Can ammo make that big of a difference?

[Need4Speed]

This was from 15 feet, 5 shots of each of these 3 different 45acp ammo types:

Top one HSM remanufactures 200gr SWC
Middle one Russia's finest-230gr Tula
Bottom one Fiocchi 155gr frangible

Surprising, the bottom one was pretty much nuts on.

[TH3180]

What was the shooting position?

[Pat Cannon]

Wow. Are you sure you weren't just getting better with practice as you worked your way down?

[rockcreek]

Yes! It can make that big of a difference. Those are three very different loads. Different loads of the same weight and bullet type can even make quite a difference.

[Need4Speed]

All I could think of was the angle. The top target was about eye level, the bottom one close to the waist. I was shooting one handed, standing up.

...and yes, very different loads. The Russian ammo and the SWC ammo had more "bark" to it. The 155gr stuff felt more like the push of a 40 S&W.

[TH3180]

I would think the only way to test ammo would be from a rest.

[Eric Marleau]

Fifteen feet is too close to make that big of a difference. Shooting anywhere between 25 yds and 50 yds, then you can see the big difference in various loads.
At 15ft you are basically shooting right on top of the target.


Eric

[DoxaPar]

I think Eric is right. The difference here is (mostly) you.

[Tronster]

The lighter recoiling 155 grain ammo was likely making you flinch less, thus better accuracy.

[plink]

When I was shooting .40 a lot I'd always get better results with 165gr over 180gr. Your ammo assortment has a way bigger spread than that, so I'm not surprised.