jguill
Member
Over the last year I experimented with the Swift Scirocco and Barnes Triple Shock X-bullet (TSX) in a custom 270 Win using 130gr bullets. I am on a lease in South Texas that is overrun with feral hogs and the landowner wants us to eliminate as many as possible. This has allowed me to shoot numerous wild hogs and experiment with bullet terminal performance. Most of the hunting is done between 80 and 150 yards down narrow senderos cut into thick brush. The bullets shown below were recovered from shots between 100 and 130 yards with Scirocco muzzle velocities averaging 3100fps and TSX muzzle velocities averaging 3215 fps.
Last year I shot a nice whitetail in the low shoulder/heart using a Scirocco. The buck immediately ran into thick brush and I did not see which direction he bolted. At the impact point there was one drop of blood and a few pen head sized pieces of flesh. I spent 45 minutes looking for more blood and finally found 1 drop on a branch 30 yards from the impact point. Five minutes later I found the deer buried in heavy cover. The Scirocco performed very well and completely destroyed a shoulder and the heart, however the bullet stopped in the fat on the opposing shoulder. There was no exit hole and the buck was nearly impossible to track. The recovered bullet is shown in the above pictures. After this incident I decided to experiment with the Barnes TSX. I was surprised with the TSX. Almost immediately I developed a high velocity handload that averaged 0.5" to 0.6" groups. TSX copper fowling is minimal as many people claim. I began testing the TSX early this summer on hogs. I shot 6 hogs in the skull, neck, and shoulders and never recovered a bullet. All were 100% pass through. Last weekend I shot 3 hogs (182lb, 125lb and 80lb) with one TSX. I encountered a group of 10+ hogs tightly bunched up feeding. The TSX went through the skull of the first hog, neck of the 2nd, and lungs of the 3rd. The TSX was not recovered and passed through all 3 hogs. After this incident I took the 182lb boar and used him for bullet testing at 100 yards. I shot TSX loads into his skull(what was left), low shoulder, high shoulder, lungs, and hip. All bullets passed completely through creating large wound cavities and shattering any bone encountered. In order to stop a TSX I had to put 2 one gallon milk jugs filled with water in front of the boars shoulder blades. That TSX was finally recovered on the opposing shoulder just underneath the skin after passing through both milk jugs and the entire boar's shoulders/chest.
I never lost a single animal with either the Scirocco or TSX. Both bullets produce massive wound cavities and are deadly accurate. The Scirocco expands quicker and sheds weight faster. The TSX has far superior penetration, however potentially too much for deer and smaller game. I am confident you can lung punch 2 to 3 whitetails in a line with the TSX and it will not stop. One needs to be very careful when shooting the TSX and watch behind the intended target.
If you want to shoot small game and deer in the lungs or at long distance I would recommend the Scirocco. If you want to shoot heavy deer in the shoulders or large hogs I would recommend the TSX. All of my tests were done at close range and I am not confident about the TSX's long range expansion characteristics yet. I plan to repeat the above boar test at 300-400 yards later this season to test lower velocity, longer range TSX expansion.
Gig'Em
Jarret
Last year I shot a nice whitetail in the low shoulder/heart using a Scirocco. The buck immediately ran into thick brush and I did not see which direction he bolted. At the impact point there was one drop of blood and a few pen head sized pieces of flesh. I spent 45 minutes looking for more blood and finally found 1 drop on a branch 30 yards from the impact point. Five minutes later I found the deer buried in heavy cover. The Scirocco performed very well and completely destroyed a shoulder and the heart, however the bullet stopped in the fat on the opposing shoulder. There was no exit hole and the buck was nearly impossible to track. The recovered bullet is shown in the above pictures. After this incident I decided to experiment with the Barnes TSX. I was surprised with the TSX. Almost immediately I developed a high velocity handload that averaged 0.5" to 0.6" groups. TSX copper fowling is minimal as many people claim. I began testing the TSX early this summer on hogs. I shot 6 hogs in the skull, neck, and shoulders and never recovered a bullet. All were 100% pass through. Last weekend I shot 3 hogs (182lb, 125lb and 80lb) with one TSX. I encountered a group of 10+ hogs tightly bunched up feeding. The TSX went through the skull of the first hog, neck of the 2nd, and lungs of the 3rd. The TSX was not recovered and passed through all 3 hogs. After this incident I took the 182lb boar and used him for bullet testing at 100 yards. I shot TSX loads into his skull(what was left), low shoulder, high shoulder, lungs, and hip. All bullets passed completely through creating large wound cavities and shattering any bone encountered. In order to stop a TSX I had to put 2 one gallon milk jugs filled with water in front of the boars shoulder blades. That TSX was finally recovered on the opposing shoulder just underneath the skin after passing through both milk jugs and the entire boar's shoulders/chest.
I never lost a single animal with either the Scirocco or TSX. Both bullets produce massive wound cavities and are deadly accurate. The Scirocco expands quicker and sheds weight faster. The TSX has far superior penetration, however potentially too much for deer and smaller game. I am confident you can lung punch 2 to 3 whitetails in a line with the TSX and it will not stop. One needs to be very careful when shooting the TSX and watch behind the intended target.
If you want to shoot small game and deer in the lungs or at long distance I would recommend the Scirocco. If you want to shoot heavy deer in the shoulders or large hogs I would recommend the TSX. All of my tests were done at close range and I am not confident about the TSX's long range expansion characteristics yet. I plan to repeat the above boar test at 300-400 yards later this season to test lower velocity, longer range TSX expansion.
Gig'Em
Jarret
