Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles Bonded Bullet Experience

John:It's true that there is a BIG difference in bonded bullets. When the Trophy Bonded was first introduced by Jack Carter (way back when) he tried to make them like the Bitterroots, but for whatever reason they would not perform as well as the B'roots.I think I still have a few of the originals. He then went to the solid shank, which I guess improved things, although you've written, if I remember, they became more consistent after Federal started making them. Given the success of the X bullet, you may be right about the small lead section of the Trophy Bonded.

Point is there is no "magic" in bonding unless the maker understands what he wants to accomplish and "tweaks" materials and production methods.I know Steigers was offered the opportunity to mass-produce Bitterroots but never did because he felt mass manufacturing would compromise bullet quality and performance.

Mule Deer, the original question was geared toward the plastic tip variety bonded bullets. I guess, therefore, that I am asking about the compact station wagon.

Accubonds Rock!

I have used them on all type of big game out here in the 300 and 7mm RUMS and no complaints at all. My results mirror the aforementioned.

I have no complaints about the Accubonds that I have loaded and shot at game, both here and in Namibia. In my experience, they perform as advertised...

I cannot get an opinion at all..........................................from the 7 dead animals I have shot with Accubonds. All passthroughs.

I decided to go with the Winchester Accubond in my 280 this past fall. Previously I had used the Ballistic Silvertip, but was always destroying the off shoulder with a heart/lung shot. A young buck ambled by my stand, looked up at me, walked off and then stopped about 30-40 yards away.

I shot him but he just stood there. After 2 more shots, which apparently had no effect, he walked off. I got down out of my stand after a few minutes and walked over to where I thought he was standing when I was shooting - no blood. About 40 yards from me I noticed him raising his head up and down as if trying to get up. After waiting a few minutes for him to succumb, an impatient neck shot finished him off.

When we skinned him, almost the whole left side was destroyed. I found one perfectly mushroomed Accubond just inside the hide on the off side. Later on I thought because they were bonded the others just zipped through without opening up because I didn't get any response from the deer, but there was a lot of meat damage - only half of the meat was useable. I lack a explanation.

correction - Nosler Accubond loaded by Federal

kyreloader--

Ah! Then I guess we are talking about the Hornady Interbond, Nosler AccuBond and Swift Scirocco II.

The Hornady and Scirocco retain more weight than the AccBond, but open wider so penetration will average less. I have gotten the best accuracy out of AccuBonds, on average, but all are more than accurate enough for general hunting.

The AccuBond's terminal performance is geared around the same principle as the Nosler Partition: It's designed to lose the front third or so of the bullet as tiny pieces of core and jacket. This supposedly helps them kill deer-sized animals quicker, while allowing deep peentration. This has been my general experience with AccuBonds--but if that initial quick expansion and disintegration takes place on, say, the shoulder meat of an animal, then the rest of the bullet makes a smaller hole.

The wider front of the Hornady and Swift tends to create an overall larger hole than the AccuBond--but penetration is therefore more limited.

JB

MD,

You say the penetration is less with the Hornady and Swift, but in your opinion, is it plenty for the average deer or are pass throughs rare?
I value two holes more so than dropping on the spot.

Hello All
What about the Hawk's just ordered some in 338x225gr. Any opinions?
nelson

Fact #1, I have no experiance shooting game with bonded bullets. So please don't hang me, I'm just passing this on.
This past summer one of my buddies hunted plains game in Sth Afr using a 300wsm with Federal ammo and Nosler Accubonds (I think 180s). He shot 14 animals animals and claimed to have had several blow ups on shoulders. I had not heard of this happening with Accubonds. Then last week his PH was visiting over here and we got togehter for dinner. The PH also told the same tale. Blow ups on shoulders with penatration in some cases not into the chest cavity. Something doesn't sound right. I saw the ammo box and they did say Accubond but sure sounds more like ballistic tip. I wish I had been there to dig for bullets. Just gives us something to talk about.

ps all other hunters in party used fail safes and raved about them

I'm not shocked.Could never understand why Nosler designed a bonded bullet to LOSE weight.

33806

Hawk bullets are not bonded, the pure copper jacket is annealed, or softened, so that it will peel back with the pure lead core. I have done a couple of searches on Hawk bullets and they seem to do best with low to moderate velocities, other wise they loose their cores.

Hello All
264bore thanks I will be launching them @ about 2500-2600fps as my 338-06 has always seemed to be about 50-100fps behind most realoding manual data. Possibly due to a 22" tube.
nelson

Dear 33806: if you ordered the HAWKS with the .035 jacket you will be FINE. IMHO anyone who experienced a jacket/core separation did not order the right bullet for the job. If I had to limit myself to only one bullet (Heaven forbid!) it would be HAWK. Regards, and I love that caliber too.

My personal experience on game is limited to North Fork, with which I am very pleased. My buddy uses Trophy Bonded and they have worked well also.

Since we primarily hunt elk, I made a decision to stay away from bullets that did not have some means of positively limiting expansion. The North Fork and Trophy Bonded do this with the solid shank in the rear, the A-Frame does it with a Partition-like crossmember.

I've killed 6 deer with the 110gr accubond from my 25.06. It's very accurate in my rifle and it's performance on game has been excellent for me. Closest shot was 60yds and the longest was 286yds with no bullet recovery. All but one fell in the scope when i squeezed the trigger and the one that didn't only went 20yds and fell within sight. Pencil sized hole going in, nickle size hole coming out with a nice wound channel. Very good bullet!

Quite simply, the very best bonded bullets that I have ever used have been the Swift A-Frame and the North Fork. The Trophy-Bonded Bearclaw has almost been as good as those two, but not quite. But as a whole, these three bullets have been head and shoulders above all the rest of them in terms of reliable terminal performance

I have no positive comments to offer on any of the other bonded bullets I've tried, other than the fact that some of them make pretty, petite groups on paper off the bench..........

AD

Pass-through on a 150lb East TX whitetail at ~130yds quartering away left-to-right at a light trot. Hit directly on right shoulder and exited in front of the left shoulder. Exit hole was the size of a quarter.

.30-06 Springfield Load:
Case=R-P once-fired, neck-sized
Powder=51.4gr IMR4064 (~3000fps)
Primer=CCI Magnum
Bullet=150gr Accubond