Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting What are your favorite deer bullets and why? Bad experiences?

Simply put what are your favorite deer bullets and why? Any ones that failed or you would never use again?

What is your preferred factory deer ammo

140 grain Barnes TSX from a 7mm-08 lost the only deer that I've ever shot with a firearm. 5 drops of blood total and two days of looking turned up nothing from a broadside shot at about 60 yards. A deer the year before should have told me that bullet was not expanding much if at all when it had a nickle size hole through both lungs instead of lung mush that was more typical of cup and core bullets.
Hornady Interlocks and SST's and Remington Core-Lokts have worked the best so far. 140 Ballistic Tips are next up to try for that 7mm-08 given what I've read here.

I like 6mm Barnes 80 TTSX, 85 TSX, 95 grain Nosler BT, 100 grain Sierra Pro-Hunter, though the PH didn't always fully penetrate it always fully killed. This was in a .243.

Sierra 30 cal 165 HPBT GK, 165 Hornady IL both flat and BT, Speer 165 Hot core, Nosler 165 BT and AB. In both .308s and .30-06s.

For the .30-30, Hornady 170 FP IL is the best-shooting in my rifle.

For the .45-70, bullets I like are the 300 grain Speer UniCor and the Beartooth Bullets 420 grain Piledriver Jr. 300 grain Hornady HP shoots good in my .458 SOCOM and it doesn't push them to the point of getting frangible.

The only bullet I have used that I absolutely didn't like was the early 150 grain SSTs in a .308 rifle, literally blew up on close range shots but did OK in a .308 pistol with a 15" barrel. 500 fps made a difference.

I use Corelokts a good bit and Hornady flat base bullets. They work and never give me surprises. I load Nosler 120gr Ballistic Tips for my 7mm-08s. I've used Hornady SSTs some and while they didn't fail they seem a bit destructive.

In .30 caliber my favorite is Sierra 165gr. Game King and in .35 caliber (.35 Whelen) Hornady 200gr. Inter-lok RN and Sierra 225gr. Game King. I've used all of these bullets on whitetail with great success, never needed more than one shot.

i only use 2 brands and types these days Nosler Partitions and Swift A-Frames in my 257 Weatherby Mag. both worked great !

For shorter range deer hunting:

7/08, IMR 4895, 130g Speer btsp- is the absolute smack down on white tails

308 Win/30/06-165g speer btsp is awesome

108 elds out of a 6 Creed have worked very well for me. Haven’t had many “bad bullets” but I’ve caught more 120 BTs out of a 7mm-08 than anything else.

Of the lower end ammo Winchester Power Points have worked incredibly well. They are hard to get in my area though.

.Favorite deer bullets - in the '06 we use 180 grain bullets on deer and elk. We find the tougher bullets don't expand as much in deer and result in less bloodshot meat. They work fine on elk too.

'06 favorite deer bullets - Handloads- Nosler 180 gr Partition, TBBC 180 and 165 grain, Hornady 180 gr I/L, Factory loads Winchester 180 gr Power Point, Remington 180 gr PSP CorLokt [these have gotten pretty soft , I use them less and less].

.308 favorite deer bullets - Handloads-Hornady 150 grain I/L, Factory loads-150 grain Remington CoreLokts,

.243 Win favorite deer bullets - Handloads-Hornady 100 grain BTSP, Factory loads-Remington 100 grain PSP CoreLokt or Winchester 100 grain Power Point [When I can get them]

.338 Win Mag favorite deer bullets - Handload-Hornady 225 gr I/L, Factory - Federal 225 gr TBBC,

.35 Whelen favorite deer bullets - Handload-225 grain Sierra, Factory 225 grain TBBC This is a hard bullet and doesn't expand on deer as much as I like but it is the only factory load I use,

6.5x55 and 6.5 Creedmoor favorite deer bullets - Handloads-Hornady 129 gr I/L, I don't use factory from these.


Any ones that failed or you would never use again? I had a couple of odd results from 180 Corelokts in my '06 on deer about ten years past. In two cases I never recovered the animal though I saw the hit on the ribs. In the third got the deer but had to shoot her twice. I haven't used them much since but when I have they worked OK. I am still suspicious of them though and only use them occasionally.

Nosler Partitons or Sierra whether it be Gamekings or Prohunters.

Really wanting to try the Nosler Ballistic Tip 80 grain in my 6mm, just need to get some and load them to see how they shoot.

Foe many years I just used plain old Core-Lokt bullets in all of my rifles and can honestly say I never had a bad experience with them including a one shot kill on a 5X5 elk. Most recently I have been using Federal Fusions and no disappointments with them either.

