Why/How do you pick the projectile to build your load around?

I always try to put enough bullet in a rifle to do the job at hand. My 7-08 pistol gets 140-154 cup/core pills. My 7rum is running a 175 eld-x to moderate vel., my 375 h&h is running the 300 tsx or 285 gs, my 338win gets the 225 interlock, the 225 ab, or the 250 sierra, 7rem and 7stw get a 140 (deer only rifles), my 30-06 and 300win shoot 165 hdy interlock, Pretty much the same story on my other rifles
I will not run fly weight pills or frangible pills on game. I've got some heavy match loaded for a buddie's 300roy and my 300rums, but they should be fine at the range they are intended for.
 
Lefty7mmstw said:
good list but I haven't drank the hammer kool aid yet... still burning up thousands of bullets I've bought over the years...
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Heck, I'll try anything, twice. That is if I live after the first go. LOL I am experimenting with my first hammers right now. I can certainly appreciate the hypothesis of lighter for caliber at higher velocities with a mono metal bullet that's a bit on the softer side. If they hoodwink me than it was my choice and I like to "fool around and find out!" I shot one animal so far and it was very impressive.

This coming from a heavy for caliber guy.
 
I want my bullet to remain intact at muzzle touching, hair-burning, maximum velocity distance and still give full expansion out to my (self imposed) maximum shot distance, retaining 95% or it's original weight, exit most any North American animal from virtually any angle (even if encountering heavy bone), and have a decent BC. I have my bullet.....as my self imposed distance (600 yards) is considered short range by most on this site! memtb
 
I have found that shooting cartridge/bullet combinations with high bc bullets leaving the muzzle at 2700-2800 fps has been very effective from close range to the maximum distance the bullet will expand at. I had issues with a Hornady ELD-M at ranges under 400 yards and good performance at ranges past 550 yards. For me that didn't work like I wanted. So I stopped using those and went back to moderate velocity 6.5 and 30 cal stuff. For me it works great again.
 
MagnumManiac said:
This is why I do not hunt with ANY Hornady bullets!
I tried the 208g A-Max out of a 30" barreled 300WM on our Sambar deer….worst decision I ever made. Shot was a tad over 600. First shot was behind the shoulder quartering away, deer dropped and I racked another round. Deer got up and started hobbling downhill, hit him again but from the other side to the first hit, no reaction so I hit him a third time in the spine. Stag was still breathing when I got to him but passed soon after.
The entrance holes on all three shots could have fit large Grapefruits in them, no pass through and the meat was peppered with shrapnel.
This was the day I no longer used CHEAP Hornady bullets.

As to choosing a bullet.
I look for accuracy as NUMBER ONE, then performance on game, this manifests itself in many different ways, but personally, I use bonded bullets, except Partitions, almost exclusively.
Of the bonded variety, I use Swift, Nosler, Speer and Woodleigh.
I'm using a lot of ABLR bullets lately. Their accuracy is very good for me so far and the performance at range is second to none. Have used them below the 1300fps lower limit and they expanded….barely.
Was testing more this weekend just gone and had groups go from triangular to vertical to horizontal, the only other bullet I ever saw that was with Berger OTM's.
There wasn't even a breath of wind, so know it was the tune coming in and out.

Cheers.
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The bullets from Hornady are specific to application. If it only has a Target Icon, then it is not designed for hunting. The Match bullets are designed for concentricity with the copper jacket designed as thin as possible to carry the lead and isolate the lead from the barrel and to be concentric as possible. Yes, some people may have good results, but the mean deviation of the good results, is the bullet has slowed to a point to where the softness of lead allowed it to expand correctly. Hunting bullets have a lot of design hours put into them, to have a thick enough copper or alloy sleeve to be stiff enough to not expand too fast at close range when the bullet hits the hardest and to expand enough down range when the bullet has slowed, thus not having as much frontal force on the bullet. It is a balancing game designing the hunting bullet to have a range of impact velocities and the bullet to function across those parameters. A hunting bullet for a 30-30 Winchester will have a thinner jacket than a bullet for a 300 Winchester Magnum.
Best Regards
 

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