At Eagle Eye Ammunition, we are a group of Ph.D. statisticians, research scientists, engineers and long range shooting aficionados. Prior to starting Eagle Eye we hand loaded our own ammunition. We founded Eagle Eye to address two primary flaws in traditional off the shelf ammunition that led us to load our own ammo. First, the manufacturing processes and quality control standards of traditional factory ammo is very poor. Secondly, typical factory loadings fail to utilize the entire performance potential of a cartridge and the loadings are not fully optimized for long range shooting.

Manufacturing Processes & Quality Controls:

In the past precision shooters chose to hand load their own ammunition because they could ensure more consistency on almost every factor (ie. neck tension, powder charges, seating depths etc.) than they could get from any commercial off the shelf ammunition. The reason for this is that major commercial ammunition is still manufactured using the same equipment and methods that have been used prior to World War II. While the ammunition industry struggles to control factors to within a few thousands of an inch (10^-3), other industries such as biotech, electrical and materials are routinely manufacturing commercial products on the nanoscale (billionth or 10^-9). In today's world, isn't it about time the ammunition industry is able to at least offer commercial off the shelf cartridges with hand loaded consistency or better? We think so.

Prior to Eagle Eye some of the projects we were working on were things such as developing invitro diagnostic devices that would measure gene expression levels of a tissue sample to screen for things such as non-small cell lung cancer. We realized that if we applied the automation technologies and process control systems used in things such as medical cancer diagnostic device manufacturing it would possible to manufacture precision ammunition as consistently, if not more consistently, than can be hand loaded.

To manufacture the most accurate and consistent ammunition, we chose to custom design and engineer our production machinery and tooling. We utilize the latest automation technologies, control systems and most importantly human attention to detail to the highest levels of consistency. We engineer and manufacture our tooling and dye sets that that are specifically matched to our individual cartridges for unmatched precision.

Eagle Eye Precision Match cartridges undergo constant testing throughout the manufacturing process. Modern statistical quality control methods have been implemented and are monitored by a Ph.D. statistician. Quality testing begins with extensive inspection to ensure conformity of all incoming raw materials and components before they are used in manufacturing. Advanced uni-variate and multi-variate control charting is used to monitor production in order to proactively prevent out of spec products at any step in manufacturing. Once the cartridges are completed they undergo dimensional screening, each lot is test fired to 1/2 minute of angle or better, the velocities and trajectory are verified for unrivaled consistency.

In addition to automated in-process inspection, every round of Eagle Eye Precision Match ammunition is given a final hand inspection while being hand packaged. All of our new 100 round boxes of Precision Match Ammunition will include a data/range card which will be hand signed by an Eagle Eye quality engineer certifying the cartridges have been inspected and meet the highest quality standards.

Maximum Ballistic Performance:

There is much more to precision shooting, especially at long ranges, than just small groups on paper at 100 yards. While ½ minute or small groups at 100 yards is never a bad thing, this alone does not guarantee a small group at long ranges. It is important to look at the entire ballistic package. Specifically, in order to maximize long range performance, we engineer our ammunition to offer the flattest trajectory, longest supersonic flight distance and minimal wind drift.

A flatter trajectory and less drop creates a more ‘laser like’ flight path. This provides an additional margin of error in range estimation and improves hit probability on unknown distance targets. Furthermore, a flatter trajectory allows for less elevation dialing or smaller hold over corrections allowing a shooter engage targets at multiple distances faster and more accurately. When bullets begin to enter the transonic and subsonic zone they tend to begin to destabilize. By keeping the projectile supersonic longer, the effective range of the cartridge is increased. Even small variations in the winds can have significant influences on bullet flight path and point of impact. Properly estimating winds is a very difficult task; especially when considering there can often be multiple different wind vectors acting on a bullet between the muzzle and the target. Reducing the sensitivity of the bullet to wind drift dramatically improves hit probability. Minimizing wind drift is important because even small errors in wind speed estimation can account for significant changes in point of impact.

Beyond sound engineering and design, creating the ultimate precision match and long range cartridges also requires utilizing the full amount of performance available within a cartridge. For example, all too often most factory ammunition is downloaded well below the velocity potential for a given cartridge and bullet weight. For example, our 308 Win 175gr typically shoots 100+fps faster than most standard benchmark factory loadings using bullets of the same weight. Although using a lower quantity of propellant can significantly reduce cost, cutting corners in the loading is detrimental to long range precision. When downloading a cartridge a significant amount of performance is left on the table. It is like putting a tiny 4 cylinder engine in a sports car when there is room for 8 cylinders of American Muscle.

Eagle Eye Precision Match Ammunition is engineered the highest velocities possible for a given bullet while maintaining consistency and accuracy in a mag length cartridge. Since kinetic energy = ½ mass * velocity ^2 increasing velocity increases the energy of the projectile and offers more knockdown power. Faster velocities mean the projectile reaches the target quicker and thus the time gravity or wind is imparting a force on the projectile is less. As a result, the drop and wind drift are reduced. In addition, higher velocities also aid in increasing the supersonic flight of the projectile as it has to decelerate more to become subsonic.

Creating the most accurate and consistent ammunition, especially at long range, is a complex task. Since lighter bullets tend to be shorter and offer more case capacity combined with lower energy requirements to accelerate them, they can generally be accelerated to higher top speeds than heavier long bullets. However, heavier bullets tend to have higher ballistic coefficients which will make them less susceptible to wind drift and aid the efficiency with which they retaining velocity. It is not necessarily just obtaining the fastest outright velocity or using the highest ballistic coefficient bullet that makes the best long range cartridge but rather an optimal combination across several parameters. We load each cartridge to its maximum potential within SAAMI specifications and utilize the most advanced statistical methods for designing optimization experiments in real world test conditions to ensure unsurpassed performance; especially at long range. For more information on optimal loading for long range precision read our blog here.

While making full use of a cartridges potential and finding the combination optimal parameters is critical, it is meaningless if the cartridge cannot offer the same ballistic performance round after round. We give extra high levels of scrutiny to factors which are most critical to accuracy and long range precision. One such factor is the consistency and standard deviation of the muzzle velocity. The larger the variation in initial muzzle velocity from round to round, the larger the vertical dispersion in the point of impact will be; especially at long range. In traditional factory ammunition, velocity standard deviations of 15-20+ fps and extreme spreads of 60-100fps are not uncommon occurrences. For perspective, such a deviation in a 6.5 Creedmoor could result in as much as 2 feet difference in vertical point of impact at 1,000 yards! Eagle Eye Precision Match Ammunition is engineered to provide single digit velocity standard deviations in well maintained match rifles. We work to control velocity standard deviations in a number of ways. First, our cases are manufactured and prepared for loading to obtain the most consistent neck tension from round to round. Secondly, our propellant charges are carefully dosed with the highest precision possible. Finally, we utilize specially developed single base thermally stable extruded propellants with burn characteristics specifically matched to our case geometry and the projectile of choice for maximum consistency.

Eagle Eye Precision Ammunition is for the real shooting aficionado. We are dedicated to offering the most consistent and accurate ammunition available. Our 21st century state of the art manufacturing and control processes ensure the tightest manufacturing tolerances and lot to lot uniformity. In addition to shooing small ½ minute or better or groups on paper at 100 yards, our ammunition offers the lowest velocity standard deviations and is loaded to its maximum potential for unsurpassed long range precision.