Bullets for hunting
- Thread starter Nathan
- Start date
I've used both nosler long range accubonds and cutting edge MTH's. For monolithic bullets a really like the cutting edge bullets, but they do carry a hefty price tag, but boy do they shoot! Last I checked most the guys shooting the king of two miles used their bullets. That being said, I've not shot any of the Barnes or Lehigh bullets, so I've got nothing to compare them to. The regular accubonds will also do just fine
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blackhawk44
New member
What caliber? What's "a little longer range"?
Traditional "cup & core" and cast lead bullets have been working for me since I began using them in the early 70s.
Never lost a game animal or a varmint due to bullet failure.
Not saying better bullets don't work, only that my personal experience with "regular" bullets is that they did their job, IF I did mine properly.
Never lost a game animal or a varmint due to bullet failure.
Not saying better bullets don't work, only that my personal experience with "regular" bullets is that they did their job, IF I did mine properly.
What cartridge, what is long range for you, and what are you hunting? Need to know those things to answer your question
If your considering all copper I would look at Lehigh. Great performance. Low 1500fps opening speed on their controlled chaos line. Used to be an amazing deal. Then they got bought out by wilson combat.... prices went up, boxes went from 100 bullets to 50... but still not priced too crazy.
Sent this youtube channel some .308 152g lehigs to play with. They performed at just under 1500fps
https://youtu.be/cJ1acqSLms0
If your considering all copper I would look at Lehigh. Great performance. Low 1500fps opening speed on their controlled chaos line. Used to be an amazing deal. Then they got bought out by wilson combat.... prices went up, boxes went from 100 bullets to 50... but still not priced too crazy.
Sent this youtube channel some .308 152g lehigs to play with. They performed at just under 1500fps
https://youtu.be/cJ1acqSLms0
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bacardisteve
New member
Depends on the cartridge entirely. The 117gr hornady sst is great in a 257roberts but fail miserably when launched 3400fps from a 257 wby. Bonded and or mono bullets work best at high impact velocities. Cup and core and non bonded plastic tipped bullets seem to do better with impact speeds under 2900fps or so.
Not exactly. It's not the cartridge, it's the speed of the bullet. And while the cartridge does play a huge part in reaching a given speed, it is the speed (velocity) of the bullet and the bullet's construction (in all factors) that determine terminal performance.
Not disputing your observation, but I will add that it only applies in some situations. "Do better" at what? On what??
Controlled expansion and adequate penetration on big game? It's what a lot of people think of, but that's not what the OP asked. The OP is vague, asking only about "hunting" and not a specific type of hunting, and there is hunting that isn't big game hunting.
I've had completely successful bullet performance with cup and core bullets at impact speeds in the 3600-3800fs range. The bullets did exactly what they were built to do, expand instantly and completely fragmenting in an explosive manner.
While that's not desirable performance when shooting deer, it is exactly the perfect performance for shooting woodchucks.
Every bullet made to expand is made to expand a certain amount in a given range of velocity. Slower than design speed, expansion is less than design intent (down to no expansion at all if its too far below intended speed) and faster than designed speed does the opposite, resulting in overexpansion which MAY result in bullet "failure" for a specific task.
You have to match bullet construction (design) with velocity, and performance for a specific task.
Bullets designed for moderate or low speed performance can be seriously overdriven at higher speeds, resulting in "failure" to stay together.
Examples abound, one common one is some light (125gr) pistol JHPs optimized to expand well at pistol speeds, over expanding hugely when driven several hundred FPS faster from a carbine barrel.
You can get a similar result from shooting a .30-30 bullet at .300 Win Mag speed.
Another is driving a .45-70 bullet designed to expand at 1300fps at 1800fps. (or faster!
) at those speeds they work more like varmint bullets than controlled expansion big game bullets. Its up to the shooter to match the right bullet, at the right speed to obtain the "right" performance for each different shooting situation. Not doing that properly isn't the fault of the bullet.
BornFighting88
New member
Hornady ELD-X pills on my 300 WSM. Used to swear by soft lead point, but after the bullets I have been using have been exploding on impact on deer ribs. I kid you not…. Watched through the scope as a 150 yard shot led to a bullet shattering after it hit the deer. Still made an ethical kill, the trauma alone knocked the heffer over (her insides were goo).
I made the decision to go to plastic tipped rounds.
I made the decision to go to plastic tipped rounds.
I am a big fan of Hornady Interbond for my 7mmRM. The 139 and 154 shoot to the same POI. They are fantastic for less than perfect marksmanship. I mis-judged the down angle of a 150yd shot at a nice buck last year. the 154 hit low in the brisket and broke a front leg at the exit. His heart exploded and bottom of one lung mushed. He made it 100 yards and piled up. For 300+ yards, I'd be very comfortable with an ELD-X or SST. I once used a CUP and Core bullet in my 7mmRM for a 150 yard shot. Killed the deer, but the right ham was blown to the ground and blew all the guts out.
Really? You're shooting that far? If so, bullet construction is the least of your variables to worry about.
I'm old school so I don't favor today's sniper wannabe hunting style. I'm also not impressed with pictures of pretty mushroomed bullets or numerically highest BC. That said, there are some bullet designs that extend the lower-end velocity for expansion - those little polymer tips.
I have never seen an animal lost because of "bullet failure" but I have seen lost animals due to bad shot placement. A fellow can't fix a bad shot with a better bullet, imo.
