Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Barnes MRX frontal diameter?

Does the MRX open to a wider frontal diameter than the TSX?

I have been loading some 180's in my 300 WSM and the bullets that I recovered in the soft soil behind my target look like they expand to a much wider mushroom than the TSX's. This is bullet performance in soil thoughe and that is not always conclusive with real live flesh. Here is a picture of some that I recovered in the back stop...

The toungsten rear core is denser than the copper body and usually pushes forward throughe the copper and smashing the copper out and back into a large mushroom. The TSX will more than likely out penitrate the MRX in most situations but I believe the MRX will open up more reliably and open a larger wound chanel. Both are extremely well designed bullets. I did get the chance to use an MRX on a caribou at long range (500+yrds) and it dropped it just like the x-bullets normally do.

I would have thought that they would have the more typical "X" shape than a mushroom shape. Nice expansion though.

The 4 on the right in this picture are TSX's. The rest are all MRX's.

They appear to open up wider than the TSX. Penetration will be less no doubt.

In the pics, it appears that they open wider because the tungsten core is pushing up. Do you think that this is only because they are hitting dirt? will flesh have enough resistance to make the core push up like that?

That is indeed the question. Sand is alot tougher than any animal.

For instance, I have yet to see the rear end of a Nosler Partition do more than slightly bulge when recovered from an animal, no matter what kind of bone was hit--but have seen it when recovering them from sand backstops.

JB

It should, no?

I think that the MRX is definately going to prove to be an awesome performer. It probably wont penitrate quite as deep as the TSX but still out penitrate most of the competition and open up on thin skinned animals a litle more dependably. I am undecided if they are worth the extra money thoughe. I like the TSX and find it hard to beat. I shot a caribou at over 500 yrds with a 300WSM and 180 gr MRX and the exit hole looked just like a typical TSX hole and dropped the animal bang flop just like the TSX's. One thing to take note is most of the TSX's that I have recovered from dirt have weighed in at 175-180 grains where the MRX's wheighed in at 157-170 grains all of which started out as 180 grain bullets.

How much does the little plastic tip weight?

the MRX could be the best of both worlds...expansion and penetration

I think this is a widespread problem. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />

There was a picture of some bullets fired though a thin sheet of metal a while back. I can't remember if it was here or on accurate reloading, but the MRX hole was bigger than the TSX hole.

I don't know how much this relates to actual performance on big game animals, since the resistance of the metal would amplify the effect immediately, but it is interesting. I was thinking maybe on a broadside shot it might not act that much differently than a TSX, but if it hits bone the rear tungsten core might bulge and create a big mushroom.

http://www.barnesbullets.com/x-citingfacts.php

Looks like they open up well on steel plate.......

Read the Barnes link just above the picture. The plate was placed behind 1" of ballistic gel to show how quick they start expanding.

I wonder about this same effect, since it would be the opposite of what I would want to happen. If I hit bone, I hope for the same or smaller diameter, since it will be tougher to penetrate at that point. If the MRX actually gets bigger in bone, then it may not be much of a solution for the quick expansion AND deep penetration desire.

[quote]Read the Barnes link just above the picture. The plate was placed behind 1" of ballistic gel to show how quick they start expanding.

[/quote
Should work great on ballistic gel coated steel....

i do not believe that picture from barnes. Hornady Interbond's probably have the largest diameter of any bullet and yes i have seen it