Which have you found performs best on really big game?

I have heard that Sierra has “toughened up” their hunting bullets, and am interested in personal experience of those who have used them.

Thanks,
Ted

Only ever used them on deer, but I'll bet you have a hard time finding fans of either for "really big game". Best to read the info on the
Sierra site. They vary not only by jacket thickness and type, but also by core hardness. The 100gr 6mm PH has a nice tapered jacket, but one pretty much disappeared in the chest of a doe at 100 yards out of a .243. Suspect the core is pretty soft. I like all I've used on deer, but they make pretty big holes.

180gr Pro-Hunter is the only one I have a lot of experience with and still use. I have a 300WM that does not like X bullets and loves the PH. I have used it on moose, bears, oryx, and caribou. For a cup and core I find it a very good bullet. On the Juenke it is an awesome bullet, too.

The RN? Pretty old school.

Looks like some of the info on jacket and core has been removed. Too bad.

None of the critters you mentioned are common here, except Black bears, but I'll keep it in mind if they ever become a problem.

Thanks Art.

Just tried to send you a PM, and got a message that you are over the limit.

Ted

That doesn't sound much different than the ones I tried 50 years ago.

Yes, "really big game." I haven't hunted deer much, but understand that almost any bullet works fairly well on them.

Thanks Pappy,

Ted

I didn’t know they were going to “start” producing “hunting bullets”! memtb

Whatever. I sure ate a lot of venison collected by my father, one Sierra per deer.

I made room for you in my PM box.

???

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1...08-diameter-180-grain-spitzer-box-of-100

Sierra Pro-Hunter Bullets 30 Caliber (308 Diameter) 180 Grain Spitzer Box of 100
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Overview
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Reviews (26)
Product Overview
Sierra products
The traditional, flat base design of the Pro-Hunter has been skillfully blended with Sierra's world-famous accuracy. The custom-tapered Pro-Hunter jacket design helps assure maximum expansion, optimum weight retention and deep penetration for game-stopping, 1-shot performance. The 30 Caliber 180 Grain Pro-hunter is ideal for medium to large game. This is not loaded ammunition.

Made In United States of America
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Specifications
Product Information
Diameter 0.308 Inches
Quantity 100 Bullet
Grain Weight 180 Grains
Bullet Style Spitzer
Lead Free No
G1 Ballistic Coefficient 0.407
Cannelure No
Bullet Coating Non-Coated
Bullet Caliber 30 Caliber
Sectional Density 0.271
Country of Origin United States of America
Delivery Information
Shipping Weight 2.640 Pounds

I prefer the Pro-Hunter over the GameKing. I've only used them in 25-06 (117s) and 243 (100s) on deer though.

I have killed a lot of elk with the 180gr Game king in 30 cal and the 175 gr in 7mm mag. However, a few of my rifles shot better with the flat base Prohunter. Especially my .243.I am using180 gr Partitions at present since I bought them from SPS for $13/box of 50.

All the bad mouthing about Game Kings usually comes from people pushing them too fast.They are not a bullet to use at magnum velocities

Have killed lots of game with Sierra bullets.. From .22 thru 30 cal.. Put it in the vitals they die.. I do use Accubond s and Partitions also.. But never had a failure with a Sierra..

I don't care for them on elk sized. I have only used them a few times myself but my clients used them occasionally. About a 50% chance they would come apart without deep penetration on elk from my experience . These were the older Gamekings. But then again I have terrible results with Remington Cor-Lokt's while others have good results.

I use the 150 gameKings on deer and pigs out of a 308. They work great!

I have used the 180 gr Prohunter in a 30'06 and 300WSM on a couple elk and moose and many deer. Never any kind of failure and good accuracy. Those bullets that were recovered were all perfect mushrooms on the opposite the side hide.

Gamekings I have used always came apart - did not loose any animals but made me believe they would not penetrate as well if circumstances required it.

.

Yup, no spitzer on the Sierra site, just the RN.

Guess you didn't buy enough to keep them in production.

I killed a deer with factory 180gr CoreLokts once, but stop at 165s in my handloads. Have 80 Speers someone gave me years ago sitting on my bench but not much use for them apparently, so there they sit.

