The Accurate Reloading Forums
Best Big Game Bullet?
21 February 2002, 18:02
Seamus O'GradyBest Big Game Bullet?
As I'm sure you people know, there is a scary number of bullets suitable for large game. Which ones do you guys like the most for elk and black bear?
21 February 2002, 18:31
OverkillI have use the "Norma Oryx" bullet in 7 mm rem mag, the effect on moose was good. They run about 10-40 yards, and whit a very little meat damage.
And i have use the "Norma TXP" in 6,5 x 55 and it dosent expand much, but it have work fine on moose, I think that this bullet will work great in bigger animals like the alaskan moose.
22 February 2002, 03:14
<sure-shot>The Nosler Partition is favored by many, myself included. Barnes X bullets if your rifle will shoot em. Failsafes, Swift A Frames, Grand Slams have pretty good reputations. sure-shot
22 February 2002, 06:59
<monz>It depends on what you want: great penetration or great expansion.
In the first category i would go for the Swift A-frame, no doubt.
In the later cat. i would choose the Woodleigh Weldcore wich indeed combines great penetration and expansion.
Later yhis year i will try the Norma Oryx in 9,3mm 286 grains. I know it�s a good bullet in other calibers and i�m sure it will be so in 9,3mm to.
The Oryx is a bullet that applies to the later category, great expansion.
22 February 2002, 07:12
Wendell ReichCan't go wrong with a good Nosler Partition.
30-06 180 gr
300 mags 200-220 gr
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Wendell Reich
Hunter's Quest International
[This message has been edited by Buffalobwana (edited 02-21-2002).]
22 February 2002, 07:15
Mark R DobrenskiIs the Oryx made in 270 or 338 dia?
Also where can I get my paws on some of them?
Thanks
Dog
by the way the Nozler Pt is my bullet of choice- it gives me the old "Nozler Nap" quickly!
[This message has been edited by Mark R Dobrenski (edited 02-21-2002).]
[This message has been edited by Mark R Dobrenski (edited 02-21-2002).]
22 February 2002, 07:37
<phurley>The most accurate premium hunting bullet, that is also one of the toughest, is the North Fork in my opinion. It is also as accurate as any standard or match bullet that I have shot. My next choice would be one on the following, whichever groups best in my rifle and in no particular order. Barnes X or XLC, Nosler Partition or Partition Gold, Swift A-Frame, Kodiak. These are all that I have experience shooting, I will not talk about them if I have not shot them. When I win the lottery I plan to try some Lost Horizon and GS bullets. Good shooting.
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22 February 2002, 09:51
<Big Stick>XLC or bust,for me...........
22 February 2002, 10:57
TaosBarnes X bullets !!
22 February 2002, 12:07
bearhunt'rSeamus,
Have never shot an elk; however, have "done the tango" with moose and many black bears. My caliber of choice is the .338 Win. Mag. At velocities less than 2700, I have had full penetration on bear every time with Hornady spire points in 250 grain. I have used the Nozzler for most of my moose. I have recovered most of them. At velocities over 2700 I would prefer the Fail Safe or Barnes X... they both shoot ok in my rifles.
Thought I might add the velocity factor to this opinion. You were shooting what caliber/round?
best,
bhtr
22 February 2002, 13:38
<GAHUNTER>I've had mighty good success on elk with Speer Grand Slams. I Like my bullets to penetrate AND expand. Grand Slams open up real good and hold together (which is more than I can say about Partitions). Rumor going around that Speer has changed the manufacturing process on Grand Slams. I sure hope they have not messed up a good thing!
A lot of folks are recommending Barns X. If your rifle will shoot these bullets, more power to ya. Most guns won't.
The outfitter I hunt with in Colorado likes plain old Remington Core Lokts for elk. Claims that more elk drop in their tracks with them than any other bullet. This is important to him since he owns a private ranch and many times the elk are found near one of the property lines. Retrieving game that jumps the fence onto an adjoining ranch is a hassle (seems like no one gets along with his neighbor in Colorado -- but that's another story).
22 February 2002, 19:03
<Don Martin29>I guess that 95% of all game is killed with bullets like the Remington Corelokt.
If the bullet is big enough and going fast enough then a standard bullet is just fine.
The most popular premium bullet is the Nosler Partition. There is no real reason to use another kind at this point.
Sometimes good ideas like the X bullet fail in because they are not done right. Perhaps the GS bullets are done right. Time will tell.
But I can tell you one thing for sure. I am not going to waste another minutes time on X bullets.
22 February 2002, 19:29
<Salt>quote:
Originally posted by Seamus O'Grady:
As I'm sure you people know, there is a scary number of bullets suitable for large game. Which ones do you guys like the most for elk and black bear?
A patched .535 caliber roundball over 80grs of Goex FFG in a .54 caliber Lyman Great Plains Rifle.
22 February 2002, 20:09
<ovis>Noslers and X bullets; can't go wrong. I would really like to try Northforks as I've heard some good things about them.
22 February 2002, 22:03
<ChuckD>The best bullet I have ever used on elk (with near instant stops) is--a Thompson Center .50/370gr. Maxiball on top of 90 gr. Goex FFg from a Lyman Great Plains with a fast twist barrel.
23 February 2002, 02:02
Arild IversenMark..
As far as I know the Oryx is aviable in the following calibers:
6,5 mm: 156 gr
7 mm: 155, 170 gr
30 cal: 180, 200 gr
8 mm: 196 gr
9,3 mm: 231, 285 gr.
There might be more coming this year. Perhaps our Swedish friends knows more about it as Norma is a Swedish company.
