hypothetical math question

J

joneb

New member
if you had to take a shot at a bad guy running all out would you need to lead your target? you are 60 ft away from the b.g. he is running perpendicular to you, and say he covers 40 yrds in 4.5 sec. you are shooting a .45 acp with a muzzle velocity of 800 ft per sec. how far to lead ?
1. no need to lead
2. six inches
3. one foot
4. two feet
 
60 feet will be covered by the bullet at 800 feet/sec in about 75 msec (assuming constant bullet velocity).

In 75 msec, the bad guy will travel two feet.
 
I don't know what made me think of this :confused: but when I did the math the answer suprised me . I would have guessed six inches .
 
Great Topic--
2 related Questions.

If everything is the same except at 20 ft would it require a lead of 1/3 x 24 inches = 8 inches?

Fixed lead v swinging to target? If trigger is pressed while swinging the HG at point with the BG ... would the swing moment be transferred to the bullet so that no lead would be required? We're not dealing with the speed of light here so I assume it would.;)
 
riverkeeper, the question did not account for the speed of the bullet at 60 ft. nor does it account for the time it takes the brain to tell the finger to pull the trigger. so the answer to your first question is yes. one may find a lead more than two feet is requierd. for the second I'll let a experienced dove or chucker hunter answer that.
 
No lead... off target... just aim at the leading edge...

The follow through is far more important...

Keep the gun moving along the arc until after the round goes off... ;)
 
Yeah, 2 feet is what the numbers crunch to, BUT...

...your hypothetical has the BG being a damn fast runner. If it was an older guy with a bit of a belly, I'd say half the speed would be more realistic. In that case, lead by about a foot. ;)

K
 
when shooting a hand gun the thought of leading the shot did'nt seem to be a issue. but after doing the math it did seem relative. thanks for the input, I think randy and pointer came up with the best tactic for this scenario. and yes he was fast. but now what if the bad guys are shooting at you from a car the ability to lead the shot could be of more importance.
 
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The correct answer is DONT SHOOT! He is running perpendicular..not at you. He poses no threat and you cannot legally shoot now...because you are bound to get a bunch of anti gunners on the jury that will say that he was misunderstood as a child and that you...a gun toting trigger happy killer..are the real bad guy. Then you will spend the rest of your life in a cell with big leroy...learning not to sleep on your stomach!
 
This is where full auto and some tracer rounds really help the math impaired.





To the PC-Police: I think it's safe to assume that in the question posed, it's a given that the circumstances in place warrant shooting a BG not running directly at you.

What if it's a misunderstood child? Well, what if it's a misunderstood child running at your kids with an axe?
 
I posted this thread to bring awareness to the possibility for the need to lead. the scenario could have went like this: the BG just shot some one and it looks like he may finish him off. you yell at the BG to stop and he takes a shot at you and misses, then seeing you drawing your weapon runs for a car thirty feet away. you don't know if he's making a gettaway or taking cover. your in a parking lot with no cover near by. do you shoot or become target practice for the BG, or hope he gets in the car and drives away ?
 
About the Scenario Setup.
It is my understanding that in most states IF YOU PERSONALLY WITNESSED an especially brutal terrible crime against someone's person and fully understand what happened -- rape, murder -- you may (or may not) choose to use deadly force on the fleeing BG.

Do not screw this up or you are submerged in DOO DOO forever. :eek:
 
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