Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Typical Barnes TTSX Performance

Shot many a whitetail with them from .308, .30-06 and 7mm08. Always kill like lightning, have never had one fail and have only recovered one, A 120gr TTSX from the 7mm08. 75yd straight away Texas heart shot on a big whitetail buck. Went in about 2" below "bullseye" and stopped inside the hide on the opposite end, center of the brisket. Mushroomed perfectly and weighed 117.5gr.

Looks just like the 6.5 120gr TSX I used on a 214yd front on neck shot on a large 3x3 Blacktail in NW California from my Rem700 in 6.5 RemMag about 20+ years ago. Muzzle velocity was 3000-3100fps. It was a steep downhill shot with the TSX re-entering the bucks back after exiting the neck. It weighed 119gr, the deer was DRT, it just collapsed down. I would say this was excellent performance. Still use some TSX but now shifted over to the TTSX.

Are those different than regular pigs?

Which cartridge & bullet weight?

I’ve shot 2 javelinas with my .257 Wby using 100gen TTSX’s at under 50 yards. Neither went anywhere.

One cow at 200 with a .270 Wby using 130grn TTSX’s and at first she didn’t look hit, she took 5 steps and fell over dead. I took out the bottom of her heart


And also one cow at 240 with a .300 Wby using 180’s. The bullet went in behind the right shoulder and out through the left. She spun around and dropped.

Barnes 168 TTSX bullets recovered from cow elk shot at 617 and 628yds. Starting velocity was 3250fps. We've shot truck loads of deer between 10 and 800yds and never recovered a TTSX using the same load.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nilgai

They're also one of the tastiest creatures that God ever gave us.


Okie John

In three or four of my 308s, ammo loaded by Barnes and sold under their name runs right at advertised speed. In one, it's a bit faster. In the same rifles, ammo loaded by Federal with Barnes bullets tends to run 50-75 fps slower than advertised. All of this ammo was loaded in the last couple of years.


Okie John

That picture is troubling.

That depends. Impact speed is likely getting pretty low at those distances, so performance may be right inline with what one would expect.

A quick guess puts it at about 22-2300fps, which is far over what Barnes claims is their minimum for that bullet. Doesn't leave very much room for a guy that wants to use that bullet in a .30-06 or .308.

Knowing no particulars except MV, I'd SWAG it more like 2100 fps at impact. Regardless what Barnes cites by bullet, I use 2200 as the floor for all TTSX and 2000 for LRX. Not a.big deal for me as I don't shoot far enough for that to come into play. But if I was at or below those numbers, I'd aim for big bones in the shoulders.

Yup. Need more info to come up with a better estimate of impact speed, but those numbers are probably in the right ballpark.

Also keep in mind that “minimum” speed ratings are for minimum expansion. Add 200+ fps to the ratings if you want moderate or better expansion.

Some like them, some don't.

Some will never leave the Partitions.


Some like the Berger's

Getting in the race we have Hammer Bullets.

All of these bullets have a following. They all have a different point of view how a bullet should work.

Just make sure your gun is sighted in; go hunting and have some fun.

You wouldn't be worried about penetration? I'm going to try either 190 or 200 LRX bullets next year and worry about velocity at extended ranges.

I’ve broken a leg & spine from a 270 lb boar at 513 yards, chest cavity of a big cow elk at 550 yards with a 190 grain TTSX from a 300 Weatherby on my longest shots. I’m still looking to recover one.

In my opinion you can certainly use softer more explosive bullets & get more spectacular results on deer, for elk I love the bone breaking full penetration the TTSX gives.

I have used TSX 210 grains in my .338-06 at a mv of around 2700 fps with H414

End performance is variable:

Exit wound like John Hurt's character's chest in first Alien movie or

Suspected pencil through, not opening up (much) requiring follow up shots.

Shots = heart lung, rib cage at various ranges / angles.

I believe Barnes brought out the TTSX due to opening issues at lower velocities.

My understanding is performance is variable below striking velocities of 2000 fps and tends to pencil at 1600-1800 fps (not opening up)

To add, ranges were circa 125 yard out to 285 yards (long ones measured with laser range finder). Suspect impact velocity at longer ranges drops below 2000- 1900 fps.

I now run with the Speer softer heads and Nosler partitions and am looking at the TTSX due to good / higher velocity than with the partitions and probably more reliable opening up with that plastic plug in the hollow point.

Same bullet. Same round. Maybe a bit slower. Like 2650. Have never had a single complaint with that bullet. Its been perfect. A couple bullets that moose actually caught, were 100% retention.

They all open to some extent. I've never seen the exit wound the exact size as the entrance.

Moved to the TTSX as they came available. Still run TSX in 458 win mag.

While I've hear of issues with tsx over the years we never had an issue with em. And none with the tipped ones now either.

Have only ever seen nilgai shot with barnes except one I shot with a 30-30 contender and Rem 170s. The barnes bulls and cows were all perfect examples. The 30-30 was a stunt I wished I had not started but we got it finished. Most of those never made the off side lung....it took more than a few to get the bull down.

As long as they are not eating greening out juisache bushes... then they are horribly bitter.