More on the .50 BMG—Food for the .50
By Bryce M. Towsley

   As usual my timing was perfect. I decided to start exploring the .50 BMG just as the “Obama Ammo Sales Stimulus Plan” was reaching its crescendo. At that time finding ammo was like the search for the Holy Grail; noble, but hopeless.

As is often the case, my buddy David Draper at Cabela’s came through when nobody else could. Always the miracle worker, Draper found 40 rounds of MagTech CBC ammo, which is made in Brazil. Labeled “Ball M33,” it features a 656-grain steel-core FMJ bullet. It was available when nothing else was, so there had to be something wrong with it, right? During chronograph testing I used it in a friend’s rifle to shoot a 200-yard group that was just over 1/2 inch center to center. In my never humble opinion there isn’t a thing wrong with any ammo that will shoot a quarter MOA group. Cabela’s lists it for $54.99 for a box of 10.

Later I got my hands on some Federal American Eagle 660-grain FMJ ammo. This is standard Military ball, and shoots extremely well in both rifles. Midway has it for $44.99 for a box of 10. Like everything Federal makes, this ammo performs very well. It also is the reason I finally figured out the T-shirt I saw that said, “660-grains of diplomacy.”

The day I called Summit Ammo was the same day the Obama administration announced it would destroy empty military cartridge cases rather than sell them to reloading companies. That would have effectively put Summit out of business. To say I picked a bad day is an understatement, but the owner, Patrick Moore, was a true professional. That regulation was later rescinded, which saved an important industry. Summit has a wide variety of .50 BMG ammo in just about every shape and size imaginable. I have been shooting the Summit 649 grain M-33 Ball FMJ load, which is basic .50 BMG ammo. It shoots very well and is reasonably priced. Natchez Shooter’s Supply has it for $43.95 a box of 10. Tucker Mulholland used this ammo in the Barrett Model 99 the first time he ever fired a .50 BMG—his 200-yard group was sub MOA.

The top of the line for long-range shooting is Hornady’s 700-grain, aluminum-tipped, A-Max bullet. This sleek missile has a ballistic coefficient of 1.050, which is about as high as it gets. Hornady claims on the box that this is “The finest off-the-shelf .50 BMG ammo ever manufactured.” To my knowledge, nobody has challenged that statement. It’s not cheap; MSRP is $74.60 a box. I did a quick Internet search and found Midway has it for $57.99 for a box of 10. The A-Max bullet is also one that keeps popping up when I ask any experienced shooters about hunting with the .50 BMG. 

Chronograph Data for the Barrett Model 99, 32-inch Barrel

Lee Houghton Custom Rifle, 43.5-inch Barrel