what does each person like better for African plains game?

I'm gonna use NOSLERs only and its between the .30 cal 180 gr. Partion or the .30 cal 180 Accubond

Either of those would be fine bullet choices if your rifle likes them. I have had good luck with 180 gr. Speer Grand Slams as well.

I have used the 30-06 a couple of times in Zimbabwe on everything up thru Wildebeest with perfect success. I only used 220gr Nosler Partitions. Could not ask for better performance.

Willi,

Given those choices I'd pick the NP since I'm sure of its performance from my own personal experience with it over 25 years. If you are shooting a 30 MAG I'd move up to the 200 gr bullet.

Mark

I love the way the 180 Accubonds perform and they shoot great out of all 3 of my .300 Win Mags.

I have always used 180 grain Barnes TSX in the past with fine performance. Going to shoot 180 gr. NorthForks next time in my .300 H&H.

quote:

Originally posted by Tim Herald:
I love the way the 180 Accubonds perform and they shoot great out of all 3 of my .300 Win Mags.

+1 I love Accubonds!!!

I used 180 grain partitions for plains game. Eight one shot kills from 20 to 250 yards. The longest shot broke a Gemsbok's off-shoulder. Seven of eight exited. The eighth, an oblique shot on a wildebeeste, penetrated about 3 feet. They worked extremely well and I can see no reason to change for any plains game hunt, or any need for a heavier bullet, although I don't think it matters much what kind of modern premium bullet you use.

I have used the 180, 200 and 220 gr. Noslers in Africa in both my 06 and my 300 H&H..

I think I like the 200 gr. Nosler best of all, it works on everything and works well..I also like Northforks and Woodleighs.

I would prefer the Partitions.

While hunting in Namibia this year, I used my 375 with 260 grain AccuBonds for everything. The other client in camp was using a TC Encore in 300 Win Mag with the new Barnes 180 grain MRX. We each took a half dozen trophy animals, up to kudu, zebra, and eland. There were also several gemsbok culling competitions between us, as the owner was donating the meat to his church and several charities.We harvested about 20 more mature animals between us.

Each time back to the skinning shed, we would compare the bullet results and performance. In almost every case on a larger animal, the 30 caliber 180 MRX produced wound channels and exits very similar to mine. It was truly an impressive round, and from one weighing 30% less.

I would certainly feel fine shooting either a 180 TSX or MRX at anything, except DG, over there. I just bought a box of Federal Premium 180 TSX for my 300 WSM to try.

Guess I should have included it will be in .30-06 caliber. I leaning towards the partions but have some of the Accubonds to try, tho that will only be on paper (tho might take some for deer to MT this fall, but not sure I'll recover any bullets from any deer on a broadside shot.)

Im sure they (Accubonds) are better than the ballistic tips (which I use in my varmit gun, .223 and also have killed a few deer/antelope with the 110 and 115 gr BT's in .25-06 caliber, tho very few of those recovered either to see how they looked performance wise.

I know the partion is a GOOOD bullet and they shoot well in my rifles and while I have about 10 months before Africa I'll keep practicing with both for a bit yet.

thanks for all the replies

Soor, misinterpreted your question. I just gave some personal 30 caliber experience from last trip.

The AccuBonds in my 7 Rem Mag are right on the verge of being too fast, and bullet performance is not quite as good as my 160 Nosler Partitions. Accuracy is the same for both - very good! Media testing in DuxSeal, Gel, and wet paper all showed extreme expansion (almost double caliber), but only about 60% retention. The recovered 375 AB's I used all showed closer to 70%. I think the real key with the AB's is to stay under about 2900 fps, and they are flawless. In your 30-06, I would feel no doubts with either of your choices.

Partitions or Accubonds...you won't see a bit of difference between them. Once expanded the only way to tell is to look at the base. The Accubonds are that good. 10 of us hunted in Africa in 2006 taking game from Duiker to Eland, taking 90 animals and many with the Accubond. It really is a winner in my book.

Repost from 2006:

I have recovered and recorded a lot of information on the bullets used this season from my loaner 30/06 rifle.

First some of the facts and details regarding the loads and the gun used.

Rifle: Model 70 Winchester PacNor 23†barrel in standard 30/06 cartridge

Winchester Brass
Federal 210M primers
IMR4350 powder 58 grains
Chronographed at 2900 plus at 55deg F

Game shot by 7 different hunters six male one female

6 warthogs
12 impala
6 Kudu bulls
1 Kudu cow
5 Zebra
3 waterbuck
6 wildebeest
4 Red Hartebeest
4 Blesbok
2 Nyala
1 Steenbok
1 Gemsbok

51 total animals. One was not recovered, a Blue Wildebeest was lost although a confirmed hit with a short blood trail.

