Which bullet would you choose for Whitetail, and why?

Question:
Which bullet works best in the woods of Wis? Lets say youre shooting a Winchester M100 for giggles.

Choices:
130 Hornady SP
150 Hornady SP
165 Hornady SP
180 Hornady SP

 

The 165 SP or SPBT in the .308W because I've used it numerous times on deer (black tail and mule deer) at 2600 fps from 22" barrels. Always excellent accuracy and terminal effect. Not near the blood shot as with faster 150s.

If the range is inside 150 yards then use a Speer or Hornady 170 gr 30-30 bullet at 2300 fps. Most excellent on deer within that range.

Larry Gibson

I did not vote because we don't need to tell you. Another "how high is up question". Let the rifle tell you. Shoot what is most accurate in your rifle. Any of those will kill whitetail at 150 yds. Listen to the rifle.

quote:

Originally posted by 30378:
I did not vote because we don't need to tell you. Another "how high is up question". Let the rifle tell you. Shoot what is most accurate in your rifle. Any of those will kill whitetail at 150 yds. Listen to the rifle.

How high is up? huh? Goes without saying that any of those will kill a deer, its a poll. Im just wondering what everybodys using in the woods, plain & simple. Do you "read in" to every thread on this forum?

I voted for the 165's 'cause I got a bunch of them and they work just fine out to about 400 yards or so.
But, the truth is that the 150's also work just fine.

My tests have shown the 165 grainers to be the bees knees from a 308. Your C.U.P. may vary..

To be honest, all of them shoot really well from my little Ruger Compact rifle. The overall deciding factor has been shooting factory ammo. I purchased the rifle expressly for hunting feral hogs in thick brush. When I sighted it in the first weekend out I had two boxes of factory Remington CL's, and they shot 1" at 100yds which was plenty close enough. Since then I have run close to 35 boxes or more through it and it still keeps putting them right in there.

It has also been used by the grandson with 125gr Noslers, and 130gr Barnes, both of which shoot less than an inch with his reduced loads.

The 165's have only been used on a couple of occasions as they are just not all that popular I guess as most stores haven't had them in stock. Even so the ones I have been able to find have shot very well.

I have only shot two boxes of 180's and they were Federal. THey were ties with the 130gr loads for best groups from this rifle at 100 yards. I was pretty impressed with them but from the 6.5# rifle they are a bit much on recoil. Not that it is intolerable, simply the muzzle rise is such that I lost the sight picture form the scope, which I really didn't like.

They have all put game on the ground and I have not had an issue with anything running off that was squarely hit at ranges from a few feet to out past 400yds.

As for handloaded rounds, I only recently began to load for this rifle after having it for over 12 years. I just couldn't justify it since I had been getting the factory stuff at around $10 per box and when I bought I got at least 10 boxes. Well those prices are no more and I now have plenty of once fired brass. I decided the first year I had the rifle to simply shoot the CL's and as suck stocked up on them back then in bulk, so working up the loads has been pretty simple, match the bullet weight and velocity and back to hunting again.

150****And Why??? Why Not? roger

my model 100 did like hornady 150's over I-4895.
my standard load for the 308 has been 42 grs.
i developed it for my model 100.
then an m-14, another model 100,ruger 77mkii, and several other 308's that came through here.
all have done right well with that load.

I'd go with the 150 Gr. Hornady Interlock. Why - simply because I've shot alot of Whitetails with this bullet and it works great. I always get exits on broadside shots with good size holes and the deer never go very far. Usually about two feet - straight down.

I use 150 grain Soft Point Hornady's in my Browning A-Bolt in .308 Caliber. This bullet seems to give me the best accuracy.

I voted for the 165 just because it is what shoots best in my .308

Any of those listed will take deer, so one simply needs to find which one works best in their rifle. For me, it was the 165.

I voted 150's because my .308 likes 150 grain NBT's and 140 grain Barnes bullets.

I voted for the 165 gr. bullet although my choice would have been the Speer Hot Core rather than the Hornady because my Ruger M77 RSI is a one trick pony and that's the only bullet it will shoot well. However, Mule deer I've shot with them just turn toes up and die.
Paul B.

130 grain Barnes TTSX. Penetrates better than a 180, hits a lot harder because it's a lot faster.

For whitetail, my experience with the 308 and various bullets is that it really doesn't matter...

quote:

Originally posted by Brad:
For whitetail, my experience with the 308 and various bullets is that it really doesn't matter...

Yup, almost anything works well at usual bush ranges and I still have lots of handloaded 180 Nosler SBs for my Browning 12-.308Win. O/U combo gun, among the most useful of the roughly 50 guns I currently own.

It is hard to beat a good .308Win. for almost any hunting here in BC and my final custom rifle, an "ultralight" built on a Remmy 600 Mohawk action I have will be a .308....good rig for we geezers!

quote:

Originally posted by miles58:
130 grain Barnes TTSX. Penetrates better than a 180, hits a lot harder because it's a lot faster.

