bowkill02
Well-Known Member
As well the 100gr nosler bt is also a killer
Nosler Ballistics Tip Performace?
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Riflehunter1776
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since the BT explodes like a grenade and the AB sometimes expands very little, I wonder if the LRAB is the happy median, even for shots that are not extreme long range? - ie. rapid expansion and transfer with a bullet that is nevertheless still bonded and likely to pass through.
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J E Custom
Well-Known Member
I have also Had lots of experience with the ballistic tip Mostly good.
As stated they work very well at longer distances where velocities are lower. the velocity range they seem to like is 2800 to 3200 ft/sec at the muzzle. Depending on what caliber/cartridge you shoot. and expand well at impact velocities of 1800 ft/sec, but will still expand at lower velocities, if forced to go below the recommended minimum velocities.
I used them in a long barreled STW that would exceed almost any bullets design and had to come up with two loads for the rifle. Zero to 400 yards I had to use a partitioned bullet, and at 400 and beyond I had the best luck with a ballistic tip because it would expand well.
The load produced 3700 ft/sec velocities with good accuracy. Close shots were just to hard on the ballistic tip because of the velocity at these distances. Once the bonded core bullets came along this all but solved my problem of to much expansion.
I know for a fact that the 120 through 150 perform great if you can start them at 3000 to 3200 ft sec and limit distance to the 1800 ft/sec velocities.
Just My Opinion
J E CUSTOM
busdriver989
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PApa Black
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Have you tried the Nosler ABLR, it's has a much lower expansion velocity: "[ I]n order to accommodate these extreme parameters, the AccuBond® -LR bullet was designed to have a minimum impact velocity of 1300fps in order to reliably expand or mushroom at those much longer distances, compared to the 1800fps minimum impact velocity of all other Nosler® hunting bullets.". https://www.nosler.com/accubond-long-range-bullet/
barnjoer
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Did I miss what caliber you are shooting these out of?
I have not because of the price of these bullets. Under normal muzzle velocity I can easily get to above 1800 FPS out to 500 yards so I'm not sure I need a bullet that expands down to 1300 FPS but it's a good thought!
I have shot a whitetail in the neck straight on at 30 yards with 115 grain out of a .257 Wby. The bullet destroyed the spine. I only found fragments of the bullet. The same result at 407 yards with the rifle/bullet broadside on a whitetail. Destroyed lungs and rested at the others side inside the hide. This bullet retained about 60%. I've never used it on hogs or elk.
basinman
Well-Known Member
I have killed many whitetail deer with BT. Most have been from my 300 WSM with a 150 gr at 3300 fps mv. Ranges were from 80 to 250 yards and all but one were instant kills. I have also killed a few with my 300 BO using the 125 gr at 2300 fps mv at ranges from 50 to 100 yards and all have been one shot kills usually dropping where they were shot.
Tex_Hunter
Well-Known Member
I've hunted with ballistic tips for the last 20 years, with very good results.
I've killed at least 2 dozen deer with 165gr .308 cal BTs out of 3 different 308win rifles (muzzle velocities ranged from 2675-2800 across those 3) from ranges of 75 out to 360yds, all were complete pass through so no bullets to recover, but based on shrapnel left behind (even in the one I shot at 360yds), they definitely expand, lets call it "aggressively", and dump a ton of energy into the target.
This year I finally broke down and jumped on the 6.5 Creedmoor bandwagon, and loaded the 120gr Ballistic tips over Varget and H4350. Both are very mild loads pushing 2800-2825 fps and both with single digits SDs and sub .5MOA accuracy. That's about 150-200fps slower than what the book suggests for max loads but Im happy with the accuracy, consistency, and the fact that it perfectly matches the trajectory/performance of my heavier 308 loads (165gr NBT over varget in a 26" Remington VLS @2800fps, the 6.5mm 120gr has nearl identical BC and Sectional density to the 165gr 30cal). I settled on the H4350 load as it had lower ES than the Varget load and took it hunting this year.
I have shot three deer with this load:
First was a medium sized whitetail doe at 373 yards, full broadside double lung shot, dropped dead in her tracks (bang... flop), bullet hit a rib while exiting but was otherwise a clean passthrough w/ no bullet recovered but inside was red soup. so similar performance to the ones I have shot with the 308.