Shortest shot was a impala at about 40 feet, longest shots were a Zebra at a laser measured 237 yards, Blue Wildebeest at 198 yards, Kudu Bull at 225, and Impala at 177 yards all measured with my LRF 1200.

35 were shot with the Barnes TSX bullets. 7 were recovered
6 were shot with the Federal Fusion factory loads
6 were shot with Hornady Interbonds
4 were shot with the PMC factory loads

My unbiased assessment is as follows. However I must first say that I was admittedly very skeptical of the Barnes bullets based on my prior extensive experience with the original X bullet design. I must also admit to not being very impressed with the Fusions lack of velocity at only 2700plus fps. The PMC bullets were on hand and used to share the difference between factory cup and core bullets and premium handloads. The Interbonds were already a well known performer and had a lot of respect from me.






My rifle was zeroed with the X bullets and shooting hole touching groups at 100 meters. Prior to departure I shot a three shot group to foul the barrel. Upon arrival I shot a 2 shot group to prove the travel did not compromise the scope adjustments. There were 5 shots now through the barrel. Each hunter using this rifle also shot it before their hunt started. The Fusion, PMC, and Interbond bullets would shoot into about a 3+†group mixed POI's with the settings used for the TSX bullets.

The Federal Fusion Bullets: Underpowered for bigger game. The lack of velocity and the unpredictable bullet shapes left me unimpressed. Although they held together they under penetrated and fell short of my desired performance hopes. It’s an excellent inexpensive deer and smaller big game bullet but does not have the kind of killing power I expect with a 30/06 using other loads and bullets. A good choice for deer, impala, blesbok, but I would not likely choose them for anything bigger or even on the tough little warthog. I stopped using this bullet for further shooting on game based on the early limited performance on the recovered game and bullets. With the shallow penetration and oddly shaped mushrooms I was not confident to shoot game as tough as wildebeest, gemsbok and zebra with these bullets.

PMC Bullets: As can be expected with these bullets being Cup and Core design they will kill about like the Fusion bullets. If everything is perfect they work fine, but when something goes wrong they will not provide the edge I would like to see in my bullets. All of them failed to stay in one piece and all lost much if not all functional weight retention.

Hornady Interbonds: Work flawless and 100% predictable 4 out of the 6 were recovered and all had massive expansion with great weight retention. Another hunter used these bullets in his 30/06 AI and had identical performace and recovery percentages as my standard 30/06. The AI version was about 90fps faster at 3000fps. A better bullet would be difficult to choose. I have already posted dozens of pictures and text on these bullets in the past. This years experience is the same. It's a class act by Hornady and difficult to choose another bullet over this design.

The Barnes TSX bullet: Well this was the one that drove this project for me. Although I am very pleased with the performance. I am very happy with the results of so many deadly shots on big tough game animals. I’m still skeptical about some of what I have seen. The 7 recovered bullets look almost identical and have from what I can see 100% weight retention. Not a single petal was broken off and all expanded from the close range 40 yard shots to the longer near 250 yard shots. Some exits were massive and the blood was flowing freely. Others showed me a bore diameter hole and not a drop of blood from the exit. I’m stumped as to how these bullets exit with an exact bore diameter hole? Yet some others have a huge exit hole. I had about a 20% recovered bullet rate from these bullets. The lowest recovery percentage of any bullet I have ever used. Exits are the norm with the TSX. I had a bullet zip clean through the shoulders of a Big Zebra at 237 yards which included the vertebra and one scapula above the shoulders. This is enough mass that I have seen it stop a 270 grain Swift A frame from a 375HH plenty of times. Yet a 165 grain TSX from a 30/06 passed through. 4 zebra were shot with the 30/06. One needed a follow up shot, all 4 of the TSX bullets passed through these zebra. Only the one follow up shot was inside one of them. Zebra, Gemsbok, and Blue Wildebeest are about the best bullet stopping plains game we have. All three species were shot clean through with this bullet. Few provided a good blood trail often due to the bore diameter exit holes. Those that had good blood trails when recovered always had good exit holes too.

Here is an Impala with a noticeable exit hole but you can clearly see there is no blood flow.



I have 4 other TSX bullets I could photo and post here. However they are identical to the first two in this photo. They would be difficult to tell apart had I not marked them before I left! The only oddball in the group is the one from the zebra. It was recovered inside the heart. It has a wrinkled petal which you can see in this photo. All the others are exactly the same.


