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For those that use or have used Hammer bullets what are your thoughts on performance, accuracy and load work up?

I've only loaded them in the 6.5/.264 caliber. They are twist-specific. I found them easy to develop load for, and they are the most accurate bullet I've ever shot. I have not yet used them on game. Cooper Firearms and Weatherby seem to like them, as Cooper uses them for their test targets, and Weatherby sells factory ammo loaded with them.

I have only used the Hammer offerings in 6mm ARC. Starting off developing a load can be a bit intimidating initially. understanding pressure limits & preferred powders can be rather challenging. Accuracy tends to be easier than I expected. Terminal performance did very well on the two white tail does I took. One of the does only offered a head & neck shot. The accuracy level allowed me to have confidence in pulling off that shot in a prone position. Very effective.

In hind sight I was a bit fearful to experiment with the bullets as I felt to be on my own with more expensive bullets than I was accustomed to using. Accuracy was generally good to great with all loads I tried.

I used the .308 154 gr. HHT’s this past deer season in my 308. Load development was easy. I loaded up 14 rounds and had a .179” MOA 3 shot group before I shot them all. I watched 19 deer and 3 coyotes die this past deer season. Terminal performance was very impressive. Most were DRT and the ones that did run ran less than 35 yards with excellent blood trails. I live in the southeast so most of my shots are under 300 yards so I have no experience shooting them long range. I just ordered some HHT’s for my 6.5 CM to try next season.

Easiest bullets to work up a load with and always in stock.

I have tried hammers in few cartrdges (6.5 cm, 270, 300 wm). I have not found them to be any easier to work with than other less finicky bullets like ballistic tips, accubonds, tsxs, etc…. Please note this is a compliment - they are easy to work up load just not a miracle. As for on game performance, they do what they are designed to do. Again, work well, but nothing miraculous compared to alternates. I would put in similar category as partition or accubond and other premium bullets. Which again is a compliment;). They are however more expensive and Im not sure worth the price differential based on performance. That being said, what they have been is available even during the times when nothing else really was and in my opinion more dedicated to the hunting crowd vs the big manufacturers which seem to get tied up with law enforcement or military contracts for extended periods of time.

Lou

How far off the lands do you typically load these bullets?

I was super impressed with the accuracy of them in my Mauser m12 30-06.

I have not tried the tipped ones yet.

I have used the 117 and 110 in my 260 rem, and the 178 in my 358 Winchester. Like others said, easy to work up loads, accurate, and the terminal performance that I have seen is really good.

I am giving them a shot in a few of my favorites this year.



I have worked with the .308 181's and .358 220's in the past, and got easy accuracy pretty quick, but I never really finished the loads. I decided if they shoot, I wanna try them out on elk and deer this year to see how they work.

I’ve found they were not too ticky about seating depth. I generally seat to the top ring, which puts it about at the customary max coal for the round.

I’ve found that I could not get reliable ballistic info on drops at certain yardage as reliably as I could with other conventional bullets, using the bc given by Hammer. I’m not one of the thousand yard long range tv shooter guys but 400-450 is not out of the realm of possibility on our ag fields here. I used the Berger program and it works like a charm with any other bullet make. Lesson for the file: use the program to get you close, but always verify on the range. I’m lucky, I have a 100-600 yard range set up in a pecan orchard three miles from my house. My Hammers were dropping more than the program indicated they should, but that’s life.

In my little world I’ve found I’ve had my best luck using hammers that were on the light side, rather than the heavy side for a given round on whitetail. 270? 124 Hammer Hunter, 300 Win Mag? 150’s. 160’s? You better purposely hit bone or it zips through.

Thanks guys, all good reports. I live in Calif so pretty much limited to Barnes and these aren't really any more expensive so I think I'll give them a call Monday and get some ordered.

Good info here, thanks men. I will order some for various .224 cartridges this week.

I’ve shot them in several rifles from 6.5 up to 9.3 all with great accuracy. Hunted with them in my 7mm Mashburn this past fall, used their 169gr at 3060fps. Killed one deer at 552yds and another at 50 yds. Both deer showed pretty extensive internal damage so overall I’m pleased with them. Some of the easiest bullets to tune I’ve ever tried.

Same cal I'm ordering. I have called Hammer before and talked with Steve (I believe the owner), super nice and knowledgeable guy for recommendations and load data.

Hammer does have some rudimentary load data on their site now.

I'll echo what others have mentioned here - load work up and accuracy was fantastic in two rifles I tried them in. Didn't get to run a single one through a deer this year though so have no first-hand knowledge on performance.

Wonder how a .224 out of an AR would do on deer?

Steve is co-owner, co-founder and the one who does most, if not all, the customer interaction.

In the Adam Wby YouTube interview with those guys, you’ll see Steve doing most of the talking. The other guy seems more technical. BTW, that’s a great piece, Goggle it.

DF

IME, they’re not that COAL sensitive, easy to load and not finicky, accurate.

Gunner500 told me he was the first to kill a cape buff with their 404 gr out of a .458. That’s what they told him. He’s a believer.

DF

Edited to add gunner's quote, "One shot, stone dead drop."

And for buff hunters, they do tend to run even when fatally shot.

I know gunner's a good shot, but the bullet has to do it's part.

I've posted this before. A WT doe at 80 yds or so, killed with a 178 gr. Shock Hammer out of my Pre-64 .358 FWT. She stumbled 20-30 yds and gave it up.

I sent this photo to Hammer, got an email from Steve, pointing out the satellite exits around the core. He knew what he was looking at.

I like their accuracy and they way they frag. Lots of internal damage for a mono.

DF