I like 180 grain power shok in my 308

Some Sierra’s, but mostly Nosler and Barnes bullets.

Had a Core loktt deflect on a rib shot at a bad angle, had excessive meat loss with Nosler Solid base, early Ballistic Tips, and early SSts. Only bullet that I might not use again is the Berger VLD. If I knew shots would be at 300 + yards they would be great, at closer ranges there is too much blood shot meat and even with clean looking cuts there was still lead in the meat. I can't really say I have had an out right failure with any bullet just some didn't perform as hoped.

How about putting most any current design 'medium game' bullet behind the front leg?

GMX bullet debut year using Hornady Superformance factory fodder. As much my fault I’m sure, but I won’t use them just the same!

Mostly Hornady stuff in my hand loads. 150 gr spires for the 300 Sav and 30-06. 200 gr spires on the 358. For a long time I used 100 gr flatbases in the 243 and 6 mm, lately am trying 80 gr Barnes TTSX in the 6mm Rem. Only in the 270 have I used Sierra, Speer, and Hornady 130 gr. I thought the Sierra’s a trifle tender but I have killed a lot of deer with them. Currently loading Hornady in the 270

Dale

I have killed more deer with Sierra bullets in 25 and 270 calibers than anything. Our deer are not that big and quick opening bullets do well. However, Ballistic tips and X bullets have been gaining ground lately depending on the velocity of the cartridge I am using. Accubonds got a work out this past year in the 7 RM and really liking it.
GreggH

I mainly use the following:

.223. 64 grain Win PPT
.243. 95 or 100 Partition
6.5x55 129 Horn IL
270 Win. 130 Horn IL
7mm-08. 120 Nosler BT
270 WSM. 130 Partition or 140 Accubond
.300 Savage. 150 Horn IL or SST

The only bullet I personally have had bad experience with is the 100 Grain Seirra Game King in. 243. To explosive and left little to no blood trail. Luckily we had a dog and deer didn't really go far. Bullet exploded on the near side shoulder.

6.5 Swede 120 Pro-hunter
7mag 150 BT
308 165 BT (old 100 ct box, still have a few bixes) 165bthp Gameking (destructive)

30-06 180 Prohunter
300win same BT as 308.

As a general rule, I lean towards Nosler Ballistic Tips and Sierra Game Kings - accurate, value-priced, and effective. I do use Nosler Accubonds in one rifle and Barnes TTSX in another, both with great success. Also, I use a sprinkling of Hornady FTXs and ELD-Ms.

I'm sure to get flamed, but the only bullet to disappoint (in the last 20 years or so) was a 6.5mm 130gr Berger VLD-H.

Favorites-

Nosler Ballistic Tips... I have yet to catch one in a deer. Two holes every time from 270, 7-08, 280, 7 RM, 308 Win.

Nosler Accubond... Same chamberings as above. I caught my first one after it traveled thru 32” of thick hog meat.

Hornady Interlock.... Great performance on deer and hogs. I’ve caught a few that had shed the jacket. Had one to explode like a grenade on a deer shoulder. Paper plate sized wound that was one inch deep. Pretty crazy.

Sierra,...The most accurate bullets I’ve ever loaded. Great deer and hog bullets.

Factory Ammo-

Federal Fusion... Very accurate and kill great.

Remington CoreLokt.... Used them for years before I started rolling my own. No complaints..

Winchester power points.... Used factory ammo before my own loads. No complaints.

Not so good results- Copper Monos
Half dozen deer with little to no blood trail. Pencil hole in and out. All critters recovered but damn!!!!

I had bad experiences on three separate occasions with the 140 Corelokt in early 260 factory loads. Huge entrance holes and very shallow penetration. One blew a 3” hole in the side of a little buck’s neck and failed to break the spine.

Shot a big buck once right beside the butthole with a 180 Silvertip in a factory 30/06. It broke his collarbone when it exited. The next day I shot a big pig square in the shoulder with one out of the same box and it flattened out and failed to even break the scapula.

After the pig incident I started hand loading early X bullets and had great luck with them.

In the last 6-8 years I’ve returned to C&C bullets for most of my hunting and have had good luck with Hornady, Nosler, Sierra, Kodiak, Barnes Originals, Speer, and Norma.