The rifle was not cleaned, barrel swabbed out, or oiled during the entire trip. On my last evening I hunted hard for a warthog. I walked from 2:30 PM til dark about 6PM I was hunting alone and looking for a whopper warthog I had seen twice in the prior several weeks I had been hunting here. In the closing moments of light about 5:55 I saw what looked like a shooter. At 75 yards he was trotting parallel to the road I was on, and slightly quartering away from me through the bush. When the warthog cleared a bush and left me with a fleeting moment between bushes I leveled the upper crosshair and touched off the trigger when it was layed behind the last rib. It appeared as if I rolled him over but the muzzle flash was too bright. I walked to the spot and saw a spot of blood. Then there in the flashlight beam just ahead he layed dead. The blood flow was significant and the exit was through the opposite scapula.

Several times I tested the accuracy during the week with targets. Each time the bullets were into the 1†square “bullseye†on the target at 100 meters. With nearly 60 shots fired during this trip and no cleaning I trusted this rifle and bullet combination on the last moment shot at the warthog. There was simply no fouling problems with these TSX bullets and this PacNor barrel!

I would certainly feel a whole lot better if the exits looked like they had more consistency in size. However I have also come to another probably arguable conclusion with the TSX and the 30/06. I would much prefer to have a 30/06 with this bullet and a rangefinder then a 300mag of any make without a rangefinder. I feel 100% confident that these bullets will penetrate and shoot accurately as far as I would like to shoot. Say 400 yards or so. If you know the distance with the rangefinder hitting the target is not complicated or risky with low wind. These 165 grain TSX bullets in a 30/06 will out perform a 300 magnum with a standard cup and core bullet every time. Sure you can up weight with a 300 magnum and use the 180’s. However if the 30/06 killed 50 of 51 tough big game animals I’m not sure moving to the 300 mag is a practical choice if you want more power. I think moving to the 338 is much more logical. If shooting long range 450 yards plus is the reason then would I agree. However a rangefinder with a 30/06 is still a very do-able shot with these TSX bullets on a calm day.

So do I switch now from the Hornady Interbonds I love so much to the TSX bullets? …………..Wow talk about a tough choice! The TSX shoots a tiny bit better in Accuracy, the tips don’t deform, they seat very tight in the brass with the groves. They don’t have the 100% internal damage consistency that the Interbonds have, but they are close and I cannot explain why the exit holes are bore diameter on some of the game. I do have a photo coming of the exit on a zebra. It looks like the stallion was shot with a small broad head. It has 4 slices about ¼†long each. It’s a brilliant exit hole. Why don’t they all show this? Maybe 35 big animals under nearly identical conditions is still not enough information? I will say that If I only saw 10-12 of the best exits I would swear these were the best bullets on earth no question, hands down, end of story. I may yet agree to this statement. However there were those few that leave me wondering why a tiny little exit hole as if the bullet did not open or the petals all sheared off? ( no petals ever found inside) I will continue to use them until the first time I find one that is unopened inside an animal. If that does not happen I may not use anything else in this rifle. I think they make a better large big game, Elk, bear, zebra, wildebeest, gemsbok, eland, waterbuck, moose, etc bullet then the Interbond because the exits at least in theory should provide more blood flow. I think the interbonds will provide much more explosive impact and internal trauma on deer sized game like antelope, sheep, blesbok, impala, etc.

They do not have a similar POI or load to shoot well from my rifle. They are as incompatible with a single scope setting as possible. I will have to pick one and stick with it. So for now I’ll stay with the TSX. As far as I’m concerned the TSX does more with the available power of the 30/06 then the Interbond does. The much higher frequency of exits is a benefit to good blood trails. I know my weakness as a confirmed bullet recovery junky even though I know they should all exit.

On average a heart or lung shot animal was down within 100 yards. On average blood was not found anywhere near the impact site but was starting to flow within 20 yards and usually lasted to 80 yards or to the animal when found less then 100-120 yards. Game that went further lost the blood trail after that in many cases, or provided a drop here and there to confirm I was following the proper set of tracks.

30 calber holes are about the minimum diameter to allow a decent blood trail. Even they are often marginal. Rifles 338 and bigger are a noticable improvement. 375 and over is the minimum for which you can expect something to follow (blood or chunks)the whole way to the game.

I saw several animals stunned and stagger with the bonded bullets(interbond) only a couple with the TSX had any visual impact from the bullet. I saw most of the TSX hit game react as if missed and just run or trot away. Those hit with the TSX that collapsed were all CNS hits.

The impalas hit with the Federal Fusion bullets were knocked silly but never fell from impact. They all died quickly and without a problem. The Fusion bullet would be a top choice for a factory load on most deer species in my opinion.

No animal well hit with any bullet traveled very far. The difference is that some hit poorly with the X bullets still crumpled with damage to the spine. That one Fusion bullet that stopped short of the spine in the waterbuck would have been outright knocked down had the TSX been used instead. The Fusion bullet was just shy of hitting the spine and the X bullet would certainly have drilled right though.

