The effects of speed on a bullet don't happen sharply at exactly the speed of sound. It was a read that very much made one think.
I was just reading a good piece in a book on ballistics and the author was talking about sub vs super sonic in 22 LR, the cut off may be the speed of sound, but the pressure on the bullet does not change exactly at the speed of sound, it builds or drops off over a range of FPS, for that reason I would want a combo that sent my bullet out of the muzzle lower than the speed of sound in order to get the least change in flight.įor that reason I want a longer barrel that will give slightly less FPS right from the muzzle. To insure a bullet stays subsonic, I'll pick a longer barrel, The chamber, barrel and gun do pick which ammo they like the best. I think it's importnt to make sure the bullet stays sub sonic, a shorter barrel may increase the velocity some because the ammo was tested in a longer barrel and many sub sonic ammo's are right on the line between sub and super sonic.