223 My current favorite is the 77 Sierra Tipped Matchking
257 Weatherby is excellent with the 85 Ballistic Tip pushed to warp speed
270 Winchester gets 130 Hornady Spire points
270 Weatherby I like the 130 Etip or Partition
7/08 we’ve had good luck with a big box of old Norma BTSP 150s that sadly I’m out of, probably switch to Ballistic Tips or Hornadys this fall
300 Savage I’ve used more old Normas, Ballistic Tips, and Hornadys all in 150gr and all have been great on deer and bears
30/06 I have a ton of 180 Normas I like but I’ve been transitioning to the 165 boat tail Hornady and the boat tail HP Sierra. The Sierras are pretty destructive but they kill well.

I don't recall ever seeing a deer "collar bone" before.

6mm Rem. or .243 Win.-100 Grain SGK
.250 Savage-115 Grain Combined Technologies Ballistic Tips
.257 AI-115 Grain Combined Technologies Ballistic Tips.
.270 Win.-130 Grain SGK or 130 Grain Nosler BT
.280 Rem.-140 Grain Combined Technologies BT
Seven MM Remington Mag. 160 Grain SGK HP.
8mm Mauser-170 Grain Sierra Pro Hunter.
9.3x62-Speer 270 grain Semi Spitzer Hot Core. Kills like Thor's Hammer.


Failures:
6mm Remington-Speer 100 grain SPBT.
.270 Win.-130 Grain Speer SPBT.
.280 Rem.-Early Nosler BT. Blew up on deers hide causing superficial wound and he jumped a fence onto posted land.
8mm Mauser-150 Grain Hornady Interlock. I believe both Speers in the 6mm Rem., and in the .270 Win., and the Hornady Interlock in the 8mm were complete pass throughs with limited expansion.

My most hated deer bullet ever is the Sierra pro hunter. I shoot these animals to eat them, not blow them up. I think the Sierra would make for a great terrorist bullet however, given the destruction. Disclaimer: I've not used them started at less than 2700 in anything so maybe that's a problem.

I really like partitions, accubonds, and Barnes in various .277-.375 bore rifles. The consistency is addictive, and it's great being able to kill one at any angle presented if one needs to.

My favorites are:

1) Hornady .308 Interlock 165 grain
2) Remington .308 PSPCL 150 grain

These have accounted for the most kills at our camp over the last two decades in 30-06 and 308 WIN.

Before I retired it, my Rem 7600 Whelenizer had the camp record for most deer taken using Remington .358 200 grain SPCL.

The last few years all of my hunting has been done with hand loads. I have yet to shoot a deer with one that hasn’t died very quickly but I do have a favorite. The 150gr Barnes TTSX out of my 308 is definitely my pick. The TTSX is “overkill” for deer in that it’s a tougher construction and costs more than a normal soft point. But every deer I’ve shot with it has dropped in its tracks, one was running towards me and the shot went through the entire body. It’s tough enough to ensure exit and good blood trail (if needed) but I haven’t noticed excessive meat damage.

My favorite factory load is Federal Blue Box, it’s nothing special but it’s the only factory ammo that seems to shoot well in all my guns.

Yes

Accubonds and Ballistic Tips are my favorites in .264 or above. Partitions in smaller chamberings.

Tough to beat a Fusion or Interlock for factory ammo.

I load either Barnes TTSX or LRX for all our rifles so that's what I shoot deer with. I understand most bullets work great on deer, but the barnes works well for me both in accuracy and on game performance and I like having less bloodshot meat as an added bonus.

Used Nolser Ballastic tips 243 to 8mm and Speer 150 30cal Spitzer for years. Had problems with Hornady 150 gn out of a 30-06. They we not loaded hot but splashed twice on deer between 60 and 80 yards. Pretty much soured me. My Dad used to buy 150 30cal from Zero bullet company that did really well on deer.

The newer Nosler Ballistic Tips,150gr in 7mm and 165 or 168gr in 30 cal are about as good as it gets for deer.

Never had a failure with Barnes TTSX or old Trophy Bonded Bear Claws and way back the 165 Speer Grand Slams. Happy Trails

I am not a Hornady SST fan. They killed every deer I shot with them. But they expand excessively and ruined more meat than I wanted to see lost.

Partitions, Barnes TSX & TSXT, Hornady Interlock, Speer HOT-COR, Remington Core-Lokt have all worked for me.

I've killed a ton of deer with Sierra Game kings, Nosler ballistic tips and Partitions as well whatever bullet is in federal blue box

Nosler Partitions. Used them in four calibers so far: .308 150, 6mm 100, .257 120, and .277 160s.

For those who like big burping wounds, Sierra 165gr .308 holler points.

