Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles sierra gameking vs prohunter

anyone have experience with these in 7mm 140 and 30 cal 180 ? specifically the difference in performance on game , not really concerned with the long range advantage of the btail just want to know if they are really constructed differently or is the only difference btail vs flat base .will be running the 140 in a 7mm-08 and the 180 in a 300 wsm

.The only difference is the boat tail and the flat base. I use both styles in different rifles. You just see what shoots best and use it with the same result for each

Over the years loaded both in a few 7x57s for antelope and deer and have no complaints. They both performed well in killing ability, however in the accuracy department the flat base were best. Only a couple 7x57s out of several would get good accuracy with a boattail. It must have something to do with long throats.

Under 300 flat base tend to be more accuate.

I use the 200 gamekings in my 300wm and the 180 game king in my '06. Both work very well. I used the pro hunter 150 in my '06 before and they are good also. My garand loves them. I only had one complaint on my 200gr Gameking loadings. I loaded some for a friend and he said he busted a white tail at 200 with his 300wm and it was a heart shot. He said the deer immediately broke and ran 100yds like it had never been hit. He said the blood trail was good but didnt like it that the deer didnt fall in it tracks. I felt like it did its job but he didnt. I prefer the 200gamekings due to a BC of.530, if i remember correctly,but most of my shots it wouldnt matter anyway. As far as construction i cant tell you but performance on white tails the 180 and 200 gamekings and the 150 pro hunters are great. I have had great accuracy with all of them but the 150gr pro hunter with 50gr IMR4895 from my garand were the most accurate out to about 200 yds.

I used the 170gr RN Pro Hunter in a 7x57 for years on whitetails very successfully. Then I had one blow up on a Black Bear's shoulder on a Maine bear hunt. We lost the bear.

I haven't used one since. I can't comment on the Game Kings, but I would restrict use of Pro Hunters to deer and the like. I will say that the Pro Hunters were very accurate in my rifle.

Dan

I use the 140 gr GK in my 6.5 x57 for pronghorn with very good resluts.I don't think you wil be happy running either of them in the 300. They are not designed for those velocities. You need to keep them in the 2800fps realm, 2900fps is pushing it. They will most certainly not hold together at impact velocities over 3000 fps.

That being said,I use Sierras in my .308, .06, 6.5

That was the bullet I used for all of my hunting/rifles years ago when I started reloading. They were inexpensive, very accurate out of everything I put them through and seemed to kill everything I hit with them. I used the "Gameking" mostly until I got older and wiser..........I only use them once in a while now and everytime I do I wonder why I don't use them more often? Oh yes, because I am older and wiser now........YMMV. Keep them at 2900 fps or under as stated before and they perform really well. Anything higher and they will make a rather big mess.

I had a buddy for whom I loaded 160 gk in his 7 mag always complain that he would lose some meat everytime he kilt something and the bullets must not be working properly. He never lost an animal BTW. I replied, So you lost a couple pounds of meat, but did you get the deer? He would always say yes. I said then they must be working fine.....?

I wish they made a Pro Hunter in 165 grain 30 caliber. I'd rather shoot that from my 30-06, but they only make the boattail. Not sure I understand the rationale...

I've shot a lot of both in 30-06. The only difference I can tell is that, in my rifle, the prohunter is a bit more accurate.

Good bullets IMO.

agreed

A while back I decided I wanted to try some plain ol' Sierras in a 270. I called the Sierra tech line and asked which was generally more accurate, the Pro Hunter or the GameKing. After a lot of crawfishing, and "you never know til you try in your gun" type comments, he finally said that the Pro Hunter will GENERALLY be more accurate.

That, plus the fact that Sierra says the Pro Hunter is a little "tougher" and the fact that the slightly better BC of the GK is not important at the ranges I shoot, caused me to choose the Pro Hunter.

...and accurate it is!