Good day.

I have to ask this as we only receive products from the US some time after you guys get to use it.

Does any of you guys know whether the tip will help the expansion of the MKs? It seems like the BCs will be improved as well?

If they expend better I would love to try some 168s in my 30-06. But guess we might only be able to get them mid to late 2015.

Pieter

Yes. Consistent terminal performance is greatly improved over SMK's.

Looking forward to trying them.

Have you tested them?

They aren't out yet, supposed to be "this month", but somewhere I ran across suggested perhaps not in component form until next quarter.

Built for easy BC #'s.

I ordered some directly from Sierra,they said avaliable 1-2015.
They also said"not recommended for hunting"
Mike

The TMK's were designed for a specific purpose. Increase the BC, increase terminal performance while reducing variability, and be mag length tolerant. They do all four.

Is the base to ogive length still the same as the 175 SMK without a tip?

Form:

I thought terminal performance was never a concern for Sierra, just accuracy.

Jeffbird,

The ogive is different between the SMK and TMK.








Depends on the application.

Seirra MatchKings are only tested for accuracy and Seirra's and are not recomended for hunting And never will be as long as themilitary is using them.

might not be suggested.. but I've never seen one fail to kill very well....

I have seen 168gr MK fail to open from the .308 Win but would agree in most cases it is a decent game bullet.

This new Tipped MK has a bunch of potential in the 5.56. I have used the 75gr AMAX in mag length 5.56 and it kills deer better than most anything else. I just keep getting too many weird flyers to really trust it for longer range game shooting when loaded to mag length.

I hoped the Berger 70gr VLD would beat the Hornady 68gr HPBT but it really is not a great improvement. Both work great on game out to 350yds but get spotty at 16 inch velocity beyond.

What I really wish for is a 70gr AMAX, 69gr Tipped MK, or a 70gr Tipped VLD with a secant ogive setup for mag loading. Better intial muzzle velocity than the 77gr with the fast expanding qualities of the poly tipped bullets.

Until then I am going to try a few of the Tipped MKs in 77gr.

The 300 SMK out of the 338 Laupa is devastating on game, so is the 175 SMK out of a 300 WSM. The 240 SMK is also out of a 300 RUM

I will be testing the 350 SMK for long range steel killing out of my 375 VM2. Just topped the rifle with an NF NXS 8-32 power.

Gotta be a blast at 3400 fps!

There was an article written some years ago now, titled "the best hunting bullet", by Gary Sciuchetti. Was a comparison of 30-cal bullets fired into deer at varying velocities.
The 175SMK has a narrower window, or higher velocity requirement in order to fragment; but that shouldn't be a news flash to anyone.
That article, can still be found online

Here it is

A tipped 69 SMK would definitely spark my interest. I am down to 300 69 SMKs. Maybe the lowest total in decades.

Like Hornady, Sierra is even MORE reluctant to combine hunting with match bullets, IMO. IME, they want you 2 buy 2 different bullets for 2 different things, not one for everything.

Take note, that Hornady used to recommend A-maxes for thin skinned game(check the old manuals). But, as soon as more bullets were developed/produced, they now do not recommend them for hunting(check the new manuals). This has nothing to do with a change in the bullet or it's performance, but merely a change in marketing strategy with sales the obvious driving factor.........

Do you work for Sierra?

Just curious how you know this, if they aren't available yet.

When can we expect these? Any idea on price?

Golly gee, whodda thunk it?

I ordered 400 69 gr TMK's directly from Sierra on Saturday,just got an e-mail from UPS.
They're on their way !!!
Mike

In my earlier years I used 7 mm Match Kings out of my Ruger #1 Rem Mag on elk. Deadly accurate and and not a single elk ever complained. Then I found out one should not do that.

That's interesting.

BC is supposed to be 0.365 on the G1. That equals the 70gr VLD and the 77 SMK but adds, hopefully better expansion.

If it is as promised this is going to be a great bullet for mag fed ARs.

Will the 77 grain work in AR mags or is that why Sierra offered the 69 grain version?

Just trying to figure out which ones to order as I'll be using them stricly in my ARs.

According to Sierra both the TMKs will work through the mag when loaded normally.

I think the 69gr will be better for me as I shoot 16 inch barrels and the 77gr starts pretty slow (2700 for full power 5.56) from a 16. The extra 125fps for the 69gr flattens the shorter range trajectory and aids in getting expansion.

Both have the potential to substantially increase performance over the non tipped SMKs.

Thanks for that info, John. All my barrels are 16" also, but do have a 20" in the works. Time to order up a bunch of the 69s.

I am looking froward to someone trying these out and reporting back. THe one thing that might be a headache is the price, as Sierra prices went through the roof over the last few months here in South-Africa.

Hopefully some of the 30 cal offerings will reach us soon. IF they expand these to more calibers, we might see the first 7mm Sierra with a decent BC

Pieter

Yes, I may try the 69's in my 20", I have a great shooting RRA 24" Varmiter, the 77's should be just right for that one.

I brought back some sample bullets from the SHOT Show this year. I added them to the bullets I had on hand for the picture. I don't have everything on the market pictured, but it's a pretty decent summary of the higher-BC .224 bullets currently available:


From left to right:
1 - Hornady 68gr BTHP (.355 BC)
2 - Sierra 69gr Match King (.301)
3 - Sierra 69gr Tipped Match King (.375)
4 - Berger 73gr Match BT Target (.343)
5 - Hornady 75gr BTHP (.395)
6 - Hornady 75gr A-Max (.435)
7 - Berger 77gr Match OTM Tactical (.376)
8 - Sierra 77gr Tipped Match King (.420)
9 - Berger 80gr Match VLD Target (.445)
10 - Nosler 80gr HPBT Custom Competition (.415)
11 - Berger 80.5gr Match Fullbore Target (.436)

The folks at Sierra said they designed the new TMKs to fit in confines of an AR mag. The 77gr version seems to be the highest BC available for AR-length mags, while the 69gr seems to be the highest BC available for 1-9" twist rifles. Sierra said the new TMKs were already shipping.

The Berger 77gr Tactical is supposed to fit in an AR mag, as well, but it does't seem to offer as high of a BC as the Sierra.

Thanks for the info!

My 69 SMK's arrived yesterday.
4 days !!!
Hope to be trying them soon.
Mike

Always nice to see new bullets.

Mike, please post your results

Here ya go
http://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/9559579/all/Sierra_TMK_range_report

I was able to get 500 of the 77's on the way from Midway also.
Mike