Difference in tipped bullets

[hitch.bd]

for the last little while I have been hunting with my 30.06 loaded with
Hornady 165gr interbond #30459
I recently did a trade with a nut here and aquired a box of each of :
Hornady 168gr A-Max #30502
Nozler ballistic tip 165gr #30165
Can anyone tell me the difference between them...outside of the obvious name brand, # and weight.
Is there a difference in make-up (not the wifes) Is one made for a different purpose than the other. Other than weight I would not be able to tell the difference between the two Hornady bullets with my naked eye.
A little intelegence would be appreciated! thanks in advance, Hitch

 

[Eagleye]

Hitch; The Hornady Interbond is a "bonded" bullet, meaning the jacket is fused to the lead core. These bullets tend to retain more weight and control expansion better than do common cup & core bullets.
The Hornady A-Max is a relatively fragile bullet that will sometimes disintegrate when it hits bigger bone, particularly at high velocity [think close shots] It is suitable for deer sized game, but can be problematic on larger animals if the shot is not chosen very carefully.
The Nosler ballistic Tip is similar to the A-Max, but the recent versions tend to be a bit tougher than were the early offerings of this bullet.
I still prefer a bullet like the interbond, due to the fact that it will stay together in less ideal circumstances.
These bullets all tend to be quite accurate, depending on a firearm's preference, of course.
Hope this helps. Eagleye.

 

[bcsteve]

The A-Max is also sold as a match target bullet. A few years ago they were claiming that they were also suitable as a deer hunting bullet. Some still use them for hunting and report good results but they are designed as a target bullet and not a hunting bullet. Direct from the Hornady web site: "•These bullets are not recommended for hunting medium and large game."

 

[hitch.bd]

Thanks guys, Prior to this trade I was thinking of switching to a Barnes tripple shock or the tipped version...I think I will still do that. Since I started shooting the interbonds I have shot 2 Mule bucks and an immature bull moose. Both the deer were thru and thru broad side shots. The moose was a a full frontal but there was no bullet to retrieve because it must have disintegrated. The thru and thru shots unnerved me a little because many times I scoped a group of deer looking for the right number of points. Had I seen the buck in the group and shot it there could have been two deer down or worse a wounded deer runnung around. I'm not saying this wouldn't happen with any other bullet but the X bullet might have a bit more drag with it's unreduced mass. Does any one have experience with the Barnes X bullets? what are your thoughts or results?

 

[hitch.bd]

BCSTEVE I just noticed your avatar...what is your take on the Barnes X bullet?

 

[bcsteve]

Yes, its a 225gr bullet from my .35 Whelen. I've been using Barnes TSX and TTSX exclusively for hunting for a while. The TSX and TTSX are most likely the deepest penetrating bullets on the market. If you're looking for a bullet that will stay in a deer, this is definitely not your bullet.

I've had complete penetration on bull moose with a 160gr from a 7mm Rem Mag and 225gr from a .35 Whelen. The only Barnes I've recovered were from moose shot head on or from steep quartering angle. On deer with a 120gr TSX or TTSX from a .260 Rem, I've had nothing but complete pass through even on quartering angle and through bones. They are great bullets and I'm getting bang flop on deer and moose only take a few steps.

It's pretty hard to get a bullet to stay in a deer, if it was my goal, I'd look at the Nosler Ballistic Tip, Hornady SST, Sierra GameKing, Berger VLD or any of the other lightly constructed bullets designed to expand rapidely.

 

[hitch.bd]

Thanks Steve, the Hornady interbond that I have used up to this point as well were bang flop as well. The moose made it a few bounds but I think that was just nerves as when I opened him up the heart was jello and the liver and lungs were shreaded from all the fragments of the bullet. I think the thru and thru are unavoidable on deer if you want one bullet load for everything you hunt. I most likely will switch to the Barnes X bullets...eventually!

 

[bcsteve]

I like them. 160gr 7mm recovered from a moose, 225gr .35 TSX and 120gr .264 TTSX recovered from wet newspaper.

 

[hitch.bd]

WOW that is 0 mass loss...if you don't count the tip