I shot a warthog on my last day steeply quartering away. This would be about like shooting a deer size animal in the USA, only far tougher skin and muscle mass. I would not have taken that shot with a PMC cup and core bullet, or a Fusion bullet. The Interbond I would have expected to be under the skin near the shoulder. I had a TSX in the chamber and it went clean through and exited after breaking the front leg at the base of the scapula.

Those TSX bullets make a 100 year old 30/06 work like a 300 magnum using a factory load. That warthog went ten feet from where he was hit. There was no blood trail but the hog was covered in blood on both sides where he was laying. Below are some photos I've already uploaded and have available. The 30/06 in the photo's is my SS rifle although it's been Roguard treated so it looks blued now.


Blue Wildebeest, 80 yard shot with TSX


Kudu Bull 120 yard shot with TSX


Zebra 125 yards with TSX


Warthog TSX bullet 75-80 yards



Kudu 125 yards TSX bullet

The Photos may start to get repetitve after these. Same game and bullets different hunters and limited different ranges. All shots from 50-250 yards or so.

I’m not sure you can make a mistake in choosing between the 165 grain AFrame, Interbond, Accubond, TSX, or Partition, The one that shoots best in your barrel and gets a minimum level of functional velocity should do fine. I guess having to choose between the 165 grain Interbond and the 165 grain TSX for me is actually a good problem to have.

Another 30/06 tale from 2007:
Here is a photo of an Eland Bull shot a few weeks ago. The lower bullet is a 250 grain Northfork from a 9.3X62. The Eland was shot the first time at 60-70 yards, he ran a ways, I followed him and again shot him as follow up at about the same distance with a 165 grain TSX from the 30/06. The Northfork did not hit any bone, the TSX shot through one scapula. Both the same distance, both end up in the same place, here’s the photo to show it.



Here is another close up of the TSX under the skin, this is a massive animal pushing the 1 ton weight range. Still the little TSX pushed through this body mass.



XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Technical update: The New TTSX is a Barnes TSX bullet with a "ballistic plastic tip". This design should be the icing in the cake for those with concern over the bullets opening.

Barnes has sent me some to fool with and they look awesome, and shoot just as good as the original TSX. The tip makes them a bit longer, but dropping down a weight class is no problem with a TSX bullet. I think this may be the best designed bullet made today!

Some follow up from 2007

I think many of you have read and know my opinion on the TSX bullets. I have been using them for myself and my loaner rifles at the lodge in Africa for three years now. During that time I've seen a few odd things, but over all they have been fantastic. I have also formed some rather strong opinions on the TSX and bullets in general over my career in big game hunting.

Because of this experience I get a whole lot of Email and PM's from people who don't really want to post an opinion or comment due to the possible ridicule and internet fighting that goes on with bullets, and hunting gear in general. These additional opinions from individuals adds a lot to the big picture for me. They are not biased, or employed by bullet makers. They simply want to share real world experience without the crap offered by many folks on Hunting Forums.

It seems that rather then open your mind to weird possibilities that can occur from time to time, many people prefer to defend their choice as if it's one of their offspring. Regardless if it's a bullet choice, rifle, optics, etc. Many people are very defensive of the equipment they choose. I simply no longer care what people use, or what brand is the current most popular. I just want to get to the truth and see what really works best for "ME".



I cannot explain why there is a frequent exit hole that looks as if there is no expansion when using the TSX. This past year I examined all the body cavities of game shot very carefully. Everyone of them shot with the TSX bullets showed 1" to 2" shattered holes through the rib bones and surrounding tissue, ...........even with bore size exit holes. I can no longer accept that the bullets do not expand, but rather push their way out with the skin stretching to pop out the bullet, then recovering back to bore diameter. With a 2" shattered hole through the ribs on one or both sides, usually the bigger hole is on the entry side ribs, not the exit side. It seems the slowing bullet does less damage as it's going through.

Without exception the bigger hole through the ribs was on the entry side 100% of the time, many times double the size. Now here is a thought I have which is what comforts me in my choice of the TSX. I would very much prefer several things in a projectile that I use.
Accuracy, TSX has this in spades.
Penetration, TSX has this in Spades, there is no better!
Exit holes, Is there a better expanding bullet with a higher frequency of exits made by anyone on earth?
Integrity, again no complaints....and here is the part that clinches this for me. I would prefer to have a bullet fail to open then I would to have it go to pieces. If a failure of any bullet made is possible, and I doubt anyone will argue that any bullet is perfect in every way. We have to accept that sending a bullet on its way at 3000 FPS with an impact at 70 yards is a lot of stress to stay in one piece. Then we also expect that same bullet to be soft enough to open at 500 yards and develop a picture perfect mushroom. Failure in this very wide window of performance is imminent.

