Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters AccuBond... The Rest of the Story?

I have thoroughly abused the Accubond in a .300 RUM on game from antelope to elk to big black bears. Ranges from 42 to 703 yards. If impact at 42 yards and 3200 fps at the muzzle ain't a test, I give up. Gonna load them in my .270 as my daughter is ready to hunt. Great bullet. mtmuley

Put a nice bull caribou down (drt) with a 160 ab from my 7stw from about 400 yds. Bull was quartering, entered at the sternum and exited behing left shoulder. About 18" of penetration and messed up stuff within.

1flier

I'm a long time Barnes user and shot near all big game with them over the last 18yrs, performance was always as advertized. However,this last season I switched to AccuBonds because they are touted to be as good as the partition ( the gold standard) with a lot better B.C. A 250gr 9.3mm AB fully penetrated a good size bull moose and claimed a mule deer last season. In 30 caliber ( I load 200gr AB's in an 06) the BC improvement is significant. Year before I used a 168gr TSX on a fall black bear at 2900fps, it was a 150yd shot and anchored the bear where he stood....performance excellant no bullet found but two broken shoulders. The 200gr AB @ 2625fps has the almost identical trajectory out past 500yds but carries 20+% more energy and there is 32grs more bullet that when shed creates alot of tissue damage yet still has 160+grs to penetrate well. I think by limited experience and technical thought the AB may be a better hunting bullet dependant on the game and situation. Also, they have shot the tightest 5 shot groups I have experienced.

I've shot perhaps 8 whitetails/mulies and some pronghorn with them, 140's in the .270 and 165's in the 30'06, great results thus far.

A look at Nosler #6 shows this to be mostly true. However, the 140gr .277 Accubond has a BC that matches the 150gr BT. Wonder why the changed the shape on that one??

I have never got Accubonds to shoot as the same corresponding BTs. Haven't killed any game with one either. I have never had a partition fail to exit! Not one recovered bullet! This includes about a dozen elk shot with 100 grainers out of a 250 Savage. My favorite load for my 300 H&H is a 150 Partition Gold. Punched them clear through sitka deer and elk. What's not to like?

I load a 7 mag for my hunting partner, and I use the 160 accubond over RL-22 and or RL-19.
I get him about 3000,fps and great groups. He has taken 8 or 9 mule deer and I think 3 elk with the load and is real happy.
It,s a very good bullet.
...tj3006

WOW!!! Thanks guys... Great response... I guess I'll stick with my AccuBonds. I sure like 'em fine but I guess the thicker jacket somehow hurts accuracy just enough that they can't quite equal the BT on paper.

It's pretty amazing that this thread hasn't garnered one failure report. I suspect we'll eventually see some.

For whoever it was that asked me "why switch"... I like to experiment with new bullets, rifles, scopes etc. It increases my enjoyment of hunting and gives me something to fiddle with in the summer months.

$bob$

Man I just don't know what kind of cannons you guys have? I've shot elk broadside at 75 yards with a Nosler partition in a 7MM Remington mag. no exit.

After using 130 and 150 Partitons for many years out of a 270 Win I gave the 140 AB's a whirl. So far so good. I think I'm right around 15 or 16 critters total. 5 elk, a black bear, and the rest deer. Recovered 3 bullets so far (rest exited) and they retained a slightly higher percentage of weight than than Partitions I've recovered. AB's seem to open up a bit wider, but possibly penetrate a bit less, but it is close from what I saw on dry newsprint and animals.

Not to bore those who have seen this pic before, but here are the recovered 140 AB's. The bullet on the far right (62%) is from a point-blank range shot on a head-on WT buck.

I have used them in a 375 Wby chambered FN/Sako and in a Ruger 338 MKII with excellent results so far on one elk and four deer. They are sub-MOA in both rifles, and I may start using them in my other rifles. The only problem with that is a good stock of older bullets already in the cabinets that need shooting.

Last autumn I shot a moose with a 260 grains AB with my Sako 85 SS in .375 H&H. One shot needed,the moose dropped where it stood, did not find the bullet it went through the chest cavity. Not much spoiled meat either, almost nothing. A good bullet.
Hope to kill a bear the coming autumn with the same combination and of course more moose.

