Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters WINCHESTER POWER POINTS

Just how soft are they? First bullets I ever used along with the old style Silvertips (that I miss!) on deer and hogs black bear. so maybe this question is rhetorical, but how would they work on elk out of a (gay) 270?

Not a gun writer obviously, but I've used them some for caribou in various calibers... 22, 7mm, 30. I believe they are very similar in general performance to Core-lokts, Interlocks, or Power-shoks and work well as long as one follows the traditional rule for picking a weight which allows enough length to 'burn off' without using 'everything' up before adequate penetration had occurred.

That said, I had a friend years ago who had hunted elk for decades with his 270 Winchester M70 and 150 Core-lokts before he learned that it was barely adequate, not accurate enough, and that he should be using "real bullets" for the task. I don't know how he got things so screwed up since this was before we had internet...or personal computers even, but he did. Its was funny, after dabbling with stuff that was supposedly better, he always went back to grabbing a green box of 150 grain Core-lokts, and meat ended up on the table. PowerPoints are similarly more of the same from what I have seen.

Thanks. I know Core Lockts went through a change that weakened them significantly, so I was wondering if Winchester did the same to Power Points. My uncle used old fashioned 130gr Silvertips to take TWO (!) lions back in the 60s and a crapload of other African PG, not to mention every critter in his home state of Wyoming since the 1950s..

From a small sampling of recovered specimens at my deer camp, it seems the Power Points in 150 grain 30-06 ammo were stouter than similarly loaded Core Lokts. The peeled back jacket looked thicker.

I don't have a 270 comparison.

The 150 PP in .270 is a tough bullet. I'd use it on Bear, Elk, or Moose.

With proper placement, one should have no issues there at all.

How about a 130 PP?

The problem with the 130 PP would be the extra velocity over a 150. Velocity is the real enemy of cup-and-core bullets, even relatively tough ones.

I've shot a bunch of animals over the decades with various Power Points, including 100's in the .243, 150's in the .270, and 180's in the .30-40 Krag. They all worked fine, but muzzle velocity never exceeded about 2800 fps.

Thanks John. Reason I'm asking I picked up a very nice pre-64 Featherweight in (gay) 270 made in 57 with an old Leupold 4X and some four boxes of new 130 PPs that it plunks into tiny groups. I'd love to take it to Idaho and I don't have that much time (or desire at the moment) for load development with 130 Triple Shocks..of course

JorgeI, in years long past, I used the 130gr PP in a rifle like you describe and on big Idaho mule deer. Have no fear, that combo will get the job done and make it look easy.

I forgot to add "elk". I'm still taking my 300 Weatherby and 180 TTSXs, you all know, the best caliber for elk

I remember when I was 17 and bought my first CF rifle (circa 1965) a M70 PF in 270Win. I was using the 130 PP deer hunting in the Texas hill country north of San Antonio when my uncle shot a small spike in the ham using a 30-30. Trailing the animal I spotted it slowly hobbling quartering away at about 30 -40 yards. Placed that PP through the rib cage and dropped him immediately. When we opened him up we didn't gut him he just drained out. The chest cavity looked like I had used a shot gun in his chest, bits of lead every where, very small exit likely just the jacket.

And that makes sense...considering such a close shot, you probably had an impact velocity of 3000fps or a little more (considering a ~3100fps muzzle velocity). High velocity and C/C bullets are not happy companions. Just further validates what JB was saying a few posts above.

Cool Jorg! I have a tupperware container full of 130 PP's and they do shoot great.

Way back in 1973, I shot a few big Nevada Mule deer with 130 gr. Winchester PP's and Remington Core Lokts. Didn't much care for the excess meat damage and went to reloads with 150 gr. bullets. One day at my local LGS I got a good deal on some 150 gr. 30 caliber and 150 gr. 7MM Power points. The 30's shot real good in a .308 but had problems getting the 7MMs to give good groups in my 7x57.
I did section a couple of each and the jackets were surprisingly thicker that the Sierra's and Speer's I'd been using.
I only use two bullets anymore in the .270. The Sierra 150 gr. Game King and the 150 gr. Nobler Partition. Both loads use the same charge and mixed up all stay within one inch or less.
One of my good friend and hunting partners using the 150 gr. Game King in the .270 and .270 WSM for elk. Worked just find from both rifles.
Paul B.

Simple. Throw the 140 TSX's behind 58 grs of H4831 SC and stomp elk. Last fall Colorado public DYI at 250 yards, bang, step, drop.

The old fabled Winchester Silvertips are nothing more than a Power Point with a thin piece of aluminum shim covering/protecting the lead tip

Power Points WORK wonderfully at MV under 3,000 fps.

kd

The first bull elk I ever saw killed was at about 350 yards with a 30/06 and factory 150 PP loads; the rifle a post 64 M70 and 3X Weaver IIRC.Fist shot a bit far back and staggered him, but the second through the chest and collapsed.

I remember thinking the elk did not look too tough to me, contrary to what I had read....and the 30/06 was no punk cartridge.The 150 PP would not have been my first choice for elk but goes to show what I knew. Guy had been killing elk and mule deer with that combo for years.

Incidentally, the (old and now discontinued)270 gr 375 H&H Winchester factory bullet had a jacket of bronze,and was a tough, reliable bullet. IIRC even Finn Aagard used that load in Africa and the bullet had a good performance record. I recommended the load to a non hand loading pal who took it to Alaska for brown bear. It worked well.

tedhorn,

The difference between Power Points and Silvertips is the lead nose under the Silvertip is a larger, which tends to "enhance" expansion. Consequently the two bullets don't act exactly the same when they hit game.

Winchester also varied the jacket thickness on Silvertips over the years. Some versions held together pretty well. Others didn't.