I disagree with that analogy. I believe you will get the most consistent results using the most consistent components. If your analogy was, it would be like putting racing tires on your Chevette, then I would agree. The performance increase may not be worth the added cost but the gains would still be measurable and quite possibly significant. Your brass is the most variable component in your reloading recipe.
Anyone is welcome to disagree with my analogy, I have a Stevens 200 .223 rifle which I will call a cheaper economy car that burns regular gas. I sorted Remington cases by weight and then sorted these by internal H2O capacity, I uniformed the primer pockets, turned the necks etc. I then fired groups with the sorted cartridges and groups with unsorted cases and there was no major differences.
You can put high test gas in a economy car, you can put wheels off a Corvette on your economy car but in the end you still have a economy car.
Bottom line, someone with a custom rifle, with a custom barrel with a tighter chamber will get better results with the more costly Lupua brass. I'm retired, I have been reloading for over 46 years and you can't make a silk purse from a sows ear.
Below the throat of a brand new button rifled Savage factory barrel.
Below the bore two inches from the muzzle on the same new button rifled Savage factory barrel.
The bore of a costly custom hand lapped barrel.
Below, a Savage factory barrel before and after fire lapping.
The next thing your going to tell me is if I put a $3000.00 dollar scope on my Stevens 200 it will shoot tighter groups.
Canadian_Zuk, I understand what you are saying but I do not own any rifles worthy of spending the money on Lupua brass when I can make due with cheaper brass.
I own standard factory rifles and I can reload them and make them shoot tighter groups, "BUT" they are not a Ferrari or Lamborghini and never will be. And the average guy with a average factory rifle doesn't need to spend the money on costly Lupua brass.
Below is a small section from the .243 cartridge at Accurate Shooter, please take note the "average" shooter/reloader does not have a costly rifle like is being used below.
.243 Win For Tactical Comps
We asked GA Precision’s George Gardner why he chose .243 Winchester for his Tactical Comp Gun. He replied, “Why would I run anything else? Think about it. I’m sending a .585 BC 115 at 3150 fps–that’ll shoot inside the 6XC and .260 Rem with ease. I’m pretty sure I have found the Holy Grail of Comp Rifles. There are no brass issues like you can get forming .260 brass. I don’t have to worry about doughnuts, reaming necks–none of that. And the choice in brass is great too–run Lapua if you want max reloads and great accuracy. Run Winchester if you’re on a budget, and so you won’t cry if you lose some cases in a match. I can get 10-round mags, and feeding is 100% reliable, since the case is identical to a .308 except for the neck. Accuracy-wise, I don’t think I’m giving up anything to the .260 Rem or the 6XC.” We then asked George if he’d considered using a .243 AI instead: “Yeah, the cases look cool with that 40° shoulder, but I think the standard .243 feeds a little better. And I don’t think I really need the extra performance of an improved case. Run the ballistics for my load–115 moly DTAC at 3150 fps. You’ve got less windage than a 2950 fps 6.5-284, with cheaper brass, cheaper dies, cheaper bullets, and less recoil.”
243 Win Cartridge Guide
http://www.accurateshooter.com/cartridge-guides/243win/
If a person shoots better because they think their more expensive components are more accurate, I'd suggest they need to spend more time shooting. If their more expensive components make their loads more accurate then that's a different story.
