Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Copper or Lead?

A simple question to the lead free states, if you could use lead would you or are you satisfied with the non-lead choices? Centerfire.

Probably would'a stuck with lead in most cartridges...not because it's better, at slightly over twice the price...the copper is just not twice as good. But...the little 90 grain copper bullets in the .257 Roberts have made the safe queen into a shooter. In the 6.5 Swede lightweight carbine, same thing, a very ordinary 1.5 moa load into a sub moa load just by substituting the bullet to same weight copper. Sweet.

I’d be fine if all could use is a Barnes TTSX

I've been working cast bullets into more and more of my hunting. Just another step in the "doing things for myself" process. It's very rewarding, but only in terms of money are my cast bullets more practical than factory bullets. I've shied away from all-copper or all-gilding-metal bullets, but that is generally because of the cost. They have a different set of drawbacks than "leaded" bullets, but they also offer benefits that leaded bullets may not.

I'd prefer that people were allowed to choose, rather than being pushed into something with fearmongering, governmental overreach, and false narratives. It isn't the government's job to legislate every decision we can make.

+1. The Barnes TTSX has become my first choice because it consistently provides excellent terminal results and excellent accuracy too.

The only thing you really lose with copper is a drop-off in killing speed as velocities get lower/distances get longer. A lead bullet that blows off part of its nose will suffer less of a decrease in killing power as it slows down because of that secondary wounding due to fragmentation. When I shoot copper, especially further out, I try to keep them on the shoulder, instead of behind it.

There are definitely trade offs, it seems like bullet diameter doesn’t mean as much as velocity does to get results. For our local black tail deer and wild hogs my favorite caliber with lead bullets was a 270 and 30-06 with 140 gr and 180 gr accubonds now that I have gone a few years “lead free” a 110 gr monolithic bullet in 270 is the heaviest bullet I see being necessary for deer and the biggest pigs. I have gone down in caliber and use a 270wsm with 110 gr and 100 gr 25-06 and 80 gr 243 bullets now and don’t think I am under gunning it. My two favorite rifles to use locally are 240 Weatherby and a 25-06 both with Barnes bullets. With a monolithic bullet a 100 gr 25-06 is a serious elk killer. I have found that light for caliber bullets going fast work well if you aim for bone in the shoulders but if you lung shoot them they will run for 75-100 yards then die. It’s a lot like using a bow and thinking of shot placement with a broad head. But hitting bone drops them! As for long shots... you need velocity to get expansion so if you are wanting to go long range it’s not the best because they need more velocity that a lead core to expand so you are limiting your range but it’s still in the 600-900 yards range with most bottle neck cartridges depending on caliber and muzzle velocity. My suggestion if you are going lead free I’d to go light for caliber and aim for high shoulder shots and go as fast as possible. My dad likes his 300 Weatherby and has always shot 180 gr bullets but when California went lead free he had a few bad experiences with the 180 lead free having a few big rushers taking the bullet and running off require a long tracking job. I finally got him to shoot lighter 150 gr bullets and aim for shoulders instead of lungs and he is dropping the pigs in their tracks again. I know there are guys with more experience than I have but that’s my take on it.
With varmint bullets I definitely miss lead cores! That said before California protected bobcats I took six with lead free noslers 35 gr ballistic tips in a 223 at ranges from 40 yards to 250 yards with no exit and dead right there performance with chest shots and no pelt damage! Coyotes were a little less impressed with that load but must just fell over dead with a chest shot some would run about 50-75 yards then fall. It’s just different not necessarily better or worse.