NSA .20/18.9grain slug results

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Collected a BC of these today.
Gun used = BRK Ghost. Barrel is a 12 land and groove Lothar with slight choke.
Temps were around 90 degrees.
Elevation of almost 5700 feet above sea level.


10 shot average at muzzle:
Lo -875.5
Hi -893.6
Ave-882.3
ES- 18

15 shot average @ 59 yards
Lo-800.1
Hi-813.5
Ave-809
ES- 13.4

Screenshot_20230701-201032.png

Screenshot_20230701-201058.png


Really high. Eye brow raising high actually.
But, actual impact points are matching Strelok predicted, at least out to the 170 yards that I shot today, and that's using 0.09 as the BC in Strelok.

NSA lists 0.078 as the BC for these slugs. My data shows up around 0.09. ES on both the muzzle and 59 yard data samples are relatively tight. I also measured the BCs of the JSB 13.73 and 15.89 pellets today (same testing equipment and conditions) and they were right in line with what I've measured from them before. I've analyzed the data and pondered over what I could be doing wrong to have gotten such a high BC from the .20/18.9 grain slugs and can't see anything obvious. The fact that the poi is matching Strelok predicted, while using such a high BC is promising and suggests that the BC is truly that high. But, I'm open to any suggestions on something I may be missing as to why it was measured as so surprisingly high today.

Hit 3 Euro doves while shooting today, closest was 115yards. None were dead on impact so seems to be ice-picking them. Which when pesting, dead eventually is still dead.

Here are the 15 shots @59 yards used for the average speed at that distance.
PXL_20230702_032638242.jpg


And some groups @ 135 yards. Not amazing, but wind had picked up by the time I got around to shooting that far out.
PXL_20230702_052948366.jpg


I shot some .22 MRDs in the same winds, also to 135 yards and it was a shotgun. They acted like wadcutters when compared to how the .20 slugs were doing.
PXL_20230702_053031691.jpg


Pretty excited for these .20 slugs. They're my current best long range option.
 
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Sorry I wasn't more clear. When I say "slight" I mean not really aggressive like some chokes. And that's all based on feel as a pellet is pushed through the barrel. With some chokes it's a really abrupt STOP when you hit the choke, and it takes a big increase in the force required on the cleaning rod to get the projectile through the choke. With this particular barrel (the one shooting the .20 slugs) there's an easily discernible and distinct choke, but it doesn't take an excessive amount of force on the rod to get the projectile through the choke.
 
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dv8eod said:
They should be here Saturday with a test run for Sunday just to get a feel of how they'll do. I won't be able to go for full testing for a couple weeks after that due to work interfering with the use of my time. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

I'm very interested to see how they do for you. There's a surprisingly small amount of discussion about them. Actually, I'd like to hear any negative reports on them too, of course with details about which gun/barrel and at what speed they're being shot.

There's always the debate about the death and or unpopularity of the .20. The lack of info on the .20 slugs might be the general unpopularity of the caliber, in a nutshell. Few guys interested in .20, even fewer guys interested in .20 slugs.
 
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I've kind of gotten excited about it. I'm going to be trying the 18s in the L2 and the 14s in the wolfpup, hb20, Sheridan and 2040. Really curious to see what they do in the 2040 as I can run it on CO², also.
My thoughts are if .20s are dead, jsb and h&n wouldn't be wasting good lead to make them. I think they're a damn good all around caliber, personally. Only thing I don't have is a springer in .20.
 
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dv8eod said:
My thoughts are if .20s are dead, jsb and h&n wouldn't be wasting good lead to make them. I think they're a damn good all around caliber, personally.
Click to expand...

It really is a great caliber, and that is quantifiable, rather than simple chest-thumping preference.

The .20/13.73 has a higher BC than the same weight pellet in .177, at least at sub 20fpe. In @Arzrover's rather extensive comparison, it was one of the 2 or 3 highest BCs of all the sub 20fpe pellet/barrel combos that he had available to test. And it was NOT a small or limited sample size of guns/barrels.

For the 30fpe category, the .20/15.89 has a much higher BC than the typical suspects for that power output (JSB 15.89 and 18.13 in .22). And removing that 30fpe qualifier, it has a BC high enough to put it in the top 5 or 6 BCs of all JSB pellets, and that's including .25 and .30.

And now for slugs, these .20/18.9s are shooting better than any other smallbore slug (.177, .20, .22) under 50-55fpe that I've tried. Also not a small sample size. And for the cherry on top, that accuracy/precision is accompanied with a higher than expected BC.

