I was reading my new copy of the Hornady #5 manual last night, and noticed they reccomend their A-Max bullets for game hunting. I always thought of them as more of a match bullet, and have never heard of anyone using them for hunting. I have a full box of 162 gr. for my 7mm Rem Mag, and will test them this summer.
Have you, or anybody you know, used them for hunting?
I have used the 162 in my STW.And a buddy of mine uses the 178 in his 300 Weatherby...They are very devastating on deer.....They should work well for you...
------------------ I HUNT LONG RANGE.AND YES I USE MATCHKING'S.
Todbartell My biggest pet peeve is when someone asks a question and somebody tells them to do a search. I find it very rude. That being said I beg you to go back and read the matchking thread and forget this post ever happened.
There is no need for starting another pissing match. I will not use this bullet on deer, or any other living thing. I am a firm believer on using enough bullet for a reliable kill, so I will not use any bullet that is not designed for hunting game. I was just curious as too WHY Hornady would say it is meant for medium game?
If Hornady recommends it for hunting, I'd use it. I'd like to know (I don't have #5 yet) for what "game" they recommend it.
This is apples and oranges as compared to the Match King thread. Sierra clearly does NOT recommend its Match King for hunting. If Hornady recommends their A-Max, I'd be inclined to think they would be in a position to substantiate their recommendation.
Russ
------------------ "Out here, 'due process' is a bullet!" -- John Wayne, "The Green Berets"
Posts: 2982 | Location: Silvis, IL | Registered: 12 May 2001
It just says "medium game". I take that as any thin skinned game animals, like deer, antelope, goats, sheep, and caribou. Some people may include black bear also, but I rate them as being on par with large game(that's another topic).
They show it listed as a "match bullet" in their ballistic table section, so that may tell you something.
They will work good at that weight from a seven mag. They will be devastating on deer and antelope. Look at RL22 at mid 60s in weight with a standard primer. Another one may be the H870 in the high 70's. I agree they would probably leave a little to be desired on black bear, and probably even caribou. At least evaluate them on deer first.
I've read it right from Hornady also that it's a good "thin skinned" game bullet. I'm sure it's because it has a polymer tip and that tip will make sure the bullet will open up. I'm sure it's not a bullet for texas heart shots but I'm thinking a behind the should shot will do tons of damage. There are alot of reloaders here in my area that love the 130 speer hollow point out of a 30-06. They say whitetail deer shot at our normal ranges of under 100 yds behind the shoulders go down on the spot, right now.
Hornady recommended to me to use 41.0 grains of Varget behind the 178 AMAX in the .308 win.
I loaded some up, and loaned my brother my .308 for some groundhog shooting.
He hit a good sized one at 300 yards, and the bullet nearly blew the ground hog in two pieces. They apparently expand quite furiously, much like the Nosler BT's I'd imagine. I doubt this load was moving much over 2400 fps at the muzzle, and was certainly going much slower at 300 yards. But it still expanded, nonetheless.
Where deep penetration is required, I doubt these bullets would be your best choice. But from the damage done to the groundhog, I'd say a properly placed shot on a deer would be his undoing for sure.
