Anyone use premium bullets other than Barnes or Nosler?

captonion

captonion

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Just wondering because in most threads when premium bullets are talked about it is always Barnes and Nosler.Is this because they are the best?Most popular?Best priced?

I picked up a bunch of Swift Scirocco bullets at a local gun show a while back for cheap.Bought them by chance but have become a fan of these bullets.They turned out to be quite accurate and perform well on game.I also picked up four boxes of 280rem factory loaded Speer Grand Slams at the same gun show for $10 a box.Going to try these out on deer this fall.

Anyone here have any thoughts/experience with premiums other than Barnes/Nosler.Like Swifts Sciroccos/A-frames or Speers Trophy Bonded/Grand Slams or others?
 
i have been using 180 scirrocos in my 300 wsm. very accurate and i haven't recovered a bullet yet. have taken black bear and deer. up close and long range. complete pass threws with lots of internal damage. a little costly but for hunting it will take a long time to finish a box. i use cheaper bullets for range practice.
 
I love the Grand slams Deer moose or blackbear I haven't seen one fail yet. They aren't as much as some of the others so It doesn't hurt to practice with them as well.
 
I tried sciroccos in two rifles but they shot groups that were over 2" while other bullets shot 1/2" in the same rifles.They also left extreme copper fouling in both rifles.
 
I have been trying to use (other than TSX bullet's) Swift A-Frames. They would make a heck of an elk/moose offering:). I have a bunch of 225 gr A-Frames ready to go in my 338 for elk season this fall:). I am a big fan of the Barnes X bullets...but it is always good to try something new.
 
The best load for my 30-06 is the 180 grain Scirocco.

I also shoot a few loads using the Hornady Interbond.

I am hoarding the last dozen rounds I have of Jack Carter's 250 grain .338original Trophy Bonded Bear Claw. (Why Speer didn't continue the 250 grain when they bought the rights to the design I don't know)
 
I tried to shoot Grand Slams in 2 rifles, but never coudl get as good accuracy as with other bullets.

Tehse days, I see no reason to go with anythign but a TS in a premium bulet:)
 
I used in my 30/06 TikkaT3 ,Remington loaded Swift A-Frame 180gr bullets. I also shot Remington loaded Swift Scirrocos 180gr. No animals with that yet. So far the most accurate load out of my gun was a Federal loaded Speer Grand Slam 150gr. 1.0" 3 shot group at 200m. Next was Winchester Silvertip 180gr with .45" at 100m. Both the A-Frame and the Silvertip took moose within 100m and were killing shots when the moose were dressed out. (Inexperience on my part caused the other two shots).
 
The only bullet failure I have ever had was with a Nosler Ballistic Tip 308 Win 150 gr bullet, it was a broadside shot on a whitetail that I never recovered, it is the only animal I have ever lost, this goes back almost 15 years. I call it a failure because it was a short broadside shot(40 yds+/-) from a solid rest and although I never examined the animal I followed it for almost 1/2 mile before I lost the blood trail so I assume the bullet failed. Most of the bullets I have used have been Sierras and they have come apart sometimes like petals on a blossoming rose but I have never lost an animal, some would call a bullets ability to come apart as failure but not in my books, the animals never knew what hit them bullet separation or not. In short I have never had to use anything more than "conventional" bullets but that may change if I ever have to go after something that bites back!
bigbull
 
Before I became infactuated with accuracy, I had great success with
Speer Grand Slams. I could never achieve anything better than 1.5" grouping, probably because the lack the boat-tail design, I don't know. But back then I was happy with that. A friend who also reloads got me tweeking loads to tighten groups, it's now become an obsession. In doing so, I have become very impressed with the Hornady Interbonds and even the cheaper Inlerlocks.
Both bullets have preformed flawlessly on game.
 
I very much like the South African, "Rhino Bullets" - particularly the .375/380. These bullets have a solid copper shank, and the nose has a bonded lead core. The inside of the jacket nose is pleated so the bullet opens up in petals like the X bullet. Accuracy with my handloads is very good, and velocity measures about 2300 fps from my 21" barrelled Ultra. In the close range (25 yards) impact tests I've conducted, retained weight was better than that of the X, and frontal area of the expanded bullet is much larger. These are the bullets normally found in my magazine for bear work. I ordered 250 bullets directly from the manufacturer, and the cost, by the time I got them, was great enough that I use them grudgingly. Never the less, this is in my opinion, one of the very best bullets available for any of the .375 caliber rifles, and Kobus told me that he is looking for Canadian distributors.

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Recovered bullets from 25 yard test into wet drill mud. 270 gr. XLC, 300 gr. X, and the 380 gr Rhino.


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First group I fired with the 380 gr Rhinos.
 
Dogleg, you won't be let down by the A-Frame. I ordered a bunch for my 300WM. Devastatine bullet, great performance in my rifle for that style of bullet. Holds together better than any bullet I've ever used including my old standy, the TSX.

Goodluck with that portable canon of yours!
 
Black Cloud,
Well they do come highly recommended for African softs, and I wasn't having a lot of luck finding premium .416 bullets of any type. I use 270 grain TSXs in my .375 and have only managed to find one bullet. That was from a Gemsbuck I tried to shoot through more or less lengthwise. It weighed 269 grains. Penetrated 4 feet or more.
Hopefully the Swifts work in my "Portable Cannon":D The Rigby is kinda my life insurance policy for buffalo hunting, as well as an excuse to buy another rifle. I have some solids ordered for it as well, but mostly "just because".
Dogleg
 
Another vote for Trophy Bonded Bear Claws. Tried the 175gr TBBC in my 7mmMag for moose for several years and downed bulls with no fuss whatsoever. I used them again last year, but in 225gr .338WinMag on moose and elk. Both downed at completely different ranges with excellent results. A very well made (and expensive) premium bullet.
 
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