When did you join Hornady? 1994
What does your role entail? My title is Senior Ballistician. I do a great deal of product development in ammunition and bullets and do some work with reloading tools. I suppose my specialties are propellants and bullets. I also do a lot of our quality control standards. I frequently get pulled into marketing and a little sales work.
Which Hornady rounds have you helped design? This list gets pretty long, Light and Heavy Magnum, A-MAX Match bullets, V-MAX bullets and the Varmint Express line, 450 Marlin, 17 HMR, 204 Ruger, 17 M2, LEVERevolution bullets and ammunition, 308 and 338 Marlin Express, Ruger Compact Magnums, Critical Defense bullets and ammunition line, 6,5 Creedmoor, Critical DUTY bullets and ammunition, Superformance propellants and ammunition. There’s probably some I’ve forgotten.
How long does it take to deliver a bullet to the shelves from concept stage? Depends on the bullet. The Flex Tip bullets were about a one year project, Critical Defense was about a one year project. The Critical DUTY Law Enforcement project was a pretty tough nut to crack that project was about 3–4 years. Most typical bullet and ammunition developments are 12–16 months from start of the project to having it on the shelves.
What have the been the biggest recent breakthroughs for the ammunition industry? Our FlexLock bullets for law enforcement are a major step forward that is providing unprecedented terminal performance to LE. Another big advancement is the development of the Superformance propellants. They provide unmatched performance and accuracy in almost any common cartridge. The LEVERevolution line of ammunition really redefined the performance expectations for lever action firearms.
What is your personal favourite caliber and why? I love the 6.5 Creedmoor. It provides exceptional accuracy along with being very easy and comfortable to shoot. The external and terminal performance offered by 6.5 mm bullets for the ease of shooting is unmatched. At this point in time it is the only bolt action hunting rifle I own. I occasionally pick it up rather than my lever guns to go hunting. It almost seems unfair hunting with it because of how accurate and flat it shoots and how effective it is.
Are you working on any new exciting developments that you can tell us about? We are but I can’t tell you about them right now.
Do you hunt with ammo that you have developed? Which species do you usually hunt? I hunt as much as my wife will sit still for. I generally hunt American pronghorn antelope every year with a vintage lever gun with our LEVERevolution bullets. I also usually hunt deer every year with the 6.5 Creedmoor or the lever guns. What I am really passionate about is upland bird hunting. I love to get the dog out and watch her have fun.
What does it take to get a new caliber from an interesting wildcat to a full production round that Hornady would manufacture? First off it has to have what we believe is wide enough appeal to be commercially acceptable. We also like to stick to cartridges that either have superior performance in their class or fill a niche. The next phase would be to apply the SAAMI/CIP industry standards for cartridge and chamber specifications to a wildcat and make sure we have something that will fit and function and can be commercially produced both as ammunition and firearms. At this point we will develop the tooling for cartridge production and begin the ballistics testing and development. We also like to have a period of time to field test new products prior to introduction to the market. Usually these projects meet our expectations and we proceed with them. We have had a few that did not meet expectations and have shelved them. Usually the process takes 12 -18 months.
Which historic calibers do you admire and which is the greatest in your view? It’s hard to look past the 303 British and 8x57 because of their tremendous historic significance. I would also rate the 30–06 in with the previous two. The other cartridge I think really started the present day commercial sporting ammunition designs is the 30–30 Winchester. It was one of the first high velocity, smokeless, commercial offerings and lead the way for cartridge development that eventually far eclipsed it.