I strongly feel that Rifles shooting over 3000 fps *OR* when shooting game over the 400-500lb range justify the TSX bullet, and should be very strongly considered as your top choice. Also the bigger bore rifles seem to have flawless performance of the TSX. The much larger hollow point tip in bullets .358 and larger really opens them well!

Shooting slower cartridges, or smaller lighter game in the 100-400lb range there are all kinds of good options. The TSX still works well in this situation, but quite often zips clean through without a good reaction to the impact. Bonded core bullets and even cup and core bullets will more frequently show the impact shudder and stagger game a bit better upon impact. These comments are for non CNS, non structural bone impacts.

Here is a photo of an Eland Bull shot a few weeks ago. The lower bullet is a 250 grain Northfork from a 9.3X62. The Eland was shot the first time at 60-70 yards, he ran a ways, I followed him and again shot him as follow up at about the same distance with a 165 grain TSX from the 30/06. The Northfork did not hit any bone, the TSX shot through one scapula. Both the same distance, both end up in the same place, here’s the photo to show it.



Here is another close up of the TSX under the skin, this is a massive animal pushing the 1 ton weight range. Still the little TSX pushed through this body mass.




I prefer to have a projectile retain all its weight and stay intact, even if it does tumble, bend, or fail to mushroom or expand. Then I would to have any bullet explode to pieces and end up as shrapnel.

Below are a couple photo’s of recovered bullets, there were plenty of the TSX bullets not in the picture from this year. Everyone of them looked exactly the same so I felt that this one example was good enough to show what the results were. Had I not bagged and labeled them each day I would not have been able to tell which bullet came from which animal. They were absolutely identical in mushroom size, and shape.





Here is a photo of 2 TSX bullets shot from a 300 mag. Recovered from a Bear shot at 60 and 90 yards. Did these fail? Yeah in my opinion they are not at all good! However they were under the skin on the exit side. The Bear is dead. I would have taken this performance every time over a ballistic tip or any cup and core that would explode. A friend sent this to me with the story in Email recently. So TSX not opening can happen, but not opening is still a long shot better then expolding.

For the light game I like the 150grn Nosler Solid bases, RWS Cone points and TIG bullets.
For heavier game with 30cal I like 180grn Swift A Frames and Woodleigh PP bullets.
In the end I much prefer the 9.3.

JJ

Good report.

My wife shot 2 kudu and I shot a bushbuck with the new Barnes 180 MRX [the one with the plastic tip] from a 308.
We only recovered one bullet, from a kudu that was shot facing her at about 80 to 100 yards.

It mushroomed nicely. The bushbuck I shot was a broad side shot into the shoulder, he went straight down.

One kudu she shot at 40 to 50 yards, he turned and ran past us, and we could see a lot of blood comming out the exit hole.

She also shot a big buff with my 450/400 3 1/4" double with a Barnes 400gr .408 dia X bullet.

Slightly quartering toward her at 80 yards the bullet hit the front point of the shoulder.

He might have run 40 to 50 yards, was dead when we got to hem, no finisher fired.

This X bullet at @2200fps had expanded perfectly, and penetrated deep into the buff.

I agree with JJ that the Barnes X bullet will usually give more penetration than other "soft point" bullets.

The new MRX may be the best of the Barnes X because behind the plastic tip is a large cavity that I think helps start expansion.


I have used a few Barnes X bullets over years and they have always done good for me.

My experience with Barnes bullets is that they work most of the time but when they fail, they fail very very badly! I have had bad luck with them from time to time, and the last one was a triple X..I have not used them since except in my 6x45 with the old 75 gr. and they have performed well with them. I have a supply of them. they have been discontinued.

I am a Woodleigh, Nosler and Northfork bullet fan, they have never let me down, others love Barnes, but that is what makes a horse race.

Very informative, excellent post by JJack! I have a couple of points to make; 1) I have never lost an animal shot with a 180 TSX from my 300 wby; this includes shots as close as 25 yards, and a 350+ yard shot (I aimed a hands breath above the back) on a fleeing, wounded blue wildeneeste. In the latter case, the bullet penetrated from the rear to the chest cavity, and the animal executed a somersualt and never moved. (Previuos wounding was by a poorly palced 416 rigby)
2.I am not thrilled with accubonds at very high velocity (> 3000 fps). A friend shot an elk at 30 yardfs with 180 gr accubond from a 30-378 loaded to 3400 fps, first two shots blew up on shoulder and failed to penetrate. third shot at 200 yds entered behind last rib and lodged in off side shoulder. So, if using a very high velocity 30 cal (no reason to, I beleive) I would prefer Nosler partitions or A-frames or TSx
3) This is going to bring some contrary opinions, I know. I know the prevailing "reasons for death' espoused by the gun-writers etc are massive tissue damage with hemorrage, with some guys throwing in nervous shock as well. I disagree; based on my experience in humans, (I am a surgeon), I know that if the chest cavity is penetrated from one side, the lung on that side collapses immediately; this occurs before it has a chance to fill with blood, etc. If the chest cavity is penetrayed from both sides, ie a pass-through, both lungs collapse because the negative pressure in the chest cavity which keeps the lungs inflated is lost. No animal can go very far without functioning lungs. That is why i prefer bullets that give a complete pass through, ie TSX.
Just my opinion, and would like to hear from other experienced individuals.

