Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting 338 250gr Hornady BTHP on elk?

I know some target bullets are also known to be great hunting bullets. I have a 338 wildcat on the way and remembered I have a stash of midway 2nds that I'm 99% sure are Hornady 250 hpbt. Anyone used them on game?

There are success stories and there are miserable failure stories pertaining to “targets bullets used on game! There is a reason that they are labeled “target or match”…..that was what they were designed for!

I personally don’t want to be the one with another “fail” story! There are simply too many good bullets available that are designed for hunting to gamble with a bullet designed for match use! memtb

Personally, I'd leave the paper punchers for paper and use quality hunting bullets for game animals. There are a lot of fine hunting bullets in 338.

No experience with the 250gr BTHP target bullet on game. I use hunting bullets when hunting and I leave the target bullets for target shooting. The game I hunt deserves my best efforts at an ethical kill. There’s too many good hunting bullets to try pushing the limits with target bullets and trick shots.

+1

I guess the only exception might be where you over-bore for a particular species, like using a .338 or .375 on whitetails, in which case spitballs might even work, let alone marginally frangible bullets

What are ya gonna run em in? I’d use personally, and wouldn’t think twice. But Ive killed elk with 80 gr bt’s out of a 6mm ai, and 243 with c&c deer bullets.

I have a 338T&M on the way, which (I recently learned) is a 338x8x68s, or approx a 338PRC. Prev owner states 225s just over 3000fps.

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbt...n-338-t-m-basically-338-prc#Post17187848

To me, the whole purpose in carrying a 338 is to be guaranteed all kinds of penetration.


Target bullets tend to detract from that.

Load um up and go kill an elk they will work fine just keep it off the shoulder

Never used them but have used 300 Berger and 300gr Sierra matchkings on elk up to 1600+yds with an large 338 build. Everytime there was complete penetration and they dropped immediately.

That’s precisely the issue. I shouldn’t have to consciously remember hold off the shoulder while making my shot. My gosh, you rarely have that luxury…shot situations don’t give you much time in most cases. My bull six months ago is a great example. 310 yard shot, fading light, getting ready to run back into Colorado fifty yards away…..that shot had to be taken immediately. I had no time to think “well, if he turns jusssst a hair more I can get a broadside shot. Yeah, then I can be sure to hold it off his shoulder…come on, turn just a little…”

Why use a bullet that has those kind of “limitations “? I was glad I had my 338 with 225 grain North Forks.

I agree with the rest. Use a stout bullet so you don't have to worry about limitations.

Even the old-school Sierra match kings were reliable killers as long as you opened the met plat a little. The first people I knew who used a lot of SMKs on soft targets were folks using 77gr SMKs and 175gr SMKs in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. None of them complained about the bullets not expanding and they were using them at pretty extreme ranges against targets which were shooting back.

My own experience was that the SMKs worked reliably on game as long as you opened the met plat a little bit and as long as you ran them at lower velocities. I used them for a while without addressing the met plat, then had one pencil through (lethal wound, but the deer went about 150 yards), and after that I started opening the met plat, and then I switched over to the tipped bullets (amax/eldm/tmk)

If you are set on using those Hornadys, they will probably work well, as long as you keep the impact speeds down (338-06 speeds, not 338 RUM speeds) and keep an eye on the size of the met plat. You need a decent hollow point, most likely bigger than they come with.

The 300 SMK was the bullet I was actually thinking about when I said some target bullets have a reputation as a great hunting bullet.

Like what others stated, I am not one to use target bullets on game, on varmints I will though - such as prairie dogs.
Loosing a game animal by using a poor choice on bullets can, has and will continue to happen.

Damn, this is a funny thread. Got some guys saying they work well on elk they shot at "1,600 yards", then you have others talking about changing the fn "metplat". In all likely hood, you mess with the design and you might as well be using an interlock. Of course you have a ballistics lab in your basement, so you know changing it does nothing to the BC, but sure as heck turns it into an elk slaying sob. Come on. The most questionable bullet I'd think about using (because I've used them before), is the 250gr Sierra game king. Notice how it has "game" in the name. It was made for bigger critters, but is still borderline. You can go through a shoulder with them, but the jacket will separate from the core, guaranteed. Keep speeds down below 3 grand and you'll be alright. These big 338's are mostly a joke from what I've seen. A lot of guys can't handle them or you need ear splitting brakes on them and none of them have produced what I call excellent accuracy. A light 338-06 or 338wm is all you need when considering killing elk with a .338. Use a good bullet though. You like Hornady? Use an interlock at minimum. I don't want to get into the subject of ethical shots and distance, but from what I have seen is these guys that buy these huge .338's think they can actually take an elk at a mile with the damn things and they can't even hold moa at 100 yards, and that is off the bench. Things get a lot worse under field conditions. If the op's rifle is a "custom" build, it should be able to put 5 shots into sub moa with a hunting bullet (SGK, Interlock, A frame, TTSX, Partition, Accubond, etc. etc.).

Exactly, kinda like the expression, “if a frog had wings….it wouldn’t bump it’s ass every time it jumped”!

