Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Sierra Game-King Lovers...

I've never tried Sierra Game-Kings in any of my rifles...

[243, 6.5x55mm, 7x57mm, 270, 308W, 30-06]

Do some swear by them or at them...

Please, share your experiences...

and list what rifle(s) and caliber(s) and type of game, etc.

This bullet is beginning to gain my attention...

Til now only been shooting Rem CL, Win PP, NP...

Thanks!

.25-06 100gr GK, MD doe, 317 yards, broadside, complete penetration, DRT.

I swear at 'em..

A Hunting pard swears by them...30-06 165GK

Ingwe

I've sweared at them and by them. I've used them in my 270 Win only and only the 130g. I've had them fail to break a mule deers shoulder at 100 yards so it did not penetrate into the vitals. I've had one kill a small doe like the hammer of Thor at 200 yards, but not exit. This year I used it antelope hunting and had complete pass through penetration on a broadside buck at 360 yards. No heavy bone was hit, the top of the heart was gone. He ran about 25 yards before piling up. These are loads traveling 3100fps from the muzzle.

There are those including John Barsness who say they work well at slower speeds so I am going to try the 140 and 160s in my 7x57. Should they work satisfactorly then I'll keep using them.

Had great luck with them in my 7MM Rem Mag (160), 300 Weatherby (200) and 8MM Rem Mag (220). They are all real close to 3000 fps.

I have used them in my .270 Win with excellent results on mule deer, whitetail deer and antelope. 130 grain bullets with H4831sc powder and one shot kills at ranges from 125 to 325 yards. Never used them on heavier game. Most accurate hunting bullets I have tried in my .270 Win.

I wuv them ive had good luck with them in 300 winmag,.308,30-06,.270,.260 heck every thing ive ever tried them on for whitetails

30-06 Federal Premium 165gr.

Numerous whitetails and large hogs at various distances,kudu@ 275 yds,,zebra140yds.,blesbuk313 yds.,black wildebeest160yds.,impala110yds. and a warthog10 yds. All one shot kills except the blesbuk and I hit him a little far back with my first shot at about 250 yds. (my first African animal) and had to take a followup shot. No fault of the bullet.

Most on here will say they are not of heavy enough construction for anything larger than deer but if you put them where you should, you should have no problem.

Accuracy is very good. My Remington 700 shoots 3 shot MOA groups out to 600 yards at Texas Pistol Academy with them.

180 grain GameKings in .30-'06 sporterized Springfield and a BAR. Always resulted in dead deer. The front maybe third or so of the bullet often turns into tiny pieces which themselves cause damage. May or may not pass through, sometimes they make turns. Excellent penetration if you need to take a head-on shot.

100 grain GameKings in a 6mm Rem commercial Mauser, Always resulted in dead deer. Fired at around 3100 fps they do tend to fragment a lot when hitting bone. Switched to TSX after pretty much making a shoulder inedible, but the deer dropped like being struck by the Hammer of Thor (see Gunwriter's page ).

Not a whole lot of experience here, but that's what's happened so far. Easy to work up very accurate loads in all rifles.

The 165 Sierra BTSP out of a .300 Winchester has put a lot of deer steak in the freezer for me.

I called Sierra and must have gotten the bullet nazi. I was pretty intent on running some in a couple of new builds, but after that I simply shrugged and kept buying the black and gold boxes.

I have used 130's in a 270 win loaded to 3100fps. One doe at 60 yards DRT 150 pound buck at 125 yards ran a bit but souped his lungs and took the top of the heart off. Both were complete pass throughs.

The only Sierra Game Kings I have used on deer were .257" 90 grain BTHP's. I shot them out of a 22 inch barreled .257 Roberts. One spine shot, one neck shot, and one shoulder shot. Only the neck shot exited. All three dropped where they stood. I haven't used them again because I feel like the that particular bullet is a little light, but wouldn't hesitate to use Sierra Gamekings on deer.

The 160 Sierra Game Kings is the best shooting bullet that I have found for my 7MM Mag, flat shooting and tight grouping at all ranges, I just wish it wasn't so devastating on deer size game at 150 yrds or <!

I used to use 150g 30 cals in an 30.06. At close range they killed fast, I did find a copper jacket under the far side skin once. If I remember correctly Sierra changes the amount of antimony it puts in different bullets so while the 30 cal 150 was a little soft, I am not sure that I would draw the same conclusion about a 180g for example.

On a larger scale I have found Game kings to be quite accurate in a number of rifles and calibers I have shot them in, although I rarely used them for hunting just for practice etc.

Accuracy wise,if your rifle won't shoot Sierras with the proper weight to match your twist,something is wrong wth the rifle.It is the go to bullet to check rifle accuracy.

Game wise if you use them at the correct velocity ,they work just fine.Push them too fasta s many with magnums do and they come apart, pretty much like any other bullet would.

Something to be said for lead scattered all through the animals meat. Sort of like eating leaded paint (seen any xrays of them?). COOL! But then again, I use high & ultra velocity cartridges too that arn't user friendly to these bullets (TSX is my go to). There fun and economical at the shooting range but that's about it for me. Not trying to POP any bubbles or start any war. Just raising awareness which is knowledge.

