Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles Barnes Bullet Selection

If I recall correctly because of the barnes bullets retaining a majority of their weight they say you can go to a lower weight bullet than what you generally would use in a more "classic" styled bullet that will lose some weight upon expansion.

I'm new to reloading and think I know a bit but really want to ask every question and get some good answers (yes I know Barnes sometimes have problems losing petals ect... but every bullet is going to have problems)

1. What is the advantage to going to a lighter bullet?

2. How do you decide just how much lighter to go?

3. how do you decide if you're going to shoot the TSX or TTSX

4. do you find that at too high of a velocity they fail to open, or too low they fail to open (I know they like high velocity but don't recall seeing just what velocities they really do like)

5. are they a forgiving bullet to learn how to reload with? (are they more temperamental to get the right seating depth, powder charge, ect... as compared to a Nosler accubond or partition?)

Tim
The barnes can be temperamental but so can most any other bullet. I tend to like the TTSX and usually load somewhat heavier offerings if they are available in my chosen caliber. Velocity they can handle pretty amazing speeds. My dad shoots the 25cal 100gr TTSX@ 3675FPS from his wby. I set the low velocity limit at 2000FPS from my experience.
Start your loads at .050 from lands and enjoy.

What calibers are you looking at?

1. Lighter bullets go faster.
2. I dropped down one size (instead of a 180 I picked a 168).
3. I started out shooting the TSX but transitioned to the TTSX for the better BC and more reliable opening at slower speeds.
4. I haven't been able to push a TTSX fast enough that it failed to open. To be fair I have never recovered one either.
5. Maybe I just got lucky but my rifle seems to like the first length I tried loading them at. I am sure they are jumping pretty good.

IME everything I have shot with my SAUM using these bullets has gone down after the first shot. They are by far my favorite hunting bullet.

1) Lighter bullets go faster, kick less. Until you start to shoot at ranges where BC is king a light TTSX is a darn good bullet.

2) I too go one step or two lighter, 168 in 300wsm, 150 in 308, 185 in 338 RCM.

3) I have seen pictures of TSX that didn't open, but bad reports on the TTSX are fewer. If I was starting new.. TTSX all the way.

4) I don't shoot anything much beyond 3300 fps, and anything that starts out below 2700 or is likely to impact below 2K I would start with a lead cored bullet rather than a barnes. seems to me that applications that stress cup and core bullets are the perfect application for a barnes.

5) .050" off to start, Every rifle is its own rule. I will try two powders and if one box of bullets and two powders doesn't show some promise, I will try a different bullet. TTSX's haven't been a super cure all but have shot well in 4 or the 5 rifles I have tried them in.

going to be reloading a 280AI, 243, and 338-06

I figure 243 and 280 will get sufficient speeds to expand.

338-06 is the one I was figuring might be running too slow for barnes, but I do have 100 Hornady FTX and I think the brother-in-law has some more hornady's on his bench that I'm guessing will come with the gun.


So what would you guys think for the 280, going to get acceptable performance going from white tail to black bear? where I could use the same bullet say a 140 for both? or would you go 150 bear and 110/120 deer?

I'd run a 120, 80 or 85 and a 185

The 225 grain 338 cal TTSX is stated to expand as low as 1400 FPS, they are not all the same. Call Barnes and ask, I have taken game with the 180 TSX in the 300 win mag as far as 777 yards with excellent results

"338-06 is the one I was figuring might be running too slow for barnes,"

I don't think you have to worry. I load the 225 gr. TSX to 2710 FPS in my .35 Whelen and all I can say is the smash elk down like the hammer of Thor. The on I got this last january in New Mexico was taken at 350 yards. You know that bulet had to have slowed down some but the elk dies and damage was substantial.
I've also been playing with 100 gr. .25 caliber TSX for my .257 Robt. and the 120 gr. TSX for the 7x57. I'm also trying the 140 gr. 7MM TSX is the 7X57 and .280 Rem.
I have not tried any of the TTSX bullets yet but I will. The .257 Bob is a stubborn cuss but I'm taming it down. The .280 is too new to tell just how it will behave but what little I've done with it shows lots of promise.
Paul B.

In my .338-284 (pretty close to the .338-06), I shoot 160 gr. TTSX's at 2,900 fps with 57 gr. Varget. My gun, an Alpha Arms Alaskan, shot 5/8", three shot groups at a hundred with this load.

I haven't killed anything with this gun, as I have too many others to choose from. But, maybe one of these days...



DF

Dang, nice rifle and interesting cartridge choice. What's the specs on that one?

I always shoot the TTSX or LRX. In your .280 I'd look at the 145 LRX first and foremost. The .243 is easy. In the .338 I'd run the 185 at 2900ish. Should be a great combo.

Here is a link that discusses some of the details on the Alpha Arms Alaskan. As noted in the link, .338-284 was a factory offereing. I have a catalog that lists the options and .338-284 is inlcuded in the line up.

http://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/7817495/1

With the Alaskan model, the metal parts are either stainless steel or Nidex, a plating to match SS. It has express sights and a barrel band front sling stud. The stock is a dense, resin rich laminate that's pretty tough. The gun has compact dimensions and a solid feel, although not overly heavy.

