I hope this isn't too OT, but I have a question for the theoreticians and the guys who shoot in the wind; does a heavy for caliber bullet help with wind drift and if so why?
Theoretically, I understand why a heavy for caliber bullet slows down less than a light for caliber bullet; the drag force only depends on the frontal (cross sectional) area of the bullet (which doesn't change if the caliber stays the same). As the bullet gets longer its mass increases, so the same drag force is operating on a larger mass and thus slows it down (negative acceleration) at a smaller rate.
When I think about wind hitting the side of the bullet, if a heavy for caliber bullet is 1.75 times the mass of a light for caliber bullet, it's about 1.75 times as long, and thus the wind has 1.75 times the area to apply force -- it seems like the light and heavy bullets would have the same wind drift if they had the same time of flight. To me, intuitively, it seems that the lighter bullet would have less wind drift in cases of all but the longest range shots (because the lighter bullet generally reaches its target faster).
Also, if you are a very serious shooter, is the g1 drag coefficient a useful tool for calculating wind drift, or do you use some other coefficient? When I look at the bullet that the g1 coefficient was based on and compare it to a heavy for caliber 223 bullet it's like comparing a cannon ball to a canoe. I understand why g1 would be useful for calculating drop (because you adjust g1 until it fits the drop you observe), but it seems that g1 would underpredict wind drift in any bullet you would shoot from a shoulder mounted weapon.
Thanks everyone, I learn a lot on this board and appreciate your input. There aren't many long range shots (or much wind) where I hunt, so I've never had to learn how to shoot in the wind.