Bought a Browning BLR for short to medium range whitetail hunting. 90% of shots will be in the 25 to 100 yards range and the other 10% will be 200 yards or under. Leaning towards loading up some 150 grain partitions but may try some ballistic tips. Thoughts?

At those ranges, any decent 165gr cup/core would be very effective and inexpensive. I've only been deer hunting 30 years now, which is not much compared to many here, but I have never seen a "failure" from that combo, whether used by me or another hunter in my company. I'd sight in about an inch and a half high at 100 and go hunting. But I must also add that a 150NPT is not going to be a bad choice there either, just probably not necessary.

And if you are wanting to be "modern" in your approach, a 130TTSX at 3,000fps is an awesome load. I've seen it work very well. Again, it's just probably not necessary for the application.

Stick one on top of 39 grains of 3031 for that close in work. Mild and accurate. I did with a 165 Ballistic Tip and it took care of business for me.

Hornady Spire Point, Hornady Spire Point, Hornady Spire Point, did I mention Hornady?

I wasn't able to get good groups out of the new production 165's I got.

I couldn't get good groups either. I went to Swift, Barnes and Nosler. Yes more expensive, but accuracy is very important to me.

165 grain:
Nosler Ballistic Tip
Speer Hot Cor
Hornady Spire Point
Sierra GameKing

If the Hornadys don't shoot (and they don't in one of my .308s), try the Speer HotCors.

Hornady 8098
165 SPBT @ 2700 MV est.

Duplicate handload
165 Hornady over 42.0gr Imr4895
2.8"
CCI br primer

If your rifle won't shoot that load, sell it.

Here the load I used this year for the same purpose:

Sierra 180 ProHunter
Re15 - 44 grains
Fed 210

Several deer this year hated that recipe.

That's a pretty good combination, but unless the chamber has a short, pressure raising throat and a long barrel thereafter it isn't going to show 2700 fps over a reliable chronograph. This opinion is based on having shot thousands of 168 grain bullets loaded in M852 and M118 Lake City match cases with 42.2 grains of IMR4895 duplicating the old M852 match load specification. The rifles were from Steyr, Ruger, Remington and Kimber with barrel lengths from 20" to 26".

There may be cheaper options, but I doubt there’s a better option than the Partition. Push it with Varget too.

I use IMR 4064 and 150 gr. Barnes TTSX bullets in my .308.

I use 150gr Sierra Gamekings. The knock out deer and pigs. Partition bullets are the best, but more expensive, Ballistic tips are great as well. I use the 140’s in 7 mags and 7mm 08. Deer and pigs aren’t hard to kill.

I'd go with the 150 gr. Nosler Partition. It'll handle any reasonable angle and/or any size deer. Noslers Partitions are generally accurate though maybe not necessarily the most accurate, but so what because you're not apparently shooting long range. I will always chose bullet reliability over accuracy given the bullet is accurate enough for the job at hand.

For what you want to do literally any 150-180 gr bullet will be fine as would the 130 gr copper bullets. I hunt in similar terrain, but load with longer ranges and bigger game in mind just in case. Those loads work just as good up close whereas some loads intended for close work on smaller game suck at longer ranges and bigger game.

Back when I started reloading I was shooting a .308, my whitetail load in those days was a Hornady 180gr. RN over a moderate load of IMR 4895. I used this load to take the biggest whitetail buck of my hunting career, a 254# 11pt. bruiser from Maine's Aroostook County. Years of late I have been using a 165gr. Sierra or Nosler and IMR 4064 as my deer load, it has proven to be both accurate and effective on game.

Get some flat base 150 grain bullets and go find the one that shoots best in your rifle.

At those ranges one does not need fancy bullets,or a ton of speed.
After all they are not bullet proof.

The 2700 is the factory est. Based on 26" .
The load and handload produce 2550 in my 20" steyr tactical(s).
I'm using a large batch of 1968-69 LC M118 MATCH brass.
My target (and suburban deer load) is identical with an AMAX 168.

For deer there is no reason to go with a premium bullet when the c&c's have been doing it forever. If your rifle doesn't like the Hornady line try either the Sierra Gameking or ProHunter. If it doesn't shoot those it's either you or the rifle.

Before Scenar's and Amax's I used the Sierra HPGK, Ballistic Tips and my favorite, Speer Deep Curls.

Oddly, that funky shaped, short bullet was accurate in many rifles, both the 165 and 180.

168 Nosler ballistic tip
46 varget

I am a fan of the Hornady 150, or 165-grain Interlock at all average ranges using the .308.

There really isn't a bad choice. Any "normal" bullet , 150, 165, 180 grains, will work on Whitetail Deer from the 308.

I took my biggest Whitetail Buck, 200 lbs dressed, with a 150 HotCore from the 308. I also took my largest Bull Elk, a mature 7x7, with a 165 HotCore from the 308.

Whitetails just aren't that hard to kill... anymore I use a 165/168 for everything, antelope to elk.

Thanks all. I'm going to make up some loads with 165 grain ballistic tips, as I already use them in my 30-06. If those don't shoot well, I'll give the Speer Hot Cor's a try.

Has anyone tried the Sierra 150 Grain Roundnose in the 308 or 30-06? Unlike most round nose 30 caliber bullets, these are not the ones made specifically for the 30-30.

I am actually interested in these as well. I have emailed back and forth with one of the ballistics techs and he said they get a lot of very good reports that it kills like lightning when used 200yds and under.

I've settled on the Sierra 150 Prohunter spitzer. I've shot some fairly big bodied bucks with them out of my Savage 99 .308 and they've worked very well for me.