I hope your gun also shoots them well, and I'm anxious to see how they do this weekend for you out of the L2.
 
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I pulled them out of the mailbox today. I might be able to shoot a couple later this evening. Too hot today to want to be outside.
I tried the 18s in the magazine with mixed feelings. The first one dropped in and hung in a good spot. The rest just fell through slick as a whistle. Put the mag back on the gun and they dropped into the chamber about an 1/8th of an inch. Have a suspicion that the gun will sound a bit louder. I was happy to see they have concave bottoms instead of the flat base. It's gonna be one of those things where a double feed is a real possibility. I'm thinking if I stick with them, I might use a ball bearing to create a flare to help hold them in the mags.
I'm scheduling myself for actual chrony work and accuracy next weekend. That is unless the boss has me scheduled for something else.
 
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@dv8eod

Had any time to shoot them?

I've got some paper groups to share when I get time.

And @pesty3782 and I got after some pdogs last week. I used the 20/18.9 on the far ones. I remembered quite a few successful shots in the 165-185 ranges. And probably 30+ successful shots in the 110-145 yard range. I couldnt remember the longest but Tony said he ranged one for me @203, twice, and that I dropped that pdog. So they're good that far at least.

They do have a tendency to ice pick though, not dropping the critter immediately. Think broadhead through the boiler room of a deer....they still moving, but working on borrowed time and gonna drop soon. With head shots the pdogs were anchored, vitals though and theyd stumble around and then flop over dead. Most shots through the pdogs were perforating both sides and I could see dust on the far side where the slug kept going.

Really wickedly accurate tiny little pill. I love em.
 
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Thank you for testing the .20. The .20 was popular with sub 20FPE springers and gas rams in the day. I have a lot of them. Not many manufacturers produce the .20 today. About 15 years ago the Daystates has the huntsman, and Sam Yany had the careers (although rare) in .20. If NSA produces a 12.5 - 13gr. .20 slug I'll definately try them in my Beeman R-1's and Theoben .20s from that period. The offerings right now are just too heavy for those vintage springers/rams.
 
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sonnysan said:
Thank you for testing the .20. The .20 was popular with sub 20FPE springers and gas rams in the day. I have a lot of them. Not many manufacturers produce the .20 today. About 15 years ago the Daystates has the huntsman, and Sam Yany had the careers (although rare) in .20. If NSA produces a 12.5 - 13gr. .20 slug I'll definately try them in my Beeman R-1's and Theoben .20s from that period. The offerings right now are just too heavy for those vintage springers/rams.
Click to expand...

Yes there is a bit of a bottleneck when it comes to companies that produce .20 airguns. The gun I'm shooting these from is a rebarreled BRK Ghost. It seems to have created enough excitement for the .20 that I've seen a couple individuals comment publicly that they'd like to see a production of the Ghost run in .20 cal. Whether or not Daystate/BRK will is outside of my influence, but MAN it's be cool if they do.

I'm having so much fun with it, and I think others would too.
 
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Oookayyy. Got to do a little bit before being run off back to the a/c.

Leishiy 2 250mm 165reg REPR 20yds
I have not changed anything else on this gun. Just load and shoot. My zero is 40yds and JSB Heavies are 910-950fps.

18gr slugs averaged 727fps. They are the upper left in the pic. Really wasn't going for accuracy, but they grouped like magnets. The fourth shot was me with sweat in my eye.

14gr slugs averaged 809fps. Again, I wasn't trying for accuracy, and you see the results in the upper right. 1st shot was me again.

Things that I noticed:
1) Regulator needs more time to recover. Not sure if it is because the slugs fall out of the mag and into the chamber leaving a space behind. When I can experiment with expanding the base a little, I'll have a better idea.
2) Don't leave batteries in the chrony in a hot area.
3) Know where your damn fill probe disappeared to. Luckily, there was another probe that worked, just wish I knew which gun That went to.

When it gets cooler, these promise to be very interesting. Can't wait to see what they do at 100yds.
Forgot to mention these were one mag apiece. 8 shots starting with a full fill.

IMG_20230718_171423840.jpg
 
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I have a sneaking suspicion that either the reg will have to be turned up further or I'll have to swap jets to get them up to 900s. I'm guessing that there is more friction with the slugs than with pellets.
A buddy has an R10 and these slugs, so I am waiting to see how they do in it. Have a feeling the 14gr will zip right through from that.
I was on the verge of getting an HW110 in .20 before I found out about Ed doing one. So happy I went with Ed.
 
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