Anyway it has got a very good reputation among Scandinavian moose hunters.
A 338 winnie guy my self, I hav not tried it yet.
Arild
23 February 2002, 04:26
<Bill>Matchking
23 February 2002, 06:50
<MNTNMAN>Grand slams, no way. Partitions, anyday.
25 February 2002, 11:19
<X-Ring>Barnes X's have done me well, but that said I have decided to go back to Hornady interlocks, and Nosler Balistic tips.
I came to the conclussion a few weeks back. That I'm spending a heck of a lot of money I could be spending else where on premeum bullets. When I never had a deer or elk walk away from a "Interlock", or a "Balistic Tip". So why do I spend the money? You may want to ask your self the same question Seamus. Be fore you spend a lot of money and time working up a load for any of the high praiced bullets. FWIW
X-Ring
25 February 2002, 11:47
<Boyd Heaton>Matchking's!!!!!!
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I HUNT LONG RANGE.AND YES I USE MATCHKING'S.
25 February 2002, 14:56
AtkinsonNoslers are the bullet by which all others are compared to and there is a reason for that....
I like Noslers GS, Northfork, Woodleighs for the majority of my hunting.
There are a lot of good bullets out there today...You should have been around 40 years ago when it wasn't so good. Thank goodness we had the corelokt (still a fine bullet) then or we'd a been SOL.
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Ray Atkinson
ray@atkinsonhunting.com
atkinsonhunting.com
25 February 2002, 16:14
<Orion>XLC OR NOSLER P>
for me
weidmannsheil
martin
25 February 2002, 16:31
<X-Ring>Any of you guys remember Colarodo Bullet Co. What ever happened to them? They where good bullets.
Someone told me they got bought up by Barnes, but I have never heard confirmation on that.
X-Ring
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Praise the Lord, and pass the ammunition!
If your living like there is no HELL, you better be right!
26 February 2002, 03:22
DutchIn my opinion, in this order: GS custom, Trophy Bonded, North Fork, XLC. Dutch.
27 February 2002, 04:12
JBDI've never had a Nosler Partition, in any caliber, fail to get the job done. I'm sure there are many other good bullets but that is the one I have the most experience with.
27 February 2002, 04:55
beemanbemeGrand slams or partition, whichever one your rifle shoots best. Or buy remington or hornady and when you make a lousy shot or miss, you can blame it on the bullet. I'm gonna add a little more coal oil to the fire by saying, I'd almost bet that more elk and black bears are killed using hornady/remington bullets than all the rest combined.
27 February 2002, 05:44
EterryIn a world of premium bullets, the partition is still hard to beat.
Good luck and good shooting
27 February 2002, 08:44
PathfinderI too say the Nosler partition. Nuf said.
27 February 2002, 18:43
SocratesDepleted uranium is my favorite solid...
gs
28 February 2002, 04:15
<T/Jazz>I have read a lot of posts lately on bullets for hunting big game. There seems to be a whale of a difference in opinion by many hunters.
I have used Remington Core-Lokts for hunting deer out of state.......I live in a shotgun only state damn it. We use Sierra bullets on the varmints! My Dad told me a long time ago that on big stuff use the Nosler partitions, told my brother in law the same thing. So that's what I have used on elk and deer in the past out west. I don't know about these other bullets, but then again if the tub doesn't leak why patch it?
28 February 2002, 08:11
Frasier BullingtonWhere does one find info on North Fork bullets?
28 February 2002, 11:49
<phurley>North Fork Technologies, Inc. Mike Brady P.O. Box 1689, Glenrock, Wy 82637 307-436-2726 Good shooting.
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28 February 2002, 16:01
<JMeier>Another vote for the Barnes XLC's.
07 April 2002, 08:00
TumppiI have shot two mooses, two whitetail deers and one roedeer with 308win 165gr federal trophybonded bearclaw. it is excellent bullet. I think, it is best choice for elk and bear hunting ignoring caliber.
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[This message has been edited by Tumppi (edited 04-07-2002).]
07 April 2002, 08:12
<allen day>Bullet selection can become as simple as you'd like to make it, or as complicated. Starting with several of the premium bullet brands, start testing until you find the one that shoots best in your rifle.
Just about all of the high-end bullets work, and work well for just about any hunting. I have a .300 Win. Mag. that likes 180 gr. Nosler Partition Protected Points the best; a .270 that prefers 130 gr. Partitions, and .375 H&H that thrives on 300 gr. Trophy Bonded bullets, and yet another .300 Winchester that always did its best work with 180 gr. Winchester Fail-Safes.
Every rifle is a law unto itself, so you'll need to experiment.
AD
07 April 2002, 11:24
ThomasWhat about swift scirocco's?
I shot 3 head of game with them this year, and recovered 2 perfect mushrooms. Both retained close to 80-90% of their weight.
This was the 7mm out of a 7x57 at a blistering 2800fps.
Acuracy was superb as well.
08 April 2002, 09:49
NorsemanSay Thomas, what species were the three head of game being harvest by your Swift bullets, what were the distance and bullet entry area? Reason I asked, because I'm seriously thinking about hunting cow elk/spring black bear with these bullets.
08 April 2002, 05:34
Fred BSwift Scirroco gets my Vote. Never recovered them on any deer. And the elk I shot with them this year moved 10 yards after being shot at long range.
Happy Hunting
09 April 2002, 08:20
<razorback>swift scirocco's rule, i just wish they had them in 25 caliber for my 257wby mag. that would be the shit for long range shootin. i like the expansion it would also give inside 200yds. on deer.