My favorite is the Hornady Interlock .308 165 grain SP flat base out of a 30-06. Every deer I've shot with them has dropped either on the spot or within a few steps.
When I used factory loads I pretty much stuck with Remington Core-Loct's. Good results when I did my job.
The best factory loads I used were Winchester Ballistic Silver Tips, 168 grain 30-06. Same results as the Hornady's.
I don't think I could blame the bullet for any deer I've lost.

I have killed ~ 50 animals...... so what I have to say is just a few anecdotes..

Nos Bal Tip.... the best

Nos accubond..... ok
Hornady SST...... ok


Berger VLD hunting... no good

Hate to break it to you Kid but deer don't have collarbones. Not sure what animal you were shooting.

The front of the rib cage, forward most rib before the neck. The point being it went in his south end and came out the north.

I mostly shoot Nosler ABs and Partitions into medium game because I know that they will work and that gives me peace of mind.

I won't shoot anything made by Sierra at game animals after having failures with the 85 grain .243" and 90 grain .257" BTHP Gamekings where they disintegrated on contact.

I don't like Hornady SST or Nosler ballistic tips. Too fragile. They over expand and fragment. I don't trust them to penetrate on sharp angled shots or to drive through heavy bone.

I don't care for TSX all copper type bullets either for the exact opposite reason. They seem to expand very little at all on whitetail deer. I am amazed when I read the accounts of people online who talk about how these bullets consistently drop deer in their tracks. Those folks must be launching them at about 3700 fps because at more standard velocities I never saw that happen. In fact if I had to sum my experience and the experience of my friends with them up in one sentence it would be: "never has so many well hit deer ran so far; bleed so little; and been so hard to find.

For deer sized game I like standard lead tipped cup and core type bullets. My favorite is the Hornady Interlock. They have been accurate out of all my rifles and the lead alloy in them seem to be just the right level of hardness to give good penetration while still expanding enough to kill quickly. I have never recovered one in a deer. Even the 117 grain Interlocks out of my 25-06 have always exited the deer I have shot.

That's a pretty broad statement about the Ballistic Tips if you're including current issue.

150 BT in .308 (from close in to 400 yards)
200 Hornady Interlock in .358 Win (150 yards and in)
129 ABLR in 6.5 CM (from close in to 400 yards)

In practice those have all been perfect matches or deer bullets in the listed rounds at the ranges listed...I'm sure the ranges could be expanded but that's what I can testify to. I couldn't ask for better performance than they have provided.

If Nosler has gone back and made them tougher then they have my apologies. But I operate under the rule of burn me once and you won't get a second chance.

For 243, 25-06, 270 or 7 rem mag; Nosler Ballistic Tips. Never a failure from 30 yards to well over 300 yards. All DRT.

6mm, 7mm, 308 and 6.5mm ballistic tips here since the early 2000’s, never a failure. Quarter to, away and through both shoulders.



Ballistic Tips are my favorite bullets, Hornady is a close second and then Speer.

Ballistics Tips are not like they were years back. They have made them better. I had a similar experience with older Ballistics Tips. I lost a deer because of it. There was blood everywhere but no deer. He jumped the fence onto posted land and that was that. But they're new and improved. Nosler got it right now. They penetrate just good enough to get through bones and tough skin into the boiler room and then do their damage. I also like Sierra Game King. They penetrate just right then do their damage and fell the deer, and hogs. And they're cheaper than NBT. But I agree with you on the solids on deer. Nothing frustrates you more than to know you hit the animal good and he runs off.

My little CZ 527 in .223 loves the 50 grain Nosler BT. For my 257 Roberts its the 90 grain TSX. All but one animal has even moved. I've probably killed more deer with that round than any other. 7 mm RSAUM it's the 140 TTSX. Everything drops straight down and it' super accurate. 6.5X55 Swede is the 130 Accubond. 6.5 PRC i'ts the 130 Swift Scirocco. My .270 Win loves the 130 Speer Grand Slam and my 7RM loves the 145 grain Grand Slam.

I haven't been a big fan of Sierra Gamekings. It's been several years ago, but I shot a big west Texas mule deer 4 times with the 140 Sierra HP in my 270. I switched to the 130 gr. Gameking next year and shot another west Texas muley, this time in the neck. The bullet broke apart on impact and all I found was some small pieces between the shoulder blades. I haven't shot Sierras at game since then.

The only factory ammunition I shoot is the 75 gr. Speer Gold Dot in my AR.

I like the good old Hornady Interlock, mainly the 150gn in my .308 and the 129gn 6.5mm in my Swede and Creedmoor. The 174gn .303 RN also ploughs right through everything.

It's much more about placement than what you hit them with.

I'd like to see the deer I'd be afraid to shoulder punch with a 165/168 out of my 308.

