Sierra gameking experiences

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Hi there -

I repeatedly read of experiences with Sierra GameKings being too soft, fragmenting, etc.

I have not had this experience. I began handloading them years ago based on their reputation of being so fragile because I wanted something for whitetail.

In my hunting, I have had them pencil through small deer at approx 250 yards. In a decent size 4 point buck at 50 yards it expanded and blew right out the other side, no exploding, no fragments, and no recoverable bullet inside the animal. These are 180gr gamekings from a 30-06 loaded over 55gr H4350.

Next year I am reducing the powder charge because I have no trouble hitting anything at distance and the increased velocity makes no noticeable difference.

I have not fired these into anything bigger or fatter. I have shot all my bears with the 220 round nose and they open up instantly leaving a huge entry wound. The push right through the animal and blow out the other side, leaving some fragments sometimes but always exiting. But the GameKings are what leaves me puzzled as to the reputation that contrasts my experience.

My friend has shot multiple deer from his 308 with factory loaded 165 GameKings. Again, no fragmentation and a complete pass through while still blending the deer innards sufficiently to result in a humane harvest.

QUESTION: Are you having an experience more like mine, or more like the rep I read of in published info? Is the info I keep reading everywhere just marketing for premium bullets, or are you having the experience of them fragmenting?

I ask this because my personal experience has limitations: I have only used the heavier GameKing bullets and just on deer. That in itself could be responsible for the difference in contrast with shooting something large like a moose, elk, bison, etc.

What are your honest, real world experiences with these bullets for those of you who hunt using them? And what cartridge, distance, and size of animal?

-Thanks to all for sharing your input
 
look me I shoot moose whit #2850 35 cal 358 225g sbt sierra game king in my 35 whelen ninimum charge of imr4895 pass thrue like a arrow and shoot 1/2 inch steel plate pass right thrue
 
I shot a moose with a 338 win mag using 250 game kings, it was 150 yards, leaving me with a Texas heart shot. At the crack of the rifle the moose started running away i was a bout to shot again but it just flipped up side down .
Well we were laughing and looking for the entrance wound we couldn't find one or a exit.
Started to skin it out found the bullet entered just above the spine traveled the length of the moose and lodged in the back of the neck.
The exposed tip was gone, the rest of the bullet is perfect except for the rifling marks.
I have never used again
 
i have always had good experiences with the Gamekings and recommended them for alot of applications when not being pushed to hard unless sierra states other wise ( .338 215gr BTSP) where they state right in the book that this bullet is to tough for the 338-06 unless being pushed at max loads and after talking to a gentleman at Sierra he informed me that this bullet is the 250gr jacket with the tip cut back so its a very stout bullet..... that is when i decided this was not the perfect bullet for my 338-06 all though they were very very accurate....... Now for my personal experiences.

In my 7mm-08 i was shooting the 160gr HPBT Gameking over 43.5gr IMR 4007SSC, Remington brass and a Rem 9 1/2 primer give me 2650FPS . I took a very large whitetail doe @ 225 yards. It ws a perfact broadside shot. The bullet entered breaking a rib, Took out the top of the heart and bottom of the lungs, left a 4" exit breaking 2 ribs and the upper part of the leg bone just below the shoulder.. No fragments in the meat or innards.. doe ran 15 yards and died under a pine tree.

Next was my dads 308. 165gr SPBT gameking over 42gr Benchmark and a CCI BR2. The doe was running directly at him @ about 150 yards. Bullet entered the brisket destroyed everything in its path and exited just infront of the rear left leg bringing the intestines and innards with it. the next deer that followed the doe was a medium sized buck. he turned and was running broadside with a slight quartering away. the bullet entered just behind the ribs on the left side and broke the front right shoulder before exiting. this was about about 150-200 yards....

MY good friend shot a moose with the 150gr in his 270 WSM.. 300 yards on a big calf... bullet was found in the perfact mushroom on the far hide. Took 2 steps forward.. 3 backwards and fell over dead.

I have never had a bad experience with with ANY SIERRA bullet.. although i don't use them in everything i shoot.. they are always very consistent and i have not reason to doubt them in my also limited experience.

I hope to here everyone else's experience.
 
Great results with the 180 gr ProHunter out of the .303 at low-moderate velocity. Poor results with the 165 gr out of the .300 Wby at high velocity. I'll definitely keep using the in the .303. The .300 needs something else.
 
Shot a 200 lbs. 7-pointer at 25 yards broadside using 165 gr. Gamekings in my 308. Bullet expanded perfectly into a mushroom and came to rest under the hide in the opposite rear leg after deflecting off a rib. He went for 50 yards and expired over a deadfall.
 