Same here. They come apart most of the time and in my way of thinking that is unacceptable. Accubonds Partitions Hornadies Barnes etc.

I find that not to be true and I shot them in guns that should make that happen? A 7MM Rem, 300 Weatherby and 8MM Rem Mag???????????

They are accurate for sure. They have a somewhat bad rep for being too soft and they do come apart on ocassion, but they work probably 95% or better most of the time..That is what causes these sometimes hot arguements..

When I started handloading Sierras were all I could get and they worked very well for me, but on ocassion one would come apart.I used them in the 30-30, .270, 30-06, 7x57, 257 Robts, 250 Savage, 243 and a few others. The results were always the same, perfect most of the time with an ocassional blowup, with the exception of the 30-30 bullets and they always performed to perfection.. I never lost an animal shot with a Sierra that I recall...By failure I basically mean bullet seperation or total disrupture. When they blow up inside its usually an instant kill btw.

On a scale of 1-10 I would give Sierra Game Kings a good strong 8..I give Nosler partitions a 10, so I'd say the Sierras are a great deer bullet..And I know the 250 gr. .338 is a good elk bullet and the 300 gr. .375 is another very dependable bullet.

I still think that a bonded core or partition bullet is good insurance on an expensive hunt.

I've been shooting factory loaded Federal Premium 165 gr. Sierra Game King BTSP loads through my 30-06 Mauser for well over a decade now. They were the most accurate during extensive testing of various factory offerings. They're scary accurate, consistent, and I have yet to have a deer travel more that 10 feet when hit by one of these loads. Longest shot was a doe at 343 yards broadside. Bullet went through and through, the deer was dead before she even hit the ground. They're an expensive load, but with hunting time being so limited, and the opportunities few and fleeting, I don't mind spending a little more. The proof should be sitting in my freezer in a few weeks here.

I have seen a 150 Sierra BT come apart at 150 yards on the shoulder of an antelope buck. The jacket was found on the hide in the entrance wound and the rest of the core disintagrated inside the buck. This was launched from a 308 Winchester Savage 99. Did the buck die? Oh yes. Right there. Was my buddy pissed? He never used Sierra again. That and a few other examples were enough evidence for me. I do not want to take any chances. Additionally when I talked to the "Ballistic Team" they sound like their stuff does not smell and they do not need to upgrade their bullets, like everybody else is doing in the industry. They are a company in denial using yesteryear's technology. I have no use for them. Great target bullets and great varmint bullets. Everything else they make are made for breaking in barrels or fireforming brass. Again that is my opinion. One man's trash is another man's treasure.

I've recently been trying the 65 gn .224 Game Kings out of my Tikka T3 .223 on deer.

4 shots, 4 Fallow deer, all DRT, all complete pass throughs with chest shots.

I reckon that they work OK

WOW...Thanks a million for all you folks sharing your experiences!!! Very helpful indeed!!!

With the few folks who don't find them working too well in their experiences, do folks think if that they tend to work better in some calibers more than others because they're too frangible at excess speeds and lower weights, read grains???

I don't know?

I tend to believe they perform better in the slower cartridges, read 30-30, 30-40, 250 & 300 Sav, .243, .257 Rob, 6.5-55, the Mousers series, .308 Win, .303 Brit and so on and so forth. Had a .225 gr. SGK in a .338 Win blow up on the side of a Doe muley about 20-22 yrs ago that blew a 9' circle of hair around the deer and it just ran off. The shot was to the Rt rib cage from about 75 yds. My pard saw it further down a ridge and dispatched it with a 180gr Colorado custom (know known as Barnes) from a .308 Norma. After further inspection, we noticed the hit from the .225gr SGK and the flesh wound it did. I was horrified and came to the conclusion I still have today. This is why I use the bullets I do. I feel it's my responsibility as a responsible hunter to make every effort in making a honorable, quick & humane dispatch of the quarry stalked and hunted. This was just my experiences and in no way to start a war.

It is what it is.

I'm a pretty big fan of GK's, especially the HPBT version.

I say load them up in whatever you want, shoot the deer right, and fill out your tag.I've yet to have one let me down.

I agree that they seem to perform better at lower velocities.

I suspect that the 65 gn .224 Game Kings would show a lot less penetration and a lot more 'blow up' if they were launched out of a 22/250 or 220 Swift for example and the target was close.

So far the my results with them on deer from a standard .223 have been very good. At this stage I'd rate them better than the 63 gn Sierra (and I've shot a lot of deer with that bullet)

I used to use them for everything in my 30-06s. I took several elk using Federal Premium 150 grain Sierra Game Kings until one day it took four shots in the lungs at 30 yards to down a cow elk. So I switched to Federal Premium High Energy 180 grain Nosler Partitions and have taken a bunch more elk using those, with no problems.

I still use 150 grain Game Kings for deer and smaller game. I just got back from an antelope hunt in Wyoming and got two bucks, both one-shot kills, using them.

