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How far will a 9mm round travel?
- Thread starter kramden
- Start date
You almost never have the barrel of any rifle or pistol parallel to the ground. The sights are 1/2" or more above the bore and even if the sights are perfectly parallel to the ground the muzzle will be slightly elevated in relation to the breach.
Almost all bullets leave the muzzle at an upward angle and are actually zeroed at 2 ranges. The 1st time they cross the line of sight is fairly close to the muzzle, but the bullet continues upward for a distance before reaching it's apex and falling down. When it crosses the line of sight the 2nd time is also where it is zeroed. Most handgun users are only concerned with the closest zero, unless they are shooting beyond about 25 yards. Rifle shooters only the 2nd zero.
If the barrel is parallel to the ground the bullet will leave the muzzle 1/2-1" below the line of sight and only travel in a downward arc. But in the real world that just never happens.
Almost all bullets leave the muzzle at an upward angle and are actually zeroed at 2 ranges. The 1st time they cross the line of sight is fairly close to the muzzle, but the bullet continues upward for a distance before reaching it's apex and falling down. When it crosses the line of sight the 2nd time is also where it is zeroed. Most handgun users are only concerned with the closest zero, unless they are shooting beyond about 25 yards. Rifle shooters only the 2nd zero.
If the barrel is parallel to the ground the bullet will leave the muzzle 1/2-1" below the line of sight and only travel in a downward arc. But in the real world that just never happens.
Jim Watson
New member
If a bullet traveled 1.4 miles when launched at 45 deg, that is not its maximum range except in a vacuum. Maximum range in atmosphere is at 30-35 deg elevation
Correct. Assuming that the information is correct, if it goes 1.4 miles with a muzzle elevation of 45 degrees, it should travel even farther with a muzzle elevation of 30-35 degrees.If a bullet traveled 1.4 miles when launched at 45 deg, that is not its maximum range except in a vacuum. Maximum range in atmosphere is at 30-35 deg elevation.
If I were going to shoot a 9mm without a backstop, I would want over 1.5 miles (over 2640 yards) of totally empty space downrange.
Jim Watson
New member
Ectually, I figure the 1.4 mile is more nearly correct than the 45 deg.
Jim Watson
New member
I doubt it.
Falling out of the sky range for .30-06 '06 or M2 is about 3500 yards, two miles. The M1 boattail would fly 5500 yards, 3+ miles.
Falling out of the sky range for .30-06 '06 or M2 is about 3500 yards, two miles. The M1 boattail would fly 5500 yards, 3+ miles.
"... a 9 mm 120 grain bullet fired out of an average sized handgun at 45 degrees elevation will travel about 2300 meters before falling."
Poorly phrased. The bullet begins to fall the instance it leaves the barrel and will continue to fall until it is stopped by the ground or some other object. Whether the bullet hits that object directly below the muzzle or at some distant point is irrelevant to its fall or fall rate.
Jim
Poorly phrased. The bullet begins to fall the instance it leaves the barrel and will continue to fall until it is stopped by the ground or some other object. Whether the bullet hits that object directly below the muzzle or at some distant point is irrelevant to its fall or fall rate.
Jim
johnwilliamson062
Moderator
I hate to assume this is theoretical.
It sounds to me like someone asking how much range they need behind a paper target to safely shoot without a back stop.
It is incredibly important to consider a point brought up by a previous poster. The bullet fired at that trajectory is likely to continue travel after it hits the ground. It will skip like a rock across a pond. There are lots of factors that affect how many times it will skip and how far, but you can assume misfortune and shooter will hit the one flat rock located at 200 yards and get a mighty nice skip at the worst possible moment.
It sounds to me like someone asking how much range they need behind a paper target to safely shoot without a back stop.
It is incredibly important to consider a point brought up by a previous poster. The bullet fired at that trajectory is likely to continue travel after it hits the ground. It will skip like a rock across a pond. There are lots of factors that affect how many times it will skip and how far, but you can assume misfortune and shooter will hit the one flat rock located at 200 yards and get a mighty nice skip at the worst possible moment.
Aguila Blanca
Staff
Your statement is also poorly phrased, but I think we know what you mean.James K said:"... a 9 mm 120 grain bullet fired out of an average sized handgun at 45 degrees elevation will travel about 2300 meters before falling."
Poorly phrased. The bullet begins to fall the instance it leaves the barrel and will continue to fall until it is stopped by the ground or some other object. Whether the bullet hits that object directly below the muzzle or at some distant point is irrelevant to its fall or fall rate.
"Falling" generally is taken to mean traveling in a downward direction. When a bullet is launched at an upward angle of 45 degrees, it doesn't start falling immediately after leaving the barrel. Initially it is rising. The effects of gravity and aerodynamic resistance mean that the rate of vertical rise immediately begins to decay, until at some point the bullet reaches the apex of its trajectory. That's when it begins to fall.
WarPig1976
New member
A bullet fired from a level barrel vs the same bullet dropped at the same instant and height, WILL hit the ground at the same time. It's Physics, a bullet has no lift so gravity acts the same on both.
Jayhawkhuntclub
New member
I'm not sure what's more impressive, 1) the # of people who never looked at a ballistics chart before answering or 2) Those who completely ignored the original OP's question.