Mike70560
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Bullet Penetration Test - .470 Nitro Express
Recently I began testing bullets as a response to a thread on another forum. There are plenty of misconceptions out there. While this first simple test is not the end all in testing it was certainly conclusive.
I thought I would share the results here.
Caliber: 470 Nitro Express
Rifle: Krieghoff Double
Brass: Jamison
Primer: Remington 9 1/2M
Powder: Reloder 15
The test box is fabricated from 2 by 6 pine boards and is 72” long.
Test media consisted of ¼” luan, 12” of saturated newspaper, 2 by 6 treated pine (shooting through the 1 5”8” thickness), and approximately 60” of saturated newspaper. Great care was taken to make certain the newspaper was thoroughly soaked in a tub prior to placing in the test bed.
After placing the paper in the test bed excess water was permitted to drain for 30 minutes.
The bullet entered the box at 32 feet from the muzzle.
Bullets tested:
Woodleigh 500 Grain solid @ an average impact velocity of 2065
North Fork 500 Grain solid @ an average impact velocity of 2075
First portion of the test consisted of firing consisted of firing 5 Woodleigh bullets in the test media.
Shot 1: 36” of penetration then came out of the top.
Shot 2: 40” of penetration then stopped at the top of the newspaper.
Shot 3: 33” of penetration then came out of the side
Shot 4: 40” of penetration then stopped in paper, seemed to be straight.
Shot 5: 39” of penetration then came out of the top
The first 12” of penetration was very straight line. I matched the luan from the front of the box to the 2 by 6 positioned 12” behind the luan and the bullet path was straight. Only after traveling through the 1 5/8” of treated pine did the bullet path start to deviate. Please note the bullets entered the wood at a 90º angle. I placed the 2 by 6 to simulate bone.
After this test, five more tests were conducted firing one Woodleigh and then one North Fork. Penetration was measured and the media was changed prior to the next test. While there possible could have variations in density from test to test, one type of each bullet was fired in each lot of paper.
All of the North Fork bullets had straightline penetration the entire length of the box. One actually exited the 2 by 6 on the back of the test bed. The others were stuck in the 2 by 6 or the plywood I added at the rear of the box to make certain the bullet did not leave the box. The engraving looked good on the bullets. None were bent or otherwise damaged.
The Woodleigh bullets performed the same as the first five; straight penetration until reaching the 2 by 6. Average reasonably straight penetration was 20” total. After that the bullet would start turning and exit the box out of the top or hit the side or stop sideways in the newsprint at an average of 41”.
If any variations in results were noted I would have continued testing. The results were very conclusive: In this media the North Fork Solids simply outperform the Woodleigh Solids in heads up testing.
The next test will be the penetration of standard 470 Nitro velocities versus 1650-1700 fps velocity. Both Woodleigh and North Fork bullets will be tested.
Above is the test box with chronograph.
Above is typical damage to the test box caused by the Woodleigh bullets veering off line.
Typical position of Woodleigh bullet found in media.
The above picture is of the typical condition of North Fork bullet after firing.
The above picture is taken from outside of box. It is a North Fork bullet after traveling through 72” of test media.
The above picture is taken from inside of box. It is another North Fork bullet after traveling through 72” of test media.
Another Bullet Penetration Test
This test consisted of 4” of completely saturated newspaper, 1 ¼” of HardiPlank nailed to 1 5/8” of pine all on a 20º angle, 28” of water with 9 newspapers suspended in the water with each paper containing 40 pages, 5/8” of HardiPlank nailed to a another 1 5/8” of pine on a 20º angle opposite of the first setup, and then the remainder of the 72” box filled with saturated newspaper.
This is the description of HardiPlank from there site:
First, what is HardiPlank made of? HardiPlank falls in the fiber-cement siding class, which means that it is a combination of cellulose fibers, along with cement-like materials. In other words, it’s partly wood, partly cement.
It is also flexible.
I fired one .474 500 grain North Fork solid at 2070 FPS IV. It penetrated through everything in a perfect straight line. The measured deflection was less than ½” through the 71” of penetration. It stopped at the back of the box. I thought it would certainly deflect on the hardiplank at the angle particularly after going through 28” of water but did not.
The bullet looked like the other North Forks. It could be fired again.
Tomorrow it will be the Woodleigh’s turn.
Tonight a Woodleigh was fired through the same setup as the NF was last night. (The test consisted of 4” of completely saturated newspaper, 1 ¼” of HardiPlank nailed to 1 5/8” of pine all on a 20º angle, 28” of water with 9 newspapers suspended in the water with each paper containing 40 pages, 5/8” of HardiPlank nailed to a another 1 5/8” of pine on a 20º angle opposite of the first setup, and then the remainder of the 72” box filled with saturated newspaper.)
The bullet entered center of the box, penetrated the first set-up of boards, went through the water, somewhere in the water it went astray. It hit the second set of boards about ¾” from the top with the bullet sideways. It exited out of the top of the board and hit the 2 by 6 I use for a lid.
One thing I did note was that the newspaper I suspend in the water was shredded. There was much more damage than the North Fork generated. Maybe because it was traveling sideways going through the water? It may mean nothing but I did note it.
I may or may not come back to this test. The results were basically the same as the multiple shots I fired in the other media.
