This year has had 4 bang flops for me, head shot deer 6BR, Raccoon and Bobcat 6BR, all 105 amax, and now tonight my 9yr old was with me as when I shot my first bobcat, and out pops a boar at 240 yds.

Felt comforting that in the chamber of my #1 RSI mannlicher was a load of 45/4350 with old style 85 grain x bullet. Female 160lb, looked MUCH bigger, did not give much more time than for my 6x Swarovski to settle near shoulder neck junction and squeezed, BANG FLOP!

I was VERY surprised and happy with results, post mortem revealed Hit high on shoulder and clipped some high rib bones going in, clipped underside of spine, and transversed through ribcage and through the other side and guess what? My 9yr old spotted the X sitting sideways against the hide. 1st hog, and not only will I not forget the smell, but the hide/leather/fat was about 3/8 or greater in thickness. That hide stopped the bullet like Kevlar but it had done its thing by then.

Now if a 85 gr X can kill that well and penetrate with .206 SD, I wonder what adding 100 grains to that and bumping the S.D. to .231 would do to an elk or deer.

I am starting to wonder if the 338 Federal with 185 grain X might be fairly flat shooting within normal ranges, light recoil, and perhaps very deadly as my 243 was tonight.

Ironically my buddy shot a hog at about 150-200 yds 30 minutes after mine with the 350 he got from me, and shot as hog faced away, he thinks he hit it and will find it in the a.m. but we shall see.

Shot placement, good bullet through vitals is always key, he has less experience in shooting to say the least, but hopefully the 225 found it's mark, if not, he might need to get some range time, on my recommendation.

Just wanted to pass on my 1st kill with Barnes, and 1st hog, as I was very impressed to get a bang flop carrying this 'small bore' having intentions of getting an autopsy on a deer, not hog. I think I could get used to hunting hogs!

Love to hear others have experienced in killing effect with X bullets in small bores as on a rare occasion I hear less than pleasant outcomes so I don't know if range/velocity/expansion was the issue, shot placement, or if they are or are not as consistent in the field as say partitions, or if it's one of those, 'things just don't always turn out as expected' situations.

I have heard great things on 95 B tip's in 6mm's, used 85 BTHP and 105 Amax with deadly results, and now wonder if this 85 x bullet deserves a top ranking in deadliness for 6's.

6.5 BR...

I am not a real Barnes fan...

But on my short list, that 85 grain XLC Barnes is both a performer and a keeper! I'd prefer it over a 100 grain partition in the 6mms...

I really think I could live with 2 bullets in 6mm the 85 Sierra and the X. The 70 TNT is NICE in my 6BR for varmints/target and I even won a local informal match years ago using them in another 6BR I had. Another favorite is the 105 Amax in the BR as it must go in an 8 twist to shoot well, but it retains speed/energy so well, very explosive, no concern about expansion, but penetration is a concern on close shots and/or hitting bone, so you must thread shots thru ribs I believe for minimizing risks of a 'failed attempt at a quick kill' but no problem in my BR as that rifle is heavy so easy to hold, and accurate way beyond me, so if/when I miss-it's me. The 85 BTHP may penetrate deeper than the 105, but the 105 sure max's the energy downrange if you hunt where long shots are had, my longest kill, was with this bullet at 400 yds double lung-full penetration with exit......since velocity was reduced. I believe the Amax line would be great pistol bullets at the velocity window used, penetration would improve over rifle shots at same distances.

6.5BR,

Your results interest me. Though I would be a bit hesitant to hammer a hog at that distance with what you had.Probably cause I was programed so much when younger with magnum mania unfairly disregarding the effectiveness of more sedate rounds at more typical ranges.
To me the 7x57 has many virtues,but want to try somethin smaller still.
I was doing a forum search on the PPC,BR based rounds,cause Id like to put something small together for sheep/goat/hog 200ydMax. probably on a Win70supershort. I remember seeing you posted somewhere you got 2700++vel.120gn/7mmBR,Did you try 140gn?

Woodjack,

I honestly would have had lots of concern using a 243 on a hog this size, as I hear penetration can be an issue-they have a TOUGH hide and layer under it, and you need a penetrating round. The X bullet gave me the confidence to shoot, and I did not hesitate, or second guess that I could kill it with that bullet, but I did not expect a Bang Flop, but I did clip the spine going in right at the top of the shoulder.
The gun had been sighted with 85 sierra so I felt the POI would be similar as I never had put an X bullet down the barrel of this rifle.

Any Nervous system shot placement as you know will put an animal down. I got 2878 fps with 120's in my 7BR. EZ to load, mild blast, LITTLE recoil, handy 21" bbl, VERY accurate, had 3 in one hole at 75 yds recently with 130 Speer FB sighting in a new scope. Range was closed hence the short range as I sight, and shoot at 200 yds. Not clocked the 130s-said to get 2700 or so, and the 140s about 2550.

I would say the 130 speer FB which I believe is a hot core bullet, the 120/130 x bullets, and any 140 at the speed the 7BR shoots is a fine choice for the game you want to hunt within that distance.

If I wanted something lighter, I might put a light stock and flute the barrel on mine, but it feels good so I leave it, .700 muzzle dia., about 7-7.25 lbs I'd guess w/o scope.

