quote:

Originally posted by Riaan:
Reading the “270 Win with 150g Noslers for PG Hunt?” thread posted by chuck375, I noticed that infinito expressed having unspecified problems with Nosler Partitions in the past. This is directly in contradiction with my own experiences. I’ve used (and have seen others use) Partitions extensively with not a single failure, but I’m interested to learn.

Could those with practical Partition experience, particularly of failures, please share their experiences here? Photos would be much appreciated.

I used 150grain NP on my last hunt in my .270 weatherby. Dropped steinbok to gemsbok with them. They worked perfectly.
Muzzle vel. was 3275Ft/sec.
Contact Andrew McLaren Safaris in your area for reference.

I shot a Mountain Zebra stallion in Namibia with a 180 Partition from a 300 Ultra Mag at about 75 yards. Shot was straight-on, right in the sternum. The bullet split in two, with 1/2 making a right-turn and ending up in the armpit, the other 1/2 veering less so to the left and going through some lung tissue and lodging in the rib cage. The zebra died but required several hours of tracking.

On the same hunt, my buddy was shooting the same 180 partitions from a 30-06, and got better penetration and weight retention on almost every shot than I got.

I think the issue was simply velocity. I don't necessarily consider these failures because everything else I shot died quickly, aside from the zebra, but there was a distinct difference in performance.

I've used NP's on exactly 3 animals: impala, tsessebe, and warthog. All were shot with a 180 gr factory 300 win mag. The impala was quartering away from me at about 50 yds. The bullet went in at the back of the ribcage, the front end appeared to have blown off on the ribs and exited about an inch in front of the entry point( I base this on the large exit hole there) while the base penetrated fully exiting through the brisket. The impala piled up within 30 yds, leaving a good blood trail. The tsessebe was a side on shoulder shot. The Tessebe ran at the shot and piled up within 40 yds but it left no blood trail. The wart hog was a straight on head shot (I was shooting this one for the pot). The warty dropped at the 60 yd shot but what surprised me was the the bullet stayed inside the skull.
Three shots, three one shot kills, I can not say that I had a problem with NPs, but the lack of a blood trail on the tsessebe did bother me.

So in conclusion:

All animals were hit with perfectly placed bullets.

The bullets consisted of Nosler Partitions, Swift A-Frames, Barnes, Hornady, ................

All the bullets are crap, none of them work, and the results were in no way the fault of the hunters.

Everybody gets their ass covered.

The deal is done.

The Senate vote is over.

Merry Christmas to all.

I agree with some of those above, that if I had to use just one bullet on thin skinned game anywhere in the world, it would be the partition. It simply seems to kill quicker than other premium bullets (A-Frame, TSX) I have used and seems to "knock down" animals whereas many times with other bullets, especially TSX the animal will run away for a distance as though not even hit for some reason. You always seem to know it's been a good hit with a partition and I've never failed to recover an animal shot with one, usually within a few feet.

quote:

Originally posted by mrlexma:
That is some weird bullet behavior from a Nosler Partition. I wonder if it was a bad lot of brittle bullets?

I have posted these photos before, but I think they are relevant here.

I shot this steenbok at about 20 yards with a .25-06 loaded with a 115 grain NP. Must have been zipping along at close to 3,000 fps or so at that range.

What you are looking at is the exit wound, which we found after we rolled him over.

Obviously, we did not recover the bullet. Nor did we find any bullet fragments whatsoever.

What the photo illustrates is picture perfect (and well-designed) Nosler Partition performance. The little steinbok is so small that the rapidly-expanding and somewhat frangible portion of the front of the bullet fully penetrated while still expanding. In a larger chest cavity the bullet fragments are contained whereas in the little steinbok they were just beginning to reach maximum hydrostatic effect when they reached the offside skin, thus "blowing" a huge hole out of the little fella. Had this been a kudu or oryx, you would have found jellied internal organs and a small exit in the offside chest wall made by the rear portion of the bullet.

Stonecreek,

Yours is the exact same expereince I've had with NP's over the 27 years I've been loading and hunting with them. Massive internal damage and realtively small entrance and exit holes.

Mark

I've been using them for 40 years. The only problem I can recall is when they quit making the 300 grain .375 NP a few years back. Thankfully, they rectified that problem.
Rich Elliott

Have used 180gr NP in 30/06 for 30 years for all manner of game. Have childlike faith in it. Took above mentioned rifle/load combo to Zim. along with a .375HH loaded with 260gr NPs. The 30cal worked a treat but the 375 was marginal at best. I blame myself for not having 300gr NPs in the 375. From my experience Nosler Partitions at modest velocity are excellent. In my .300 win mag I use Barnes X. Horses for courses

I've loaded Partitions since the early sixties. Never had one fail yet. My only problem is shooting white tails at 30 yards. Two bloodshot quarters.

Dave

Don't get me wrong, when I was saying I'd take the kind of 'failure' I experienced, I was being facetious. Any animal that dies as quickly as that sable did, I could care less what the bullet looks like afterward.

I've never lost an animal that I've shot with a Nosler Partition, and I cannot say that about some other very popular bullets.

quote:

Originally posted by leopards valley safaris:

quote:

You are saying your Nosler Partition exploded on the skin of an impala and fragments wounded another impala?

I had the same problem with a client using a 7mm 150gr NPrt on a springbuck at +- 50yrdspenetration was 2-3 inches broke the shoulder but nothing into the gearbox.
I tend to enjoy the barnes X mostly effective at all ranges

Hi lvs

Which 7mm? I'm guessing it was a Rem Mag, WSM or possibly a "Brenekke"...

Wow, I hit an elk trotting through the timber at maybe 15 yards tops with a 150g Nosler going around 3000 fps, caught him in the shoulder. He dropped instantly. There was a fist sized exit wound, and the tree behind him was soaked in blood up to about 4 feet. I guess the 7mm Partition could've been a defective bullet ...

Chuck

quote:

Originally posted by chuck375:
Wow, I hit an elk trotting through the timber at maybe 15 yards tops with a 150g Nosler going around 3000 fps, caught him in the shoulder. He dropped instantly. There was a fist sized exit wound, and the tree behind him was soaked in blood up to about 4 feet. I guess the 7mm Partition could've been a defective bullet ...

Chuck

Yep! Never acted according to the science

Actually this incident really illustrates an important fact; ALL bullets generally work (inasmuch as that means doing a good job of killing) almost always, when placed in the right spot. And also quite often when placed in slightly less than the right spot?

I'd say "conventional" bullets have killed far more game over the eons of nitro-cellulose hunting than "premium" one have and will kill in their entire past, present & future existance (unless of course by some miracle the world comes right and we all again live off the land as a specie, thus giving premiums a reasonable chance to catch up)

So likewise, a NP at 3000 fps at 15 yrds on an elks shoulder is MORE likely to work than fail. But if NPs DO sometimes fail, and it is rare, it remains more likely in exactly this kind of circumstance (as against same MV at say 150+ yrds, or same yrds at say 2200 fps)

Fact 1 is, having the NP up must have given you more confidence to take that shot than say if you'd loaded a favorite "accuarcy" load with something like a Siera HPBT etc. etc.
Fact 2 is I would admittedly have taken the shot too! And everyone else here as well I suspect.....