This was the only test I conducted firing only one of each type of bullet.
Recently I began testing bullets as a response to a thread on another forum. There are plenty of misconceptions out there. While this first simple test is not the end all in testing it was certainly conclusive.
I thought I would share the results here.
Caliber: 470 Nitro Express
Rifle: Krieghoff Double
Brass: Jamison
Primer: Remington 9 1/2M
Powder: Reloder 15
The test box is fabricated from 2 by 6 pine boards and is 72” long.
Test media consisted of ¼” luan, 12” of saturated newspaper, 2 by 6 treated pine (shooting through the 1 5”8” thickness), and approximately 60” of saturated newspaper. Great care was taken to make certain the newspaper was thoroughly soaked in a tub prior to placing in the test bed.
After placing the paper in the test bed excess water was permitted to drain for 30 minutes.
The bullet entered the box at 32 feet from the muzzle.
Bullets tested:
Woodleigh 500 Grain solid @ an average impact velocity of 2065
North Fork 500 Grain solid @ an average impact velocity of 2075
First portion of the test consisted of firing consisted of firing 5 Woodleigh bullets in the test media.
Shot 1: 36” of penetration then came out of the top.
Shot 2: 40” of penetration then stopped at the top of the newspaper.
Shot 3: 33” of penetration then came out of the side
Shot 4: 40” of penetration then stopped in paper, seemed to be straight.
Shot 5: 39” of penetration then came out of the top
The first 12” of penetration was very straight line. I matched the luan from the front of the box to the 2 by 6 positioned 12” behind the luan and the bullet path was straight. Only after traveling through the 1 5/8” of treated pine did the bullet path start to deviate. Please note the bullets entered the wood at a 90º angle. I placed the 2 by 6 to simulate bone.
After this test, five more tests were conducted firing one Woodleigh and then one North Fork. Penetration was measured and the media was changed prior to the next test. While there possible could have variations in density from test to test, one type of each bullet was fired in each lot of paper.
All of the North Fork bullets had straightline penetration the entire length of the box. One actually exited the 2 by 6 on the back of the test bed. The others were stuck in the 2 by 6 or the plywood I added at the rear of the box to make certain the bullet did not leave the box. The engraving looked good on the bullets. None were bent or otherwise damaged.
The Woodleigh bullets performed the same as the first five; straight penetration until reaching the 2 by 6. Average reasonably straight penetration was 20” total. After that the bullet would start turning and exit the box out of the top or hit the side or stop sideways in the newsprint at an average of 41”.
If any variations in results were noted I would have continued testing. The results were very conclusive: In this media the North Fork Solids simply outperform the Woodleigh Solids in heads up testing.
The next test will be the penetration of standard 470 Nitro velocities versus 1650-1700 fps velocity. Both Woodleigh and North Fork bullets will be tested.
Above is the test box with chronograph.
Above is typical damage to the test box caused by the Woodleigh bullets veering off line.
Typical position of Woodleigh bullet found in media.
The above picture is of the typical condition of North Fork bullet after firing.
The above picture is taken from outside of box. It is a North Fork bullet after traveling through 72” of test media.
The above picture is taken from inside of box. It is another North Fork bullet after traveling through 72” of test media.
Another Bullet Penetration Test
This test consisted of 4” of completely saturated newspaper, 1 ¼” of HardiPlank nailed to 1 5/8” of pine all on a 20º angle, 28” of water with 9 newspapers suspended in the water with each paper containing 40 pages, 5/8” of HardiPlank nailed to a another 1 5/8” of pine on a 20º angle opposite of the first setup, and then the remainder of the 72” box filled with saturated newspaper.
This is the description of HardiPlank from there site:
First, what is HardiPlank made of? HardiPlank falls in the fiber-cement siding class, which means that it is a combination of cellulose fibers, along with cement-like materials. In other words, it’s partly wood, partly cement.
It is also flexible.
I fired one .474 500 grain North Fork solid at 2070 FPS IV. It penetrated through everything in a perfect straight line. The measured deflection was less than ½” through the 71” of penetration. It stopped at the back of the box. I thought it would certainly deflect on the hardiplank at the angle particularly after going through 28” of water but did not.
The bullet looked like the other North Forks. It could be fired again.
Tomorrow it will be the Woodleigh’s turn.
Tonight a Woodleigh was fired through the same setup as the NF was last night. (The test consisted of 4” of completely saturated newspaper, 1 ¼” of HardiPlank nailed to 1 5/8” of pine all on a 20º angle, 28” of water with 9 newspapers suspended in the water with each paper containing 40 pages, 5/8” of HardiPlank nailed to a another 1 5/8” of pine on a 20º angle opposite of the first setup, and then the remainder of the 72” box filled with saturated newspaper.)
The bullet entered center of the box, penetrated the first set-up of boards, went through the water, somewhere in the water it went astray. It hit the second set of boards about ¾” from the top with the bullet sideways. It exited out of the top of the board and hit the 2 by 6 I use for a lid.
One thing I did note was that the newspaper I suspend in the water was shredded. There was much more damage than the North Fork generated. Maybe because it was traveling sideways going through the water? It may mean nothing but I did note it.
I may or may not come back to this test. The results were basically the same as the multiple shots I fired in the other media.
This was the only test I conducted firing only one of each type of bullet.
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