I'm planning to start reloading this year, I mainly use a 6.5X55 but also have a 303. Does anyone have experience on deer with the Barnes TSX 130 grain 6.5mm or 150 grain .303 ? if so what are your thoughts on how these stack up against other bullets for whitetail hunting ?
Barnes TSX 6.5x55 and .303 for deer
- Thread starter CanadaBoy
- Start date
Too expensive for deer. They'd certainly do the job, but at a much higher cost. Their .311", if that's the diameter your rifle needs(slug the barrel to find what dioameter bullet you need), runs $53.95 per 50, $49.50 per 50 for the 6.5's, at Goble's, here in London.
A Hornady 140 grain 6.5 SST runs $32.50 per 100, a .312" SP runs $25.95 per 100.
A Hornady 140 grain 6.5 SST runs $32.50 per 100, a .312" SP runs $25.95 per 100.
C B
There is no doubt that the Barnes bullet is a great one and if that is the one you want to use people should me more supportive. Loading isn't always about what is cheaper!! I have used them in 7x57 with the 140gr, great performance for me at 280 yards and 50 yards. I have some in 6.5, but the ones I'm going to load will be the 120gr. FS
There is no doubt that the Barnes bullet is a great one and if that is the one you want to use people should me more supportive. Loading isn't always about what is cheaper!! I have used them in 7x57 with the 140gr, great performance for me at 280 yards and 50 yards. I have some in 6.5, but the ones I'm going to load will be the 120gr. FS
I guess what I really need is advice on the best bullet for my needs.
I want a bullet that expands very quickly at both high and low velocity but still penetrates well, won't break up at high speeds, has a high ballistic coefficient for when I need to take a long shot and is very accurate. What is ideal for me is a single bullet that will give devastating kills on everything from coyotes to black bear and at ranges from 10 to 300 yards even if I mess up and my shot placement is slightly less than perfect. I want clean kills, but if I do have to track a wounded animal I want a decent exit wound to help with the blood trail. I know its a lot to ask from one bullet, but I like to have absolute confidence when I encounter a good trophy, even if conditions aren't perfect. In short I want the perfect bullet.
Saving money would also be nice but I usually put less than ten shots a year through my rifles, a handful to check my zero, one shot for a deer, and maybe one for a bear this year. So I'm willing to pay a bit extra per round for the best performance. So my question really is what is the BEST bullet, if cost doesn't matter.
I want a bullet that expands very quickly at both high and low velocity but still penetrates well, won't break up at high speeds, has a high ballistic coefficient for when I need to take a long shot and is very accurate. What is ideal for me is a single bullet that will give devastating kills on everything from coyotes to black bear and at ranges from 10 to 300 yards even if I mess up and my shot placement is slightly less than perfect. I want clean kills, but if I do have to track a wounded animal I want a decent exit wound to help with the blood trail. I know its a lot to ask from one bullet, but I like to have absolute confidence when I encounter a good trophy, even if conditions aren't perfect. In short I want the perfect bullet.
Saving money would also be nice but I usually put less than ten shots a year through my rifles, a handful to check my zero, one shot for a deer, and maybe one for a bear this year. So I'm willing to pay a bit extra per round for the best performance. So my question really is what is the BEST bullet, if cost doesn't matter.
I've been using 120gr. TSX's in my 6.5x55 krag.would like to find a bullit some time but ribs on both sides don't stop them .deer stops bullit always a pass through.for me so far .shot a mulie with my 7.62x39with a barnes 123 gr..310 dia.TSX at 75 yards aprox. took out one rib close side passing through.
also use barnes TSX's in my 25-06,7mm-08,308win,270win.and 250 sav.
It's your rifles use what you want in short .and enjoy!
also use barnes TSX's in my 25-06,7mm-08,308win,270win.and 250 sav.
It's your rifles use what you want in short .and enjoy!
Bingo. If we were all about whats cheaper we should sell our guns and buy our meat at superstore and ride our bikes to work, live in mud hunt etc!!!
One of the fun things about shooting is getting into reloading and trying out new bullets and powders and really fine tuning a load that YOU"VE made to your rifle. I think its neat we can get a premium bullet like the barnes for our lowly 303;s!!!
Way to go!!Cheers
Seabass
The early Barnes bullets I tried acted like FMJ's and left no blood trails.Never lost any game but never used Barnes again either.In all fairness Randy Barnes admitted to having problems with the early proto -type.I have one you could reload and shoot again after keyholing through a 7x6 mulie...................no expansion......Harold
Northman999
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Southern Yukon
Both of the calibers you listed will kill deer dead using any big game bullet. If you want to reload TSX's, that's fine and they will do the job, but honestly, they aren't needed. You could, frankly, buy a couple of bags of Remington bulk bullets in each caliber and keep your freezer full of meat for the rest of your life.
