A friend asked me to load some of these for him for elk....

What are the experiences with this combination?

Any and all advice is appreciated.

VD, I've never used the 160 partitions, but I've had very good luck with the 150gr partitions and H4831. Since we hunt alot of mixed and open country I've opted to stick with the higher velocity, and higher BC of the 150's.

I shoot the 160 grain Nosler Partition through my .270 WSM's for the bigger animals. It is great in my opinion. Good shooting.

Vapo, my friend from MN loaded a box of these for me in 2005 for an elk hunt. I got 2800ish fps w/ RL22, but accuracy was about 2 moa, if I remember right.

I ended up going w/ the 150 gr. A-frames for that 2005 hunt (RL 22 @ 3030 fps & about 1 moa), and finally shot a moose with them in 2008.

Same friend loaded 150 gr. partitions for me this year w/ RL17. They shoot about 3/4 moa!, but I haven't chronied them & don't know how fast they're going. Load is 51.5 gr in WW cases & Fed match primers (210's I think).

Good luck to your friend!

friar

Here is a report on the 160 partition in a .280 remington.....can't imagine the same weight in a .270 would be much different

click here

They are very long that's for sure and you WILL get a lot of bullet back inside the case past the shoulders.

I've looked at these 160 grain NPs in 270 and, for that reason, passed on them for that reason.

I shoot either Speer 150 Hot Cor in my 270 WCF (the bullet now discontinued but I've about four hundred in my gun cabinet) OR 150 grain NPs.

The 150 grain NPs are or two types. What I'd call "regular" 150 grain NPs as are still made and the, now discontinued, Partition Gold.

These had the partition nearer the tip of the bullet to give even more retained weight. These too are long. Longer than the regular 160 grain NPs.

I use one loading, 50.5 of IMR 4350 and am happy to say that point of impact is the same with the Speer Hot Cor and those "regular" 150 grain NPs.

The Partition Gold shoot, it seems, a little higher at 100 yards. In any case they are discontinued. These are not moly-coated but standard gilding metal jacket.

You might even get lucky, as I did, and find them "old stock" on clearout price!

FWIW and I'm not trying to offer you tea when you've ordered coffee I'd say that if you can get a matching POI load that uses cheaper cup and core 150 grain bullets use them for practice and the 150 grain NPs for the actual shoot.

That certainly is my intention. Cup and core for everyday use with maybe five of the NPs, in my cartridge pouch, "just in case" I meet something bigger than the average.

That way I don't change sight settings.

Yes the group size is about 50% larger with the NP than with the Speer but, as noted, POI is identical.

Good Luck!

I use H-4831 with the 160 PT. Velocity is right at 2800. Accuracy is about an inch at 100 yrds. I use a coal of 3.340. I have not actually killed any thing with the 160 PT. Should be areal real penetrator on larger animals I would think.

Alert!!! Be very careful!!! Hodgdon lists the maximum load for 160 gr partitions as 54 grains of H4831: http://data.hodgdon.com/cartridge_load.asp

The load above is 4 grains above their listed maximum and could be very, very, dangerous

Acually your correct. However, I did not use Hodgdon data. Quickload is my source. 56.9 is there max. Bolt lift is normal. Primers are flattened some but not bad. Keeping in mind that primers and powder can vary from lot to lot 58 was found to be ok in my rifle. When loading from nosler manual #5 I found max loads with the 160 PT to be well below listed velocity using RL-22 and IMR-4831 and H-4831. Thats why I referred to Quickload. For some reason the book seems rather generous on velocity and conservative on powder charges.
Point well taken about being very careful. regards: Hub

Hub,I agree this discussion re-emphasizes the need to exercise great caution when working near maximum loads due to differences in individual rifles and reloading components.

Years ago I relied on a 1996 booklet from Hodgdon to work up a load for my 270 Win using 150 gr Nosler partitions. At that time they listed 58 gr of H4831 as max. With that load, my rifle has given me terrific performance for 16 years with no signs whatsoever of excess pressure. However, their current max for that load is listed as only 55.7 gr.

What changed? Componet selection? Pressure testing parameters? Heightened sensitivity to liability concerns? I continue to use the 58 gr loading in my rifle with confidence; but urge others developing similar loads to use great caution when approaching or exceeding Hodgdon's current maxload recomendation.

In the Weatherby load book Hodgdon H4831 max load 65 grains 3.250 col, extremely accurate in my Mk V @ 300 yards. Proven killer on elk.

quote:

Originally posted by Hub:
Acually your correct. However, I did not use Hodgdon data. Quickload is my source. 56.9 is there max. Bolt lift is normal. Primers are flattened some but not bad. Keeping in mind that primers and powder can vary from lot to lot 58 was found to be ok in my rifle. When loading from nosler manual #5 I found max loads with the 160 PT to be well below listed velocity using RL-22 and IMR-4831 and H-4831. Thats why I referred to Quickload. For some reason the book seems rather generous on velocity and conservative on powder charges.
Point well taken about being very careful. regards: Hub

There is no way I'd DEPEND on Quickload for my final choice on load data. I have both a .270 Win. (my favorite) and a .270 WSM. I use 150 gr. bullets in both. My .270 Win. load is 58.0 grs. of Rldr-22. My load for the WSM is about 69.0 grs. of Retumbo. The WSM load is about 1 1/2 gr. under max. as listed in the books. Running this thru QL, it shows rather high pressure and an anemic velocity (2800- 2900fps?). On the chrono, I get about 3050 or so.
Again - don't trust QL for your final choice on load data. It's only a guideline. IMHO, you're foolish to do so.
Bear in Fairbanks

quote:

There is no way I'd DEPEND on Quickload for my final choice on load data.

+1 QL is simply another data point.

With tweeking I've found it to give me a pretty good forcast on most of my wildcats. But I sure wouldn't use it as the FINAL say as to max load.

Having shot and loaded for a .270 for well over 20 years, I sincerely see no upside to the 160... In my estimation there is not a single thing that the extra ten grains offers above a 150. And there is a fair amount of drawback, as has already been mentioned in this thread.

I would load him 150 Partitions and tell him that is what they are. I have to believe he will understand.

Looking through my loads over the decades I found 58 gr of MR 3100 pull-down pushed a 160 Part a touch over 2800 depending on temerature.

Shot my first elk with these loads, broadside at about 80 yds and again at 120. I fired 5 times and recovered 4 of the 5 bullets. All chest cavitiy hits were recovered under the hide on the far side. 1st bullet landed center of the chest back of the shoulder blade, he jumped and started to run and 2nd bullet entered just forward of the diaphragm, he made a long running slow turn pushing the cows back to the right headed back into the timber.
the next bullet entered his right side back of the shoulder, the 4th just behind the diaphragm and The unrecovered 5th bullet was a through and through that clipped his right knee and wang.

I would recommend a 150 for practicality and flexibility but for myself, after seeing an elk take 5 hits without even flinching and continue to run off into the timber (though he collapsed just on the edge)I decicided to shoot something that didn't require as much lead.

640 grains of 270 lead he was packing and still going. I have yet to have an elk even twitch after receiving a 250 grain 35 slug in the boiler room, unless of course no bones were hit, which again is why I shoot a 35 to crush bone.