Rating: 
Summary: A consise explanation of what you only thought you knew.
Review: I've been reading gun rags for 14 years and only accumulated maybe enough usefull information to fill 7 pages of this book. For me it has been the single tome of applicable information. All the questions I could never get answered are addressed here. This book is truly underpriced for the information it delivers!
Rating: 
Summary: good but could have been better
Review: If you are a gun enthusiast or do a lot of target shooting(and I am) this would be a very good addition to your library. Its not terribly scientific and answers lot of questions that I had before. While it didn't adress some issues that i was curious about, this is still a very good book on the subject and i highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Easier to read than most, but not for the average hobbyist
Review: If you have average or above intelligence, you will be able to read and understand this book. If you took shop instead of algebra in high school, you may want to buy a different book. It explains how a bullet and barrel function, from internal to extrernal ballistics. You will get a lengthy explanation of the effects of greavity, angle, and wind on a bullet once it leaves the muzzle, and you will learn about why a barrel has grooves and lands and what effect the rate of twist has on a bullet. The average shooter will learn some useful stuff from this book and it is by far the easiest explanation of ballistics I have seen. Yeah, there is some math, but you can skip those parts and still gain a deeper appreciation for accurate shooting, especially for long distance hunting or target shooting. Bottom line: for me, well worth the price.
Rating:
Summary: Rinky Dink
Review: If you want to understand firearm ballistics, all you need is this little gem from Robert Rinker. My interest was marginal for the better part of my life, until I went to play Laserquest with my kids, and Jemima (my 2nd oldest) whipped me. Even for laser guns (non-conventional firearms, I prefer to call them), issues such as trajectory, wind-factor and motion are germane. This book is, indeed, ballistics.
Rating:
Summary: A must have
Review: If you're a shooter, you simply need to have a fundamental knowledge of ballistics. This work gives you the opportunity to either skim and pick up key informatipon, or alternatively, delve into the deep science and math. It belongs in every firearms enthusiasts collection. It's not any easy read; it makes you think. You won't read it once; you'll refer back to it again and again. I don't know of any other ballistics book I would recommend over Rinker's.
Rating:
Summary: Don't shoot without it
Review: Outstanding, this book was easy to read, easy to understand, easy to retain. Written so the average Joe could understand it and put it to practical use. You do not need to have a degree in physics to understand the drawings and formulas. A must buy for someone who is new the wonderful world of shooting sports, and for the old timers who want to know why they missed the big one.
Rating: 
Summary: Another "Edition" or just another printing?
Review: Rinker's book is well organized and documented, but a difficult read because of sentence and paragraph structure, run-on sentences, poor use of commas, nonparallel construction, illogical and vague antecedents, wordiness, and contradictory statements. It also contains several, significant mathematical errors and incomplete descriptions, and it is occasionally condescending. In addition, the intended audience seems in flux. Such a definitive work in its 4th edition deserves better focus, editing and proofing. Structurally, the book seems to attempt to provide sufficient information for the scientifically educated while remaining understandable for the reader with less than a high school education. It fails on both fronts; the technical information is lacking, and the narrative is often poorly written. "Clear only if known" was a frequent reaction while reading. MInor sections, such as self defense, could have been better presented, redundancies and cross references could be improved, and the savings of space could be used to improve both layout and presentation. Regarding the dual audience, the narrative could be written for the less sophisticated with complete scientific formulae and explanations set off for the more astute reader. In addition, these sections could even be labeled as to the level of mathematics required for mastery. Mr. Rinker needs an editor. My experience in engineering and in academia leads me to believe that Mr. Rinker, for whatever reasons, resists, or is denied, collaboration with a competent editor; the book, the author, and the audience deserve better. Notes from my reading indicated over fifty errors, including at least 9 errors in logic, 7 mathematical errors, and 37 grammatical errors. I assume that these are only representative of what a closer reading would reveal. I doubt that the book has ever been competently edited; it has simply been reprinted. With current printing technology, this is inexcuseable. Even so, it is the best source I have found for a comprehensive treatment of firearm ballistics. It is unfortunate that the publisher is unwilling to do better.
Rating:
Summary: Another "Edition" or just another printing?
Review: Rinker's book is well organized and documented, but a difficult read because of sentence and paragraph structure, run-on sentences, poor use of commas, nonparallel construction, illogical and vague antecedents, wordiness, and contradictory statements. It also contains several, significant mathematical errors and incomplete descriptions, and it is occasionally condescending. In addition, the intended audience seems in flux. Such a definitive work in its 4th edition deserves better focus, editing and proofing. Structurally, the book seems to attempt to provide sufficient information for the scientifically educated while remaining understandable for the reader with less than a high school education. It fails on both fronts; the technical information is lacking, and the narrative is often poorly written. "Clear only if known" was a frequent reaction while reading. MInor sections, such as self defense, could have been better presented, redundancies and cross references could be improved, and the savings of space could be used to improve both layout and presentation. Regarding the dual audience, the narrative could be written for the less sophisticated with complete scientific formulae and explanations set off for the more astute reader. In addition, these sections could even be labeled as to the level of mathematics required for mastery. Mr. Rinker needs an editor. My experience in engineering and in academia leads me to believe that Mr. Rinker, for whatever reasons, resists, or is denied, collaboration with a competent editor; the book, the author, and the audience deserve better. Notes from my reading indicated over fifty errors, including at least 9 errors in logic, 7 mathematical errors, and 37 grammatical errors. I assume that these are only representative of what a closer reading would reveal. I doubt that the book has ever been competently edited; it has simply been reprinted. With current printing technology, this is inexcuseable. Even so, it is the best source I have found for a comprehensive treatment of firearm ballistics. It is unfortunate that the publisher is unwilling to do better.
Rating:
Summary: Just what I wanted, but didn't expect to get
Review: So I'm reading an article in a shooting magazine that mentions that a twist of 1 in 8 would have been better for a particular bullet, and I refer to *this* book to find out why. The index takes me to exactly the right text where the author, seemingly telepathically, refers me to two chapters I should read first to get a full understanding of the information. This book not only has all the information I need, the information is structured so well that it makes an ideal at-hand reference as well as a progressive course if you want, and have the time, to read it straight through. And, the information is layered in terms of complexity so you (I anyway) can find the section I need and read until the benefit of continuing is outweighed by the difficulty of continuing. Just right. I wish I could write like this.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointment
Review: The book is simply a hodge-podge of topics, presented without
physical or mathematical justification, aimed at someone with about an eighth grade education, that is to say, on the level of
the stupider grade of gun magazine. The text is garbled, with uncorrected grammatical errors, the mathematics likewise; the book does not appear to have had an editor or proofreader. There is no derivation of the equations, and although the author
sometimes mentions where he found them, no adequate references
to the sources are made; worse still, there is no bibliography whatsoever. It's a waste of money if the reader is interested
in science or engineering; as for practical shooting, I cannot
comment. There is neither practical nor theoretical detail.
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