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All those are attributes of a TSX, among other bullets.
I've used a number of TSX bullets on animals now, and they work great. They will go end to end on a black bear or deer.
Buffaloshooter
New member
- Location
- Eastern, Ontario
6.5 & 303
I've used 180 gr Sierra 'Pro Hunter' spitzer pushed by 37 grains of IMR 3031 with unbeatable results for nearly 20 yrs and have no desire to mess with this load.I use it in a no.4 enfield action redone by Parker Hale and my partner uses them in no. 1enfield and they work great in it too. you may need to fine tune the load for your rifle though.
As for my 30-06, and my 308(165 gr tips), and 6.5(140 gr tips), I use Hornady's SST tips and again with fantastic results when they hit a deer.
Personally though for any kind of a bear I think that I would look for a tip that would be a little slower to expand as the bear is a bit thicker skinned and a lot heavier boned.
Kevin
I've used 180 gr Sierra 'Pro Hunter' spitzer pushed by 37 grains of IMR 3031 with unbeatable results for nearly 20 yrs and have no desire to mess with this load.I use it in a no.4 enfield action redone by Parker Hale and my partner uses them in no. 1enfield and they work great in it too. you may need to fine tune the load for your rifle though.
As for my 30-06, and my 308(165 gr tips), and 6.5(140 gr tips), I use Hornady's SST tips and again with fantastic results when they hit a deer.
Personally though for any kind of a bear I think that I would look for a tip that would be a little slower to expand as the bear is a bit thicker skinned and a lot heavier boned.
Kevin
I'd think that the TSX would probably be superb in the 6.5x55 and the .303 British. Actually, I'd use these bullets for moose, though I'm sure they'd be great for deer, too.
There is one major caveat, however.
These old military rifles (and ESPECIALLY) the Lee-Enfields tend to be very particular about what bullets will shoot well. The biggest problem with the Lee-Enfields is getting the bullet diameter to match the barrel. For that reason, there is a chance that your rifle may not like these premium bullets and instead prefer a plain-jane, cheap Hornady (for example).
There is another caveat. You'd mentioned that you'd like to have a premium bullet with a reasonable BC for longer shots. This is not an unreasonable request. The only problem is that for longer shots you need a consistently accurate rifle, usually topped with a decent scope. While I love the Lee-Enfield, the truth is that most of the old beaters out there are simply not capable of shooting consistently well at anything beyond 200 yards. In fact, for many, consistently hitting a six-inch square at 200 yards is a stretch. This has to do with such things as bedding problems (caused by the design of the rifle), sloppy tolerances and lock-up (which made this such a winner in the muddy trenches of WWI, where fast action with dirty ammo was more important than benchrest accuracy) and old corroded barrels. Remember: as the saying goes, you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. And the Lee-Enfield is close to being a "sow's ear".
Military 6.5s are immune from a lot of these problems, but still they can have finicky chambers with long throats and they can have their own bedding issues, too. However, it's a safe bet that the "average" military 6.5x55 is a better, more consistent long range shooter than the average Lee-Enfield.
Having said all this, I still think that you should experiment with the Triple Shock in these rifles. Just don't expect that you will have noticeably better results than you will by using conventional bullets, and don't expect that these bullets will transform an old woods rifle into a "beanfield" sniper rifle.
There is one major caveat, however.
These old military rifles (and ESPECIALLY) the Lee-Enfields tend to be very particular about what bullets will shoot well. The biggest problem with the Lee-Enfields is getting the bullet diameter to match the barrel. For that reason, there is a chance that your rifle may not like these premium bullets and instead prefer a plain-jane, cheap Hornady (for example).
There is another caveat. You'd mentioned that you'd like to have a premium bullet with a reasonable BC for longer shots. This is not an unreasonable request. The only problem is that for longer shots you need a consistently accurate rifle, usually topped with a decent scope. While I love the Lee-Enfield, the truth is that most of the old beaters out there are simply not capable of shooting consistently well at anything beyond 200 yards. In fact, for many, consistently hitting a six-inch square at 200 yards is a stretch. This has to do with such things as bedding problems (caused by the design of the rifle), sloppy tolerances and lock-up (which made this such a winner in the muddy trenches of WWI, where fast action with dirty ammo was more important than benchrest accuracy) and old corroded barrels. Remember: as the saying goes, you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. And the Lee-Enfield is close to being a "sow's ear".
Military 6.5s are immune from a lot of these problems, but still they can have finicky chambers with long throats and they can have their own bedding issues, too. However, it's a safe bet that the "average" military 6.5x55 is a better, more consistent long range shooter than the average Lee-Enfield.
Having said all this, I still think that you should experiment with the Triple Shock in these rifles. Just don't expect that you will have noticeably better results than you will by using conventional bullets, and don't expect that these bullets will transform an old woods rifle into a "beanfield" sniper rifle.