They are very accurate and I love to use them for practice because I get such small groups. Pumps my ego.

Sierra Game Kings are a great bullet when used within their design parameters.

KC

I shoot 150gr factory loads through my 30-06. They shoot around 1 inch consistently, which is good enough for my hunting. The performance is great. Good expansion and dead deer.

SS

I've shot a half dozen deer and one hog with them. 175 grain 7mm, 165 and 180 grain 30 cals.

I concur with those who say they are exceptionally accurate. However, they have a very narrow envelope of performance. A 175 7mm bullet is too hard for deer even at 3000 fps, where a 165 30 cal is great on deer when it impacts at 2400 fps. I had a 30 180 grainer (MV of 2900 fps and impact distances of 50-60 yds) fail to expand on a broadside shot on a small buck, and had that bullet fail to penetrate fully on a lengthwise shot on a small doe.

I wish Sierra would emerge out of the dark ages of hunting bullets and offer a bonded Gameking.

They won't do it Blaine. I asked them about making a premium bullet and the ballistic Nazi said we already make premiums.

Totally in denial.

Well I used the 200 Gr in my 300 Weatherby at a hair over 3000 fps an Elk quartering away from me at 150 yards right to left. Hit it at about forth rib from the rear and the bullet lodged under the right shoulder 70 in tact and did not loose the jacket as some claim. Don't know what to say that's always been my result. I'm thinking you just have bad Carma because this wasn't a one time thing.

Agreed. Even if it had a more generously tapered thickness jacket (easy to make even if they insist on using lead inside) and would help alot of folks and they would be better suited for a wider range of FPS which would work even better for the close and longer shots (within responsible reasoning).

The fact of the matter is this. There are questionable and bad results with others experiences with them, so there is room for improvement here. Its not just a random thing either. It's a very mixed bag. Not good. For those that have had good luck,,,,count your blessings and hope that when the time of truth comes again, they perform as required.

Im not a huge fan but I shoot them in a couple of rifles. I recover them on occasion but have never had a blow up or lost animal. I think they are onto something with their core composition and jacket thickness. They just need to figure out how to keep them together consistently.

My swede loves them at 2500 fps. I get jacket seperatiom about half the time outa dead critters. They are just too accurate to quit.

Joseph

Used Federal Premium 117 Sierra GameKing BTSP for years in my 25.06.

Had a consecutive run over several seasons of 8 one shot kills on muleys and whitetails. Most DRT, none ran more than 40 yds.

My Rem 700 Varminter would consistently tuck them into 3 shot groups of 3/4" or less.

...but then again, I was shooting a 25.06, eh?

I've used the SBT & HPBT versions of the Game King in .243 Winchester (85 gr.@ 3,100 fps), .308 Winchester (165 gr. @ 2,600 fps), and .30-06 (180 gr. @ 2,734 fps) for a very long time with no problems whatever. I've always managed to put the GK where it is supposed to go and stuff dies very quickly for me.

I've used the 100 grainers at about 3300 fps out of my 25-06 on deer. Everything has dropped in it's tracks from 30 yards to 200. The same bullet also works wonders in my 250 savage. Maybe it's just the 25 cal that's any good.

Anyone used their 220 grainer in the 06'. I really like the Federal Classic load using the 220 grain 06' out of my #1 RSI. Great walking gun load combo for black bear.

Everytime I think of using a Sierra Game King, I remember a deer hunt with a friend about 20 years ago in which a 165 GK launched at about 2850 fps spined a small mule deer at 225 yards. The bullet came unglued and literally blew the top half of the deer off (it left at least a basketball sized hole). I can't say the bullet failed in that the deer died pretty much instantly, but It just seemed a bullet loaded at .30-06 velocities shouldn't do that much destruction at 225 yards

If they did, they would probably dominate the category of bonded hunting bullets.

Sierra is not going to go into the premium bullet market.They already have the largest market share of the type of bullets they sell and the competition bullets they sell far out sell the closest competitor.
I always hear about one time long ago and far away where a Sierra bullet did not live up to expectations. A statistic of one or two for that person.I would imagine that one could take any bullet on the market and come up with the same scenario.

Interesting article I read lately.The guy who killed 2000 elphants with a 7 x 57 killed over half of them with a FMJ military bullet, aveage 1.5 bullet per kill.They noted that it was his marksmanship and not his choice of bullet. That would still hold true today

+1 to saddlesore's post.

Those who understand cup-and-core bullets will always gets what they want out of Sierras. Others will demand something that works to some other ideal than killing the animal.

I'm running the 215 SGK at about 2700 fps through my 338-06. I emailed them to find out how stout I could expect this bullet to be and was told by Rich Machholz that the jacket is the same as the one they use on their 250 gr GK, but shortened. Should be plenty stout or about anything up to elk or moose, but alas, I'll be using mine on whitetails this fall. Maybe mulies next fall...

Every tool has its purpose, and if you use it in the way it was designed you should reasonably expect the results you seek. 2700 fps for a cup'n'core is well within the design specifications.

As someone else said, I'm sure you could start threads just like this on Speers, Hornadys, and Noslers.