Hornady 165gr sst in my 30-06 is my go to. Big holes and good blood trails. I tend to rib shoot so I’m not concerned with meat loss. They do make a mess of shoulders tho.
Sierra gamekings or prohunters in my 25-06. No issues from 10-400 yards and I run them fast.
My dad and brother like the plain Jane hornady interlocks.

My bad experiences were early ballistic tips in 30-06 and factory 35 Remington 150gr corlockt. That was about 20 years ago and haven’t tried them since

Craig

Have more experience with the .308" 180 gr Rem PSPCL than anything else. Launched at .308 - .30-06 muzzle velocities it's reliable and quick down to impact speeds of 2000 fps (maybe lower, for all I know), and whether shoulder is struck or not.

At impact velocities above 2800 fps (.300 Win or Roy) it's more placement-sensitive, insofar as remaining intact and full penetration are concerned. Then, it still does a good job killing, so.......

In our .308's I like Winchester Power Point 150 grainers (component bullets that I load to my own specs). Accurate as all get out and just plain WORK.

In our .300 Mag's I like Speer Grand Slam 180's Always 2 holes. Never explosive.

Only abject failure I've had on a deer was a 140 grain AccuBond from my 7-STW. 275 yard shot on a whitetail doe. Placed tight behind the shoulder. 7mm hole in............ 7mm hole out. Complete failure to expand. Deer ran 150+ yards leaving zero blood. Just lucky to have had several guys at my disposal to fan out and eventually find her.

My worst experience on mule deer was with 165 grain Sierra Game Kings in a 30-06. Those suckers are fragile bullets and blew BIG holes in deer with very little penetration. As soon as I switched to Partitions, no more problems. Now I only shoot Partitions whether I'm shooting 270 Win, 25-06, 7X57, 243 Win or 30-06.

Federal Blue Box, 130 grain 270 WCF's.
Federal Blue Box, 100 grain 243 WCF's.
Federal Fusion, 165 grain 308 Win.
Federal Non-typical 150 grain 270 WCF.
Remington Corelokt's...
100 grain 243 winchester
130 grain 270 WCF
165 grain 30-06 springfield.



Hell. A harsh word will kill a whitetail.

Oh, I see that you asked two questions. If I were asked my favorite deer bullet, it would be the Nosler Ballistic Tip. Across bore diameters, it works as advertised. When the operating envelope is under 3k fps, the Ballistic Tip is king.

Favorite bullet - 243, 25-06 and 270 I go with Partitions. Tried and true for a few decades now. Bigger than 270 I usually shoot the Accubonds now. I used to run Partitions or the plain old Hornady Interlocks in everything but over the last few years I've really learned to appreciate the Accubonds in my 7mm's and 30's. Especially the 300wm with 180 AB's. Antelope, white tail, a couple of mulies and last year's cow elk all dropped with 1 shot each, ranges from 150 to 445 yards. Can't tell you much about weight retention as they were all clean pass through's with about 1-1/2" exit holes and surprisingly less meat damage than I expected. Since none went more than 30 yards I'd have to say I couldn't ask any more for performance.

Favorite factory loads - I love everything about Nosler ammo but the price these days. They shoot at or under an inch at 100 in just about everything I own. They give me under 1/2" in the 300wm and around 4" at 600 if I bring my good eyeballs to the range that day. Lately I've switched to Fed Premium with the Noslers. Groups are nearly as good with quite a bit of savings.

I’m a Barnes man thru and thru. Never had a failure or issue with them in 17 years. A short list of what I’ve killed with so far.

7mm Mag 160 gr. TSX
7mm Mag 139 gr. LRX
270 WSM 110 gr. TTSX
300 WSM 180 gr. TTSX
300 WSM 130 gr. TTSX
30-06 150 gr. TTSX
30-06 165 gr. TSX
223 62 gr. TSX
7mm-08 140 gr. TSX
Muzzleloader 250 gr. T-EZ

40 cal.
400 gr, paper patch

458 cal
500gr grease groove
530gr paper patch

50 cal
750gr grease groove

All lit with black powder, you cant make em fail, they don't need to expand, they're ready to work when they arrive, when you shove one in a Sharps rifle or lever one up in an original '86 Winchester, you'll never see that bullet again, no need to bring those pesky calipers to camp to study recovered projectiles!

I'm a big fan of Nosler Ballistic Tips, at least the newer ones, and Barnes TTSX.

