Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Anybody use 165 HPBT Gameking on Deer?

I'm thinking of using this in my Girlfriends 300 WSM. She just wants to hunt deer for now so I'm looking for a deer bullet that can handle a bit of velocity and we can buy quite a few of she can plink a lot.

Any use would be helpful. Even if it's not in a 300 WSM.

I like that bullet in .277, .284, and .308 diameters for use on deer. It seems to be fairly tough for a non-premium and always gave good terminal performance on chest shots. It is usually accurate as well. Watch your OAL on short action rounds, because of the ogive. An OAL that works with spitzer bullets can have this bullet jammed into the lands and/or not wanting to chamber.

My buddy Jim Hughes used this bullet in a 308 to slay a pile of Alabama deer. It is tougher than the Sierra 165 btsp which I have used on another pile of deer and hogs.

Call Sierra but I think they will tell you it'll be fine at 300wsm velocity, it would be my second Sierra to consider next to the 180 Pro Hunter which will work fine on deer in a 300wsm.

Another buddy raves about the Sierra 150 Pro Hunter that he pushes to 3100fps for deer. This would be a conservative load in the 300wsm and would recoil less than than the 165 bullets at the same velocity.

Britt

a 150 game king or prohunter, loaded to about 2800, or a little less, will decisively kill any whitetail or muley at 250 -300 yds... no sweat..... john w

Magnum-I'd use that bullet in a heartbeat. It is my favorite bullet that Sierra puts out. I've used the HPBT in (6'x,25's,270's,7's,06's,300's), it is big time accurate and plenty darn tough. I've used it on chucks/yotes/lopes/deer/bruins/elk with total satisfaction!

Now as for calling Sierra and asking them for info, after my last 2 conversations with them I wouldn't ask them where the bathroom is...

Dober

LOL Mark! That reminds me of my last experience talking with Sierra.

Guys-correct me if I'm wrong here (and I probably am!) but doesn't the HP stand for Hollow Point? If so-doesn't this tear up a deer pretty bad? I'm just curious, not trying to start any kind of a fight or anything. I've always had great success with the Sierra Game King 165 gr. BTSP Federal Premium loads. It just seems like a hollow point bullet wouldn't be necessary on deer sized critters.

Gopher,

According to Sierra their hollow point hunting boat tails have tougher construction than their soft point boat tails so they actually penetrate better and tear up less critter not more.

Britt

Mark,

I guess I must agree with you that the tech people at Sierra are less consistantly helpful than in the past.

Last year I called to talk about handloads in a modern action for the 38-55. I tried to explain that I was using a modern action and wanted to load for improved performance while keeping safe, the Sierra guy was rude, condescending ,and unhelpful.
I didn't call them for a year but when I did I got a really helpful guy who understood what I was asking and helped me a lot.

The difference between me and a novice is I know when I'm dealing with an idiot and so obviously do you. But your right, the advice there is not consistantly helpful anymore.

Britt

Britt-next time we chat I'll tell you the stories, one was about the 168 SMK and the other was about the 165 HPBT. I swear my wife shoots more game yearly than those fellas do!

Dober

I load the 165 Sierra BTHP for a good friend of mine in a A-Bolt 300WSM. It runs a little over 3100 fps and he loves it. He was using the 165 BT but they were more destructive than he liked when bone was struck, bullet would also come apart. The BTHP hasn't had this problem. We shoot/hunt together on a regular basis and he's not complaining.

I used the 165 Sierra HPBT last fall in my Browning 300 WSM. I hunted in North Carolina. Took three bucks with it. One shot each. I loaded them to 3100 FPS, very accurate, but they all failed to retain the jacket. Shots were two around 100 yards and the third at 200 yards. I was very disappointed because didn't have any go thru and thru. Of the deer, two dropped on the spot, and one ran about 50 yards. (Of course you could say they worked,but again I didn't like the jackets coming apart.) One caught a shoulder, the others didn't but still came apart. I know the 300 WSM is overkill for deer, but I wanted to try it. I now load the 180 nosler pt for it. I think for long range it would be ok, but under 200 yards, I prefer my Whelen. Friend is borrowing it this fall for Wyoming Mule deer and with the nosler, it should work ok.

Wish I had a dollar for every story I have heard of Sierra's coming apart so I now use Nosler's . I have used th Gamekings in both versions HP and soft point. Iliked them both and never recover one from a deer. I used them in a 30-06 pushed to 2850 fps. I just can't see needing more velocity when hunting deer and ranges are going to be under 350 yards. I especially don't see any reason to bust a deer in the shoulder with a 165 grain bullet started at 3100 fps or to complain when you get a bit more damage than you wanted. I have so seldom not gotten exit holes on deer with any bullet designed for the task that Iwonder about the validity of the story so often told.

Rick--"DWS" (darn well said)

Dober

Ruraldoc-thanks for the info-I wasn't aware of that. I'm not set up for handloading so my experience is limited to factory loads, and the Federal Premium 165 gr. BTSP loads have grouped the tightest for me over the last few years. If I can find a factory load with that bullet and it shoots close to my other load, I'll give it a try this fall. Thanks again, GG.

One of my longest shots was with a 165 hpbt on a cross canyon blacktail buck, cranked up to 3250 fps out of a 300 Win. The shot was a little high in the shoulder and exited out the neck as the buck was quartering away feeding. I was very pleased with penetration, the buck dumped hard seeing how it was missing a couple vertabrea.

how does the Sierra HPBT Gameking compare to the Nosler 165 grain Ballistic Tip?

Jimmy,

Both are scary accurate,the nosler has the best balistic coef , and the Sierra HPBT is a tougher bullet. The Sierra BTSP and the Nosler Balistic Tip are the ones that are really close.

This may draw some flames but I think the Sierra HPBT Gameking compares favorably to the Accubond in performance. Both do a good job of balancing penetation and expansion and both will often exit the critter even at magnum velocity.

Britt

The Sierra HPBT is only offered in .277 in 140grain that I could find it would however be a 1/2 the price of the Accubond...just when I have my .270 tweeked to 130 grain ballistic tips.. They do make an 85 grain HPBT match king in .243 that is interesting as well. I guess some like the ballistic tips and some do not.

I've used the 85 gr BTHP Gameking in .243, the 160 gr. in 7 Rem Mag, and the 165gr. in 308 and 30-06.

I love em!

The 160 gr. in .284 is an awsome bullet. I killed two large body 8 points in the same year with that bullet, they were the first bucks I had taken in 3 years of waiting and just happened to be my two largest to date. I guess the experiance has left me blindly partial to the bullet.

GB