I've used the 250 grain .338 BT a bit, a couple moose ,one at 480 long paces ( a moose is a very big target one shot put him down where he stood busted both shoulders) ;), 3 or 4 caribou, and a couple black bear. It never let me down not sure why I switched to NP's, but then they've never let me down either. --- Mel

You missed, huh? I've seen you insist on shooting big hairy stuff BEHIND the freaking shoulders!
art shaking head and laughing

They are my start bullet generally, until I can get time to sit down to work my TSX into the formula. I used to think of them as an ok bullet mostly and a bit frangible if anything. I loaded for my buddy for a number of years, 165 in 06, then he shot a buck where the bullet NEVER expanded at all, through both lungs and they killed that buck 3 weeks later with a neck shot.... that original shot hit a rib going in and out.... we moved him to TSX right away.

I didn't have time to mess with a lot of load work last fall and shot 160s in my 7x300.... talk about wild performance. Couple of head shots did fine, then we had a couple that penciled through....the final straw was that about a 50 pound hog stopped the complete bullet lengthwise at a bit over 250 yards.... to much uncertainty about what it will do IMHO. But then thats typical of Cup and Core.

So how do we explain the 165 in 06 in and out through a rib each time, around 120ish yards, never opening up, and never killing the deer through both lungs?

The SAME way we explain the Barnes bullets here and there supposedly(I've never seen it) not opening.

I was sitting and thinking after I replied a minute or so earlier, when still doing taxidermy I saw a lot of bullets and without a doubt the game king was the one most likely to have seperated from the jacket. Of course we do note that every deer brought to me was already dead.

I think you both nailed it on location of shot and the one I mention was pure fluke. Run it at suggested speeds and distances and all will generally be well. But that limits uses and such and thats enough of a reason for me to at a minimum to think bonded as a minimum.

GameKings aren't my first choice by any means. (I don't even like them over Hornadys in my hunting rifles as simple accuracy goes overall.) I haven't hed any complaints with them however on several moose I've killed with them. In fact, a 250 .338 was one among the few (three) instant tip-overs I've had when killing moose. And none of them was a CNS shot. (I've also driven that same bullet through the meaty shoulder area of a longer distance moose.)

But I suspect Sierra won't worry about how good or bad their bullets compare to others as long as people keep shooting 50 of theirs for every 5 of the bonded, mono, or other premium construction bullets that get shot. It's a simple fact, if everyone made only Partitions (or TSXs), not everyone would stay in business. I'm sure Sierra adequately maintains their market share doing what they do.

Gamekings work if you don't push them too fast..I have had pretty good luck with them in the 250 gr. 338 and the 300 gr. 375 over the years..

All that said, these days I see no reason not to use one of the excellent bonded core bullets, they never fail. To do otherwise seems foolish to me?

JB recently wrote an article about the virtues of 2,700 fps. I think he wrote it specifically for the Sierra bullets. Long ago, I developed the theory that the GK worked just fine if their sectional density was held to a minimum of .240 or so with muzzle velocities of 2,600 to maybe a bit over 2,800 fps. I have used the GK in that window with the .308, 30-06, .270, and 6.5x55. In those instances, they work fine. Go less than that in SD, and in my experience they have a nasty tendency to come apart. FWIW, I have found the HPBT to be quite a bit tougher than the soft nose counterpart. I like the 160 HPBT in my 7mm Remington Mag.

Atkinson.Many times on this forum you have stated that you shoot what you want and others can do as they want,and yet you end up saying to shoot anything other than one of the premiums is foolish. To me that insinuates that all of us that shoot these bullets are fools. Pretty harsh words which I take a little, bit of an offense.I guarantee, there have been a heck of a lot more animals killed with these std bullets by many hunters than just the few thousand you have killed. Example.In Pa, for many years thousands of whitetail deer a year were killed, and as I remember about the same number were killed in Wisconsin or Minnisota.The majority for many years were kiled with a 30-30 using Cor Loks,or Win PP or maybe silver tips.

You are the one who continuously professes that all elk shot in your area are usually shot at the south end of a north bound elk. So I can see why you have to use these bullets, but there are many of us who don't necessarily have to do that. If it were me,I'd figure out how come that is and correct the problem. Maybe we are just stupid or fools,or just maybe,we have learned a thing or two along the way.

I chose to use a bullet that will do the job, and save a little money doing it. As I have posted many times here, using a $1 bullet where a 25 cent bullet will do is like paying a $100 lady of the evening for a $5 oral sex job. You feel the same when it is all over and done with, but you just wasted $95. Those $95 dollars come hard for me. It will buy me the diesel to get to and from my hunting area, and I can still buy $22 worth of bullets with what is left.

I have a 3/4 T diesel pick up that is required to pull my stock trailer, but I don't use it every day running around. I use the little Toyota Tacoma.Sorta of the same thing. The big truck will do the job, but it sure is wasting money using it.

Just my take on it.

+1

And I don't buy Ray's silly nonsense that a bullet should make two holes in an animal so it leaves a blood trail so it can be tracked. WTF is up with that? Perhaps he has become too dependent on all those african trackers that accompanied him on his past african safaris! Lols!