A lot of people rag on Sierras, and sure they're old school. Nevertheless, my father had much success with Sierra 150's out of a 30-06. I know because I assembled the cartridges.

Agreed. I use them in .22/250, .243, 30/30, 308, 30/06, and 8x57. I'm just a deer hunter with an occasional black bear thrown in, but they've done very well for me, and accurate as well.

Sierra's have been around about the same amount of time as the Nosler's. Both have survived the test of time. Both bullets (GameKings and Partitions) are accurate in most of my rifles and both brand have a place on my reloading desk. I like 'em!

I helped a buddy load for his BLR with 125 Sierra PH's over H-322. Mild-ish load (2800's?) and accurate. He shoots with a Williams peep and a fiber optic front. Nice 50 yard groups for his timber hunting--he's very happy.

I really like the 150 Ballistic Tip. The 165 and 168 BT’s are good bullets too. The 150 Hornady is right up there too. I just really like 150’s for deer.

165 grain Partition over Varget should do the trick. Not the most accurate bullet in my experience but will kill stuff without question.

Pretty much load anything from 125 to 180 - PH, Bal. Tip, TTSX, Interlock, GKHPBT, Hot Core, SST and even Corelokt. Brother dropped one this year with a 180gr. Corelokt. It certainly did it's job.

150 Sierra's,GK's and PH's

I've been using 150 BT's for a lot of years now and have had perfect performance. I never used them in the early "fragile" years...but the current 150 BT is about the perfect deer bullet in my opinion. Shoots well, kills well, almost always an exit.

As much as I like to reload, I think the answer to your question is a factory load:

Remington 180 grain ROUND NOSE CoreLokt 308 Winchester loads.

Bang flop. Done.

This is how I've always seen it.

If you can afford them, there simply isn't any better at killin'.

Use 150's for deer.

+1

While all the above bullets will get the job done. I use the 125gr Ballistic tip in WW brass with 51.5gr of W748. Results on Muledeer are very much like 130gr 270.

This!!^^^^

Thanks, Tom

Nosler 125 grain Accubond. Accuracy typical of a Ballistic Tip. Performance/penetration comparable to the Partition. Near and far capability.

There are certainly folks here that have loaded far longer than me, I started in 1992, but if my shots topped out at 200 yards I would buy the cheapest ammo on the shelf and go hunt.

Keep leaning towards the Partitions.

Up until the last few years, western New York State required the use of shotguns and slugs for deer, so most of us grew up shooting our deer at well under 100 yards.
Now, most the region is rifle country. It is interesting to see the impact this has had. Most hunters have shifted to rifles to take their whitetail. While gangs driving the woods was once the norm, it is now rare to see. On the other hand, raised stands have become hugely popular, along with lots of tactical rifles and calibers capable of shooting across canyons we don't have.
I'm guessing tons of premium bullets are used every year to take whitetails at 40 or 50 yards in place of the reliable old 1 ounce foster slug.
I took a nice 7 point with a 150 gr Partion last fall on a standing broadside shot at 30-35 yards. Wouldn't have been a challenge for my old slug gun. Results would have been no different using virtually any 150-180 gr bullet out of my old 1899 Savage.
Good accuracy was the only important factor.

My Whitetail bullet of choice is the Sierra 150 grain ProHunter over a case full of 4064. Its worked on deer from Mexico to Canada.

Hard to go too wrong here. My current .308 likes 165gr NAB blems maybe a touch better than BTs. Still struggling with 150s for some reason in that one.

My 165s go over 41-42gr of RL15 in either LC or WW brass, CCI BR2s or F210s of either type.

By all means lurk on SPS if you fancy Noslers. I've scored big there, not just on blems, but overruns too. $20 is a good deal for 150gr NPs.

Best bullet ever made for whitetails......Cutting Edge Bullets 308 100gr. Flat Base Raptor....most deer are DRT....I know of 2 300 lbs. black bears shot with this bullet in 300 BO at 2520 fps....

https://cuttingedgebullets.com/308-100gr-flat-base-raptor

18.5" barrel... Reloader 7 40.5 gr..... 3120 fps

Lots of good advice here. I'd stick with 150-165g and go kill deer. Me personal preference would be Nosler or Hornady.

if 30/30 ranges, use 30/30 bullets...

I'd load a Speer 150 grain FN....

but I think different than most folks it seems...

You could try the trophy Bonded tipped Bear Claw

I put a 18" AR10 together in 308 just in time for deer season this year. Tested 125 grain Sierra Tipped Matchkings and 178 Hornady ELDX. Both shot awesome with XBR8208, got drops and group test out to 500 yards with the 125s and out to 900 yards with the 178s. Then went on to test them on whitetail deer this year.
Both bullets were impressive on MS whitetails.
125s didnt disappoint one bit. 75 yards to 465 yards. None exited and no tracking required on any of them
178s did about like expected which was good. 125-450 was the shots taken with them. Only had to track one but it was my fault.

Cutting Edge Bullets.

A bit different, but effective. Sorta expensive, but how many do you actually shoot at deer...

DRT on hogs and WT's, very accurate.

I've posted this one before. Just another consideration.

DF

My BIL in East Tx has used a Mod 742 .308 with Sierra 150 sbt for over 40 yrs. My hunting buddy here in Utah has used a Browning BLR .308 since 1970 with the Remington 150 Corlokt. he handloads but not that hot. He has killed gobs of mule deer, elk and one big cow bison! I used the 150 Corlokt ina .308 Ruger UL in the mid 80's on East Tx deer and the Nosler 165 BT in a .308 FWT on a big axis buck in the mid 90s. I handloaded the Hornady 150 Spire point for a 30-06 friend on those same East tx deer too.