types and brands of ammo that will group smaller and/ more consistantly than others. Sometimes a major difference, sometimes small differences usually not of consequence.

As hypotheticals - If most loads shot 4moa, except for Acme Super Blasters , that would be a meaningful "likes" . If a dozen different brands and loads all shot between 1.2-1.5moa , you would probably select ammo for other factors such as velocity, terminal performance, price, or availability.

 

[lazarus]

As several have said, "likes" refers to particularly good accuracy and/ reliable, consistant operation . Ideally both at same time.

In the modern era there is the expectations for firearms to reliably go bang with most ammo of proper cal, and proper type, within broad definitions.

Because of the multiple subtle variables in ammo and firearms, there will always be specific types and brands of ammo that will group smaller and/ more consistantly than others. Sometimes a major difference, sometimes small differences usually not of consequence.

As hypotheticals - If most loads shot 4moa, except for Acme Super Blasters , that would be a meaningful "likes" . If a dozen different brands and loads all shot between 1.2-1.5moa , you would probably select ammo for other factors such as velocity, terminal performance, price, or availability.

Except rimfires. Rimfires that function flawless hundreds of rounds before encountering a problem are uncommon. I won't say rare, but it is more common to run in to issues periodically with feeding, ejecting, soft strikes or did rounds.

 

[Blacksmith101]

Testing what a rifle "likes" with results and pictures (.22 rimfire):
http://www.accurateshooter.com/guns-of-week/22lr-rimfire-ammo-comparison-test/

Other rifles
http://forums.accuratereloading.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/8711043/m/7531057281

http://forums.accuratereloading.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/8711043/m/2091073902