Years of research and testing by the Hornady® Ballistic Development Group, combined with advanced manufacturing processes and quality control measures have led to the creation of the ultimate low drag, high performance match bullet.

Use of a new A-Tip® seating stem is required for optimal bullet seating.

Hornady® large caliber A-Tip® Match bullets offer shooters the ultimate in performance at any distance to include Extreme Long Range (ELR). Unlike mono-metal, lathe turned solid copper or copper alloy bullets, A-Tip® bullets feature three components (gilding metal jacket, lead core & aluminum tip) that are carefully designed to maximize bullet performance at supersonic, transonic and subsonic velocities. Accuracy and overall consistency are key, particularly when shooting ELR. In order to take advantage of the advanced performance offered by the large caliber A-Tip® bullets, shooters must use appropriate barrel twist rates that work with these jacketed bullets. Twist rate refers to the rate of spin in the rifle barrel and is represented in inches per turn. For instance, a twist rate of 1:10 means the bullet will spin one revolution in 10 inches of barrel. A faster twist rate may spin the bullet one revolution in only 8 inches of barrel and would be expressed as 1:8. The lower the number, the faster the spin. The barrel's twist causes the bullet to spin on its axis as it flies through the air — like a quarterback throwing a football with a tight spiral — for greater accuracy and stability.

So, why do other bullets need extremely fast twist rates? The short answer is because they're so long. Traditional ELR bullets are turned on a lathe out of solid material with no lead. They have to be longer to produce the weight necessary to reduce drag. But that also requires an extremely fast twist rate to spin them up for stability in flight. Hornady® large caliber A-Tip® Match bullets, on the other hand, are conventional, jacketed, lead-core projectiles. Because lead is denser than the lathe-turned material of other bullets, A-Tip® bullets don't have to be as long and don't require faster twist rates such as 1:8 or 1:9. In fact, abnormally fast twist rates put too much torque on a bullet and can deform the jacket.

Use of large caliber A-Tip® bullets in fast twist barrels such as 1:8 to 1:10 may require reducing velocity and subsequent spin rate of the projectile for best results. Hornady recommends the following twist rates for Hornady's larger caliber A-Tip® Match bullets: 416 caliber 500 grain — 1:12 twist rate