This is a later response to your excellent research and detailed scientific approach. Many thanks.
I have use 200 gr Silvertips,Barnes 250s, Hornady 200FPs, Alaska Bullet Works 250 Bonded Core, and custom weights in the Hawk Bullet from 190-to 300 gr.
Yes-Andy Hill at Hawk made up a 4-box run of 225 GR bullets and others up to 300 gr-the 300gr for .348 Ackley Improved.
I sometimes think the ideal bullet weight for all-around use may be around 220-230 grs. It has enough mass and can be pushed to around 2375-2400 FPS in most
originally chambered 348WCF rifles. The bullet construction, that being said-is probably more important than bullet weight once
weight goes above a nominal 200 grains.
I have some boxes of original 250 gr bullets in "Standing Bear" boxes but I am reluctant to use those because of rarity and value. John Kronfeld and
Harold Johnson tested them- and Johnson found their performance on large bears as poor to unacceptable.
I am intrigued by the good luck you had with the Hornady FP 200 gr bullet. I tend to think it out performs the 200 gr Silvertip and Remington older 200
gr corelokt bullet.
The only bullet that I want to try out-is the 230 gr North Fork bullet, which the founder of North Fork wanted unchanged due to its performance as a bonded core 230 gr. The Woodleighs and the Alaska Bullet Works bullets are both 250 gr bonded core bullets-with close to identical performance.
