Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters 140-grain Ballistic Tips (7 mm)

The 7 mm 150 has a reputation as a tough bullet but you don't hear much about the 140.

For those that have used them on elk-sized game and bigger, how tough are they??

I'll be watching this topic as I'm currently working with 150 BT, then see if 150 AB shoot the same. Found 2800 fps w/imr4350 for the 150. 21" bbl.

Like to try the 140 BT. Goal of 2900 fps for this boolit.

The 140 BT was beefed up for Silhouette shooters to knock over the Ram or which ever target was heavier better. Then the 120 was made by shortening the same 140 jacket and is heavier still than the 140. All are good. Just me but I would pick the Accubond over the BT for Elk but then I have never shot an Elk with a BT either. I am sure it would result in a dead Elk.

Interesting. I'd always heard that it was the 120 that was beefed up for silhouette shooters. You learn something new every day, thanks.

I’ve killed lots of deer and pigs with the the 140. Very good bullet

What speeds hanco? 280 AI speeds?

I always thought I needed 150's in my 7's. But, the 140's worked so good I just kept hunting with them.

I have shot BT 140's for years.. My old 7mm Mag. loves them..Have shot everything from coyotes to moose with them ... I have a very good load for that caliber.. Very fast.. My late wife shot her last moose with this combo, it was a huge cow.. She had a solid rest and shot her just behind the shoulder about 1/3 of the way up.. The moose took one step and dropped..
I current have this 7 loaded with 168 Bergers.. When I shoot those away, my load will be the 140's..

I've used the 140 grain BT and C-T BST to take some deer and a few dozen hogs. From my 7mm Bullberry at 2450 fps MV and from a couple of 24" 7-30 Waters barrels I used to have at 2600 fps, they performed beautifully, destroying plenty of tissue and penetrating more than adequately -- and often exiting.

From a larger-capacity cartridge and for elk, I'd likely go for the Accubond, but place the BT properly and it'll get the job done as well.

I took this buck from 230 yards with a frontal/slight quartering shot that penetrated from the left side of the chest diagonally to the right hip. MV was 2451 fps.

I've shot truckloads of deer with the 140 BT out of a 7mm rem mag but I think that was before they were beefed up. They expanded violently and put deer down quick. I'm not sure exactly when they toughened them up, nosler has a way of doing stuff like that and not announcing it.

While it's a great deer bullet, there's no way I'd shoot one at an elk as long as the accubond was available for just a few pennies more. That choice is a no-brainer in my opinion.

They don’t make a 7mm 150 grain Accubond. The 150 BT is tough

The few times I've used accubonds i was not overly impressed.

Then you'll probably be much less impressed with the ballistic tip on an animal the size of an elk. The elk I took a month ago was with a 145 Barnes LRX out of a 7mm rem mag. I surely wouldn't wanted to have shot him with a 140 ballistic tip, though I'm sure there are some that have done it. I like bullets that'll break shoulders though, which the LRX did on my bull.

Crow, you are right.. I have a father and son that have killed dozens of elk with 7mm BTBT and 30 BTBT's.. As far as I know, they have never lost an elk.. They kill at least one a piece each year..

I'm not anti ballistic tip, I've lost count of the number of whitetails I've killed with the 140 BT out of a 7mm rem mag, well over 100 I'm sure. Out of those I can't remember ever having an exit hole. They expand fast and violently. Heck, I had one blow up on a rib of a 100 lb. whitetail doe once, it left an 8" hole in the side with lung exposed and she went 200 yds before she bled out. I tracked her by the blood pattern sprayed 2' on the side of trees as she ran by them. My experience on elk is limited but I want a tougher bullet for an animal that size. Maybe if I lived in elk country and hunted them all the time I'd feel differently, heck Eskimos hunt polar bears with .223's. Meat hunting for smaller cows or if I could afford to be choosy about my shots might also make me feel differently. A more suitable bullet for elk might cost an extra 10 cents a piece, no reason to skimp on something like that.

Why not?

Crow, I understand your point and you have a very valid one also.. I would be the same if I had to make a long trip to hunt anything.. We have had good luck with BTBT both my friends and I.. But because they work well for us, doesn't mean everyone will have the same experience. I like BTBT, but I hunt a lot of open country.. I have killed a number of elk with the 150 gr. BTBT from my .300... But again it was open country.. Lately, I have used the Accubond quite a bit because sometimes I want to make a high shoulder shot.. They perform very well on elk smashing the bones and giving a quick kill.. Conventional bullets don't always do both..

Well, the Nosler AccuBond Long Range box in front of me (nosler p/n 58734, 7mm caliber (.284 spitzer) 150 grain, 100 ct.) says Nosler does make a 150 ab. G1BC=.611, G7BC=.309

Has a gray polymer tip. Box says I can kill deer, elk, bear, moose, african game. Wonder if it will a pronghorn at 200 yards? Might over-penetrate.

Over penetrate that's JeffO talk

lol,

I've used it quite a bit out of a 7-08. It does really well at about 2800. Ive only shot deer and hogs with it. It usually exits on a broadside shot if a shoulder isn't hit. Otherwise, sonetimes there's an exit and sometimes not. I like it but it wouldn't be my go to for elk

Over a hundred whitetails without an exit is a pretty strong record. Not all bullet designs need an exit to work but 0/100 is not really what I'm looking for. I'm thinking there must be something different about the 120 and 150 (both have a reputation as a tough bullet) vs the 140. People like dogzapper have killed a truckload of BG with the 120 and swear by it. Same with the 150, I recall Mark D. had killed a truckload of elk with it. And then you hear anecdotes like the one here:

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbt...6/gonew/1/the-280ai-strikes-again#UNREAD


Maybe I'll just stick with the 150.