Second deer was a 4.5yr old cull buck, probably weighed 150lbs or so before field dressing. range was ~150-160yds quartering towards me, bullet entered ahead of front shoulder, broke three ribs on the near side, blew out one lung and nicked the back 1/4 of the far side lung, found the bullet just under the hide right behind the rib cage. Bullet expanded to about 2x caliber and core completely separated and found bits and pieces all along the wound track. Deer took one step backwards at the shot and fell down dead.
Third deer was another medium sized doe, unfortunately we werent able to recover her, shot was broadside around 100-125yds, both the shooter and I heard a solid thump of the impact and down range we found chunks of bone, hair, and a very good blood trail leading away from the place she was shot. For whatever reason though she had enough gass left to make it to a fence line and into a densely wooded property next to ours almost 200yds from where she was hit. The blood trail petered out leeding up to the fence and we couldnt get in touch with the neighbors so we werent able to recover her. The shot was downhill and my only guess was that it was maybe low, but the damage evidenced by the blood and bones we found around the impact suggest that it wasn't due to bullet failure that we lost this one.
Overall very impressed from my experiences with ballistic tips.
I've killed at least 2 dozen deer with 165gr .308 cal BTs out of 3 different 308win rifles (muzzle velocities ranged from 2675-2800 across those 3) from ranges of 75 out to 360yds, all were complete pass through so no bullets to recover, but based on shrapnel left behind (even in the one I shot at 360yds), they definitely expand, lets call it "aggressively", and dump a ton of energy into the target.
This year I finally broke down and jumped on the 6.5 Creedmoor bandwagon, and loaded the 120gr Ballistic tips over Varget and H4350. Both are very mild loads pushing 2800-2825 fps and both with single digits SDs and sub .5MOA accuracy. That's about 150-200fps slower than what the book suggests for max loads but Im happy with the accuracy, consistency, and the fact that it perfectly matches the trajectory/performance of my heavier 308 loads (165gr NBT over varget in a 26" Remington VLS @2800fps, the 6.5mm 120gr has nearl identical BC and Sectional density to the 165gr 30cal). I settled on the H4350 load as it had lower ES than the Varget load and took it hunting this year.
I have shot three deer with this load:
First was a medium sized whitetail doe at 373 yards, full broadside double lung shot, dropped dead in her tracks (bang... flop), bullet hit a rib while exiting but was otherwise a clean passthrough w/ no bullet recovered but inside was red soup. so similar performance to the ones I have shot with the 308.
Second deer was a 4.5yr old cull buck, probably weighed 150lbs or so before field dressing. range was ~150-160yds quartering towards me, bullet entered ahead of front shoulder, broke three ribs on the near side, blew out one lung and nicked the back 1/4 of the far side lung, found the bullet just under the hide right behind the rib cage. Bullet expanded to about 2x caliber and core completely separated and found bits and pieces all along the wound track. Deer took one step backwards at the shot and fell down dead.
Third deer was another medium sized doe, unfortunately we werent able to recover her, shot was broadside around 100-125yds, both the shooter and I heard a solid thump of the impact and down range we found chunks of bone, hair, and a very good blood trail leading away from the place she was shot. For whatever reason though she had enough gass left to make it to a fence line and into a densely wooded property next to ours almost 200yds from where she was hit. The blood trail petered out leeding up to the fence and we couldnt get in touch with the neighbors so we werent able to recover her. The shot was downhill and my only guess was that it was maybe low, but the damage evidenced by the blood and bones we found around the impact suggest that it wasn't due to bullet failure that we lost this one.
Overall very impressed from my experiences with ballistic tips.
KS2506
Well-Known Member
I shoot 100 gr BT out of a 26" Shilen barreled 25-06. Velocity is about 3375 fps. Have shot over 30 deer and antelope. All one shot kills, longest was 528 yards on an antelope. Behind the shoulder shots generally go plum through. This load literally wreaks coyotes. Also use the 140gr BT in 7mm STW at 3460 FPS out of Win. 70 custom shop Schneider 26" barrel. Killed 8 deer and 6 antelope. Hammer of Thor on them.
Any experience with BTs and larger game like elk?