MtnHtr

I've been shooting the Sierra #2140, 165gr HPBT GK in my .30-06 since the early 80's. Took a lot of deer out in Montana with that combination. Never a problem and all one shot kills. Great product and affordable.

Looking at the Midway site, the 7mm/160 gr HPGK gets 5 stars from all 5 who give feedback, one of them a 7 STW shooter:

http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct/?productnumber=774260

The other is the 30 cal/165 gr HPGK, and 25 of 29 reviews give 5 stars. Of the 4 that don't, 2 were clearly pushed by magnums. 3 of them complain of massive upset, and the other of a pencil hole:

https://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct/?productnumber=326863

I've been told by people I trust (some with experience) that this would be a great elk bullet. Even so, taking these to deer camp for whitetails is one thing. If I were heading out West for elk I'd try out the NAB or NPT, as these leave no doubt as to performance. In spite of the nature of many of these stories making it sound as though they are bad cartridge/bullet combinations it is enough to place doubt in my mind.

the reason it will work on Elk is that the copper jacket is considerably thicker than their non-hollow point bullets. I would try it without hesitation. Put the shot where it is supposed to be and it will perform. Personally, I like this bullet for non-magnum cartridges.

I agree with Jeff. No doubt when you knowingly use a bullet outsie of it's performance envelope you can't complain when it doesn't work well. However, when a 180 grain GK launched at 2900 fps and impacts at 50-60 yds pencils through the ribs of a deer one day, but the next day it won't go lengthwise, it makes you ask just what is the perfomance envelope of that bullet? BTW, both small deer required a tracking job. When a 165 GK impacts at 2400 fps and still comes apart, then how slow does it need to go to penetrate?

While a Gameking is very accurate, I'll gladly trade a 1/2 moa of accuracy for a much wider performance envelope. Take a Barnes TSX for example. A 168 TSX, launched at 2850 - 2900 fps, is able to go corner to corner (though the paunch) on a hog at 200 yds, AND open up enough to dump small and medium sized blacktail deer at 80-100 yds on the spot. With so many bullets out there that will do that, why even fuss with a GK?

If you hunt in a place where you have enough time for deer sized critters to turn broadside and stand still, then the bullet you use isn't that big of a deal--just take your time and shoot them in the head or behind the shoulder. However, if the animals you're hunting are like these blacktails I'm hunting here in Oregon--where very common scenario is a quick moving deer, 40-100 yds away in semi open to thick timber, then you bullet needs to be able to go corner to corner AND expand. That requirement disqualifies Sierra Gamekings.

BTW, I am not anti-Sierra. When I shot competition I used Matchkings, and if I ever shoot competition again I'll use Matchkings.

Blaine, I have heard that story before. I grew up hunting thick stands of laurel in PA and about as thick as anything one can imagine.The bullet of choice was 170 gr fl pt out of a 30-30. Shooting was fast as you say, but no one ever thought they had to drill a deer from end to end. For 40 yrs my father used a 38-40.That is a handgun cartrige going about 800fps. A heck of alot of deer fell to that old gun.
After I moved to NM ,we hunted thick oak brush. Again about as thick as the laurel,many times only crawling though it on hands and knees.Then I used the old Norma BT, 130 gr bullets out of a.308. (not produced anymore),then switched to Game Kings. Again,no one I hunted with nor myself ever thought you had to drill one end to end and we sure killed a lot of deer.With those experinces,I have to call BS on the need premium bullets in close cover. Myself I would opt for a heavy bullet out of a 44 mag, 444 .375 or some thing like that

I have never heard of a GK penciling through anything , particularly at 2900 fps,but I have heard a lot about Barnes bullets doing that and even partitions, but I suppose it could happen.

As I posted before I'd bet you can take any bullet one choses and find some story that it did not perform as expected.

There is definitely a division here which is to be expected. However I'm with the Major on end to end (or through and through). The views and experiences of others as well on this matter makes one think of "why take a chance". Sort of like taking a rifle in a questionable chambered in the woods to do your bidding. It's not a perfect world and some of us choose to take some of those risks out of the factor and go with insurance (or what we believe is).

The MKs for comp is hard to beat.


It is what it is no matter how much icing or whipped cream is on it.

Had it happen to me with a 180 grain .308 GameKing. Took a shot to finish off a hunting partner's crippled doe, broken front leg, at 425 yards as best I could pace it off under the conditions. Between the ribs in, through both lungs, and between the ribs out. Of course it ran so a farmhouse was directly behind it from where I stood. Died in the trees behind the farmhouse about a quarter mile away.

But then I've seen the same thing happen with a .243 at less than 100 yards. (Uncle Jack just about threw the new rifle he was bragging up into a ditch. ) Not surprising as lungs are mostly just more air. Weird things do happen from time to time if you hunt long enough though I seem to get more than my share.