I've always preferred the Pro Hunter, they've generally shot better for me and have always performed well. Some of them are fairly tough...the 7mm 175 GK, the .308 180 the .338 lines. The HPGK are supposed to be a little harder than the regular GKs. The thread on the battle fo the 7mms had the 175 GK penetrating into dry newsprint about a half inch less than the Partition:

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbt...0094/battle-of-the-7mm-175s#Post10080094

Never used them for Moose or Elk. For mule deer,whitetail and antelope they worked good in 270 win. We have taken them with 130 FB,130 BT,140 HP,150 BT. The 140 HP is my favorite

I have several friends that like the pro hunter in their 30-06’s but I’ve watched a couple of their deer take 2 shots to anchor them. Both initial shots would’ve been fatal (eventually) but the deer traveled and they had to track them through reprod for a good while. The second shots put them down for good. They both watched my .308 drop a couple larger mule deer in their tracks using TSX and TTSX and were impressed which prompted them to change their bullet choices. They like the Prohunter and Gameking because they’re accurate but in my opinion there are much better choices. I know there are guys that swear by them and I don’t want to start an argument so if they’ve worked well for you and you have confidence in them then by all means use them. I’m merely relating my experience with them. I also don’t like interbonds as I’ve seen complete cup and core separation and less than ideal performance. I use premium ammunition that shoots well in my rifles, in my .338 it’s any mono, TBBC, A-Frame and Scirrocos. In my other rifles I’ve been satisfied with the TSX and TTSX. I basically use all monos now and have been extremely impressed by their performance.

For relatively common, missionary position bullets the Core-lokts are the “deadliest mushroom in the woods”. 😁

Good luck.

My father in law used mostly Sierra bullets for 37 years in Alaska. But he didn’t follow Internet forums so didn’t know that [bleep] he killed should have died differently. Used 220 round nose in .30-06 and .300 win mag before switching to 200 grain game kings on moose and caribou

Could you share specifics on the incident(s) where you saw core separations with Interbonds? That’s a bonded bullet do a separation would seem to be unlikely.

My .30-06 shoots the 165 Game King well enough, but I have been somewhat reluctant to use them on large deer and elk for the reasons stated above. Happy Trails

I called Sierra several years ago to talk specifically about tough 30 cal bullets in a 30-06 for bears. They steered me away from gamekings in 180 and 200 in favor of the 180 PH. I loaded some up with good accuracy, but never put one in a bear as I usually had Interlocks or partitions loaded for the rifles I carried.

I did shoot a whitetail buck chasing a doe with the last of them I had left. The bullet didn’t seem to blink, zipped right through.

The last 5 deer i have taken with 180gr SGK loaded in a 300WM. All shots were under 100yds. Three were broadside just behind the shoulders. Bullet went in and out with the deer going 10yds. On another one a big doe was shot in the neck. Through and through taking out an artery, breaking the neck and flipping her head over heals. Dead right there. The 5th deer, a big buck I went to shot broadside but he turned towards me and I hit him in the shoulder near me. Bullet must have fractured as one piece went up through the spine and exited. Another piece (small) went through the heart snd the remainder smashing the opposite shoulder. He collapsed dead where he stood.

I used the 117 gameking in a marlin xl7 25-06 for 2 seasons. Those couple years and I had lots of doe tags and buck tags on a couple states and ended up killing a pile of critters, all deer and antelope. Several DRT, some ran a few yards, but overall they performed well. With that said, several didn’t exit on broadside shots of antelope and damage was excessive on some. Definitely a pretty soft bullet. That gun and bullet have been the most accurate factory rifle I ever owned. Consistently shooting sub 1” groups at 300 YARDS!

When I first started using Sierra 243 85 gr. HPBT it was a MatchKing bullet its now a GameKing bullet. For several decades I have used it for deer control shooting put it in the lungs of a deer there DRT or go a short distance.

Ive used the 250 grain .338 Gameking with great success on muleys and elk. Was my go to bullet until they went on backorder for ola long time a few year back, have since switched to the 225 sst.

I have a friend that swears by the 160 gk over 59 grns of IMR4831 for Elk.

Bullet entered the opposite shoulder and exited here.
7rem mag
160 gameking
75 or 100 yard shot

Photoshop,

and you making a 100 yd shot.......

pffftttt......................

