Point of aim

[klw]

Silver Rings (I think) said:  "Slower moving bullets tend to hit higher so you could try a lighter load."  Is that really true?  Somehow I would have thought that a faster moving bullet would have hit higher.  Of course, if I have got this backwards it wouldn't be my first mistake.

An on a similar point, I can see that vertical movement of a group could easily depend on powder charge.  But can horizontal movement?  If your group is, say, off to the left of your point of aim would a change in powder charge be able to move the group back towards the point of aim?  I wouldn't have thought so but I saw a discussion somewhere recently where that was implied.  So is it possible?

[Irish Dave]

I would suspect that the heavier bullet prints higher because it would have a longer dwell time in the bore, allowing for more muzzle rise before the bullet leaves the barrel.

Just MHO. I could be wrong.

[Silver_Rings]

Many years ago it was explained to me why a 357 mag load shot lower than a 38 special load with the same weight bullet.  The explaination is that the faster bullet exits the barrel at an earlier (read lower) point during recoil than the slower moving bullet thus striking the target lower.  Yes a heavier bullet usually is moving slower but not always.

SR

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[klw]

The reason I found Silver Rings original comment so interesting was because if it were true it would explain why my load adjustments have occasionally not produced the desired effect.  Next time I see a problem that might be related to this I'm going to have to give it a try.