I am interested in opinions or experiences using 200 grain Nosler Ballistic Tips in a .338 Win Mag or 260 grain Nosler Ballistic tips in a .375 H&H Mag caliber on elk? Nosler customer service tells me that these 2 calibers have a thicker jacket than the smaller calibers and should work well on elk. I have had great luck using 165 grain and 180 grain Ballistic tips in a .300 Jarrett on big northern whitetails but elk are considerably larger. What do you think?

Ron L, Nosler would not tell you that if they did not believe it.... But what about Partitions? They just may be the best all round bullet. They expand good at long range, and they penetrate good if you have to shoot close in where velocity is high. While there may be better choices for specific situations, Nosler Partitions are never the wrong choice. [except when you need solids].

I finished reading a hunting book a while ago and dozens of professional guides hate ballastic tips for game animals. They tend to destroy a lot of meat. What do they swear by...Nosler partitions.

You will like the new Nosler BT's. I just returned from Africa and used them on game the size of nyala all the way down to steenbuck. Punched little holes on the way in and little holes on the way out on all game. Go look for my threads on the African forum. I photographed and posted the resluts.

The 260-grain .375 BTs should be fine on elk. Two of them blew up on the shoulder of my buddy's eland, however (40 yards, 2600 fps muzzle velocity), so I'd caution against using them on something larger at close range. I should note that my buddy called Nosler beforehand, and they said that the 260-grain BT would be fine on eland, so take their opinions with a grain of salt.

[ 10-24-2002, 17:19: Message edited by: Slingster ]

Slingster, I'm no reloading expert but his loads were probaly a little hot. They work great at slower speeds.

I've used the 200/.338's on both elk and black bear. Perfect results. In my tests in dry medium, the Ballistic Tips penetrate about 90-95% of the distance of the 210 Partition. Retained weight is typically around 50% as opposed to 65% with the partition, but I've yet to see an animal made healthier by disbursing additional shrapnal into its vitals.

As between the two bullets, I'd use whichever shoots the best in my particular rifle. I also believe that there is less chance of a fluke failure with the Nosler Partition than any other make or style of bullet, bar none.

You do have thicker jackets in the .338 BT and it will work well on soft skinners outside 100 yards. Thats the real key "distance". BT with to much speed hitting large, tough muscle mass or bone equal buckshot. With the Partition you give up a little BC but they perform acceptably at any distance and speed.

Why not try woodleigh bullets, there my favourite overall.

HI,

I wish Nosler made BT for a .416 a 350 BT in .416 would be great. Thanks,Kev

Quite a few of the shooters I know don't like ballistic tip bullets for some reason. Nosler usually doesn't over promote their products though.

Most of the hunters who condemn ballistic tips have actually never used them and have heard too many rumours about them.The early versions were very soft but they have been toughened up a great deal over the years.I use them for all my hunting and have taken over 30 head of big game with them including deer,sheep,pronghorn,elk and moose.

From my experience and that of others, BT's tend to be extremely accurate whereas other hunting bullets are relatively less accurate.

--QD

My choice in .338 for elk is a 210 Partition. why would you even think of using a Ballistic tip on elk ??? I use them in lighter calibers on deer sized animals, but I think a premium bullet is a much better choice on "big" game. The 210s that I've used on elk were never recovered, they all made complete pass throughs. They literally blow the animal to the ground when driven at 3050 fps!! What more could anyone ask for ??

bowhuntr

You should think about using the partitions you know you can rely on them

In a group of hunters you will always find some conflict on Balistic Tips, Sierras etc. because these are simply conventional bullets and they are more prone to failure than premium bullets. That is a pretty simple fact of life and I agree with it....Can anyone dispute that??

Based on that, why not use a premium on all game? and put failed bullets behind you. In your case use the 210 or 250 Nosler Partition and I guarentee you they will not fail on elk or deer.

Gentlemen,

Ray isn't lying. Using Partitions for deer, elk, etc. is NEVER a bad choice. They always have worked for me, and more importantly, I have tremendous confidence in them.

Joel Slate
Slate & Associates, LLC
www.slatesafaris.com

7mm Rem Mag Page www.slatesafaris.com/7mm.htm

BT's for Wiley P. Coyote; Partitions for Meat and Horns. But it is the 21st Century, so I am going to experiment with what those guys at the Campfire call little blue meanies, in 264 and 6mm-284.

Saludos...Frank