Boattail vs. flat base

[kdm]

Quick question regarding boattail and flat base bullets...actually, less of a question and more of a fact-finding exercise.

I've heard/read that boattail bullets can be bad for your bore. Info was along the lines of flame-cutting occurring at the bevel of the bullet. Any truth to this? (Snopes was no help...).

This one's from my own little brain: won't a boattail's design, by nature, limit its damage capacity? I mean, the bevel is there to reduce drag through the air...won't it do the same when it hits a deer?

[bohoki]

sounds like the mad ravings of a lunatic

all i can say is that boattail bullets reload better they just shove right in the case never had a mouth crimp on me

as to deer the tip is what does the damage it acts a bit like a wedge it goes in fast shoves meat hard in all directions transfering the foward momentum into longitudinal momenum in the flesh causeing everything in the path of the bullet to be forced outward

[tankerman]

This one's from my own little brain: won't a boattail's design, by nature, limit its damage capacity? I mean, the bevel is there to reduce drag through the air...won't it do the same when it hits a deer?

Hunting bullets expand on impact. The boattail portion has very little to do with the level of tissue other than boattails are generally considered to retain velocity better than flat-base, so it may be traveling at a higher velocity on impact.

the boattail is the base, the base does not cut the wound channel and in most hunting bullets the base is solid.

SNOPES? WTF? Do you think that SOPES is some kind of an authority on everything?

[kdm]

Naw...the Snopes reference was just for kicks. Maybe a chuckle or two. Certainly not meant as a serious search point on my part. Not being a smart-@ss, but did you miss my ""?

The boattail = less damage thought...OK, I do admit that was kinda silly. Maybe my thought would be more applicable to FMJ instead of an expanding bullet.

[diginit]

From what I have heard, the boattail is a sniper bullet meant for improved accuracy over the flat base. It depends on the nose for penetration and obliteration of the target. I don't see how it could damage the bore more than flat base. I think over cleaning would do more harm.

[30Cal]

From what I have heard, the boattail is a sniper bullet meant for improved accuracy over the flat base. It depends on the nose for penetration and obliteration of the target. I don't see how it could damage the bore more than flat base. I think over cleaning would do more harm.

The flat base is more accurate due to the greater ease in achieving uniformity during manufacture.

The rumor about the boattail being worse on the bore has pervaded for a long time, but there's no real data that supports it. If the assertion be true, the actual affect is negligible.

[CDFingers]

Handloader just did an article on this, but from the perspective of accuracy. The magazine went on to recommend using flat base instead of boat tail because it said boat tails are hard to get on exactly straight; not straight produces wobble right out of the cartridge.

CDFingers

[kdm]

Thanks for your replies, guys.