I've shot exactly one head of game with a 140 7mm AB started from a 7 RM at 3250;target was the largest-bodied mule deer I have ever shot.He was hit point of shoulder as he quartered on at about 175-185 yards.The bullet broke the onside shoulder, through the chest to the off-side ribs where it was recovered.

He went maybe 12-15 yards,blowing blood all the way and collapsed.

The recovered bullet weighed about 59 grains.

I have shot a fair number of 140AB's from a couple of 7 mags; a 7RM and a 7mm Dakota,and they have been very accurate bullets for me.

I'll add that I have killed quite a few animals with the 140 7mm Partitions,in the 7/08,7x57,280,and 7 RM at muzzle velocities from 2700 to 3300 fps.I have yet to recover any...this is not to say they all exited,simply that I have never found any.But many did exit even on some long-angled shots.

In shooting them for trajectory,I have shot the BT, the AB,and the Partition and have seen virtually no difference in accuracy nor trajectory to 400 yards if velocity were the same.The AB seems to be a good bullet,and I would use them for deer sized game again just for something different,but it offers me nothing the Partition does not offer, so I will likely just stick with those.

A deer with a 180 from my 30-06, 80 yards, smashed shoulder on a quartering-on shot, exited opposite flank. DRT.

2 elk killed by guys in my camp. 225-gn from a .338. Two shots, two elk, two DRT's, two exits.

A deer from my .325 using the 200-gn. A bad shot on my part on a sharply quartering away deer. Smashed hip joint, went the length of the deer, found bullet under his chin, 70% weight retained.

Ginormous cow elk at about 300 yards. Hit elks's "elbow" joint, entered chest, through vitals, to under the hide on the other side. Elk went down hard.

Raghorn bull elk, .325, about 100-125 yards at a trot, broadside. Blew through lungs, exited, elk went about 75 yards and piled up.

I like them. I run them in my 7-08, '06, 300 win, .325, and 338.

You fellers just passing that same bullet around? Gotta be tough.

My thoughts are if you wish to try different slugs cause your bored get after it, the Accu will do you just fine.

One thing you didn't mention is to what ranges your normal shots are coming at? And I think you mentioned using a 308 and if so and especially on those small deer I see no "need" to use some sort of a Preme bullet but if you wish to then no biggie. But, it's sure not needed..

If you wish to consider other bullets to try in a 308 besides the Part I'd encourage you to consider the 150 Horn flat base, it's one accurate bugger and it'll do all you need done with ease.

The other bullet to consider would be the 165 Sierra HPBT, it's accurate tough and I can't recall it's tips being bent up. But then again unless I was shooting at long range (500 plus) I'd not worry about beat up tips anyway.

Bottom line, use what you wish as most about anything will do you just fine for what your doing.

Dober

Dober

Shot a bent tip so to speak, the other day at 725.... The guys were amazed after I was zero'd... how much fall and wind drift that flattend Berger tip made a difference...

For up close, it just doesn't really matter.

Jeff

Bob, +1 at those ranges the small difference in BC is meaningless

Furpick,
Glad to hear your experience with the 200 gr. Accubonds in the 30-06, as I loaded up 200 of them in my 30-06 to give them a try in Africa next time I go..they are surpurbly accurate in my gun and show good penetration and stay together in dry magazines.

I use dry magazines as they tend to rip a bullet apart more so than wet magazines, so I get a better idea of how much abuse a bullet can take with dry magazines..The Accubond made a good showing in the magazines but the all time king of penetration with any soft is the 220 Nosler partition, It has so far out penetrated even my big bores.

I am a devout Nosler partition fan, and I am also sold on Woodleighs, GS Customs and Northforks..I am inclined towards penetration and a bullet that does less meat damage as I really am adverse to bloodshot sides..I eat what I shoot for the most part.

I will stipulate that I only prefer Nosler in calibers .270 and over. I am not particularly sold on patitions in smaller calibers like the 243, 257, etc.

Ray,

In general I have found the 200 AB to retain at least as much weight as the 200 Partition, and often more. This is also in tests in dry paper. Don't have any data on recoveries from game because I have never recovered one from game!