The only really big game I've shot with Sierras were moose; and they seemed to die in the approved fashion. The 130 grain flat-base 270 through the ribs, tipped them over like a big deer. I've also used the 215 Pro-hunter in the .338 Win. How well that one works depends on whether you go by the results or what the bullet looks like when its over. The they seem to like to slip their jackets right about the time they stop moving forward; with the jacket and core either right together or easily pulled apart with your fingers and about 1/2 their weight shed if you don't count the loose jacket. On the other hand; the moose tended to be dead so all is not lost. Frankly, they wouldn't be my first choice but a friend is quite happy shooting grizzlies and everything else in BC with them.

I have always admired Sierra's accuracy. Their 90 gr HP has always been accurate, and devastating, on varmints, in my 270's.
I think that Sierra built the most accurate bullet back in the 70's. The competition has improved in recent decades.
On big game, I view Sierra bullets, as adequate in the 300 Savage and 35 Whelens. Not so much in faster calibers.
Sierra's are "go to" bullets for testing accuracy in any new rifle.
Calibers loaded to run above 2900 fps were, and are, fed Partitions or recently, ETips, for hunting big game.
50 years later, my opinion of Sierra remains the same..

My vote is for neither. Not a fan of Sierra on game after seeing many results ( Though they were on dead animals, so what else do you need to know?)

One exception, oddly enough is their .224 caliber 63 gr SMP that Dober turned me on to...supposed to be a 'varmint' bullet but performs very well indeed on medium game.


Same as everything else...opinions and experiences differ, its why God invented Blondes, brunettes and redheads...

Just because they resulted in a dead animal doesn't mean they performed well. Sierra bullets have produced some atrocious wounds on animals I have shot them with, even with somewhat big caliber, heavier bullets such as the .308" 180 GameKing, especially when impact velocity is high.

Slow them down, shoot them out of a .30-30 or something like that and they'll be fine I am sure, but they're not for me and my normal hunting rifles.
I have also found them to be like Nosler bullets, in that they're normally accurate out to X yards, then their accuracy goes to hell, I presume because their internal concentricity (or lack of) causes them to wobble like a Marine on liberty once they slow down to a certain point.

The 63 SMP is the sole exception for me, out of my .22 hi power. I believe it is a varminter bullet though, not a GameKing or Pro-Hunter and I sure as hell don't shoot it long range.

I shot a buck last fall with a 150gr .277 game king at about 3000 fps from a .270 WCF and the bullet exploded. Shot was 50 yards or so. Deer dropped dead but you could have put a truck tire through the exit wound. It was literally bigger than a basket ball. Total bullet failure. Ive used Hornandy interlocks in the past with the same velocity and have never had one do that.

I really like the way the Sierra bullets shoot but I won't hunt with them any more. Better options available...and for less money in some cases.

It seems like conventional wisdom has been to keep the velocity with cup and cores something less than 2800 fps give or take. Your bullet would have been doing about 2900 fps at impact. Did it hit bone too? As for Hornady vs Sierra, I don't know that you can make a blanket statement about all Interlocks vs all Sierras, as sometimes there are differences with specific bullets. Case in point, BC30cal had a bad experience with the Hornady 220 gr (and he wasn't pushing it too fast either), while others attest to the Sierra 220 gr as well regarded ( Experience with 220 grain Sierra round nose or 220 grain Federal factory ammo? , 220 Grain .30-06 Loads (John Barsness weighs in on the 2nd thread link).

I started out with cup and cores in the late ‘60’s......308 Win. and .375 H&H! Went to Nosler Partitions in the late ‘80’s....in a 270 Win. Then to Barnes X Bullets in the early ‘90’s. The only bullet that I considered a “bullet failure” which exhibited utter and complete “disintegration” was a 300 grain Sierra from an H&H, at well under 2800 fps impact velocity. And, 2 of the three were small big game....the other an elk! Those 300’s when fired into a test median right beside a 270 grain Hornady.....again failed miserably, while the Hornady performance was very impressive! I could not find any remnants of the Sierra.....perhaps if I had used a “screened box”, I may have found some bullet material. They were however, pretty impressive when used on prairie dogs! memtb

Having run thousands of Sierra bullets over a Juenke I completely disagree on concentricity being a Sierra problem. They simply are as good as they come. The old screw-machine Partitions are the only ones close.

Also, like any stabilization issue, it shows up from the start if it is there. Run a thousand Core-Lokts over the Juenke and watch how the tiny handful of perfect ones shoot compared to the average...

Could be, I have never played with a Juenke.

