What makes one brand ammo better than the other?

[Stoli&Cranberry]

Why is it that a brand like Federal provides more accurate shots than a cheaper brand like Wolf or some surplus ammo of same weight and type?
Is is due to the to the dimensions of the tip and how well rounded they were made? Is it due to how consistent the manufacturer kept the powder in each round? Is surplus ammo less accurate due to the fact that it was made quickly for the purpose of combat and not for competition like newer commercial ammo? Does age of the round matter? Can the powder quality change over the years? Does the casing matter to function of ammo?
The purpose of my question is that I was using some South African surplus .223 FMJ 55gr which worked just fine out of my AR15 , but when I used some new Federal American Eagle .223 FMJ 55gr out of the same rifle, the groups for the Federal ammo were much tighter and also were grouped higher than the South African surplus.

 

[Edward429451]

What makes one brand ammo better than the other?

Your gun.

 

[WESHOOT2]

AGREE

And a few other factors...............

 

[TexasVet]

"your gun" is part of it and a big part is quality control at the manufacturer. Remember Mil ammo is usually built by the low bidder!

 

[40ozflatfoot]

...a big part is quality control at the manufacturer.

'Nuff said.

Remember Mil ammo is usually built by the low bidder!

And that surplus is usually sold on the open market when it fails to meet specs.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

Little things like exactness of powder will affect accuracy. For example, you may get more bullet drop quicker with a slightly under powered load as it does not have the energy to carry it as far on as straight of a trajectory. A slightly over powered load may appear to shoot high, assuming your sights were set for a normal power load. The high aspect comes not because the bullet climbs more, but because a properly sighted gun will take into account bullet drop for a given bullet weight and velocity. When you increase the velocity, it won't drop as quick, hence appearing to be high.

Even if the powder is measured accurately, issues concerning the condition of the powder will come into play. Flake powder that has become reduced to dusty powder (no longer in flakes) may burn much quicker and hence produce higher pressures (not good for the gun, possibly) and a higher velocity bullet than is expected.

With some brands like Federal, you often pay a little more and you get a little better quality. For some of us and for the distances we may shoot, such 15 yards and less for most defensive handgun training, those subtle differences are not even noticed. For precision bulls-eye rifle shooters, long range shooters, such variation may result in the difference in winning and losing a competition. It may take 100, 200, or 400 yards to really bring out the differences in some ammo brands or models.

 

[Redlg155]

Quality Control as stated previously. At the same time I've tried Federal and S&B in my autos. S&B performs equal if not better. So yes, it is also the individual gun.

Federal also has money tied up in advertising and packaging. I can get Winchester USA 230gr .45 Auto JHP's for much less than Federal. It's also hard to beat USA 9mm 100 round packs for $10.50. They are both just a good as Federal, but less expensive.

Good Shooting
RED

 

[David Scott]

The basics of QC are the same for any manufactured product: make each piece the right way, the same way, time after time, with materials of consistent quality. This means attention to detail, like accurate measures of powder, seating all bullets and primers to the same depth, and so on. Since most mass production is done on machines, calibration and maintenance are key.

Some folks just do things better than others.

 

[foghornl]

Stoli:
IMHO, it is a combination of your gun, and all the factors you mentioned in your post regarding ammo manufacturing.
And some ammo within the same manufacturing lot can vary quite a bit. For grins, try finding the best ammo for your .22 rimfire rifle/handgun. What brand/version works great in your handgun might at best be no better than lobbing bricks from your rifle.

When it comes to ammo, Your Mileage Will Vary.

 

[Dave R]

One factor is uniformity of assembly of the rounds. That's more than just measuring powder accurately. Its bullet seating, etc. Ammo that is assembled more uniformly will group more uniformly. Some at TFL have resorted to pulling ammo apart and weighing components, powder charges, etc. to verify uniformity. One TFLer (can't remember who) turns his cheapo .22 ammo into match .22 ammo by weighing the individual rounds, and shooting like weights together.

The other factor is what does your gun like? My understanding of the mechanics follows. Someone correct me where necessary.

For any centerfire rifle (and maybe rimfire rifles?) the barrel "whips" a bit as the bullet moves down it. Like a hose when the water is suddenly turned on. We're talking fractions of an inch, here, but that's enough to affect where the bullet goes.

The shape of the wave the barrel makes is dependent on the weight of the bullet, the powder charge, the barrel's unique shape & weight, barrel bedding, etc. You know what a wave looks like, right? It has a wide part and a narrow part.

When a certain load causes the bullet to exit the barrel at the narrow part of the wave, that load will be more accurate than a load which causes the bullet to exit the barrel at the wide part of the wave. That's because the barrel is pretty still at the moment the bullet exits.

When a handloader 'works up' a load, they are tuning the powder charge to that particular barrel's wave. When you find a factory load that is more accurate in a certain rifle, its because that load just happens to agree with the rifle's wave, and send the bullet out at the small part of the wave. When you adjust bedding, or put up-pressure on the fore-end of a handguard, you and changing the barrel's wave shape to be more uniform, or to agree more with a particular load.

Anyway, that's what I was taught.