Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters 270 Accubond or SST for Whitetail Deer

I am deciding between the 270 140 grain Accubond or the 140 grain Hornady SST for Deer from 0-400 yards. I think they are both more than enough for deer, but under 50 yards I think the accubond will hold together better. Any first hand experience with these loads and the .270?

I don't think you could go wrong with an accubond for what you want to do. I have seen them work from 20yards to 450+ in a 270 w/140grn's. I have yet to recover one out of an animal that I shot with a 270 but jugding by the entrance and exit holes and the interanal organs the bullet did what it was supposed to do

I too would go with the Accubond in case of a close shot. Have used the 150gr. SST in a 30-06 and at closer ranges was pretty destuctive. Believe the Accubond would hold together better and provide deeper penatration.

We quit using SSTs because they do ruin a lot of meat at closer ranges (IME, just about anything under 200 yards). They do kill quickly...

The AB is more bullet than required for WT's but will surely do the job.

As already mentioned, SST's are very frangible & I'll use them only for paper punching or varmints.........the Nosler BT, the Hornady Interlock or InterBond are all much better choices.

And, regardless of what some may think, Partitions are still capable of killing game to0, but like the AB, are not required for WT deer.

MM

I can't see the SST being any more frangible than the NBT..

My buddy shoots the SST out of the 243 and the 300, and has taken several deer with them. Aim for the lungs or neck, just like you would with the NBT or the AMAX ect...

The SST's are plenty good for deer. Certainly tougher than A-maxs and the NBT varies as some are designed for vermin, others not. The SST's don't come in a vermin version and are priced to shoot to boot.

I've killed two deer using SSTs. One from a 7mm-08 (40yds) and one from a 308 (25yds). Both hit behind the shoulder, hit one rib and came apart. Both required long tracking jobs because only one lung was damaged. I quit using SSTs and went to the Interbond.

Use the Accubond.

RH

In the last month, I've personally seen lots of deer get shot

SST or NBT or AMAX.. All pretty much the same, IMO, when it comes to performance on game. Hit the deer in the right spot, and things are OK. Hit a shoulder, and you have a giant mess. I'm going to go with the 162AMAX for all my 7mm, with the exception of the 120TSX in my 7-08, based on what I saw with my own eyes. Main reason being that I hunt in an area where it's always windy.

The most impressive kills this year definitely belong to the 130tsx though.

I have used a .270 Win 130 gr. to take a mule deer the 1st year that the SST bullets came out. Nailed a muley buck at about 80 yards standing broadside. The hit was behind the shoulder and the deer went straight down at the shot. No shoulder or spine involvement what so ever. The entry hole under the hide was a 2x4 inch rectangular and the lungs were mush. There was an exit hole thru the ribcage on the opposite side about quarter size and the jacket was found under the hide. It made the single largest entry wound I've ever seen. I wonder what it would have done if I had pulled the shot and hit shoulder bones. On the shot I made, it worked quite dramatically.

IME, with the exceptions of the 7mm 120s and the .338 200s, the SSTs and BTs perform pretty much the same when they hit a deer-sized animal. Both will ruin a lot of otherwise edible if they hit big bones. Both do kill things pretty much DRT with correct shot placement...

If you want minimum meat damage, a dead deer and lotsa penetration should the deer not cooperate and stand broadside, go with Barnes.
The TTSX or TSX will not blow up on bones in close and almost always (99.9%) make two holes to let out more blood if tracking is needed.

You also won't be stuck with a lot of expensive lead core bullets when the ban happens on all lead bullets. (it a'int just Condor country!)

I've killed mule deer with a number of different .270 bullets. I liked the Hornady SP and have recommended it, but lately I've use the Nosler Partition. Give it a try. I think it'll do everything you want done. If the only choice is Accubond or SST. go with the Accubond.

I just returned from a deer hunting trip in WV and had great results with the factory 270 Win Hornady 140 SST. Shot Five deer with it, 2 +150 bucks and 3 real nice does and none made it further than 10 yards. Complete pass through on all of the deer. The largest buck, 170 lbs. was standing broadside at about 150 yards and the SST broke both shoulders and exited leaving the buck DRT. Small entry and about a 3 inch exit hole. I mistakenly shot a doe straight on in the chest; I wouldn't recommend this, and the bullet exited through the spine at the rear of the deer leaving about a 10 inch, yes 10, exit hole. Made quite the mess. Overall, the SST did not destroy much meat.

I hate to waste meat as my family loves deer meat..My favorite .270 bullet for whitetail is the 160 gr. Nosler partition at about 2700 FPS, it is a sure killer, leaves a blood trail thats easy to follow, will shot through a deer from stem to stern, never fails...It may not be as impressive with the instant kills that novice hunters rave about, but they don't make many tracks and are easy to follow..you will never lose a deer shot withit and can eat to the exit hole..

For Mule deer in the open Sage of Idaho, I like the 130 partition.

I have not used the AB but any bonded core bullet will work well on deer...Deer are easy to kill and most bullets kill them well, even cup and core bullets work fine..the partitions don't waste as much meat IMO..

yeah I shot a doe last year with a sst at 100yd out of a 270 wsm..Largest hole in a deer I've ever seen.. And it was the entrance hole. Actually peices to the lung laying there where I shot her. She went 30 yds. Bullet went through ribs and stuck under skin in other shoulder. Core was gone. I'm very happy with them so far.

I agree with Ray;if meat loss is a concern,shoot a Partition.Plenty of early expansion and not much meat shot to hell.These plastic tipped, fragile jacket things tear meat up too much,and it isn't necessary.

Near as I can tell,there ain't much magic in an AB.....

Been running the 130 Partition for years out of the .270. H4831SC, WLR,etc. Very bad medicine..
Recent experience with the AB (same weight) tells me that it performs about the same, about 60-70% weight retention. Maybe not as many DRTs, but definitely good stuff.
My latest love is the "light for caliber" Barnes TTSX. I'm a believer in .284 and .308 calibers in this bullet. At the range that you're stating, you're right there with me on my deer hunting ranges. Another consideration, I know.
Don't discount the light TTSXs..they never fail to perform.

"No magic in the Accubond"?!

No way man. The Force is strong in them.

Between those two, run the Accubond. Less explosive.

I tried the SST in two different rifles; shot like ass. Haven't seen the AB fail to shoot yet in... hmmm... 7-8 rifles, including the two that wouldn't like the SST.

I need to get some AB's to try, but the factory SST's shoot MOA out of my Weatherby Ultra-Light