Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Express Rifles and Big Bores Only Bullet Deformation from Recoil

I am assuming its not a big deal, but I noticed at yesterday's shooting session that the recoil from my 375 was blunting/flattening the rounded lead tips of the 260 Nosler Partitions in the magazine. They still shot good - grouped same POI, same general grouping size, but that was only out to 100 yards. Should I have any concern with this in a field/hunting situation were I may have to take a 250-300 yard shot?

Use them. I have the same problem with my 300 H&H. They still have same POA at 200yds,

Of greater import is the deeper seating of bullets in magazine rounds. In loads that do not fill the case, that is. Found that out using W 760 and 300-grainers in my .375 Weatherby. No bueno!!

It's been happening to me for 50 years to no effect! Just shoot them.

Hiaring8, That is one of the "many" reasons that I went to Barnes Bullets in the early '90's! memtb


According to some tests many years ago, deformed tips are far less harmful than are damaged bases!

Hornady actually changed the 270 SP because of deformation.
Seems idiotic to think that a anyone would be able to tell the difference on game. And reasonable hunting distances.
Now yes...rested at the range, from highly accurate rifle under ideal conditions...someone might be able to pull out calipers and tell a miniscule difference BUT...we are talking about hunting bullets are we not?
I bought up every box of the old exposed tip 270 Hornady I could find for below costs prices. Probably have 600 laid up.

Ringworm, I bought a box of 1000 "blems" ( for about $112.00) about 15 years ago from Lock, Stock, and Barrel! Have quite a few left that I'm saving for hard times. I wish that I had bought two boxes!! Both of my .375's really like them!
memtb

I put a pretty heavy crimp on my round that crimps the brass into the crimp ring on the nosler bullet. Havent had any issues with bullet seating deeper from the recoil. On a side note, have noticed a little better consistency on the velocity since starting to crimp these rounds.

It is a non issue in hunting rifles.

I published an article maybe 30 years ago where I tested this using a couple of cartridges ( .222 or maybe it was a .223 and a 9.3x62 where using pliers, I cut off tips, crushed ogives and bent tips over and there was no difference with the 9.3 and a little difference with the .224 during 100yd grouping.

John

Same as others have posted. Don't worry about the tips, but maybe take the last round out of the mag and reuse it through a few mag fulls to see if the bullet is setting back in the brass. I've had some pretty mangled tips and it stills seems to shoot the same. I use to worry about it until I started just shooting more and realized pretty much everything else would make more of a difference.

Yup, and back in the day when I thought it mattered, I'd re-round the lead tips by turning them in the wood on the hitching post at camp.

Along with accuracy, I worried about the buggered tips effecting function.

I've wondered...
If I could have a tunnel 250 yards long with zero wind, 100% constant atmospheric conditions and test barrel permanently affixed to a unmovable table.
If I used 100% identical brass and primers, powder weighed to the 1/100th of a grain and bullets weighed as well.
If loaded to exactly the same depth and OAL and neck tightness and fired two groups. One using pristine bullets and the other with deformed ...

Would the difference in the two groups be less than or greater than...
The charges @ 1/10thgrain
The brass unweighed
The primers?
The out of box unweighed projectiles?
A 10° temp variation?

Certainly there would be zero difference in groups fired from standard off bench rest. Much less a hunting rifle from field conditions.

Sowho are the makers trying to fool? Just the fools?

You need a Guage to measure a the ogive if you want to measure setback.
And you need to measure each cartridge seperatly.
Tip to ogive can vary, and if the tips get messed up you can't use OAL

This says it all...

Sometimes we know too much for our own good. Then we worry about nothing.

Bubba, you all know him. He kills lots of deer. With his pos rifle and scope.
He has 3 brands of cartridges in his pocket, 2 different bullet shapes, and only
God knows how many different bullet shapes.



This hurts to say, but F'n Bubba, has on occasion out shot my dumb asss.
Not real competition, but "let's see who can hit that rock".

Used to hunt with a guy, he used a case length gauge to determine trim length. Sighting in, he would say, "have to remember she is shooting a little left".
SOB couldn't miss an animal, even at decent distances. Used to really get my goat.

My STW really pancakes the tips of the 150gr Partition during recoil. Accuracy never really bothered me as much as me thinking they might get hung up on the feed ramp cycling another round. Fortunately neither one has ever been an issue.