Yep, as you I was shocked, at how that little 85 put that hog down, then I happened upon a story on the Barnes site, this guy uses the same setup and has had only bang flops on all deer and hogs shot. Interesting.

Thanks for the 7br info,that l' be allz i need if I does my part.
Now proper english,I know someone who loves hunting with 375hh.But when he got his chance at moose,it fell to 270win.
He likes 270win,but finds his 257R/WinFW an irresistable rig. He dont shoot barnes in it, cause he cant get it to group,he uses a plain jane 100gnSierra. He finds his hogs go bang flop.Everytime I see him, I ask him about his 257,everytime he is still happy.
Personally I like thinks to start at .277-.284 even if it does move a little slower.

I never knew how those Barnes would shoot in this gun, but I knew the bullet should perform and glad to have chambered it, in my other pocket was some BTHP that will flatten deer with a decent hit, from seeing my son use it years ago and DOZENS of reports, but a hog is a little tougher 'skinned' than a deer.

Anyway, I have heard mixed things about the 'copper' bullets, but the newer ones are even better it sounds like. Every gun is different and I think some like them, some don't is what I gather. I did hate long ago my Win 70 7/08 stripped lots of copper off in the barrel, and it was a ..tch to clean.

If you go 7BR, I have a PDF file from Sierra which has modern current rifle data. Had mine for sale but not many people want a 'low powered' cartridge I guess! It has been one of my favorites to shoot-very pleasant, and it feeds all 5 from the magazine if you need them.

I guess I like 'having fun' too much playing with odd rounds and being a contrarian, as we all know a good 308 and '06 can 'get r done'

I just like 'getting r done' with less KABOOM!

I can tell you it was a real hoot watching that hog drop in its tracks from that little rifle/bullet. Pleasantly surprised.

quote:

Originally posted by 6.5BR:
Woodjack,

I honestly would have had lots of concern using a 243 on a hog this size, as I hear penetration can be an issue-they have a TOUGH hide and layer under it, and you need a penetrating round. The X bullet gave me the confidence to shoot, and I did not hesitate, or second guess that I could kill it with that bullet, but I did not expect a Bang Flop, but I did clip the spine going in right at the top of the shoulder.
The gun had been sighted with 85 sierra so I felt the POI would be similar as I never had put an X bullet down the barrel of this rifle.

Any Nervous system shot placement as you know will put an animal down. I got 2878 fps with 120's in my 7BR. EZ to load, mild blast, LITTLE recoil, handy 21" bbl, VERY accurate, had 3 in one hole at 75 yds recently with 130 Speer FB sighting in a new scope. Range was closed hence the short range as I sight, and shoot at 200 yds. Not clocked the 130s-said to get 2700 or so, and the 140s about 2550.

I would say the 130 speer FB which I believe is a hot core bullet, the 120/130 x bullets, and any 140 at the speed the 7BR shoots is a fine choice for the game you want to hunt within that distance.

If I wanted something lighter, I might put a light stock and flute the barrel on mine, but it feels good so I leave it, .700 muzzle dia., about 7-7.25 lbs I'd guess w/o scope.

Yep, as you I was shocked, at how that little 85 put that hog down, then I happened upon a story on the Barnes site, this guy uses the same setup and has had only bang flops on all deer and hogs shot. Interesting.

I wouldn't have any concern to use a 243 on a 160lb hog. They are not M1 Abrams.

You 'would' or 'would not'? I know they are not that hard to kill, but I have heard they can be harder to put down than deer, and it had just popped out of a thicket, I did not want to have to go in looking for him if he ran, and from where I was sitting, she looked like she meant business, could not tell male or female but I hear a wounded boar can hurt you. It looked massive, so much hair over the backline, 5-6", it really looked like a small black bear to me, but having never shot them, I wanted to make the best shot placement that I felt would ensure the quickest kill.

Anyway, I think a shot with a small light high speed bullet against an animal that is built like they are could be problematic with an explosive bullet. I know what the Sierra will do to deer, and even a rabbit, but was glad to have an all copper bullet in chamber. My brother shot one and hit it good with a 7/08 Encore and 140 factory load which ran about 100 yds.

His btw was estimated by a very knowledgable wildlife office/biologist to be over 500 lbs and if you seen the pics you would understand. I just feel they might take a little more convincing to give up the ghost! My friend shot his with a 350 Rem mag, since he never recovered it, there is no way to be sure where the bullet went, obviously not into vitals, or not well enough. He did not make a great shot in my opinion.

Thanks.

I've hammered 3 wild pigs with my 240 wby loaded with 100 gr partitions. Does the trick every time. Longest shot was 250 yards. I now have 95 grain TSX's loaded in the 240 wby but havent stuck any pigs with it yet. The 95 grainers I stocked up on when Barnes realized about 25 percent of the 6mm rem or 243 win s cound not stabilize the 95 gr TSX. Good bullets in the 243 class do wonders.

Its nice to hear these results with the .243 85gr. TSX bullet, since I just purchased a .243 Win barrel and these are the bullets I want to try first and hopefully last.

My first x bullet experience is VERY compelling. I do have an MD friend, took his deceased father's original pre-64 '06 to Africa with 165 X's, first time, great work, 2nd, he swore about them, saying will go back to partitions, not sure on details, nothing perfect.