Sierra Bullets
Encyclopedia
Founded in 1947 in California
, Sierra Bullets is an American
manufacturer of bullet
s intended for firearms. Based in Sedalia
, Missouri
since 1990, Sierra manufactures a very wide range of bullets for both rifle
s and pistol
s. Sierra bullets are used for precision target shooting
, hunting
and defense purposes. Available caliber
s range from .204 Ruger
through to .500 S&W Magnum
.
. Depending on requirements, bullet cores are manufactured using one of four different lead
alloys:
and boar
.
and good accuracy. They have been used by many competitors to set world records.
.
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, Sierra Bullets is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
manufacturer of bullet
Bullet
A bullet is a projectile propelled by a firearm, sling, or air gun. Bullets do not normally contain explosives, but damage the intended target by impact and penetration...
s intended for firearms. Based in Sedalia
Sedalia, Missouri
Sedalia is a city located about south of the Missouri River in Pettis County, Missouri. U.S. Highway 50 and U.S. Highway 65 intersect in the city. As of 2006, the city had a total population of 20,669. It is the county seat of Pettis County. The Sedalia Micropolitan Statistical Area consists of...
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
since 1990, Sierra manufactures a very wide range of bullets for both rifle
Rifle
A rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
s and pistol
Pistol
When distinguished as a subset of handguns, a pistol is a handgun with a chamber that is integral with the barrel, as opposed to a revolver, wherein the chamber is separate from the barrel as a revolving cylinder. Typically, pistols have an effective range of about 100 feet.-History:The pistol...
s. Sierra bullets are used for precision target shooting
Shooting sports
A shooting sport is a competitive sport involving tests of proficiency using various types of guns such as firearms and airguns . Hunting is also a shooting sport, and indeed shooting live pigeons was an Olympic event...
, hunting
Hunting
Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
and defense purposes. Available caliber
Caliber
In guns including firearms, caliber or calibre is the approximate internal diameter of the barrel in relation to the diameter of the projectile used in it....
s range from .204 Ruger
.204 Ruger
The .204 Ruger is a centerfire rifle cartridge developed by Hornady and Ruger. At the time of its introduction in 2004, the .204 Ruger was the highest velocity commercially produced ammunition, and the only cartridge produced commercially for bullets of .204 inch/5 mm caliber.-Characteristics:The...
through to .500 S&W Magnum
.500 S&W Magnum
The .500 S&W Magnum is a fifty-caliber semi-rimmed handgun cartridge developed by Cor-Bon in partnership with the Smith & Wesson "X-Gun" engineering team for use in the Smith & Wesson Model 500 X-frame revolver and introduced in February 2003 at the SHOT trade show...
.
Design
All Sierra bullet jackets are made from gilding metalGilding metal
Gilding metal is a copper alloy, comprising 95% copper and 5% zinc. Technically, it is a brass.Gilding metal is used for various purposes, including the jackets of bullets, driving bands on some artillery shells, as well as enameled badges and other jewellery....
. Depending on requirements, bullet cores are manufactured using one of four different lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
alloys:
- 6% antimonyAntimonyAntimony is a toxic chemical element with the symbol Sb and an atomic number of 51. A lustrous grey metalloid, it is found in nature mainly as the sulfide mineral stibnite...
, 4% tinTinTin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn and atomic number 50. It is a main group metal in group 14 of the periodic table. Tin shows chemical similarity to both neighboring group 14 elements, germanium and lead and has two possible oxidation states, +2 and the slightly more stable +4...
, 90% leadLeadLead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed... - 6% antimony, 94% lead
- 3% antimony, 97% lead
- 1.5% antimony, 98.5% lead
Rifle Bullets
Sierra makes bullets for rifles and handguns. The rifle bullets fall into five categories, based on bullet construction.BlitzKing - Varminter
Varminter bullets are designed for varmint hunting. As such, they are normally smaller calibers, and are designed for rapid expansion, and need to be accurate to hit the typically small targets.GameKing
The GameKing is line of bullets designed for hunting. They are a boat tail bullet to reduce drag and wind drift. They are designed more heavily than the varmint bullets for better penetration and expansion on larger game than varmints, such as deerDeer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
and boar
Boar
Wild boar, also wild pig, is a species of the pig genus Sus, part of the biological family Suidae. The species includes many subspecies. It is the wild ancestor of the domestic pig, an animal with which it freely hybridises...
.
MatchKing
MatchKing is Sierra's line of competition bullets. They have a design that gives a high ballistic coefficientBallistic coefficient
In ballistics, the ballistic coefficient of a body is a measure of its ability to overcome air resistance in flight. It is inversely proportional to the negative acceleration—a high number indicates a low negative acceleration. BC is a function of mass, diameter, and drag coefficient...
and good accuracy. They have been used by many competitors to set world records.
Pro-Hunter
The Pro-Hunter is a flat-base bullet with a special jacket to provide deep penetration and maximum expansion on large game such as elkElk
The Elk is the large deer, also called Cervus canadensis or wapiti, of North America and eastern Asia.Elk may also refer to:Other antlered mammals:...
.