Saddlesore, I won't argue the theory of saving money, and I do it both ways... First if you haven't heard of a GK penciling through read my earlier post.. I don't recall that MV but a 165 in an 06 isn't slow.
Here is my theory, I think I get the best of both worlds here. I shoot cheap flat based bullets bought in bulk for the majority of my practice. Have done the same when in competition. I use the best I can for real competition and hunting. That being said I shoot something if I feel the urge to just shoot my deer rifle which is rare, and to verify sight settings I shoot the real thing, that takes at most a couple of shots a year, and then one bullet for each tag I have if I'm lucky.. at most I"m spending maybe 5 bucks more than you are a year, maybe.... Just another way of looking at it.

Jeff

Jeff.I'm not disputing your point,but think your math is off. To work up a load I figure you would have to buy two boxes of $40 bullets to get a hundred. Maybe shoot 50 of them.Every year,to check zero, I shoot about 15, 5 three shot groups if my sights are off. Then maybe 5 at game ,if I get two elk tags and two deer tags. Some times less,sometimes more. That is considerably more, but granted,you would only have to work up a the load once.

It seems everyone on here that touts the expensive bullets, never says how many times they have encounted one of those not performing.I know darm well it happens. Discount all the stories about Sierras coming apart,etc from guys who chose to push them too fast and I would bet the percentage is about the same of them not peforming as any other bullet. So far as far as I can remeber,on this thread we have had about 4 guys say the Sierra penciled through.Pretty small statistical average.Over the years I have seen a a lot more guys post that about partitions and Barnes bullets.
Sure, shoot a .308 at 400yds and punch through both lungs,and the Sierra might pencil through. So would almost every other bullet on the market.

You guys just don't get it. Every bullet on the market is going to not perform as expected at one time or another. Doesn't matter if you are shooting your own cast bullets or some bullet that cost $2 a pop. I'm still willing to bet most cries of bullet failure are due to chosing the wrong bullets for the job , or poor marksmanship

they are an accurate bullet but when i go hunting i use hornady or noslers

here's a 700 yard hit with a 250 grain gk out of my 338 rum.
entered and exited with massive destruction in between.

my hunting partner hit another with a 338 lm, and took out the opposite shoulder with lots of big bone fragments. bullet was off in the dirt somewhere when it exited. we'll be using them again next year !

Saddlesore

Actually I don't count load work, one round of load work with TSX took shooting a suggested load, 3 shots, was well under MOA in a small 6mm I have, and then I shot about 4 more 3 shot groups, all doing fine. It was zero'd and the only time I"ve shot it since at non game was last year after I somehow realized I'd missed a buck... Couldn't find the limb I had to have hit, but shot it back at the truck, top of a dime sized spot on a bag at one hundred.

Load work can be a few rounds or say a couple of boxes. Not a big deal, its the shooting after that, that I count. Which isn't much shooting in reality generally.

As to no bullet performing, well I've had 100% track record on TSX and now TTSX. Including them doing things that I thought they might not be able to do. I load them for a fair amount of other friends and same results. Thats why I pay for them and am so sold on them. WHat more can I ask about a fast driven 150 in a 300 wtby that hits deer at under 30 yards and does just fine, or a 225 grain X from a 338 win mag that expands twice at 802 yards? Everything in between those parameters has been perfect also.

I cannot say the same for the others. Just what I've seen and its more than a sampling of 4 that didn't expand....

Like I said I shoot the non premiums here and there, and won't practice with premiums, but sure will use em... Used to carry a box of wind resistant bullets around to matches, when it was an important to me 600 yard match IF the weather turned really bad I'd pull out the ones that the projectile itself was about 1.50 each, and fire 22 of them,win the match and drive home.. of course the entry fee, the fuel and time etc... validated to me at least, that winning was the validation.... IE the expense of the bullet helped solve the situation.

I've said it before and will again and live by it, when its time to hunt where you can and will pass up the wrong shots, use what you want, I do it all the time. When its a must do situation, then run the premium bullets.

The other side to it is that I prefer the non destruction of meat via the premium bullets, but as I age I also value the ability to make sure they are dead above all first...

And yep, bullet/arrow placement is always the FIRST thing to worry about... much like my soapbox thing on scopes... give me the best scope I can afford.... if I have a cheap scope but good binocs, (assuming late or early) and can find with binocs but not see well enough to shoot.... AND give me a cheap single shot gun,with great scope other than the reverse.. can't shoot what you can't see. Put it in the right place first, then generally most bullets work.

I only recovered 3 bullets in over 3 decades of hunting big game. Here they are, all Sierra GK BTSP and all resulting from fontal shots with bullets penetrating from bow to stern.


From let to right :
- 7x64, 160 GK,80 m on Muntjac, bullet recovered from ham, 181% expansion - 48 % retained weight ;
- .300 Win Mag, 165 GK, 250 m on red stag, bullet recovered from hide pouch on opposing flank, 204% expansion - 78% retained weight ;
- .30-06, 165 GK, 150 m on roebuck, bullet recovered from hide pouch on opposing flank, 256% expansion - 59% retained weight.

