IMPORTANT: Starting March 1, 2026, billing for Science of Accuracy subscriptions ends permanently.
Website access and standalone content will be discontinued soon after. Transition now to AB Quantum™ to keep enjoying – and dramatically enhance – your educational journey through AB Quantum™ which now incorporates the Science of Accuracy Academy™ in the AB Learn tool and directly interact with AB content using AB Spotter.
The Science of Accuracy is Transitioning to AB Quantum™ with AB Learn and AB Spotter
The podcasts, instructional videos, and other content previously on The Science of Accuracy Academy™ site are now accessible via AB Learn, built directly into AB Quantum™ and available with a PRO-level subscription. No more separate logins or browsers: watch, listen, and learn on the go, then immediately apply insights directly in AB Quantum™.
The Future Is Here: AB Spotter – Your Personal Ballistics Expert
With the latest AB Quantum™ update (3.5) and a PRO level subscription, we’ve integrated AB Spotter: an advanced AI assistant trained exclusively on the complete Applied Ballistics knowledge database. This includes:
- All Applied Ballistics books
- Every white paper and technical resource ever produced
- The full library of podcasts and videos from The Science of Accuracy Academy™
- Device user manuals, setup guides, and troubleshooting documents
AB Spotter lets you directly interact with this vast expertise in real time. Ask detailed ballistics questions – from deep dives into aerodynamic principles, spin drift causes and corrections, precise WEZ assessments, gun profile optimization, to app settings, Bluetooth connectivity issues, device compatibility, licensing, and more – and get accurate, trustworthy answers grounded solely in Applied Ballistics’ authoritative sources. It’s like having Bryan Litz and the entire AB team available 24/7 right inside your phone, ready to explain concepts, solve problems, and guide you to better shots.
Benefits of Switching to AB Quantum
- Direct, Conversational Access to AB Knowledge: AB Spotter turns passive reading/watching into active Q&A – get instant, personalized explanations for any ballistics topic or app/device question.
- More Cost-Effective: No separate subscription required for education – AB Learn and AB Spotter are part of AB Quantum’s ecosystem.
- Superior On-the-Go Experience: Mobile-first design means your full library + AI expert travel with you to the range, hunt, or match – ask questions in the field and get answers without delay.
Update 3.5 featuring AB Spotter and AB Learn is available now. Download today, subscribe, and explore AB Spotter by asking your toughest ballistics questions, and experience the next level of precision shooting education and support.
I would be interested to hear your thoughts on muzzle brakes and the deviation to the norm given the underlying principal to top gun is recoil management ? This probably muddies the water as each one has different effectiveness.
I bet the muzzle brakes wouldn’t have a ton of influence on precision aside from their extra mass since they don’t affect the recoil during the time the bullet is in the barrel.
That’s a good question. Like Taylor mentioned, the brake couldn’t do anything about recoil while the bullet is traveling down the barrel and the gun is moving. However, the shooter-felt recoil is very different; not just what the shooter feels and reacts to, but also the front/rear rest getting moved more each shot, making things less consistent.
I wonder if correlating the precision to the system moment of inertia and/or recoil line deviation from CG might increase the correlation coefficient even more. It makes sense that a large rigid mass coaxial to the barrel would maximize resistance to torquing the POI off target while under recoil, while mass on an axis under the barrel would tend to force the POI upward while free recoiling. Likewise for the other directions.
Agreed! One example of a rifle that beats the TOP Gun trend predictions is the Barrett MRAD. What’s different about that – The chassis clamps to the barrel rather than the typical 6 O’clock recoil lug. IMO, the 6 O’clock recoil lug is terrible for setting up torques that create a bending moment and makes all kinds of severe asymmetries in recoil. I’d like to see a recoil lug/stock system where the load bearing is taken up at 3 and 9 O’clock rather than 6. Done correctly, this could mitigate the bending torque and possibly act more like the MRAD barrel clamp set up.
By how Much did the barret mrad beat TOP Gun trend predictions?
What magnification was used to shoot groups for each of the rifles? I wonder if shooting at lower magnification could account for some of the hunting rifles under performing for their energy/weight ratio.
Do you think there is a correlation between lock time of the firearm and the accuracy potential? More specifically when comparing AR platforms to bolt actions, since the lock times can be 5x slowing in ARs. This obviously wouldn’t effect the recoil movement before the projectile leaves the muzzle. But improper technique and lack of follow through might be more apparent on target?
A interesting point for top gun theory would be adding a lead sled as a data point. To see if a indirect addition of mass to the system can shrink group size.
Lastly a interesting case study would be say a 308 bolt action vs a 308 AR10 that weigh the same. 5-5 shot groups with different experience shooters. Just to see if one is “easier” to shoot due to lock time.
Regarding the idea of buying five different Remington rifles and comparing them to five custom rifles head over to Cal Zant’s Precision Rifle Blog and read his “6.5 Creedmoor Ammo Test Part 5: Live-Fire Group Sizes & Precision” article.
https://precisionrifleblog.com/2021/10/27/6-5-creedmoor-ammo-test-part-5-live-fire-group-sizes-precision/
Scroll down to the section, ”Precision Differences Between Rifles,” where Cal compares the two rifles he used to generate his results. His chart comparing how the custom $5000 rifle and the $1300 out of the box mass produced rifle shot each sample of ammo directly addresses your question with very interesting results.