Hunting Bullets?

I hear many good things about Barnes bullets but I think they will have many years to pass nosler Partitions in amount of kills. I have never lost a animal using Partitions see no need to change as I have quite a few in many calibers.
I am testing some accubonds on weekend at range, never used them hunting
manitou
 
The best is a relative term. For me the best working bullet I've ever used has been speer mag tips out of my sako 7mm mag. That combo was unbelievable. That said my savage ML with Hornady XTP's has provided a very accurate rifle with quite a few bang flops.

The key thing is to use a proper hunting bullet ( Not varmint or match bullets) that shoots well from your rifle. Premium bullets can cost well over $1 a pop and IMHO are not really worth it ( unless they provide accuracy superior to others) A good old Hornady,Speer, etc regular hunting bullet will do the job if it is accurate and you do your job.

BTW the buck in the avatar took a Nosler ballistic tip straight to the neck with a spine shot. The buck went down but was not dead as the bullet fell apart and did not sever the spinal column. Needed a second shot. I would not recommend those bullets.
 
I hear many good things about Barnes bullets but I think they will have many years to pass nosler Partitions in amount of kills.
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Which proves nothing at all.The 30-30 has probably killed more deer than any other cartridge,but that doesn't make it the best hunting cartridge.
 
NorthernPF said:
What in your opinion is THE best hunting bullet?? Barnes TSX? Nosler Partition? Let me know what you like and why.
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A very general question, so here's a general answer...

The best hunting bullet is whichever bullets fill the most freezers in Canada.

Whatever that is. I'm not sure which. Winchester or Remington bulk bullets probably, or whatever Federal loads in their entry level ammo.

Only bullets that large numbers of hunters can afford to use and can shoot well in large numbers of rifles even qualify. Cutting edge super fancy techno bullets that only 5% of real hunters use are definitely not it.
 
The best hunting bullet is whichever bullets fill the most freezers in Canada.

Whatever that is. I'm not sure which. Winchester or Remington bulk bullets probably, or whatever Federal loads in their entry level ammo.

Only bullets that large numbers of hunters can afford to use and can shoot well in large numbers of rifles even qualify. Cutting edge super fancy techno bullets that only 5% of real hunters use are definitely not it.
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The best hunting bullet is the one that works best for the game that you hunt,under the conditions that you hunt.Who else uses the bullet,or the price of the bullet,does not make the bullet kill the game that you hunt any more,or any less.
 
I meant what do you guys like to use, for whatever caliber you have and for whatever game you shoot. Personally I'm using either my 30-06 or my .300WM on moose and maybe the odd deer. I have Barnes Tipped TSX but find them difficult to laod with. I'm thinking of trying something else and I might look at the Nosler brand. I've loaded some Hornady SST's for the 30-06 and shot a 4 shot group of 1.07" at 100yrds.

I just wanted to get a topic going about what you guys liked
 
stubblejumper said:
The best hunting bullet is the one that works best for the game that you hunt,under the conditions that you hunt.Who else uses the bullet,or the price of the bullet,does not make the bullet kill the game that you hunt any more,or any less.
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I was thinking the same thing at first, actually.

But then, the original question was very broad. I asked myself, "Which single bullet, if it was suddenly *gone* would have the largest impact on Canadian hunters?", and that's the one that's the best, simply because it's the one that's actually out there doing the job.
 
"Which single bullet, if it was suddenly *gone* would have the largest impact on Canadian hunters?", and that's the one that's the best, simply because it's the one that's actually out there doing the job.
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The most commonly used big game bullet in use today would not be the Partition,or a Barnes bullet,it would be the plain old cup and core bullet,like the Power Point ,or Core Loct.The bullet that would be missed by the most people,would be the plain old lead .22 rimfire bullet.
 
We always test bullets before using them for hunting. Our test medium is a line of milkjugs filled with water and a densely packed box of newspapers as a chatcher. Takes some time.
While consistant accuracy at practiced(anticipated hunting) range is the largest factor, we also look for a bullet that: retains it's weight, expands well without falling apart, and we feel will either pass through or destroy bone.
Our tests are in no way "scientific", but I feel we end up with a lot better bullet choice by doing this.
Our choices for our rifles:
.243 87gr hornady, 85gr nosler(partition)
.270 150gr hornady, 130gr nosler
lever 30-30 170gr nosler
bolt 30-30 150gr hawk
30-06 220gr nosler(moose) 150gr nosler
300wm 180gr nosler
450marlin 400gr hawk
For weight retention, you simply can't beat a hawk bullet of those we've tried, but best I can get for accuracy is about a 1.5" group,(iron sights, sitting on the ground) which isn't as good as the noslers or interlocks(or cast in the 450).
We've never tried some of the more recently popular bullets; this all takes time(finding loads, and then testing), and we've been happy with what we've found. I should also mention we've just started checking out some cast bullets, and so far they show promise for some of our applications.

There are 2 brands that consistantly fail our tests, 100% of the time. Every single bullet of theirs we've tried. If you're looking for a good bullet, I'd suggest doing some of your own tests. Lot's of guys will post and defend what they are shooting, and maybe haven't actually tested them. It's not that a "failed" bullet won't make the kill, it's more a case of using a better tool for the job in my opinion.
After all that what would I recommend to try? I'd say for a big, slow bullet under 100yds where you absolutely, positively want to clean something out from stem to stern, try a hawk. For a long fast shot with some oomph at the end, I"d suggest trying a partition. If accuracy is paramount over wound channel, I'd suggest trying an interlock. Those would be my choices for those situations out of the bullets we've "tested". I'm certain others will disagree, but that's what keeps everyone in business.
Best of luck.
 
I personally believe that the Partition has stood the test of time, and is the best bullet for big game. The TSX [&TTSX] are probably actually superior bullets, but have not had the time to prove that yet. The Partition debuted in 1948 [61 years ago!!] It has accounted for literally tons of game, and will get into the boiler room, even when the angle is not quite right, or when major bone must break to allow the bullet into the vitals. You will always hear about the "failures" of any great bullet design, while those who have learned to trust them just keep right on killing game dependably with them. I have personally shot over 100 head of big game with Partitions. I do occasionally use other bullets to see how they act, but the Partition is still my standard to judge such offerings. There are many adherents to "bulk" Remington Cor-lokts, and Winchester Power-points. They have undoubtedly killed a mess of animals, and will work well in 90% of all hunting situations. I like to know my bullet of choice will work well 100%, Thus I use the tried and proven Partition. Regards, Eagleye.
 
Given a reasonable cartridge for game at hand, just about any bullet will do the job when you limit yourself to broadside shots at reasonable ranges...

uB I chose the TSX and TTSX, since it penetrates like hell, is very accurate and kills well, too.

I like a bullet that not only works when everything goes right, I want a bullet that works when everything goes wrong, too...

My fave used to be the Partition, but I rarely use them anymore.

If you want to turn a "smaller"cartridge into a big game cartridge, the TSX and TTSX are great options. (Like a .223 for deer or bear or a .260 for moose or elk)

Accuracy of the Barnes bullets continue to astound me, they have been easier to work up a load with than any other controlled expansion bullet I've ever used, routinely shooting MOA or sub MOA groups out to 400 or 500 yards.
 
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