You really think a 130 TTSX will penetrate deeper than 180 Interlock? I doubt it.

quote:

Originally posted by scottfromdallas:

quote:

Originally posted by miles58:
130 grain Barnes TTSX. Penetrates better than a 180, hits a lot harder because it's a lot faster.

You really think a 130 TTSX will penetrate deeper than 180 Interlock? I doubt it.

Scott.....those 300 and 400 pound Minnesota whitetails take a really tough bullet.

I'm surprised that depleted uranium isn't needed!

quote:

Posted 15 May 2011 05:11 Hide Post

quote:
You really think a 130 TTSX will penetrate deeper than 180 Interlock? I doubt it. cuckoo

Regards,

bwana

I think from killing and seeing somewhere in excess of 30 deer killed with Barnes 130s and smaller that they will out penetrate all but the premium cup and core 180s. They consistently penetrate. The 180 lead core bullets hitting bone from short ran
ge may not. A partition can shed it's front core pretty easily for instance, and that affects penetration a lot.

At ranges of from say 75 yards to maybe 200 yards I think you see the best performance out of 30 caliber lead core bullets. The Barnes do not come undone even at distances of a few feet. They might shed a petal or two hitting large hard bone, but don't bet on it. Out of the deer killed with Barnes bullets I've loaded, we have stopped precisely one in a deer, a nice 8 shot corner to corner. A couple out of about forty now were 150s.

I have seen a few hundred deer shot with 180 grain cup and core bullets, mostly silver tips, core-lokt, bronze points, power shock and the like. Probably a like number of deer to the Barnes that were killed with premium cup and core bullets. My experience is that if I am going to put money on a lead core 180 or a Barnes 130 penetrating over a large number of deer, it will always be the Barnes 130.

It's kind of small, but the buck on the left in my avatar was killed with a Barnes 85 grain TSX out at 140 yards. Entrance very low on the left hitting two ribs, just missed the liver, passed just over the heart, exited the chest clost to the neck taking the first two ribs and then most of the way up the neck to just below the head where it exited. The chest was red soup except for the heart which ruptured and was loose in the chest. The lungs were completely gone. I've never seen one come undone or fail to open.

quote:

Scott.....those 300 and 400 pound Minnesota whitetails take a really tough bullet.

I'm surprised that depleted uranium isn't needed!

I see that Vapid dog is still vapid and has nothing to useful to contribute. The offer still stands. You are a troll and nothing more or less. I will takes the time to provide documentation of the 300 lb deer killed in Minnesota this coming season and If I can produce you put you tail between your legs and crawl back under the rock you live under and never darken this or any other forum again.

You are called out man up or shut up.

Barnes makes a great bullet but they charge a lot for them. I think they work great for magnums at close range. The hold together and have great retention.

I don't think they give you any edge at 308 velocities on deer. The OP is hunting deer with a 308, not a 300 RUM. At 308 speeds, a 165 or 180 grain bullet will pretty much penetrate end to end on a deer. I don't see how you'll get more penetration from a 130 TTSX. Even at close range, the Interlock will not blow up from a 308 win.

You mentioned the partition losing it's core. It is designed to do that. The front core is released in the target for maximum damage while the rear core penetrates deeply. The Partition will penetrate very deeply for this reason. It will create wide wound channel up front and penetrate through with a smaller wound channel.

In contrast the Barnes has a consistent would channel that is not as wide as the Partition up front.

Do they both kill well, yes, but they won't kill a deer any better than a Interlock from a 308 win. Just my opinion.

quote:

I don't think they give you any edge at 308 velocities on deer. The OP is hunting deer with a 308, not a 300 RUM. At 308 speeds, a 165 or 180 grain bullet will pretty much penetrate end to end on a deer. I don't see how you'll get more penetration from a 130 TTSX. Even at close range, the Interlock will not blow up from a 308 win.

The whole point of the 130 Barnes is to give you velocities you cannot even dream of with 180s until you get to a 300 WM. In my experience the wound channel of the 130 at 3000 FPS is substantially better than a 180, and more so than a tough 180 cup and core at 2600.

quote:

Originally posted by miles58:

quote:

I don't think they give you any edge at 308 velocities on deer. The OP is hunting deer with a 308, not a 300 RUM. At 308 speeds, a 165 or 180 grain bullet will pretty much penetrate end to end on a deer. I don't see how you'll get more penetration from a 130 TTSX. Even at close range, the Interlock will not blow up from a 308 win.

The whole point of the 130 Barnes is to give you velocities you cannot even dream of with 180s until you get to a 300 WM. In my experience the wound channel of the 130 at 3000 FPS is substantially better than a 180, and more so than a tough 180 cup and core at 2600.

What good is high velocity (3000 FPS) with a .341 BC? It loses any velocity advantage over a 165 CNC (2700 fps) at around 300 yards. After 300 yards, the 165 CNC will have the advantage. I just don't see the point, I thought high velocity was supposed to give you a range advantage.