I tried some of the original Barnes TSX's in my 375 and could not get them to shoot well so never tried again. I have used Nosler Partitions for well over 50 years for all my big game hunting here and in Africa. I have found them to be consistently accurate in whatever rifle I shot them in and very effective on game when I do my part. I think in all those 50 years+ I have only tried one other bullet for hunting (paper is another thing) and that was a Swift A-Frame. Shot one Impala 6 times before I brought it down believe it or not ALL shoulder shots. In an 06. .30 in and .30 out. Finally just died of weariness I suppose. Have never shot another A-Frame. I am NOT an experimenter and when I find a good thing I stick with it. If an NP is not in an available size such as 470NE or in a solid I always use Woodleigh and have not been disappointed in them either. I think I can honestly say I have never had a Nosler Partition that produced any accuracy problems usually with any load I chose to load. Any recovered bullets I have recovered have been uniformly expanded. One bullet that I recovered on a Wildebeest was a shoulder shot and recovered under the skin on the off side. The bullet was expanded perfectly with jagged petals as I prefer to see them. The unusual thing was the front core had been given up, as is normal on the partition, but was actually IN the front of the bullet but loose. Have to make a correction,did use some Speer Grand Slam factory ammunition in a 375 once and was not totally satisfied with it's performance and wrote Speer about it and they actually replaced the ammunition. Have never since used factory ammunition for hunting. At that time I didn't have time to reload any 375 ammo. I have reloaded for over 50 years and to show what a non-experimenter I am I use IMR4350 almost exclusivly for ANYTHING it will work in and have never been disappointed in it either. I'm not smart enough to have a chronograph so I just stay several grains below max in whatever manual (always keep them current and own ALL of them) I'm loading from. My prime objective is an accurate load. I don't shoot inaccurate loads or inaccurate rifles and as long as I do my part the game is down. I've been successful for over 50 years so guess I'll stick with Nosler Partitions.

quote:

Originally posted by JJHACK:
Repost from 2006:

- snip -

Hornady Interbonds: Work flawless and 100% predictable 4 out of the 6 were recovered and all had massive expansion with great weight retention. Another hunter used these bullets in his 30/06 AI and had identical performace and recovery percentages as my standard 30/06. The AI version was about 90fps faster at 3000fps. A better bullet would be difficult to choose. I have already posted dozens of pictures and text on these bullets in the past. This years experience is the same. It's a class act by Hornady and difficult to choose another bullet over this design.

- snip -

JJ,

It is interesting that you have had good success with the Hornady Interbonds.

I quit using them just over two years ago after several bullet failures on whitetail deer. I was using 180 gr. IBs pushed at 3,050 fps in a .300 WSM cartridge.

Because of the failures I experienced, I will not use the IB again on game of any type. I would not recommend their use on game either. IMHO, there are plenty of other bullets out there that have been proven. I realize that some of the "proven" bullets likely had poor weight retention, poor expansion, etc. from time to time. What poisoned me on the IBs is the frequency with which the bullet failed. Oh - when I say "failed", I mean that the bullet literally broke apart upon impact with minimal penetration.

quote:

Originally posted by bisonhunter1:
what does each person like better for African plains game?

I'm gonna use NOSLERs only and its between the .30 cal 180 gr. Partion or the .30 cal 180 Accubond

My PH recommended I use premium bullets. So, the choice became Barnes X or Partitions. I flipped a coin and it came up BARNES.
I shot 14 plains game animals. I put a 225gr .338" broadside through the lungs of a gemsbok and it ran ~60 yards, spilling blood everywhere, but still needed a finisher just to be humane. After that I decided to aim for the front shoulder instead. (You can't bring home the meat anyway.) Everything else dropped in its tracks, like pulling out the proverbial rug. No X bullets were ever recovered. You couldn't pay me to use another brand than Barnes.