I don’t want a bullet that requires that all of the planets and stars align perfectly for it to work! memtb

everyone has their own style and chooses their own shot ,i personally wouldn't have taken that shot especially under those conditions if i cant put it behind the shoulder i don't shoot and the animal lives another day
but if it worked for you alls good
ive let quite a few walk over the yrs and went and found a dofferent animal to shoot because there was no way or no time to put it in the crease
but im ok with that

Why try to save pennies on bullets when the rifle and scope costs hundreds and perhaps thousands of $$$? And how much for the hunt and all other equipment?

Bob
www.bigbores.ca

why spend thousands on equipment that isn't actually needed to kill an animal ? because they can,
thats why
everyone has their own personal preference and if spending thousands on equipment or drive themselve;s nuts over a piece of copper coated lead makes them think they are a better shot then they actually are that's their buisness their money

Hard to imagine a 250gr .338 bullet that wouldn't kill an elk.

I can tell you about personal experience using 300 grain .375, thin jacketed, SBT that failed to kill an elk and couldn’t/wouldn’t exit a mule deer or an average sized Black Bear with broadside shots.

Of course there are those that would say that poor shot placement was responsible for the elk kill failure …..I chose to believe that it was a failed bullet choice! A few years later, I made a very similar shot with far different results. This is the reason that I vehemently argue the use of these type bullets on game! I learned my lesson the hard way…..but, I didn’t have the internet and experienced hunters to help me “not” make poor choices!

With today’s information available, a wounded and lost big game animal lwith proper bullet placement and poor bullet selection falls upon the shoulders of the hunter/shooter! Let him/her live with that on their conscience……if they have a conscience! memtb

Isn’t the whole purpose of a hunter, especially a reloader, to choose/match the bullet to game. I don’t believe Hornady makes a HPBT or HP flat base over .308 caliber. I’ve never seen one in .338 going back over 20+ years.

I don’t really care what bullet you use. You are the one who has to live with the results, good or bad. If I ever lose an elk, it won’t be because I used an inferior or inappropriate bullet or rifle for the job at hand. Personally, I don’t use any cup and core bullet for elk; because I don’t have to.

Never used the Hornady bthp on game, but tons of elk and deer with Bergers, and Hornady Amax. Never had an animal go more than 50 yards, most only a make it a few.

Even harder to imagine a 300gr .375 bullet that wouldn't kill an elk.

Lots of elk hit the ground around here thanks to the ultra premium Rem factory 100gr corelokt .243

Elk are bullet proof didn't you know that ?

I mean according to 80% of the internet you need a 30 cal or larger 300 grain titanium coated projectile to kill one.
Meanwhile my wife and have killed 90+ + elk with a 143 eldx from a 6.5,cm at well past 400;yrds along with a 155 terminal accent out of a 280ai. While hunting in 5 different states for elk
guess the elk never got the memo that we didn't shoot them with a magnum so they were not suppose to fall over dead like they did

I was beyond disbelief with the results on 3 head of game that I shot. The bullet came completely apart, was able to only find a few jacket shards, though I did find some of the empty jacket base beneath the hide of the bear! Once seeing the results on small big game animals with broadside shots and some bullet tests e with the bullet……it’s no wonder the bullet didn’t travel far enough into the elk to reach vitals!

While I was experiencing these bullet failures, I had a fairly lengthy conversation with Bob Milek…..he told me to get away from those bullets and go to the 270 grain Hornady SP. My bullet problems went away. memtb

If the 250 BTHP works like their 105 HPBT does in the 6mms on deer then I’d have no problem myself. I’d probably mind what TX35 says and place your shots well and keep hammering till you’ve watched him be still.

Run a few into some sorta media to get an idea of what’s going to happen at 50 yards or 600 yards. Water jugs are cheap. Folks [bleep] on them for test media but if they they’re a better test than us folks who haven’t ever used them.

Ya pretty much.

Must be tougher elk than we’ve seen.

^^^Most definitely. You can usually get a decent sense of things on your own this way. Water jugs, soaked newspaper, etc. Just apply some common sense. And don't run thin-jacketed bullets at warp speed.

Well if you read a book don't you start on page #1 ? Page one for me is in the 8th edn Hornady loading manual on page 109 they classify it for use as a target-match bullet . Seems damned clear to me. In the field you think accuracy wise it will give you a decernable accuracy difference over the 250 gr Sp? The cost of a non resident elk tag is enough to propell me to using the right bullets recommended by the bullet manufacturer. To me the worst case scenario would be having to shoot thru the near shoulder with such a bullet hoping to make it thru to the vitals. Use them for practice and quit fugging around...mb you asked.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ THIS ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

You two might want to search for the Scenar thread. Schedule a bit of time and go through that one...

Pretty much any bullet above 185 grains in a 338 win mag is an Elk bullet.

210-225 gr bullets are about right for elk in a .338 bore. I shot 250’s in my crappy shooting Win M70 years ago because I didn’t know better.

I've wondered the same about the .338 Hornady HPBT match bullets. I watched my buddy kill piles of game with 300 gr Sierra Matchkings so I thought I'd try the 250 gr Matchkings in my 338 Win. I killed one antelope doe with it and was not impressed. Later, I believe I read someplace that the 250gr Matchkings weren't nearly as good as the 300 gr version for hunting. If I did try them I'd seriously consider opening up the meplats and possibly annealing the tips.

I will send you some 200 grain accubonds if you can't see your way to buying some actual hunting bullets.