Some Like it Hot

Velocity, like all the parameters of reloading ammunition, can be a maddening thing. Those who don’t reload won’t understand the utter frustration of following the reloading manual’s “recipe” to the letter, heading to the range and seeing more-than-acceptable accuracy on the target ... only to be confronted with those disappointing numbers on the chronograph.

Then, there are those who chase maximum velocity as if it were a lusty cheerleader on prom night. I’ve seen folks who will happily accept a screaming-hot load that prints 2 MOA, simply delighted with the velocity figures. Me? I tend to prefer an acceptable velocity, with the emphasis on accuracy—although I’m willing to compromise.

Allow me to be completely honest here: I am a hunter first and foremost and a target shooter second. Here, in New York, we don’t have a whole lot of places with