Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Speer Hot Core

Yeah, there is no "bonding" in the Hot-Cor. I have even sectioned bullets and the core falls right away from the jacket.

That said, there is nothing wrong with them, though some lots of bullets can have spotty accuracy due (I assume, again from experience sectioning them) to occasional bubbles in the lead core, which don't do anything for accuracy.

If I recall correctly, I have taken big game with many different Hot-Cores, including the 105-grain 6mm, 87 .25, 100 .25, 140 6.5mm, 150 .270, 130 7mm, 165 .30, 200 .338 and 270 9.3mm. Only one that I know of ever separated core and jacket, and that was a 105 6mm from a .243 that hit a whitetail buck at about 250 yards. The jacket was found at the entrance hole, but the core went on inside and killed the deer. At the other extreme, a 165 from a .30-06 killed another whitetail buck with a rear-angling shot at about 150 yards. That bullet was recovered from the far shoulder, retaining 85% of its weight and looking like a magazine ad.

Impact velocity has not been over 2800 or so with any of them, even the 140 6.5mm from the .264 Winchester Magnum. Indeed, muzzle velocity has rarely been much over 2800. That is one key to performance with any traditional lead-core bullet.

I must also point out that the boattailed bullets in Speer's line are NOT Hot-Cor, but are swaged with a relatively soft lead core. They tend to be a little more accurate but also don't hold together as well, which I suspect has nothing to do with the boattail but instead the softer core.

I have loaded the 145 grain HotCor to about 3000fps for a buddy with a 7mm Mag. I saw him take a doe with it once,bang flop,dead deer with a big wound channel and an exit wound. The deer was at about 90 yards or so.

They seem to work as well as hornady interlocks,which means that I hold them in high regard. Good bullet for deer for sure.

Britt

I have used them in .270 130 grain. And in 7mm 145 and 160 grain. Soft deer bullets that open fast and penetrate well. I shot end to end through a whitetail with the 145.

However, I didn't notice that the Speer boat tails are not "Hotcors" and I didn't like the results of the boat tail on a close up mule deer.

Hot-Cors are my favorite deer bullet. I've used .243 cal 105gr, .257 cal 120 gr, .264 cal 120 and 140 gr, .277 cal 130 and 150 gr, .284 cal 145 and 160 gr, .308 cal 150, 165, and 180 gr, and .358 cal 250 gr. Have also used various Mag Tips and Grand Slams, and the .458 cal 300 gr UCHP (Uni-Cor). They all work very well. I have been let down by a few bullets of other brands, but never by a Speer Hot-Cor.

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Two years back, a friend gifted me with 600 once fired Remington 30-30 cases. I loaded 500 of them with the Speer 170 grain FP hot core, and IMR 4320 powder.
This is a very accurate load in my Marlin 336 (hovers around an inch at 100 yards) and also in my old Savage 170 pump 30-30.

Kills deer dead, and does an exellent job on hogs as well.

I took my first buck with a 150 gr flat nose through my 30 WCF when I was a kid. One shot, one kill. After college I got out again and took a coyote through the lungs with a bullet from that original box. It performed well there also.

I use the 150 SP hot core in my '06 for whitetails today and it is my 'go to' general purpose bullet. Like others here, I've been told that in .338 cal the 225 is a good elk and moose bullet. I've heard that while it is not 'bonded' in the strictest sense it does hold together better than cold swagged cup'n'core versions.

Only one I can vouch for is the 145 grain 7mm. They work "great" at 7mm Mauser velocities.....Fishster

True dat. I killed a nice 10-pointer last year with that combo. Seat the 145 grainer over 50 grains of H4350 and go make steak.

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I have used a lot 160 and 175 grs 7 mm Speer Hot Core Mag Tip in 7x57. They seems to be very tought and usually pass completely Red Deer hit broadside including soots in the spine or shoulder. I don`t know if the Mag Tip are made the same as the spitser Hot Core.

PatagoniaHunter,

I'm loading up 175 grain Mag Tips for my 7mm-08.

Was down your way back in '94. What a time we had. A month spent fishing from Bariloche down to Esquel. Wish I was still there!!!

SH

HUNTS,
I am also a fly-fisher!! I can assure you that the fishing in that area, "my" area actually, is better than ever !!! And the hunting for Red Deer is also great.
My Best Wishes!

My experience is with the 257 120gr Hot Core from a 257AI at about 3050fps, a 145gr Hot Core form a 280 and a 7Mag at about 3000 fps and a 130gr Hot core 270 at about 3000fps. Many, many dead deer...and a couple of caribou....all with perfect performance, from the mid '60's 'til last deer season.

Starting in the mid 80s I loaded a mess of 150gr Hot Cors for myself and a cousin, both in 30-06. Good accuracy, excellent results on whitetails. Figure between the two of us, a minimum of two dozen dead deer with that bullet. Also later loaded some of his ammo with the 165gr version when I ran out of the 150s, same results.

Didn't use any for several years, then killed my doe last season with a 1942 vintage US Rem (pretty much original military) and one 150gr Hot Cor. Appears they still work fairly well in a 30-06. They are one of the best "inexpensive" bullets around, in my opinion.

Also killed a few deer with the 8x57 and the 150gr Hot Cor, but switched to a 150gr Sierra, then the 125gr Hornady. The 150gr 8mm Hot Cors were a tad too tough in my experiences, never got much expansion with them in my 8x57 loads.

Mule Deer wrote:


Neither pro nor con.

I've taken several cow/spike elk as well as mule deer from does to 5x5, 250 lb bucks with the 180 gr Spitzer BT in 30-06 running about 2700 fps; range from 100 to 300 yds. I've always hit just ribs and vitals, never shoulders/bone nor driven at angles or through "feet" of muscle/vicera to get to the vitals. I've never recovered one of those Speers to date. Internal ispection shows a simple "in/out" effect with about 1/2" diameter exits. No large amounts of blood shot meat either.

Just FYI.

I have been using the Hot-cor, 145 gr. FB in my 7mm-08 with very good results. I have other 7mm bullets around, but just can't figure out why to go with anything else for a basic deer/antelope load for that rife. Shoots about 1 inch consistently and chronos right at 2700 fps. Have not recoved any bullets from about 6 deer, 2 antelope and a couple hogs. All were one shot except an insurance shot on one of the antelope.

I'm hoping to whack a bear with a 270gr 9.3 Hot Core this weekend... will provide pics if succesful...

Well I'll be. Two pages of nothing but praise for a non-premium hunting bullet. Wonders never cease.

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They're darn accurate too, at least out of my CZ 9.3x62, I'm getting 1 1/4" groups at 100 yards off the bench. That might not set the world on fire, but the groups are large ragged overlapping .366" holes so the group size may just be a function of a large bullet

Yes, it's amazing, isn't it, that we've managed to kill all manner of big game for so many years without "premium" bullets or brain-smashing magnums, turkeys and waterfowl without 3-1/2 inch shotgun shells? I often wonder how our forefathers survived.

How very true. Many years ago,about the only inexpensive standard cup and core were those from Sierra. I was living in San Francisco (Pre-Feinstein )and working for a now long defuct gun shop. Sierra at that time were made in california and Speer and Hornady bullets beig from out of ste had to be special ordered at a cost os about a$1.00 to $1.50 more depending on caliber so I always just stck with the less expensive Sierras for whatever I was hunting and they worked just fine. I never lost a deer using them. I like the Speer Hot-cores but probably still buy Sierras from force of habit and because I have loads worked up with them that work. Like Murphy says, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."
Paul B.