All bullets were used within their envelope of performance and behaved excellently. If a high velocity bullet is wanted, go to the Sierra GK HPBT, which is a true, hard, magnum bullet. An extra bonus is that both bullets are interchangeable and, when loaded the same, shoot to the same POI.

Thanks Andre!

I didn't know the difference between bullet types in the Sierra Game-King line-up...
So my choices are SPBT and HPBT...correct?

Well I buy Ray's "silly nonsense." Particularly when using something that on the light side or on a bad angle shot.
You can make all the fun you want of him or me. But if a going away shot is all you have, you need something that will work reliably.
Yeah, I know. It doesn't matter on deer.... Until you hit one wrong or it simply doesn't know he's dead.
I've got no problem using bullets like the GK's as long as the cartriage is a bit more than the 6mm/.25's on deer. For bigger stuff, it's the premiums just because they give me an edge. E

If you "have" to take a "going away" shot, there is no bullet I can think of (in a proper caliber) which won't break the pelvis. If you think you can't place the bullet well enough to do that, I would suggest that even a "copper enema" may not reliably accomplish what it is you want done.

The point is fellas that this is a free country. You can use any bullet you want. Heck some even use Matchkings for Pete's sake (God knows why).
As for me I will not use what I deem to be a substandard bullet. We are expressing opinions here, not trying to sway people from using anything they want to use.

I think many folks confuse what bullets can or cannot do and Sierra's products are sometimes wrongly singled out as "inferior" when, in reality, they are scarcely different in how the work from Interlockeds and Ballistic Tips. They aren't GameKings, but I really preferred many of the now discontinued round or semi-round Pro-Hunters to the round nosed bullets Hornady still offers; and the latter aren't bad bullets either.

Truth be told, there are few hunting bullets (none I can think of) that a decent hunter can't make work, assuming a reasonable bullet choice is made.

So my choices are SPBT and HPBT...correct?
[/quote]

Looking for a general purpose bullet, we might put it that way, indeed.

What many of us seem to forget is that bullets, all of them, are nothing but a compromise between penetration and expansion (we could add accuracy to make it even more interesting and or confusing...). Too soft a bullet will give superb expansion but might fail to penetrate deep enough. Too hard, a bullet will penetrate lengthwise, making pencil holes.

I suggest therefore that the case of the perfect bullet be linked with another myth, i.e. the universal rifle/caliber, in order to guarantee many more years of our ongoing discussions...

Yes, that's true. You need to shoot over the stomach as well. I've hit bucks too far back, either from not enough lead or the bullet being deflected by brush and broken the femur on two occassions. With the femur broken, he isn't going far or very fast. If you get the femoral artery, he can bleed out from that alone. All in all, it's nice to have one that will consistantly reach all the way up the animal.
BTW, a shot to the liver kills very well.
It boils down to what you insist on in bullet performance and where you draw the line between selecting a cup and core or some premium. E

Not my experience at all with premiums. Maybe cup and core bullets, but I haven't seen it.
What matters the most with most cup and core bullets is impact velocity. If it's too low, they don't open much or at all. I had a buddy finish off a 3 yr.old buck with a neck shot at 300 yds. with a .300 Savage. The 150 gr. Sierra broke the neck, ok, but didn't expand to any noticable degree. Good thing it hit just right.
Pushed too fast and they come apart. The small buck I killed with a 7mm magnum at 300 yds., was hit in the very top of the back. Too high to hit ther spine. Ripped a gash about four inches wide as it came apart. Even at 300 yds., the 140 gr. Sierra was still moving a little too fast.
In contrast, the Nosler Partitions I've used under similar circumstances have always held together, penetrated and expanded very rapidly. Even at really close ranges, like 40 ft. with muzzle velocities of 3400 fps., as well as over 400 yds. and muzzle velocxites of only 2680 fps. In both instances, the bullets went all the way through and left very good wound channels. Odviously a much wider range of performance. E

While we are on the subject of cup cores where do the Speer Hot Cores line up? Not the mag tip or grand slam, just regular ol hot cores.

tougher, softer, less/more reliable then GKs for deer size game at nominal speeds? less then 3K... I really like the looks and on paper performance of the 145 and 160 in my 7x.

Ive used the 130gr .277 and the 110gr .277 and both worked well on antelope and deer. The 130's out of a 270 win @ 3100FPS did leave some very large exit wounds. The 110gr out of a 6.8 SPC contender did very well @ 2500 FPS...although the core did seperate from the jacket on the only one i recoved..but dead is dead.

The 145 Hot Core out of a 280 and the 120 in a 25/06 have been my fovorites for decades. Very reliable performance on deer. "Course they are a C&C bullet so you can't push at 3400fps and expect perfect performance. I'd rate them a little thougher than the GameKings...about on par with the Hornady Interlocks.

I really like the 145 flat base version in my 7X57. Seems to stop them very quick and have never recovered a bullet. Not taking questionable shots as where I am hunting there are plenty of deer and plenty of time...

The two gamekings I use the most are the 150gn in my 7x57 (2708fps) and the 165gn HPBT in my.30-06 (2874fps). The 7mm 150gn often doesn't exit on pigs and one deer but kills them all the same. I'd like to load another bullet in the 7x57 but the Sierras just outshoot anything else I have tried.

