Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game 8mm bullet test part 1

Gentlemen and ladies; I would like to share with the folks at the fire the results of some bullet testing I have done. In 2008 and 2009 I did some bullet testing prior to choosing which bullet to use in my .325 WSM for my trip to Namibia. All bullets were fired into wet mixed paper and cardboard, later on the Barnes 180 grain TSX and the 200 grain Swift A-Frame were fired in wet tightly bound glossy magazines layered with wet mixed paper. In comparing bullets recovered from game; the wet mixed paper and cardboard behaved similar those recovered from game which travelled through soft tissue, the glossy magazines created expansion very similar to recovered bullets which had penetrated a great deal of bone. One of the 200 g A-Frames looks almost identical to one which penetrated a scapula and a good deal of spine on a sharply quartering away Kudu. I assume this is due to the kaolinite clay which is used in coated paper. All tests were done at 50 yards, all loads were within 1 grain of the maximum charge for the bullet and powder used. This is definitely not a conclusive test just something of interest. I apologise for the quality of the photos. I hope this proves entertaining. Special thanks to Roadrunner65 for his assistance in learning to post photos.

First up is the Hornady 150 grain interlock in the range of 3200 fps mv rapid expansion and rather limited penetration.

The 180 grain Nolser Ballistic was used in the form Combined technologies factory ammo at +/- 2900 fps mv. Twelve bullets were recovered 3 kept their cores, penetration was quite variable with the deepest in the range of 17 inches with the most shallow in the range of 8 inches.


I will try to finish this post Friday evening, 195 g Hornady, 200g Accubond, 200g Barnes XLC, 220g Seirra Gameking, 180g Barnes TSX and the 200g swift A-frame to follow. Thanks GRF

The 195g Hornady Interlock; 5 bullets were recovered all cores remained in the jackets. The jackets were quite stressed in some cases the bases were ruptured. Penetration was fairly consistent although in the mid range about 11-12".

The 200g Nosler AccuBond, 3 bullets were recovered; 2 had very consistent expansion, one had an irregular "wing" off on side. The cores were very secure in the jackets, penetration was consistent, relatively deep and straight line.

The 200 grain Barnes XLCs; (+/- 2800 fps mv) that were recovered (7) seemed to support the claims that the pre TSX Barnes could have issues with not enough expansion. With less than full expansion at 50 yards I would be concerned with expansion at longer ranges or lower muzzle velocities for this bullet.

220 grain Seirra Gameking mv +/-2700 fps, 2 recovered, both lost their cores not full expansion penetration not as great as I expected from a heavy long for calibre bullet.

The 180 grain Barnes TSX showed very consistent expansion and deep penetration in both the hard and soft media. In the soft media average penetration was 17 inches, in the hard media penetration varied with the number petals lost; 8 inches with petals, 9.75 inches with no petals.

The 200 grain A-Frame was the bullet I used in Namibia, good expansion, deep straight line penetration, in soft media about 17 inches average penetration, often almost side by side with 180g TSX, in the hard media 7 and 9 inches.

I hope y'all enjoyed this. GRF

Nicely done. Too bad you didn't have any 200 gr. partitions to test . How much did the 200 accubonds penetrate??

BSA; all my 200 grain partitions were loaded up in 8x57 cases; it is a very good bullet. GRF

I don't blame you. That bullet works wonders in the good ol 8x57.

Not too many surprises here for me....mirrors my experience with similar bullets (though not in 8mm calibers).

Light for caliber bullets at 3200 fps exploded....as expected. Ballistic Tips came apart somewhat....also not a surprise. Was a bit surprised that the Hornady Interlock showed a tendancy to separate the core.....my experience has been a bit better. Sierra gamekings didn't hold up too well.....which I expected. Barnes solids performed inconsistantly.....which is my main complaint with monometal bullets.

A-Frames came out on top.....which is EXACTLY what I'd expect. I've always considered the A-Frame to be an "improved" Nosler Partition. Same performance WITHOUT losing the front half of every bullet fired into game.

The real surprise, to me, was the performance of the Accubond bullets. I've not had good luck with Accubonds which in my experience tend to overexpand and fail to penetrate as well as I like. I may have to re-examine these bullets as my original testing was limited......I tend to abandon an idea once it shows signs of not living up to my expectations.

Interesting testing. I think some get too hung up on test media....trying to "match" living flesh. Don't think it really matters too much what media you use....as long as it is consistant so one bullet can be compared to another under near identical conditions.

The 8mm Accubond is a very good bullet. It's what went lengthwise through a deer for me, starting at the hip. Also performed perfectly on two elk.

Good test! Nice to see the 180 TSX do well; that's my bullet in my .325 BLR.

Texas Rick; I have very good experiences with 110g accubond in my .25-06, a bullet well worth considering.

One can not match a test media to animals, there are too many variables, I just wanted a harder media to really stress the bullets.

Jeff O; I use the 180g TSX for deer in my .325 very happy with it.

When I get around to it Part 2 will be to post pictures and comments on bullets recovered from game.

Thanks for your interest and comments. GRF

Thanks for the data and pictures.

Great info here GRF. Thank you very much for the hard work. Extremely informative!

Had you considered trying the 200 gr SMK?

I've got a recovered 200-gn 8mm Accubond I can post a pic of. Shot a quartering-away deer in the ass (ooops) and it smashed the hip joint then went the length of the deer. Found it under his chin. 70% retention, perfect mushroom.

EFW, you're welcome. Pardon my ignorance but is SMK the Seirra Matchking? If so no I have not tryed them in 8mm. I have used them in some other calibres, most recently .303, always an accurate bullet. I would not consider using them on game.

Jeff O, I would love to see a picture of the abovementioned bullet.

GRF

The 200 partition penetrated an elk from ham (exploding the femur) to brisket and on into the surrounding countryside for me once. The exit wound looked like every other one I'd made with a similar bullet in a broadside application. I imagine the Swift A Frame is similar.

I have only used the 200g partition in the 8x57 on game and the 200 g AFrame in the .325 so I do not want to make a comparison between the two. Both are good bullets. GRF

Great looking test, George! It might be neat to see how the SMK fares as well. The 100gr MK has accounted for a few animals that I've killed with my .25-06, including a couple of long-range coyotes and this year's sheep. One coyote was at 942 yards and the sheep was at exactly 400 yards. I cannot vouch for the bullet's performance at close ranges, since I usually hunt with a TSX in the pipe for potential close-range shots.

I like how well being able to see how the bullets actually performed is informative. I do not need to be told what works, I will from my own conclusions... with great tests like this.

Thanks for sharing the great info, GRF!