Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles 338 fed 185 tsx-not expanding!!

Damn, just when you begin to think you've figured it out! I guess if you shoot enough the law of averages kicks in somewhere, weird stuff begins to happen occasionally.
I remember reading an article by Phill Shoemaker, if memory serves, about how he had amassed an entire array of recovered bullets over the years from his clients in many different calibers- including the large bore bear busters. Many of these bullets had "failed", from tumbling, pan caking, not expanding, fragmenting etc. but recovered from dead bear. If anyone can comment on the subject, it's people like him, in the industry, who see more than many of us ever will.
Brad, how far was the shot on that cow elk and what was the reaction, trailing job?

Awesome pics Dan!!

47.3 grains,new nosler 308 brass resized, didn't measure oal ( just short enough to fit in the ruger box). 5 shot group measured .953 (ragged hole). Chrony's batteries were acting up.... so I don't have any speeds ( sometimes it's better without them)

pa_gus, thats's nice, wish I could keep 3 cloverleafing-never mind 5! Light rifles are difficult to shoot well, thats what I've realized but its a hunting rifle so plenty accurate for my needs. Though it's frustrating to know it has potential to go .5"
Got to the range today, 5 degrees cloudy,with 5 km crosswind.
1st half went pretty decent then had a guy shooting a 300WBY with a bigazz brake sit next to me-had to time my shots between his.
Anyway, my chrono was off also-batteries probably so no velocity readings today, but shot typically- 2 touching and 1 out.
Only this session the 2 touching were almost in same hole with TAC, 1st time I've done that, could be indicative that it might be the magic powder for this rifle.
Now I'm anxious to know the speeds.

8208 XBR-1.3" edge to edge

TAC 1.5" edge to edge

Did a dry newspaper test for kicks with heavy bullets, just to see what kind of penetration and expansion I could expect from these weights and speeds.(except 185 tsx, shot it to convince myself it would open )
185tsx, 210 tsx, 250 partition, 225 hdy intrlok, 250 sierra
Hrdy and sierra got mangled pretty good- didnt expect it at that impact velocity, maybe 2100 fps, guesstimating here.

I'll have to dig up some pics of 185 TTSXs (and 210s) shot into magazines. They opened much wider than those TSXs. I presume impact speeds were comparable.

It could be because these were shot into dry newsprint, probably why it didn't expand the 1st time and prompted my original post.
Hollow point of tsx requires a fluid medium to create hydrolic force to begin expansion. Ttsx on the other hand initiates expansion by forcing plastic tip into enlarged cavity-should expand hitting anything.
That's the theory but doesn't always work that way as evidenced by Brad o's experience:
Quote..here's a TTSX I pulled out of a cow elk.... Didn't hit anything on the way in, 308 Win, 150 TTSX. Just didn't open and tumbled after impact found backwards on the off shoulder:end quote
(pic posted in this thread).
Sure would like to see those ttsx's!

Some pics of TTSXs (l-r, 210s, 185s and one 160)

prm, that's some nice expansion-picture perfect. Did you shoot them in wet magazines?

All dry magazines. To add, starting from the left is a 225 Accubond, 4x 210 TTSXs, 7x 185 TTSXs, 1x 160 TTSX, top of the row of three is a 210 Scirocco II, middle is a 200 Ballistic Silvertip, bottom is a 200 Hot Cor and to the right are 3x 180 BTs (all are .338 cal bullets)

PRM, Anything hit with those bullets would certainly fill your freezer! Have you taken any game with the 185 tsx yet?
Waiting for chance to get out and get some speeds on those TAC and xbr loads, I`ll post them for anyone`s interest/curiosity.

I've shot one hog, one buck and one bull elk with the 185 TTSX (two powered by XBR, one by TAC). No complaints from me on performance. All bullets were pass throughs, even one on the elk that went in high at the back of the right ribs and exited in front of the left front leg.

Thanks for the info- how far was your elk?

Only ~80yds.

Steeply downhill through the gap just up and left of the barrel.

Like the camo on your rifle- did you buy it that way or paint it?

Went to range this morning, 5 degrees and cloudy with about a foot of fog on the ground-targets not clear but what the heck, I was there.
PRM, thanks for heads up on those powders.
Speeds are with 5 shot avg. at max for both loads-
2,727 with 8208xbr and
2,762 with TAC 1.5" groups for both loads.
Need to measure case head expansion for safe pressure levels and pretty sure I can shrink those groups on a clearer day based on previous targets.

I shot a 160 lb boar over the weekend using 338 Federal/185 TTSX combo. Shot was about 50 yards. He was quartering too and hit him on the point of the shoulder. He dropped right there and kicked for about 20 seconds. Bullet exited offside ribs, turned the heart inside out and jellied the lungs.

I couldn't ask for better performance. Picture kind of sucks. Once we hosed off all the mud, he was a pretty charcoal grey.

Send them to me I'll get rid of the pos for you.

Nice hog. If you get the chance, try a hog with a 160 TTSX at ~3k and see how it does vs. the 185. I'm curious. Wish I could hunt hogs anytime. Good bullet test medium!

Pretty sure it would be the same result. I do have some 160s but I have several lifetimes supply of 180/200 NBTs, 210 Partitions and 200 Hot Cors.

No doubt about the outcome. Just curious about the wound channel with a couple hundred extra FPS. Seemed better on an elk, but that's only one data point.