The 220 grain 8mm Game King was designed for the 8mm Rem Mag, and does not expand reliably in the 8x57.
I sectioned one to see what it looked like and was surprised at how heavy the jacket actually is.
Have not shot anything with them in my 8 mag, but am tempted to try one on a moose. I can start them at just over 3100.
Alway have those excellent A-Frames and Woodleighs to use if I don't like the GK. :) Dave.
 
I have read that the .375 300gr Game Kings have the heaviest jacket of all the Sierra bullets, I have been meaning to try them in my 375 Ruger to see how they perform, perhaps this will be the year I try. I figure with the moderate velocity of that cartridge it should work well, and the price on them is definitely very attractive compared to most other offerings.
 
I've killed a pile of deer with a 150gr #2125 from a 308 at around 2700fps. Always had good reliable performance and have recovered quite a few of them. Always with good expansion and decent weight retention for a cup and core. I quit using them only because I started expirementing with premium bullets but the old Sierra bullets killed just as good if not better. I have heard the hpbt are a thicker jacketed bullet but I've only killed one deer with one and where I placed it, any bullet would have worked fine.
 
Had some lightning like kills with .270 Sierra 130 gr boattail Gamekings on Mule deer, they tended to be somewhat fragile and wrecked a lot of meat, inconsistent. The 150's in the same calibre were also inconsistent, generally lacking in penetration if they hit bone. I shot a bull caribou which was facing me at about 150 yards squarely in the centre of the brisket with my Ruger #1 .338 using the 250 grain Sierra boattail Gameking. It quickly spun around about three times and dropped over dead. Strange behaviour but great results. While field dressing the animal we discovered the jacket lodged on the front of the breast bone, the lead core carried on and put a pinhole through the heart, never to be found. Never used Sierra bullets for hunting again. Thankful it wasn't a griz.
 
I have shot everything from coyotes to moose with Gamekings with everything from 6mm bullets to 8mm's
never had an issue with them whether it was 40 yard shot or a 400+ yard shot .
My absolute favourite bullet for accuracy and killing !
Cat
 
Nothing wrong with Game King and Pro Hunter. Lots of deer and moose have fallen from them. 180 gr GK in 30-06 hammered a buck for me a few years ago.
 
Sierra 85 gr HP Gameking is my hands down favourite bullet for hunting deer sized game with my 1-10 twist 6mm PPC. It has accounted for many Whitetail and Muley's at ranges exceeding 350 yards. All have been one shot kills to date.
 
Thanks to everyone for your replies and sharing your personal experience with these. I am still not sure why my gameking bullets haven’t expanded except on the very short range shots. Doesn’t seem to fit most of the other experiences people are having. I think when I next hunt grain fields I’ll load a lighter gameking bullet to see if the added velocity is what is needed. This year I intend to hunt in the bush with a muzzleloader so none of this will affect this years harvest.

I’m not looking for a perfect bullet as I know the performance of the bullet is dependant on external factors like velocity, range, and what game animal is shot. I just have found it weird that I read repeated references to Gamekings being way too soft and fragmenting when I can’t get them to expand even when the bullet is ripping through spinal bones.
I know I’m hitting at longer ranges and with a heavier bullet when this happens, but it seems weird to me that I read reviews of people having these things fall apart like egg shells when I’m actually having the exact opposite experience.

All my deer have dropped dead with these bullets so I can’t complain. But if I hadn’t hit the farther ones right through the vertebrae and these bullets aren’t expanding at all, then maybe a heart/lung shot would have been ill advised in the situation and ranges where I have taken a pile of deer. Interestingly the 180 grain Cor Lokt bullet expanded at the same range on the smallest deer I ever took, while also hit in the same spot (spine just in front of shoulder).
 
Ive used 6.5mm 140 Gamekings out of my Swede @ 2650fps, almost lost a buck of a lifetime due to it. Shot at 40 yards dead on shoulder, buck dropped got back up and we had to chase it a couple hundred yards until i was able to get another shot off. Guess what? 2nd shot didnt stop it either which hit rib bone. My hunting partner let loose with his 7mm and spined it. Finished it by cutting its neck. Upon investigating we found that both shots from my 6.5x55 blew apart upon impact!! They did not make it to the vitals!! Had i used another bullet like a partition the buck would have been down first shot! Couple years before i also shot a buck at 340yards front quartering facing me, bullet deflected taking a giant piece of meat with it, at the time i didnt think it was part of the bullets fault.

The 140 gameking is great for target and plinking but im not planning on using them agian.

I also used 8mm serria bullets but they did not fail and worked well. 150 and 175gr prohunter. I have yet to use the 220gr gameking.
 
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