Originally Posted by
MetalShavings
My particular design does incorporate an integral Boat Tail. Many will tell you that because of the slower velocities of an air rifle in general a Boat Tail will not yield enough benefit to make any real difference in the performance of the pellet. For the most part, these internet experts are just repeating what they've read from other self-appointed internet experts. They have no real hands on or first hand knowledge of this kind of stuff.
I'm no expert either but I have done my due diligence in searching for some answers about bullet/pellet design which included reading the actual papers from the bullet designers and rocket scientist who come up with alot of these facts and figures. From what I've found, even the slower moving projectiles can benefit from a correctly proportioned and angled Boat Tail for a projectile moving within slower velocity windows. This is just another reason I'm trying to set up a wind tunnel simulation of my pellet designs. It would allow me to go back and tweak the Boat Tail angle and length to get it just right for the velocity window that my air rifle is shooting at.
By the way, I've watched some YouTube videos using the type of photography you've alluded to and it looks cool as hell.
Also; I'm a member of the SolidWorks forum on the SolidWorks website where I posted the same question. I have yet to get any replies there either so I won't be completely surprised if no one hear can offer up a yes or no answer. The main reason for asking my question here is because I know from experience that when a person doesn't have the training in such and such a software but still knows enough to use said-software, they are more likely to have found a work-around that will do the very thing that the experts said could not be done. Those who are formally trained in the use of the SolidWorks CAD software are by osmosis, also trained to believe in the limitations of that software. As such, they generally do not explore outside the box of their formal training. It's the self-taught goobers like myself who are to ignorant to know better that will try to find work-arounds for problems like this wind tunnel thing. I have yet to find that work-around so I though I'd ask here.
MetalShavings