While I was in Canada I picked up some more .375 210gn X bullets. After loading a few I noticed that they had a larger hole in the tip than the ones I had been shooting thus far.
On closer inspection it seems that the ogive has a longer conical section too. So I just went on as if I was loading for two different bullets until the original lot I had ran out.

I had been shooting 140gn 7mm TSX in my 7mm-08 and getting very erratic results. Once the loaded bullets go into an MTM box, you can't see the shank and since the tips all had uniform holes in them...

Well tonight I realized that they too are very differet, one lot has an entire drive band showing in excess as opposed to the other.

This explains the confusing results, fliers and money wasted on buying more to test, since I had my heart set on shooting these bullets out of that rifle.

I realize that it is my responsability to be aware of the fact that bullets and powders (primers too) may differ from lot to lot, but I felt that this much difference was a bit excessive.

I wrote to Barnes, just to let them know and am waiting to see what they have to say about it.

Has anyone else ever experienced such differences between lots of other brands of bullets?

With all our jobs in the USA gone and communists making everything it would be rare to see anything match up with what was made from one day to the next!

Yup, this is not uncommon with Barnes (X-type) bullets. It is not uncommon for Barnes to change the production process for a particular bullet over time - it is not that long ago they changed the number of bands on one of their TSX bullets, was it a 180 grs .308 cal??
Variations between lots nominally using the same manufacturing process are also a distinct possibility. Sad, but there it is.
- mike

Hey Express, I've not had any TSX Bullets in my hands at all, but if you still have any of the "older" ones, check and see if there is one "additional" Band/Ring around the newer ones.

About a year ago there was considerable discussion about them adding an additional Band to increase the accuracy. The reason I remember it is because I had asked if they had changed the name to Quatro Shock.

Apparently you've got some from both Designs.

At one time I had a Remington model 7
In .308WIN. I had a great load with RL-15 and a Hornady bullet, cant remember witch one.
Hornady changed the bullet on me And I could never get the new one to shoot wirth a hoot !
...tj3006

I had workd up an excellent load with the XLC for my 270win when I ran low on bullets. I bought a new box of XLC's and noticed the blue was different. The same load with the new bullet, blew primers. I could not find an acceptable load with the new box, and have since switched to the TSX.

about ten years ago I got a box of 7mm 140's that had two distinctly different bullets (differnt ogives and tips), I called Barnes and they replaced them, including shipping both ways, but it turned me off the X bullets since then.