Lots of bullet fragments in the meat even at slow speeds. And yes, I know that lots of people swear by them.

Why did you shoot the animal in the meaty part? I used the 140 gr. Ballistic tips on a few animals, it worked exactly as expected and as designed. Which is a bullet designed to expand at long range and physics demands that any bullet designed to expand at low velocities will expand even more at higher velocities. If you used this bullet at high velocities at close range and hit meat what would you expect?

I didn't shoot the animals in the meaty part, bullet fragments came from the ribs. And I didn't shoot the animals at high velocity. 2,800 fps MV at 300 and 400 yards.

Have you used the 140 Ballistic tips on animals bigger than deer? That's the subject of the thread, not Accubonds. I'm not arguing about accubonds, as I said, I understand that many people swear by them.

Bullet fragments in ribs don't concern me at all. I haven't used the 140 on game larger than deer but have used the 150 gr. Ballistic Tips on Aoudad and Waterbuck which are pretty chunky and elk. I'm sure there were fragments in the ribs but I don't keep the ribs so it doesn't concern me.

I load my 7 mag140 Ballistic tips at 3100 fps. I shoot them right in the front shoulders. Dead right there. I don’t like looking for dead deer in the cactus, dodging rattle snakes. I hunt close to the fence line, gone if they go over.

That's good to know.

Hanco, how do the 140s hold up on those shoulder shots?

[/quote]

Interesting. I'd always heard that it was the 120 that was beefed up for silhouette shooters. You learn something new every day, thanks.
[/quote]

This is true but the demand for the 120 first came from IHMSA pistol shooters but became popular with the rifle shooters too.

I have shot deer for years with 140 gr BT 3265 fps 7mmRemMag

but in 2017 I decided to try 140 gr accubond

I zero'd the scope at 260 yards instead of 200.

I just wanted to be different this year.

Gotcha, I thought you were referring to a regular Accubond/Ballistic Tip combo, like the 140 grainers which are identical. The ABLR is different from the 150 BT so might not match up well.

The AB and the LRAB are not really the same bullet. About the only things they have in common are the bonding process and the name on the box.

Identical, come again?

They went right through, broke both shoulders, deer dead in his tracks. I have killed many 150lb and up pigs the same way, goes all the way through. I use a lot of ballistic tips and Barnes TTSX.

Smoke, I meant identical in exterior size, shape and weight. As in, you can use the BT to sight in and practice, then swap out to the AB to hunt with.

If I’m wrong, please advise. Thanks

Got it. I think the BCs are the same so that makes sense.

Thanks Hanco. Something's not adding up, with another poster saying 100+ whitetails with the 140 BT and not a single pass-through.

If I catch pigs this weekend or get a shot at some not trapped in feeder pen, I will take pics I’ve shot several dozen with ballistic tips that passed through both shoulders. They knocked fire out of them.

Well thanks, but not necessary. Frankly I have a hard time believing anyone could shoot 100+ whitetails with any bullet and get zero pass-throughs.

Brother shot a mule deer with a 280 remington and a 140 ballistic tip this year. Hit ribs going in and did not exit at about 75 yards. Deer ran 40 yards and tipped over. Sample of one. I don't care about pass throughs but shoot bigger bullets in my .284 caliber stuff.

OK, I guess I just told you that for schits & giggles. Believe what you want, even better get off the couch & go shoot something yourself & make your own observations since you seem OK with calling me a liar for relaying my own.

Thanks, will do.

I could believe 0 out of 100 easily if the 140 BT went through the first/second generation jacket thickening process. I think it did as my initial experience with them was they were the same as the solid base as far as fragmenting. I tried to call Nosler tech services to find out but gave up after being on hold too long. Will try to Email for my own curiosity to get the history of the 140 BT.

Just this last Saturday I had a 95 gr. BT 6mm get stopped by a 165 lb. Buck. Performance was great but this bullet has a reputation for toughness and it din't make it to the far shoulder at about 75 yards so maybe too much velocity. The lungs were unrecognizable. I couldn't find the base of the bullet in the dark. A one time incident or the norm? Guess I will have to drop 99 more deer to tell with it.

PS, don't take it personally, I'm not calling you a liar. If you read what I said, it was pretty general. It is hard to believe that zero out of a hundred+ passed through on something the size of a deer. Especially when other posters are saying they routinely get pass-throughs on shoulder shots.

Agreed...

Ok, I'll tell you my experience with the 7mm 140 gr. Ballistic Tip. I have probably shot close to a hundred deer and a few antelope with them out of a .280 going close to 3100 fps. I can only recall one bullet that did not exit. A buck that was shot down through the shoulder and lodged against the skin in the ham. All others were mostly broadside shots and complete pass throughs. I have used them since they have been on the market and I did hear at one time that Nosler toughened them up. So that's my story.

Regards, John.

I don't believe that for one second.




That, I believe.

You boys are rough. He didn't say that he didn't have an exit in 100 deer shot, he said he couldn't remember having one.

Well, I said I found it hard to believe anyone with any bullet could shoot 100+ whitetails and not have a pass-through, and he thought I was calling him a liar.

So it's pretty clear what he meant.

140 Ballistic tip. 7 mag. This am. Entrance and exit. 170 yards. I hit him a touch high. I think bullet went through. 125 lb pig

Kinda hard to tell in that second photo.

Poor old Leupold scope looks like it failed also.

My sample size of four animals two cow elk, and two mule deer bucks shot at 100-250 yards, with 280 remington handloads. Three pass throughs, one off side shoulder shot didn't exit. No complaints from me.