It's a very unusual design, quite advanced for its time with many accuracy enhancing features.

DF

I would go 185 TTSX with the -06. Although, I get 3020 out of a 338 Fed with the 160 TTSX. Probably another 100-150 FPS if I shot it out of my 338-06. It is also the most accurate bullet I've tried. Followed closely by the 185 TTSX. Don't think you can go wrong either way. The 185 TTSX is probably going to go through whatever you shoot it at.

I use the 168 TSX in my 30-06 for both moose and deer, and in my wife's 30-06 we use the 150 TSX. Both of them work very well.

Faster means it will cover the same range in less time, which means gravity doesn't have as much time to drag the bullet to the earth, which translates into flatter trajectory. (Long way around the barn.

The biggest single problem you will encounter with Barnes or most other hard-metal monolithics is the occasional failure to expand well. Petal loss is, and always has been, a very minimal problem and means something significant was destroyed in exchange for those petals. Tipped monolithics aid positive expansion, so I advocate for the TTSX for consistency in terminal performance. It is still a good idea to match bullet weight to the size and toughness of the quarry. (Toughness is not how hard they are to kill, but rather how difficult they are to penetrate.) I really don't think too much speed is ever a bad thing. Going lighter by a weight, or perhaps two, is fine, but physics (apparently ) still applies so you are more likely to catch a lighter slug (incomplete penetration) if that matters. Shoot big bones!

If you want to shoot TSXs, you better get them now. I predict they are the next Barnes iteration to disappear, for the most part, across their lines. (The TTSX makes them obsolete in other words.)

I myself don't see a problem with the standard TSX going obsolete. They won't do it all at once. They will keep what is still selling the best, but I would almost bet the TTSX sales are overtaking most if not all the TSX sales per caliber.
And I would expect to see more LRX or another variation of such in the future.

People won't be happy for a while when one line is dropped, but it is just like the old XLC coated bullets. I had great luck with those, but then realized and verified the performance increase with the newer lines (and now use TTSX or LRX in everything).

TSX will continue, IMHO, in the larger rounds, like the .458 cal. 250 gr. TSX FN I use in my .45-70 to great effect. The HP large enough that it's going to open without the assistance of a plastic plug. In the smaller calibers, the TTSX, with its larger plastic filled HP, is an improvement over the TSX with its smaller HP. This has pretty well been documented.

DF

I'd be starting with the same bullets Steelie suggested.

The 80 TTSX/85 TSX in .243 frankly provide all the penetration you could hope for out of heavy (180/200 grain) 30 caliber bullets. If you're just shooting black bears they'll be just fine.

I have solved forty odd rifle for Barnes bullets. Most, are about like cup and core bullets. The shoot close enough from the get-go and can be tuned a little tighter. Some, can be a real pain in the ass to find seating depth.

Out of almost seventy deer shot with Barnes I've loaded, none failed to expand. Only one stopped in a deer. re: your 280. Out of half a dozen killed with my .270 and 110 grain TTSXs, half dropped in their tracks. The longest run was maybe fifty yards. All pass through. One at decent range went through a whole lot of bone and still exited.

They're the best bullets I have had to load in fifty odd years.

Hey miles58, whats your overall impression of the 110ttsx 277cal for accuracy and on game performance?? Have you compared them to the 130ttsx by any chance??

They're the best bullets I have had to load in fifty odd years.

I have two 270s. One just shoots 130 TSXs into itty-bitty groups. The other just shoots 110 TTSXs into itty-bitty groups. Both rifles are 700s. Both rifles will produce 1/2 inch groups as often as not. The one shooting the TSXs has killed 6-8 deer with the 130 TSXs, and all dropped into their shadow. I had two deer run after hitting them with the 110 TTSXs and the other rifle. One I shot just in front of the point of the right shoulder exiting just behind the left shoulder. Heart and lungs destroyed, the deer made it 40-50 yards. The other I deliberately shot just below the spine and a few inches back from the shoulder I wanted to take out the lungs and cut/blow the descending aorta. Generous fan of lun tissue behind the deer, no indication from the deer it had been hit. Made it 50 yards and piled up stone dead.

I had one deer I watched for a good hour that I decided to kill in the last minute of legal shooting light. Deer was on a cut hay field, miserable stuff to track in with daylight. I shot it high shoulder. Fist size hole through the on side shoulder blade. Took out four ribs near the spine edgewise, about an inch each. Took out a fist size chunk of spine, then two more ribs edge wise. Off side shoulder blade had a quarter sized hole. Entrance and exit holes in the hide were both caliber sized. The deer, 150 lb dressed doe, of course dropped in it's tracks. Range 263 yards lasered. That's a lot of bone. That was a lot of damage. It was enough distance to impress me with the results. 110 grain TTSX at 3170 FPS muzzle.

Until something better comes along, these are what I will be shooting. I don't see that happening in my remaining years.