My favorite bullet in the .308 is a 165 gr Hornandy interbond. They shoot good they are flighty and they are well built. I get about 2800 FPS out of mine.

quote:

Originally posted by miles58:

quote:

Scott.....those 300 and 400 pound Minnesota whitetails take a really tough bullet.

I'm surprised that depleted uranium isn't needed!

I see that Vapid dog is still vapid and has nothing to useful to contribute. The offer still stands. You are a troll and nothing more or less. I will takes the time to provide documentation of the 300 lb deer killed in Minnesota this coming season and If I can produce you put you tail between your legs and crawl back under the rock you live under and never darken this or any other forum again.

You are called out man up or shut up.

I think he was joking.

quote:

Originally posted by surestrike:
My favorite bullet in the .308 is a 165 gr Hornandy interbond. They shoot good they are flighty and they are well built. I get about 2800 FPS out of mine.

One of my favs, too, but not really needed for deer, I load them for guys going on an elk hunt. My fave is the 168AMAX, but for woods hunting, the 150.

This brings me back to 1965 and the Winchester model 100 rifle that I used to take my first whitetail with... loaded lots of the Hornady 180 gr round nose with IMR 4064...

quote:

Which bullet works best in the woods of Wis? Lets say youre shooting a Winchester M100 for giggles.

Let's say that none of us can honestly predict what your rifle will shoot well with.

quote:

What good is high velocity (3000 FPS) with a .341 BC? It loses any velocity advantage over a 165 CNC (2700 fps) at around 300 yards. After 300 yards, the 165 CNC will have the advantage. I just don't see the point, I thought high velocity was supposed to give you a range advantage.

Regards,

bwana

Wound channel comes from cavitation. That's why it's larger than the expanded diameter of the bullet. Cavitation comes from velocity. Velocity will increase range when BCs are equal, but it may not be by a significant amount. Increasing range is useful only if you need it and use it. Increasing cavitation is useful always as insurance against small mistakes.

If the 130 gives you the wound channel of the 180 with at least the penetration, and it reduces the recoil while retaining a Time Of Flight advantage out to 400 yards where it's BC causes it to start to lag the velocity of the 180, you need to be killing animals out beyond 400 regularly to gain something by going with the heavier bullet. Even then, the 165/168 grain 30 calibers seem to be better than the pointed 180s and all are significantly better than the RN 180s.

Me, I have killed precisely one deer in 50 odd years out past 200. A doe at 263 lasered. I used a 110 grain TTSX. Put a fist sized hole through the on side shoulder blade. Took four on side ribs. Took out a fist sized chunk of spine. Took two ribs on the off side. Put a quarter sized hole in the off side shoulder blade, then exited. Caliber size holes in the hide both sides. That much bone, that much penetration out of a light bullet at that range is why I like them. I got to watch the whole thing in the scope because the recoil was so low. What's not to like?

Miles,

It's clear you are passionate about the Barnes bullets. I've never used them so I can't really comment on their performance. I hunt in Texas and most of my shots are under 150 yards. I've never had a problem using standard cup and core bullets so I've never had a reason to switch so solid copper.

Most the people I meet hunting use plan old factory Cor-lokts or Power Points with great success. None of them are reloading weenies like us on AR.

I know a lot of people on AR use Barnes, swear by them and won't use anything else.

To each his own.

quote:

Originally posted by Jim C. <><:

quote:

Which bullet works best in the woods of Wis? Lets say youre shooting a Winchester M100 for giggles.

Let's say that none of us can honestly predict what your rifle will shoot well with.

It dont matter what my rifle likes, Im just wondering what you guys use in the woods, you dont have to be using a M100 either, could be a bolt or whatever.

Rifling in the bore functions most accurately with a specific bullet weight. The Rem. 700 PSS in .308 Win. is most accurate with a 165 / 172 gr. bullet. This combination is for shooting humans in a sniper situation.

In open country, with a scope, accuracy is important. Bullet weight, trajectory, velocity are all considerations. At shorter ranges, all this is less important.

Anything loaded in a .308 Win. will kill deer at functional ranges.

I hve killed lots of deer with 30 cal somethings and bullets from 125 to 220s never had trouble with any of them.

So I picked 165 rt in the middle. but then i shoot that weigh in my 308s and 300 sav deer don't complain much at all.

quote:

Originally posted by Rothke:
Rifling in the bore functions most accurately with a specific bullet weight. The Rem. 700 PSS in .308 Win. is most accurate with a 165 / 172 gr. bullet. This combination is for shooting humans in a sniper situation.

In open country, with a scope, accuracy is important. Bullet weight, trajectory, velocity are all considerations. At shorter ranges, all this is less important.

Anything loaded in a .308 Win. will kill deer at functional ranges.

Is that 12 twist like my SPSS 308?

I don't want to think about it too much, but if I had but one rifle, one cartridge, it would be the 308. I have 308's with the 12" twist rate, and they seem the best choice. I use 165 - 168gr bullets, and they seem simply perfect. Same with the 30-06. As time progresses, everything else seems superfluous, except for dangerous game.

KB