I have been using the 140tsx out of my 7mmstw and I don't really like the pencil and small exit hole effect it has on deer sized game. Is there a bullett that will fragment to open up the exit hole and even be more effective If I made a bad shot than the TSX? I don't want an explosive Ballistice tip but I was thinking of something like an SST or is this one known to be explosive at high speeds?
I can't get the Accubondsor the Interbonds to fly straight so I was loking for something else.
Any thoughts?
Thanks

In my experience, the SST bullets have proven to expand even more rapidly than the Ballistic Tips. They worked well for us on deer, but on wild hogs they surface blew and made ugly wounds without killing the pigs,they had to be shot again.

In a 7STW I would personally would just shoot a 160 Nosler Partition. That is what I shoot in my 7mm Wby Mag and see no reason to try anything else. The front end is soft enough to expand at any reasonable range and the back just keeps on penetrating.

I made a lousy shot on a big mule deer buck in New Mexico a couple of weeks ago that proved the effectiveness of the Nosler Partition. The buck was running nearly straight away so I guess the shot was not that bad, but I hit the buck right in the top of the right ham with a 140 partition from a 270 WSM at about 200 yards. The bullets penetrated into the vitals, taking out the liver and the off side lung then exiting the rib cage. The buck never took another step.

quote:

In my experience, the SST bullets have proven to expand even more rapidly than the Ballistic Tips.

If not they're at least in the same league.....but I've found them to be excellent on smaller game such as deer.

What you're looking for is something more like a solid and Northforks, A-Frames, and TBBCs are half that. If too much velocity is creating trouble for you then look to the premiums for help.

Vapodog has it right...as usual....look to the NF's, a-frames and tbbc's for what you are describing they are the answer. They are all tough and non-fragmenting. A couple years ago a freind invited me to Alaska for carribou. It took two shots from my 270 wby at 150 yds to put a bou down with 140 aframes zipping at 3330 fps. I didn't know it but the first shot had been pulled and went right through the stomach. It should have been a terrible mess when gutting but the stomach contents stayed where they were.
There was a twisted "plug" of grass/trundra on the exit hole of the stomach a little bigger than my thumb. The stomach came out of the animal just like it had never been hit! Try your luck getting that result with 90% of the bullets out there.

quote:

I was thinking of something like an SST or is this one known to be explosive at high speeds?

I found the sst to be more explosive than the NBT for the simple fact the NBT has a much better jacket design. When you find an NBT it's usually a typical mushroom w/ some of the core still on the solid base. The thin jacket of the SST wil usually totally shred and chuck the core.

I'd suggest you use a 150 NBT if you want nice sized exits.

Have you tried the 160 ABs? If they will shoot for you, I think you'll find that they are really good performers and very flat for .284s.

Good Luck

Reloader

Nube,

Are the deer you hit with the TSX dead?

160gr Nosler partition will do all you ask.

For a expanding monolithic, I believe the TSX is the best bullet going. Just because the petals came unhinged does not indicate a failure, as even the bonded bullets will overexpand and not penetrate as deeply if fired under the same conditions. The cause of your trouble is high velocity combined with short range, and any other non-premium bullet would have, I believe, exploded like a varmint bullet. If I were in your shoes I'd move up to 160s and never look back.

I use 160grNPs in my 7mm Dakota @ 3250fps & have no complaints. If I were to drop to 140gr I would also look at the Swift, NFs (great bullets) or TBBC.

I would try the Swift Scirroco II's. I loaded some of the 150 grainers for my 7.21 Lazz Firebird and they were very accurate. I have not shot anything other than paper with them yet though. I dug a few out of the ground and they held together well compared to some other bullets I have dug out.

Nube: You are making this to difficult! The answer to your bullet woes is in fact in your own posting!
USE the 140 gr. Nosler Ballistic Tips!
They are splendidly accurate and flat flying AND they kill Deer size game with gusto!
If the thought of using a Nosler Ballistic Tip doesn't sit well with you then go to the Nosler 140 gr. Partition!
Problem solved.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Thats the problem with very high velocity cartridges and shots at short to medium ranges, most bullets are designed to work with impact velocities between 1700 fps and 2800 fps, outside this range and you can expect the bullet to fail in some way or another.

This is an important fact that alot of people overlook or fail to understand.

For small to medium sized deer I tend to agree with VarmintGuy and use balistic tips or SST's but try and avoid bony areas. A balistic tip slipped through a rib into the chest cavity at high velocity, should kill spectacularly at closer range, dont necessarily expect an exit hole though.

Those TSX's would probably kill better at slower velocities so try and slow them down some, I would also think about loading the 150 or 160 TSX at a slower speed and see how they go.