150 gr '06 GK70 yards, yearling caribou. '09. Entrance wound. Exit wound at base of neck about the same. They expand immediately, and tend to blow all the way through. But I have no experience with them hitting major bone.

Nearly all that "blood shot" meat in this picture was saved by trimming out the membranes on and between muscle layers- wasn't nearly as bad as it looks here. It seldom is, with any bullet. Sierra GK work fine, and are generally highly accurate. My .338 WM will shoot @1" groups with Sierra GK handloads- at 200 yards. But since I hardly ever get a shot at over 100 yards, I use Hornady handloads or factory loads - most any brand shoots well enough....

I prefer Hornady or Rem Corelokts in my handloads, but I have a chit-pot full of Sierra bullets on hand to load, and feel no qualms about using them.

one of the best bullet ever made for 7mm-08 in 140 and in 160 gr for my 7mmRM.... just need to be use at medium to long range...

My biggest bodied buck was killed with a Sierra 165 grain Gameking out of a .30/06, at about 20 yards. Through both shoulders no problem. I've killed lots of doe with them too.

I like them, but I also like Interlocks, Ballistic Tips, Accubonds, and X Bullets, so I'm not overly particular.

HOLY THREAD RESURRECTION!

October 31, 2009 - today

I could finish out my hunting career using Sierras and be no worse off.

I have killed a large pile of deer using 150 grain Sierra Gamekings in my .30-06 and 150 grain Sierra Gamekings in my 7mm Rem. mag. I have always got very good accuracy and performance from them. In fact, my favorite three bullets are Sierra Gamekings, Winchester Power Points, and Remington Corelokts and I have not been able beat the performance for deer sized game.

I've shot some at paper and loaded them for a friend for years - 150 grain Gameking out of a .30/06. I don't know the velocity, but it isn't a hot load. He points it where it goes, the rifle goes bang and he goes and field dresses his deer. I also watched him shoot an antelope with it once and it did fine.

My FIL has shot a lot of different cartridges and bullets at deer over the years and he swears by Sierra now. He prefers the HPBT, however.

165 SGK is all i run in my .308 win.

I'll post these pics again.





275 yards, nice mushroom in off side just under skin.

An oldie but a goodie . For deer in deer cartridges, I don't reckon there's a better bullet made.

I'm using SGK's in my 30-06. Never gave me a reason to change.

They work great. That's all I use for elk in my 338 win mag...The 250gr. is heavy enough that I don't have to worry about much of anything and it shoots like a house on fire out of the old 338....They are great bullets...

my buddy loaded up some 130gr GK for his father in-laws 270 win ten rounds ten yoties told me they all drop in there tracks. I loaded up some 250gr for my 375 ruger with 66.7gr imr-4064 i figure around 2550-2600fps haven't had a chance to chrono them yet. I plan on trying them out on a black bear this spring or a mulie buck this fall.

I drive them no faster than 2700-2800fps and have never had a problem. The just kill critters.

They're not on the top of my list.

And yes, I've killed a fair number of elk, muleys, a few pronghorns and a bear with Sierra GK's in 150 grain 270's and 180 grain 06's. Can't speak for whitetails though.


Casey

I've never personally loaded or shot them due to the lack of BC and resulting lack of interest, but have seen elk slain with 140s slung from a lowly 260 slightly more than a couple of times... every shot was placed squarely into the vitals and each time resulted in a VERY dead elk.

I'm ambivalent. Literally don't give a flying [bleep]. Don't plan to buy or load any, ever, due to too many better choices. And the choices only get better. Can't for the life of me figure Sierra's stagnancy in an ever evolving world....

'Til recently, the Sierra 225-grain GK was thee choice in .358 Win, and a great choice in the Whelen.

Still a great choice, Nosler just gave 'em some competition with the 225-grain Accubond. Both those bullets are constantly "backordered, out of stock".

It's a great bullet that I have used since I was a kid.....still have hundreds put back for the hard times ahead

When I first got a 7mm Rem Mag (1980) I loaded 140 grain Game Kings for Deer and Antelope. They were very accurate and wonderful killers. I'd use them again.

There was some meat damage on the closer shots.

I killed my biggest Mule Deer with one. The Game King blew quite a hole thru the ribs @ about 70 yards. I didn't care. The Muley was headed for a cliff that would have taken him at least 3/4 of a mile down into the Owyhee River canyon --- Instead he skidded on his nose for about 20 feet and never reached the cliff. He was a perfect typical that went 30 1/8" wide.

Have used Serra's in most of my rifles over the years..Still have many left to shoot..I have often used the 150's and 165's out of my old .300 win..elk, moose, antelope, mulies, whitetails, blk. bear, axis deer, caribou, and coyotes have all been taken with ease..If I think I will be in a situation where in may have to take a shoulder shot on an elk, then I would load Nosler Part...but otherwise, I feel very comfortable with these bullets..

Yesteryear it was the Ballistic Tip, now the Gameking I guess............What a fickle bunch!!



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