  We present new empirical estimates of the Delta V_HB_bump parameter for 15
Galactic globular clusters (GGCs) using accurate and homogeneous ground-based
optical data. Together with similar evaluations available in the literature, we
ended up with a sample of 62 GGCs covering a very broad range in metal content
(-2.16<=[M/H]<=-0.58 dex). Adopting the homogeneous metallicity scale provided
either by Kraft & Ivans (2004) or by Carretta et al. (2009), we found that the
observed Delta V_HB_bump parameters are larger than predicted. In the
metal-poor regime ([M/H]<=-1.7, -1.6 dex) 40% of GCs show discrepancies of
2sigma (~0.40 mag) or more. Evolutionary models that account either for alpha-
and CNO-enhancement or for helium enhancement do not alleviate the discrepancy
between theory and observations. The outcome is the same if we use the new
Solar heavy-element mixture. The comparison between alpha- and CNO-enhanced
evolutionary models and observations in the Carretta et al. metallicity scale
also indicates that observed Delta V_HB_bump parameters, in the metal-rich
regime ([M/H]=>0), might be systematically smaller than predicted.