However, when it comes down to overall efficiency, it's tough to argue with the .224 Hornady 55gr SP. It's a plain-jane cup-n-core bullet that can be bought in bulk extremely cheaply. It's accurate in pretty much any rifle with any twist rate. It's constructed well enough to hold together and perform well even from a 220 Swift. I've killed and seen killed a lot of animals using that one particular bullet out of everything from the 223 Rem to the Swift, and it's just amazing how well it works time after time.

Whatever Walmart has on sale. Usually I get 30/06 Winchester Super X in 180 grain power point. I use them for everything, elk, deer, antelope, hogs. Plus I try to get the rebate from Winchester.

420gr cast bullet in my .40-70 Sharps Straight Shiloh Sporter Number 1

Nosler Ballistic tips. Does not matter what caliber

Currently shooting these, but I often try others....

6.5 Creedmoor - Hornady 143 ELD-X
260 - Nosler 120 BT
6.5x55 - Nosler 130 AB
7mm-08 - Nosler 140 AB
308 - Hornady 150 IB
30-06 - Sierra 150 BTSP
270 WSM - Nosler 140 AB
7mm Rem Mag - Barnes 140 TSX
444 - Hornady 265 SP


I had bad experiences a long time ago using....
270 - Nosler 130 BT (no blood trail on broadside shot. I did find the deer)
270 - Nosler 150 BT (bullet came apart on shoulder sending pieces of the bullet in different directions with minimal penetration.) This must have just been a freak incident.

Have had great results with:

95 grain Nosler Ballistic Tip, 6mm Remington. I load these to about 3,000 fps for my youngest son's rifle. 5/8" groups and deadly on deer.

115 grain Nosler Ballistic Tip, 25-06 Remington. Loaded to about 3150 fps. Excellent accuracy and wonderful results on deer & antelope.

115 grain Berger VLD, 25-06 Remington. Loaded to about 3190 fps. Excellent accuracy and quick (instant) drops.

165 grain Nosler Ballistic Tip, 30-06 Springfield. Loaded to 2940 fps. Excellent accuracy and wow - great penetration. I've only recovered two, one from a big mule deer shot lengthwise, and one from a black bear - the bullet jacket was hanging in the bear's off-side hide. That season I took elk, bear, pronghorn & mule deer, all with 165 Nosler B-Tip from my 30-06, longest shot was the elk at 340 yards. For me it's been an outstanding all-around 30 cal bullet.

Regards, Guy

I always feel good about Federal. I've had mixed results with Core-Lokts

That Federal Fusion stuff has worked GREAT for a few of my hunting buddies. Good accuracy and wow - works great on game.

Guy

Remington corelokt in 308 and 358 Win. But since then Barnes X in the original, blue meanies, and TTSXs. Both calibers. No failures. Be Well, Rustyzipper.

120 gr. Nosler Hunting Ballistic Tip in either the 6.5 Creedmoor or the 7mm-08 Remington. Great accuracy in both. Plenty tough for any deer, whitetail or mule. Some here have even used this bullet on Elk.

Noslers. Because they work.

I see a lot of 7mm 120gr NBTs on this list.

core-lokts, power points, fusions, partitions, blue box federals have all worked for me. these days i shoot factory blue box 150's in one 308 win and corelokts in another 308 win as each rifle shows a preference. 243 likes 100gr blue box and has taken numerous deer for my grandkids.

Yep.

Sorta makes a statement.

DF

Some favorites of mine are;
25 cal:85 gr Nosler BT 115 gr Nosler BT, 117 gr Sierra PH,120 gr Seer
6.5 100gr Nosler BT and Part, 120gr Nosler BT
7mm 115gr Speer HP, 140gr Nosler BT 139 gr Hornady Interlock
30 cal 130 gr Speer HP 150 Nosler BT, 165 gr Nosler partition, 165 Speer Hot cor
35 cal 225gr Barnes TSX, 225gr Sierra gameking

I like and use the 120 NBT in my 7-08, kills deer and hogs very well.

A surprise bullet is the 140 gr. Sierra Game King HPBT. That one is a bit more expansive than the NBT, but does exit OK with lots of internal damage, chest shooting WT's, good blood flow from two holes. Deer are DRT or don't travel very far. It's the most accurate bullet in my 7-08. I'm liking it as much if not more than the 120 NBT, using it like we do on local WT's.

I had loaded a series of bullets to check performance. The 140 SGK HPBT was bit of a surprise, grouping so well and consistently so. I then started shooting deer with it and was impressed with its terminal performance. It may not the the best all around bullet for the 7-08, but is excellent for this application.

The SGK HPBT has all 5 star reviews on the MidwayUSA site. That's pretty rare, unanimous 5 star reviews on just about any product. IMO, this one deserves it.

