Trego's Mountain Ear

Forty-odd years ago, I was tasked with developing a computer class for gunsmithing students.  The gunnies weren’t dumb – but the traditional methods of teaching computer applications didn’t arouse much interest.  Fortunately the library at TSJC was probably the best library in the nation – possibly the world – when it came to gunsmithing and shooting.

I wasn’t a better teacher than Charlene – but I was better at teaching gunnies. Back in those pre-internet days, a few of the students who came in for the one week NRA courses were playing with computer applications – and I met quite a few of them that Summer as I developed the course.  Anymore, all the information is online – but then, combining the computer with gunsmithing education was new.  They learned because I stocked the computers with applications that were useful to them.

So a couple weeks back, I got to wondering what would be the ballistic advantage of a 22 magnum in a handgun (over a 22 long rifle).  I found a website called ballistics by the inch.  It provided more information than I had asked for – with this cautionary note:

ATTENTION:  Effective Sept 1, 2020, the BBTI Project is in “Archive Status.”  No further tests will be conducted, but we will maintain this site and data for the use of the firearms community.  Thank you.

It’s a great site.  I can understand why the authors quit testing – they have covered most of the bases.  For example, if I look at a 22lr, I come up with a muzzle velocity of 1101 feet per second from a six inch barrel.  (CCI minimag).

The CCI 22 mag test shows 1484 fps – a 34% increase in velocity/energy. 

This graph shows the differences between all the 22 ammunition they tested:

It intrigued me – years ago, I bought a Smith & Wesson Escort – mostly because it had a terrible reputation for jamming, and I wanted to see if I could beat whatever design flaws were in it.  I filled the magazine with Aguila 60 gr SSS cartridges, and the little beast hasn’t jammed since – and this chart shows that it’s just a little over 40 foot pounds of muzzle energy.  Ah, well, I solved the reliability problem – the problem of a 2 inch barrel’s lack of energy is a different story.

There is a lot of data available at http://ballisticsbytheinch.com/index.html .  If you’re looking at the changed performance of 9mm cartridges, or 357 when they are fed through a carbine, it’s a good site to visit.