Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles 150 grain 30-06 bullets tested

The purpose of this test was to look at how the various monolithic bullets compare when impacting at relatively high as well as lower speeds.



The 'test media': the simplest, easiest to access, and most consistent media I have available to me is this tidal area which is composed of a muddy soil with just enough sand to keep it from holding free liquid, and just enough plant material in the form of grass roots to hold it all together real well.

I fired my 'control' rounds at 155 yards. The bullets are all 150 grain bullets fired with a load of 52 grains of IMR 4064 in the 30-06, a Ruger MK II, 22" barreled rifle. I used the Barnes TSX and TTSX, the Hornady GMX, and the Nosler E-Tip. The 'control' bullet, one I would expect to open relatively easily even at low speeds was the 150 Accubond.



A frontal view of the specimens from the first round. L to R: GMX, TSX, TTSX, E-Tip, Accubond.



The same bullets in profile. Mostly the bullets penetrated approximately 16-18". The GMX made nearly 24" of penetration, while the NAB penetrated the least and made the biggest 'splash' on initial impact. The first TTSX apparently 'bounced' as the impact crater was shallow and no copper was found. The second bullet was not easy to find as it just disappeared into the muck without making a significant hole to follow like the rest did.

I fired these same bullets and loads at 400 yards as well. However, the tide was not low enough to get across the mud to where they landed. I hope to find them shortly and add them to these results.

Wow, that E Tip expanded admirably. I want to use them in my 300 WSM but it has yet to decide if it likes them.

BTW, if your signature line with the underscored "Bonded Bullet" thread is supposed to be a hyperlink, it's not working. I was gonna follow it but it faked me out.

Klik, interesting test, I like your test media, original.

That Gmx is impressive, I haven't heard about that one.

In this wide open, unpopulated country there is opportunity to shoot just about anywhere. Consequently, I have also shot bullets into a lot of different natural media and have found some things to be similar to what happens in live flesh and bones. Admittedly, this mud,clay,sand,roots matrix is a bit tougher than the usual flesh one might shoot. Then again, it is very consistent and without any of the really hard/tough obstacles (bones) which live animal shots may encounter. So, it's a compromise.

I did have a chance this evening to go back out and dig through the craters I made at 400 (399 actually lasered) yards. I found the bullet in nearly every impact crater with only a couple which skidded out. I did encounter a problem with the scope on the rifle I was using when I was shooting at the longer distance. At one point I noticed that the duplex reticle appeared to have no 'duplex' beneath the horizontal wire. The next shot returned a small thin section beneath, though the verticle crosshair took a slight deviation from verticle. Every shot after that moved the wires around so dropping my bullets in same general area became guess-work. Even so, I thought I had landed at least one of each where I could recover it. Such was not the case, and I only found three of the GMX and two of the TSX. I'll post pics when I get them loaded.

I don't know this frrom firsthand experience, but understand that the 180 may be easier to shoot well than the 150.

BTW, that isn't intended as a hyperlink in my sig line, though that isn't be a bad idea. That thread is the third sticky in "Ask the Gunwriters" forum however, so it's pretty easy to find.

Klik that's an interesting test....I like the looks of the Etip. Have you used any of them on game? I have some 7mm 150's here but have not run them in anything yet.

Any comments on loading the Etips? Does a guy have to cut charges for them?

Thanks for posting your results.

Very interesting project. I look forward to seeing the 400 yard bullet pictures.

According to Mule Deer mono bullets kill deer slower than bullets that fragment. Thus I am avoiding mono bullets for that reason also.

"The reason for our "disagreements" probably lies in the fact that I have seen a whole lot of game taken with TSX's. Most of the time they kill very well, but sometimes they do not, and when they don't the animal is likely to go a ways, in my experience further than with any other type of bullet."

I didn't have to cut charges. The velocity increased 50-75 fps above jacketed bullets.

And here are five specimens from the 400 yard impact site:




GMX, GMX, GMX, TSX, TSX




As noted previously, my scope, an old Burris 4X (pre-Fullfield) was in the process of coming apart which made dropping the shots at 400 yards a whole lot more interesting than just my own marksmanship. (The horizontal bar was moving 6-12 or more MOA with every shot). I must have put other bullets into the water just in front of the mud bank because I sure didn't find craters beyond the target area.



I was disappointed in not being able to recover any of the E-Tips at longer distance. I am pleased with what I have seen up closer. Commonly held 'logic' seems to hold that gilding metal is tougher and harder than copper which should make them less inclined to expand well. But that 'logic' perhaps overlooks the other logic which is that Nosler tends not to do things poorly.

I would like to see what the rest look like at 400 but also to stretch the test out just a bit farther to see where the bullets start to fail to open consistently. I guess I better go find another scope to mount, and load a few more.

Some of this stuff is actually funny, One shot in the chest, notice the blood on the Animal and the copius blood trail on the ground. 165 grain TSX

Kills slower? TFF......

[video:youtube][/video]

A sample of one? I've got a few of those too from killing two or three dozen moose over the years. Exactly three tipped over dead on the spot - non-CNS. The first was a 190 Hornady BTSP through the chest, the second a 225 XFB through both humerus, the third a 250 GameKing which ht no bones whatsoever. What do they prove? Virtually nothing, except that they were either anomolies or perfect placed at just the right place in time.

Overall, monos have been very quick killers, most of the time right from the beginning. But one of the things I learned early on, when people even back then suggested that they didn't open and kill quickly, was that they could be shot into bone without nearly as much incidental trauma as core bullets typically cause. And shooting bones always helps in the anchoring process. And the longer you can make a hole, the quicker the animal usually dies. (So a diagonal hole placed similarly to a simple broadside hole is going to make more trouble inside.)

I wouldn't discount the experience of multiple uses.

Yes it's a sample of one, but you gotta admit,

Reading things like "kills slower"

ya bust out laughing sometimes.....

What velocity were you seeing on these loads from your Ruger?

Thanks

TTSX, TSX, GMX, Yes.

MK II, '06 "22 -150'G's of Luv'in, Yes.

Elk, Caribou, WT, Turkey, N PrairieDogz, Yes.

Not diggin' the Blood N Gutz stuff, ...but in the name of Science, TTSX @ 175-200yrd results ( note extreme WAY OverPenetration ) almost Penciled thru...

And so it was, and so it is Written. Getcha some Science...

Klik/Reloader: Thanks for the advise and info.

Klikitarik,

Fun info.



My gun smith says, "A sample of one tells you nothing." When I bought my first Swarovski it was not as good as my Bushnell. Same with the next two. The forth is on my Weatherby because it is more like what I expect from a high dollar optic. One kill tells you very little.

Mono metal bullets are superior is any big game situation. That's why every major bullet make (except Sierra ) makes them (even Lapua). It has nothing to do with Condors, it's all about breaking down big game regardless of shot angle, breaking big bones and no lead in your steaks.

Lighter is faster and speed kills, when speed stays intact all the way through some pretty big critters.