Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Two Tipped TSX's recovered in a row

What weight TSX .375 bullet?

Damn. I keep putting those things into deer and I've got zero return on the investment.

I have gone so far as to drag a metal detector out to where I thought I might get one back out of the dirt. I found where one hit the dirt about fifty yards beyond where Bambi stood, but that one bounced. The only one I've got back like that was out of the dirt where another guy shot the deer. The best I have done was a petal out of one that my 300 WM put into Bambi's teeth at 25 feet. That petal lodged into the spinal process above the hips.

I am doubtful I have enough years left to get one back before I die.

Matt,

Are you certain it didn't hit something first and then hit the rib already tumbling? How'd it get bent inside the chest, how'd it get a dented base if it hit the rib first?

On my range I use a half a mile of aspen cutting for backstop and I find a hugely disproportionate number of Barnes butt first into the trees. I am pretty sure they open a little and the the partially opened end acts like a drag and they keep moving butt first and still rotating so they are more inclined to stay butt first.

all the .375s are 300 grains.

the one that tumbled was a 160gr out of a 280ai

I don't think so, but you never know. the entry wound in the skin was round and the near rib was hit just on the edge.

Many hunters like to believe some expanding bullets will tumble, and some won't. The truth is they all will, given the right (or wrong) circumstances. And sometimes they'll tumble and end up as a perfect mushroom.

But, when a bullet tumbles it oftens vectors off on some new direction other than the intended one.

Not sure how Matt's bullet ended up with the posterior all dented up but it sure didn't behave like we would like to believe they should.

I think if you want to stop an X type bullet you need to wait until your bull walks in front of a tree so the tree can catch it!

Let's just say bullets that tumble sometimes veer off. Most that I've recovered that weren't pointed forward still stayed pretty much on course.

I just ran a 55 gr TTSX through a dink this morning...didnt 'catch' it....

The mono bullet fellas better continue to "tune" their offerings as we have a little issue with "no lead" bullets heading our way at some point.

Ah. But thats not related to the bullet being a barnes, just the way the cookie crumbles... arrows even do the same exact things... some things you cannot control.

Looks like those TTSX's are slippin. powdr

When spitzer bullets don't expand they immediately tumble. Bet that's what happened here.

Interesting theory.

I"ve had 2 that never expanded. One I knew would not, holes were punched on a line basically.

The other we expected to expand. Hit a rib in and rib out in a basic straight line. never saw an example of tumbling.

I have seen them bend and tumble when hitting hard stuff at hard angles though.

I have some bullets loaded for my 300/221 that are supposed to tumble and no way they will open, one of these days I will be brave enough to simply see... not yet though.

IMHO & E the 300's in 375 have too long if a shank and need a faster twist to remain 100% stabile after impact. The same with the 200 grainers in 30 caliber. I shooter nothing in mono metals heavier than 180 in 30 caliber, 225 in 338 caliber and 270 in 375 caliber.

i *THINK* it was Finn Aagaard, possibly Gayana, that liked using a certain type of FMJ 303 Brit military load on game up to the size of zebra because it tumbled after impact making for as devastating a wound as a expanding bullet.....even tumbling they staid on course well enough to be reliable on animals weighting 600 pounds or better....

I sure want to see about tumbling in the 300/221, but I"m a bit scared.. I wished I had a way to test the things before I do on a deer.... if they tumble, they will do good damage and be a good hunting bullet, but if they don't.... it would suck a bit.

Given enough medium all bullets will tumble. The all want to travel base first as the center of gravity is reawrd. Expansion and twist help keep things point forward. A bullet that consistently tumbles can be very devastating in tissue.



Rost,


What bullet are you talking about in your 300/221?

Well Barnes lost my business due to constant tuning and inconsistant results with the earlier designs. Went back to partitions and never looked back.

Those fuggers, why do they continue to try to improve a product. I quite buying cars after the changes between a 67 Chevy and a 81 Chevy.