DF

My only bad experience is when I can't get out. Be Well, Rustyzipper.

I guess I am living in the past, following Finn Aagard's advice, in non magnum applications, the old Remington Cor lokts continue to do the job without drama. Have tried a few wonder bullets, just out of curiosity, although twice or three times as expensive, I don't know if they are twice as effective. As Barsness is fond of saying, at what point after the animals death did you decide the bullet failed? Now in Calif we have to use copper, we shall see what we shall see.

For Mule deer, the Hornady 154 grain Interlock in a 7x57 is what I favor. Whitetail deer, the Speer 87 grain Hot-Cor in a 250-3000 Savage gets the nod.

The Sierra .257 90 grain HPBT bullet was the sexy bullet of the day for awhile among the 250-3000 Savage 99 owners I hung out with. What started it was a Pet Load article by Ken Waters on the 250-3000 Savage where was intrigued by it when driven at better than 2900 fps. Quote: "While I realize that it has neither the sectional density of the various 100 grain bullets, nor the ballistic coefficient of either 100 or 87 grain spitzers, it may just prove capable of doing the work of both heavier and lighter bullets. I dunno, not having had an opportunity to try it on game, but will be interesting to watch the reports as they come in from the field on this relatively new bullet."

Well, I and acquaintances tried the bullet and 1) in majority of rifles it was very accurate, 2) at .908" it shot well in some 1-14" ROT rifles, 3) no reliable performance on Whitetail deer. We discontinued using the bullet on Whitetail deer.

We should have read Sierra's "fine print" found in their reloading manual. ""Realistically, the 100 grain bullets are probably the best choice for deer sized game. The 87 grain spitzer and 90 grain HPBT bullets will serve well for varmints, but are only adequate for deer and antelope even if shots are placed precisely." Current website caveat: "It will perform as a varmint bullet at high velocities, but it may also be used on medium game from smaller-capacity cartridges, such as the 250-3000 and 257 Roberts."

A redeeming quality of that bullet is it's very accurate in the majority of 25 caliber rifles I have owned and if it doesn't shoot well, look elsewhere for a problem.

Hornady "Custom" 250 Savage 100gr Interlock factory is very accurate in my Savage 99-A and have killed 6 Whitetail deer with it with no issues.

My Marlin 336-C 30-30 has shown a preference for Federal blue box 170 grain Soft Point RN and works well on Whitetail deer. Recently, I tried the Hornady factory ammo "American Whitetail" 150 grain Interlok and found it to be accurate. Killed two deer with it...no issues.

[quote=Windfall]140 grain Barnes TSX from a 7mm-08 lost the only deer that I've ever shot with a firearm. 5 drops of blood total and two days of looking turned up nothing from a broadside shot at about 60 yards. A deer the year before should have told me that bullet was not expanding much if at all when it had a nickle size hole through both lungs instead of lung mush that was more typical of cup and core bullets.
Hornady Interlocks and SST's and Remington Core-Lokts have worked the best so far. 140 Ballistic Tips are next up to try for that 7mm-08 given what I've read

I had the same experience with Barnes TSX. Had to shoot one 3 times to put him down. Small holes, no bleeding. Final shot from the rear through the body did him in. Never again.

NBTs in 140-150g work great in my 7-08 handloads, and factory Powermax were very accurate and effective, but they stopped making them for the 7-08. Wish they would start again.
Fusion and Deer Season are doing fine.

Hornady interlocks, usually accurate in mine, no issues on game, but core-lokts have worked well for me also. I tend to load the heavier for caliber ones though.

The ones I cast.

Sierra GameKings and Nosler Partitions have never let me down.

Only bullets I ever had bad experiences with was a first gen 165 gr ballistic tip from a 30-06. Splashed on a shoulder. Never seen the deer again. The other was a Sierra Game King from a 243. Hit a rib and did an odd deflection but I did find the deer after a good distance so not really a failure.

Good experiences? My absolute 2 favorites are the 120 gr BT from a 7-08 IF kept below 2900 or so. I usually use 44 gr of Varget for those. The other is whatever bullet Federal uses in the blue box 270. That was almost all I used before I started handloading. Triple digit kills with them and they never let me down. Ive bought a slew of them pulled and load my own with them now... still kill like lightning.

Favorite bullets nosler ballistic tip and Berger hunting vlds. I've had more drt with these than any other. I've also used them on elk with great success.

