6.5 bullet choice

[BEEMAN]

I could spare a few 160's. Send me a PM.

 

[Short Case]

I just started to brake in my new 6.5 WSM and I'm going to try the 123 Amax, the
129 AccuBond LRM went I can get them and 130 Berger. I had this rifle build for a Missouri White Tail and a Prong rifle. I did not think I need that heavy of a bullet.

 

[rooster740]

I just started playing with a new 6.5-06 improved this fall. I decided to try the 160 matrix bullet and my rifle loved them! I settled on a load with 2930 MV from a 27 inch 3 grove Lilja. On deer they are okay but as an elk bullet they are just too explosive at 350 yards. At. 200 yards they blow up in a fox like a varmit bullet.
They shoot absolutely fantastic!
At 480 yards they blow a 1 1/2 inch hole out of a doe deer shoulder hit in the arm pit.
I found jacket and core on the off side leg of a mule deer buck hit in the arm pit at 75 yards.
Bull elk was hit in the chest just clipping the tricep and the bullet did not make it to the other side of the chest.
Unfortunately my hopes of some long range hunting was not a reality this year.
The matrix 160 would make a fantastic long range antelope and deer projectile.

 

[Outlaw6.0]

I just started playing with a new 6.5-06 improved this fall. I decided to try the 160 matrix bullet and my rifle loved them! I settled on a load with 2930 MV from a 27 inch 3 grove Lilja. On deer they are okay but as an elk bullet they are just too explosive at 350 yards. At. 200 yards they blow up in a fox like a varmit bullet.
They shoot absolutely fantastic!
At 480 yards they blow a 1 1/2 inch hole out of a doe deer shoulder hit in the arm pit.
I found jacket and core on the off side leg of a mule deer buck hit in the arm pit at 75 yards.
Bull elk was hit in the chest just clipping the tricep and the bullet did not make it to the other side of the chest.
Unfortunately my hopes of some long range hunting was not a reality this year.
The matrix 160 would make a fantastic long range antelope and deer projectile.

I see your 160 experience mirrors my own. Highly frangible.... I put two into a muley at 155yd & neither even tried to exit. Don't get me wrong, the internals were absolute jello... But boy do they shoot! 30" 6.5wsm @ 3100fps. I really wanted to put one on my goat at +600 this year but I ran out of time.

OP- I too would recommend trying the 150Matrix or the Cutting Edge. The CEB's were the most consistent bullet i've ever shot thru my WSM. The last time I shot them @ 500, vertical spread was <1/2moa, the wind caught a few but that's not the bullet's fault. Horizontal was still <1moa. That included the cold/clean bore round.


t

 

[marshal]

So much for annealing them I guess? is that everyone's final answer? Nothing has changed to the bullet design or jacket, but initially they were believed to be on the tough side.

 

[Outlaw6.0]

Hey Marshal, thanks for chiming in. I remember the initial discussion about the 160's being tough. I can't speak for everyone but I can honestly say that wasn't my case. I think they will be superb at long range where the velocity drops off.



t

 

[Idaho Sawyer]

Great info for terminal performance on the 160's. I just ordered 200 of them from Marshal, got a 6.5 Sherman in my future.

 

[rooster740]

So much for annealing them I guess? is that everyone's final answer? Nothing has changed to the bullet design or jacket, but initially they were believed to be on the tough side.

I in no way mean any disrespect to an amazing shooting bullet. Everything was really dead, really close to where it was shot. I am just going to have to use some needle and string on the big gray dogs

 

[marshal]

I in no way mean any disrespect to an amazing shooting bullet. Everything was really dead, really close to where it was shot.

Oh I didn't take it as negative, I just need to know what to tell people when they ask
so far I've been telling them they need to hit a bone or it may pencil through.

It still amazes me they didn't exit with that much sectional density.

Thanks for your post on them its good exposure..

 

[bigngreen]

Oh I didn't take it as negative, I just need to know what to tell people when they ask
so far I've been telling them they need to hit a bone or it may pencil through.

It still amazes me they didn't exit with that much sectional density.

Thanks for your post on them its good exposure..

I'll apologize for being remiss in my reporting duties, we finally have gotten a number of the 160gr into elk out to 300 yards and deer out to 500 ish. The elk we have not had one exit the hide though they have been hitting and exiting the far side rib cage, the vitals are devastated. We tried to reach a range that they would exit on elk but the elk were very uncooperative.
The deer we saw exiting at the farther end of where we shot them, again complete devastation, inside 200 yards they weren't exiting deer.
I'm excited to get the 150 on game, the early indication seem to look like they are a little slower opening than the 160.
Next season hopefully things will line up to put some range on them, that is where we were concerned about them opening but I'm not willing to call anything for sure till we tip a few elk I'm thinking we need to hit a couple more states just so we can get enough bullets on game to get good test, might join Rich in Utah

I've ran the 140 Cutting Edge, all the Bergers and all the VLD Matrix bullets, for my personal taste the Matrix is my go to because they've been the most accurate first and they provide a lot of collateral damage with large permanent wound channels, I think I'll be more careful in close but that's what I do with all the bullets I use at long range.
The CE's with a number of elk and deer I never had collateral damage, 3/4 inch wound channel though everything so the only thing that covered my butt was that they were accurate enough that I could place them carefully.
The Bergers have been kind of in between them, a little less damage than the Matrix and smaller wound channels but more than the CE's.

 

[elkaholic]

I actually think it sounds like GOOD performance at that range as far as the big game animals that were shot! It gives me more confidence that they will expand at longer ranges. It is pretty amazing how much high velocity will stop a LOT of bullet mass. As long as there is penetration to the far side of the animal, I think they are working just fine. That is a LOT of energy expended inside those critters! The more data that comes in, the better! Keep on shootin............Rich

 

[midwesthunter]

Thanks for the info guys, living in the midwest I don't get to shoot many things with the rifle. But the last 2 years we have killed 6 antelope with my 243 shooting 95 grain bergers at a little faster than 3200. Two of those have been 100 yards or less, and the others 300-400 yards. The two at 100 or less the bullet just penciled through. The others were either DRT or a short 50-100 yard dash. Whats the BC of the 150 matrixs

 

[elkaholic]

Thanks for the info guys, living in the midwest I don't get to shoot many things with the rifle. But the last 2 years we have killed 6 antelope with my 243 shooting 95 grain bergers at a little faster than 3200. Two of those have been 100 yards or less, and the others 300-400 yards. The two at 100 or less the bullet just penciled through. The others were either DRT or a short 50-100 yard dash. Whats the BC of the 150 matrixs

Hard to believe they penciled through at 100 and performed better at 400, but that would make me change! The 150 Matrix has a (Litz measured) G7 of .310. We have had good success with them so far out to 440 but would really like to connect on something way out there. My elk hunting was interrupted with moving this year so missed the boat...............Rich

 

[BEEMAN]

Bigngreen were the 160's annealed?