It seems you already have your mind made up to use Nosler bullets. Then, go with the Partitions and aim for bone. Good luck.

quote:

Originally posted by zimbabwe:
I have used the 30-06 a couple of times in Zimbabwe on everything up thru Wildebeest with perfect success. I only used 220gr Nosler Partitions. Could not ask for better performance.

Amen to the 220 Nosler.

Douglast, as you see from your experience, and as written in my post. I don't prefer the IB's over 3000fps or on game much over 400 lbs.

I shot all of my Plains game with my 300 Ultra Mag shooting 200 gr Partitions at 3065 FPS. What I got was a Zerba, Warthog, Gembok, and a Links Cat.

I used 165 grain Accubonds on my trip to Namibia in May in my 30-06. 10 one shot kills and nothing got further than 40 yards. Mountain Zebra, kudu, gemsbuck, blue wildebeest to name a few. I don't know what rifle you are shooting, but I had no problems and no complaints.

partitions

I used nosler partitions in my 30.06 with good results in my tanzania’s safari in 1995. Just in one case it made a huge entrance hole at a gerenuk hitting the shoulder blade, living part of the cape in bad shape..
The rest of game taken with no problem at all, including kudu, sable, kongoni, etc.,.

I shot them all until I discovered the North Forks, now they are all I shoot. I still like the Nosler Partitions, Swift A-Frames, Barnes of all types, but when dealing with larger animals and you put them up against the North Forks, none will measure up in accuracy and toughness. While not the extensive hunter some on AR are, I have taken them all over North America and to Africa. Good shooting.

There are a lot of good bullets out there...

The worst performance a bullet can give is to totally fragment, or fragment to the ectent that it does not give adequate penetration.

There are some bullets due to their construction that total fragmentation is near impossible.

Bullets like the North Fork, Trophy Bonded Bearclaws, and Barnes X are among this group.

Partitions, Swift A Frames, and Failsafes are almost as good in this regard.

Over the years in my 308 and 300 Magnums I have had excellent results with Nosler Partitions, Swift A Frames, Barnes MRX and Trophy Bonded Bearclaws.

If I was reloading my hunting ammo I would load North Forks, I just happen to have a fair amount of factory ammo "laying around".

I have used a fair amount of Sierra, Hornady and Ballistic Tips on deer sized game with excellent results, but on bigger game or an African hunt I go with a premium bullet every time.

As I use doubles most of the time in Africa I have used a lot of Woodleigh Softs. They have performed perfectly for me.

Do not skimp on you bullet for an African hunt.

In a 30-06 a 165 or 180 Swift A Frame, Nosler Partition, Trophy Bonded Bearclaw, Barnes X or MRX, or the North Fork is what I would pick.

JJ,

What sort of twist rate does your Model 70 have? I really wanted to use the triple shocks but in the process of working up loads, I could not get the .30 caliber 180 gr bullets to properly stabilze in a 24 3/8" barrel with a 1:11 twist.

thanks,
Doug

1:11 is kinda odd, I know that the 1:12 weatherby barrels would not stabalize 220 grain bullets very well. Neither my Model 70 chambered for 300 weatherby nor my friends Weatherby would shot them worth a crap. The 200 were OK at best but the 180 and below were tack drivers.

Both my Mod 70 and my Montana rifles are 1:10 this gets me accurate with weights from 125 to the 250 grain Barnes originals, Although I don't use them at all I did shoot them screwing around.

How did you come by a 1:11 barrel? Never heard of that twist before in 30 caliber. I suppose your gonna struggle with a bit bigger bullets but for the TSX it should be a killer twist for 130-150 grain weights.

quote:

Originally posted by JJHACK:
1:11 is kinda odd, I know that the 1:12 weatherby barrels would not stabalize 220 grain bullets very well. Neither my Model 70 chambered for 300 weatherby nor my friends Weatherby would shot them worth a crap. The 200 were OK at best but the 180 and below were tack drivers.

Both my Mod 70 and my Montana rifles are 1:10 this gets me accurate with weights from 125 to the 250 grain Barnes originals, Although I don't use them at all I did shoot them screwing around.

How did you come by a 1:11 barrel? Never heard of that twist before in 30 caliber. I suppose your gonna struggle with a bit bigger bullets but for the TSX it should be a killer twist for 130-150 grain weights.

JJ,

The rifle is a Sako (.300 WSM). Although some might say the Finns are strange, I really like the rifle. I wish it was a 1:10 or tighter but that will have to wait.

Doug

It might not be the twist.
I think my 308 Blaser bbl is 1 in 11.
It shoots the Federal factory MRX bullet very well.

Also I think my Blaser 300 Win Mag bbls are 1 in 11. Both of them shoot the 200gr Trophy Bonded Bearclaw and the 200gr Swift A Frame very well even to 400 yards.