Hornady's cup and core bullets (Interlock) have never failed to put critters in the freezer for my family. And we've had nothing but good experience with Nosler Ballistic Tip. 270W and 308.
I'm old school so I don't favor today's sniper wannabe hunting style. I'm also not impressed with pictures of pretty mushroomed bullets or numerically highest BC. That said, there are some bullet designs that extend the lower-end velocity for expansion - those little polymer tips.
I have never seen an animal lost because of "bullet failure" but I have seen lost animals due to bad shot placement. A fellow can't fix a bad shot with a better bullet, imo.
Hornady's cup and core bullets (Interlock) have never failed to put critters in the freezer for my family. And we've had nothing but good experience with Nosler Ballistic Tip. 270W and 308.
I wonder what bullet failure is and how it can be determined to have occurred if the animal is not recovered. If the animal is recovered, the bullet did not fail. If a hit animal escapes, did the bullet fail or did the hunter fail?
I have used regular old cup and core Hornady bullets for deer for decades with no complaints. I have also used Barnes quite a bit on deer and elk with every animal shot at being recovered very quickly.
I have used regular old cup and core Hornady bullets for deer for decades with no complaints. I have also used Barnes quite a bit on deer and elk with every animal shot at being recovered very quickly.
kilotanker22
New member
I have personally been using the Hornady ELD Match bullet in both 308 and 6.5 Creedmoor for hunting. Shot whitetail from 75-300 yards and the bullet mushrooms, holds together, and penetrates perfectly. Does a ton of damage inside the chest cavity and I have had no meat loss. 1 shot kills on every animal I have shot with them. I do not subscribed that you need a thick heavily constructed bullet to kill medium game. In fact, I believe that Normal cup and core, and cup and core tipped bullets in medium to heavy weight for caliber are ideal.
bacardisteve
New member
No experience with the 300 sherman but I have used the 30cal 200gr eldx to great effect on deer out to 500yds. Mostly shooting across hayfields filling crop damage tags. I handload them to 3150fps from a 300win. I have also used the 200gr accubond in a 300rum on elk and deer and it works quite well but is hard to find anymore.
Here we go again with “I can’t nor do I ever want to learn how to, so nobody else should either” mentality. Which the reply will ultimately be about ethics. Prove me wrong.
Your arguing about people not wanting to learn? Why not learn to stalk in closer? Remove variables to guarantee you fill your tags. Your argument cuts both ways.
The other issue is animals are moving targets. The farther out you get the more flight time you have, giving your animal more chance to move, meaning you might not put the bullet where you wanted. Anything from a miss, to a wounding shot keeping you from filling your tag.
Wrong?
Bullets almost never fail. They do exactly what they are designed to do virtually every time. The problem is when people choose the wrong bullet for the task they are trying to do. Bullets range from soft to hard and there are multiple variations between the 2 extremes.
Softer bullets expand rapidly. They may over expand and give poor penetration if used on larger game shot at close range. They work better on smallish, big game like deer, and since they expand rapidly are a better choice for longer range where bullet impact is slower. If used on bigger game and at closer ranges going to a heavier bullet will slow down impact speeds and improve penetration. Most soft bullets expand well with impact speeds between about 1800-2800 fps.
The bullets on the hard end of the spectrum will stay together and penetrate at any speed you can get from a rifle. But they need to impact at faster speeds or they don't expand at all. You can't shoot them too fast, impact speeds of 3500 fps won't hurt, but if impact speeds are under 2000-2200 fps expansion is poor and they act like FMJ.
It would be a good idea to look at a ballistics chart and look at the projected bullet speeds at various ranges. If using a soft 150 gr bullet it might be fine in a 308 at any range from the muzzle out to about 400 yards. But the same bullet fired from a 300 magnum will overexpand and perform poorly at ranges inside or about 150 yards. But it will retain the minimum 1800 fps at greater ranges.
The solid copper bullets are on the extreme hard end of the spectrum. They work great at close range. Even in cartridges normally considered borderline too small for the game hunted. But because they need to impact faster to expand aren't the best choice for long range hunting.
But you must 1st define long range. They will still retain 2000 fps out to ranges farther than most of us need to be shooting. Especially from magnum rifles.
Softer bullets expand rapidly. They may over expand and give poor penetration if used on larger game shot at close range. They work better on smallish, big game like deer, and since they expand rapidly are a better choice for longer range where bullet impact is slower. If used on bigger game and at closer ranges going to a heavier bullet will slow down impact speeds and improve penetration. Most soft bullets expand well with impact speeds between about 1800-2800 fps.
The bullets on the hard end of the spectrum will stay together and penetrate at any speed you can get from a rifle. But they need to impact at faster speeds or they don't expand at all. You can't shoot them too fast, impact speeds of 3500 fps won't hurt, but if impact speeds are under 2000-2200 fps expansion is poor and they act like FMJ.
It would be a good idea to look at a ballistics chart and look at the projected bullet speeds at various ranges. If using a soft 150 gr bullet it might be fine in a 308 at any range from the muzzle out to about 400 yards. But the same bullet fired from a 300 magnum will overexpand and perform poorly at ranges inside or about 150 yards. But it will retain the minimum 1800 fps at greater ranges.
The solid copper bullets are on the extreme hard end of the spectrum. They work great at close range. Even in cartridges normally considered borderline too small for the game hunted. But because they need to impact faster to expand aren't the best choice for long range hunting.
But you must 1st define long range. They will still retain 2000 fps out to ranges farther than most of us need to be shooting. Especially from magnum rifles.