Bullets I would never use again Hornady sst of any flavor. I wouldn't take them if they were free. Ymmv

I've been shooting deer for over 40 years now. It's easier to name the bullets I don't prefer.
240 gr Hornady .44 cal out of .54 cal inline muzzleloader. No blood trail. Lucky to find deer. Poor penetration. Switched to 265 gr Hornady which worked better.
165 gr SST out of .30-06. Poor penetration.
150 gr Speer hot core out of a .308 Win. Poor expansion. Long search to find deer.
Bullets that worked-
.50 cal swaged round ball (round ball was mandated in PA flintlock season for several decades)
200 gr TC Shockwave from .50 cal inline
150 gr .30 cal Ballistic tip out of a .308 (even the old ones worked)
150 gr Accubond from .30-06
165 gr partition from .30-06
165 gr Hornady BTSP from .308
168 gr ballistic tip from .308
130 gr Interlock from .270 Win
130 gr Nosler solid base from .270 Win
130 gr Ballistic tip from .270 Win
130 gr Accubond from .270 Win
150 gr Partition from .270 Win
100 gr Sierra semi pointed from 6mm Rem
100 gr Herter's semi pointed from 6mm Rem (looked a lot like the Sierras)

I've had great results from Sierra Pro Hunters, Nosler Ballistic Tips and Hornady Interlocks. All went down within a few steps. The last one I shot was a 9-pt with the 150 BT in my 280 Rem. Dropped him in his tracks and didn't so much as kick.

You must know that begs a certain question.

Well, not sure whether "splash" is the right word. But watched a .308" Hornady 180 gr Spire Pt launched from an '06 (est impact 2600 fps) do about that on a small CT doe. In recoil I saw a hole open up before my eyes. Not a failure to kill, ie., DRT. Impacted a rib, bullet fragments didn't make it through the deer, not even half way. Have the recovered jacket. One of the strangest things I ever saw. This was late '80s.

A friend (whose word I trust) used that same bullet in his .300 Roy on a Newfie moose, had the same result. Another good friend finished the job with his .338 and X-bullets.

Still have almost 1k of those 180s, but reserve them for paper punching now. Then, I might never see one "splash" again, so......

I will take hornady interlocks or Sierra spire points any day over any plastic tip bullets. It would take a big ole truck To haul all the deer I’ve killed with 140gr hornady interlocks in my 270 in 45 years of hunting.

I have killed many deer and hogs with my hand loaded .44 Mag Marlin lever rifle. The load is the 279 grain Speer GDSP bullet over H110 powder.

The ever reliable Hornady Interlocks are always dependable.

I used Sierra bullets since I was a young kid all the way up until 2008 when the internet convinced me that they were not a good bullet.

Game performance was great......it was the forums that talked me into Accubonds

Since 2008 Accubonds have served me very well.

Only problem I have experienced to date was to destructive of a bullet With that saidThe Hornady SST has been omitted from my go to list. I like to eat venison and having frangible pieces of lead and copper all over is not desirable to be sure. Good old core lock is just fine for me. Barns 100gr TSX does well from 6.5 Grendel as do a lot of other choices when I do my part and responsibly put it in the boiler room. Heck a lead 50 cal round ball from a muzzle loader does ok to.

Enjoying the 108 eld for deer.

In my .270 I had a Remington bronze point fail to expand early in my life then a couple years later had a ballistic tip splash on spike bucks shoulder. After that I switched to 150 grain round nose core lokt. Never any issues with that bullet. Of late I’ve been using with great results 140 grain accubonds. Between my boys and I we’ve shot quite a few deer with .243 100 grain core lokts. They’ve worked well as long as we do our part. Going forward I’d like to try the 90 grain accubond in the .244 and also the 85 grain trophy copper.

Most often I'm found with one of these loaded in my deer rifles:

Nosler Accubonds or Barnes TSX

In 308 I used 165gr Hornady spire point's for about 40 years with no failure's. 25-06 used 117gr Hornady spire point's for about 10yrs, no complaint's.6.5x06 use 140gr Hornady spire points for several years. Used the same load for three elk, never a problem. Another bullet I liked was 160gr Speer hot core in 7mm Rem Mag years ago.

+1 on early NBT's. They were way too expansive, so bad that my deer hunting buds and I quit using them.

The newer ones are very good. I had also quit using SST's due to lack of terminal performance consistency although they, like the early NBT's, were very accurate. I understand the newer SST's are pretty good, just haven't gotten around to trying them again.

The SGK HPBT, as posted earlier, has been impressive at the range and on deer, 140's out of my 7-08 with all 5 star ratings at MidwayUSA

We have so many great bullets now than when I started reloading yrs ago. New and better powders, too.

DF

Sierra Pro Hunters in 24, 25, 7mm and 30 cal are my favorite deer hunting bullets.