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In 2012, after seeing an increasing interest in long-range shooting, Hornady decided to develop a match-accurate, reliably expanding hunting bullet for use at extended ranges. But the challenge set before Hornady’s engineers was to develop a projectile that would embody the company’s keystones—”Accurate, Deadly, Dependable”—at any distance. After overcoming obstacles with the tip of the bullet expanding due to aerodynamic heating, Hornady was able to create a bullet with match-grade accuracy, high retained velocity and energy, and impressive terminal ballistics from less than 100 yards to beyond 800 yards. Thus the ELD-X bullet, standing for Extreme Low Drag-eXpanding, was formed. Check out this video from a recent episode of American Rifleman TV where Joe Kurtenbach visits Hornady's headquarters in Grand Island, Neb., to test the ELD-X Ammunition.
In this episode, the American Rifleman staff is on the range with a rimfire rifle that’s designed to excel in competition. This is the Bergara BMR-X Steel, a bolt-action that offers some match-grade features at a price that won’t break the bank.
While the roller-delayed blowback mechanism has proven reliable in platforms like the Heckler & Koch G3, Zenith Firearms has taken this innovative operating system and paired it with a modern, AR-style feature set in its MRDS.