With X bullets, sometimes it is the diameter, and the taper of the diameter that effects their accuracy.

Barrels seem to either love or hate Barnes X's.

Anybody have any thoughts on the Trophy Bonded Bear Claws for African game. I've been shooting some different factory ammo and my rifle really likes the Federal Vital Shok TBBC's in 180grn.

D C Roxby

In the 308 my wife and I have taken game from bobcat, deer,wild pigs to Zebra, wildebest, and heyena with the Federal factory 165 Trophy bonded Bearclaw.

In the 300 Win Mag I have taken game from red fox to elk with the 300gr Federal factory Trophy Bonded Bearclaw.

In all cases performance has been perfect.

The TBBC is one of my favorite bullets.

quote:

Originally posted by N E 450 No2:
It might not be the twist.
I think my 308 Blaser bbl is 1 in 11.
It shoots the Federal factory MRX bullet very well.

Also I think my Blaser 300 Win Mag bbls are 1 in 11. Both of them shoot the 200gr Trophy Bonded Bearclaw and the 200gr Swift A Frame very well even to 400 yards.

With X bullets, sometimes it is the diameter, and the taper of the diameter that effects their accuracy.

Barrels seem to either love or hate Barnes X's.

+1.

Barrel diameter really plays a part with X bullets and accuracy. I have been using them in Australia and Africa since they were first released.......... and the two best shooters I've had by far and away are a 300RUM with a.3065 barrel and a 358STA again with a undersized bore. Tackholers.

I'm going back to Namibia next year and plan to take my 300RUM with 200 grainers. I will work up loads for the rifle with 200 TSX, 200 Northfork, 200 Swift A-Frame and the 200 TBBC and am looking forward to trying the Lapua Naturalis in 200...........!

After reading Blank's post, I'm also very interested in trying the 180TSX as well, though I'd prefer a 200 grain version.

As an example, while culling Hartebeast last year, my PH's 300WM shooting 200TBBC certainly seemed to hit MUCH harder than the 300RUM with 180TSX's.....

Always reduce the weight of your TSX by one level or even more for best results.

If you are shooting 180's drop to 165 or 150. I promise you the results will be spectacular and repeatable. I learned this on accident, and then spoke with the Barnes boys ( and Jessica) only to learn this was a long standing thought by them.

You can not look at the SD of these bullets and compare that in anyway with lead core bullets. The TSX is in a ballistic catagory all it's own. Shoot some lighter TSX bullets at higher speed and watch the show!

Bonded core bullets will almost always show greater impacts then the Monolithic TSX bullets. That is normal. Again you cannot compare them on paper for function. You are correct that the bonded core bullets really provide a definate shudder upon impact and the TSX will often show zero impact, you could almost assume a miss on many of them. This is just the way they work.

The higher velocity and lighter bullets improve the visual impact and shudder of big game with the TSX. The heavier slower bullets reduce the visual impact shudder. Both myself and my hunters have shot 100's of game with various loads using the TSX bullets. The difference is quite large when comparing the visual impact between the heavy slow or light fast TSX's

In my RS safari in 1999 I used Trophy bondeds in my 30.06 with outstanding results at the following distance.
BLESBOK 280
BLESBOK WHITE 140
BONTEBOK 93
BUSHBUCK CAPE 231
GEMSBOK 160
HARTEBEEST RED 196
IMPALA SOUTHERN 170
JACKAL 72
KUDU CAPE 170
KUDU GREATER 170
LECHWE RED 179
NYALA 170
REEDBUCK COMMON 300
REEDBUCK MOUNTAIN 280
RHEBOK VAAL 400
SPRINGBOK BLACK 163
SPRINGBOK SOUTH A. 325
SPRINGBOK WHITE 70
TSESSEBE 65
WARTHOG 52
WATERBUCK COMMON 120
WILDEBEEST BLACK 325
WILDEBEEST BLUE 150

I used 220 grain Nosler Partitions in my .30-06 on my first Safari in 2004, and I'll use 220s again for my next Safari. Took the Kudu at 125 Yards with a single 220 grain, a Common Wildebeest at 225 yards, Zebra at 155 yards and a Blesbok at 125 yards. All were one shot kills, in place or nearly so, with no bullets recovered. Am contemplating going to 180 or 200 grain Noslers for my next South African hunt, mainly because I'll be treating the .30-06 as my light rifle next time (light beside a 9.3x62mm). The 220 grain .30-06 load is a Very old standard, and it still works exceptionally well. In addition, the heavier bullets, 180 grain and heavier, seem to perform better in my Mannlicher-Schoenauer than lighter bullets. Then, those 150 and 165 grain slugs perform better in my vintage Browning Safari, so go figure.

LLS