I have however had most all Sierras I have played with be nice and accurate out to a particular distance, then they turn into shotgun patterns. In the same rifle(s), other bullets of the same weight and length have remained accurate at that particular distance and beyond. Why I don't know, but that's been my experience.

I'm far from being rainman so I will never have one of those machines

At this time we only know of two people capable of assembling this meter and making it work.

Mr. Juenke and the BulletDoctor. The skill level necessary to assemble these kits is at Rainman level.

So if you are looking at purchasing one of these kits, make sure you got Rainman skills.

We have included in this website an electrical diagram of how the meter head, circuit board, dials and switches are connected to each other.

Before considering purchasing this kit, study the diagram closely make sure you understand what you are getting yourself into.

We will not be able to help you if you can't get it working.

http://www.bulletinspector.com/

I saw this first hand last year when I was working a load up for my 270 winchester. I was set on using 150gr partitions I was going to go "old" school for my sheep hunt. Man those things would group phenomenal at 100yds. Then I moved out too 200 ydsand 300yds and it fell apart. I then picked up some 145 eld-x stuffed the case full of rl26 shot out to 300yds to verify my bdc I shot 1 1/2 group. I should of took a picture of it. I need to go dig around and find the target. I also was going to use a 130gr Sierra btsp same thing great groups at 100yds but 4 inch groups at 300yds. Anyhow that's how I ended up using 145 eld-x in my 270

Way too many variables in the system to be certain what causes that sort of thing... but it is NOT the bullet suddenly going unstable or wandering as a function of the bullet.

Among the suspects would be parallax in the sighting system, number one.

A poor fit between reticle and target at the longer range can create issues both because of the physical characteristics of the optics and target and because of eye variations in different people.

Unseen weather at the longer distance creating air movement...

And many more, but bullets are not the problem.

That's for sure! A bullet doesn't just suddenly become out of balance because it has slowed down a thousand feet per second.

There can be some challenges transitioning into sub-sonic velocity, less than 1225 fps, but that doesn't occur until waaaaay beyond 300 yards.

Ted

All tested on the same day up at talkeetna 1000yd range..

The PHs I used 10-20 years ago were cheap and accurate, but I'd never use them on anything bigger than deer--and even then only if the deer was broadside. Unless Sierra's done something since then to make them hold together better and penetrate deeper, I'll continue to use something tougher like Accubonds.

Ok.. Well.. He was in bow range

Ted, I've used the 215 Game Kings in my 338 Federal quite extensively. They shot great in that rifle and performance was stellar. I've taken a couple bison and a few moose/caribou with them. I wasn't pushing them real fast but in my option they are hard to beat at 338 federal velocities.

I’ve had good results on bears and caribou with the 150BTSP .277 and the 165 GkHP .308. Launched from a 270wcf and a couple different 30/06s.

I am way more of a hunter than a shooter, and certainly am no physicist, so I honestly have no idea why my experience with them is what it is.

I don't think parallax or different wind conditions have been the issue...as other bullets out of the same rifles and scopes at the same range sessions have grouped just fine at distances way beyond where the Sierras (and Noslers) would start going to hell. Why Sierra bullets do this escapes me and I will bow to others with more shooting experience, but I do believe it is the bullets, for whatever reason.

Good point. Those bullets go sub sonic way past where I am shooting at.

I have absolutely zero idea why Sierras do this (to me at least), but they do at ranges that other bullets don't.

Not to go on too big of a tangent here (as I honestly don't know), but if bullets don't become destabilized as they slow down to a certain point both in velocity and (more importantly) RPM, but still stay transonic, why do twist rates matter? Shouldn't a slow twist barrel stabilize a given bullet the same as a fast twist barrel, as long as the bullet is transonic since RPM slows down as the bullet slows down too right? I was thinking that when a bullet's RPM slowed down at some point it would start to destabilize and wobble, regardless if it was still transonic or not.

I hate to bring so much gun gak into the conversation, but am genuinely curious.

I was always under the impression sierra bullets were by far the most accurate.

The game kings were boat tails, pro hunters flat base.

They weren't the toughest just the most consistent and uniform.

I have harvested elk with them outta a 300 savage, and yes they came apart.

But to answer the original posters question, one is a boat tail one a flat base.

As a side note sierras reloading book is very large and informative.

To start, I think you misunderstand "transonic" which (in this situation) is the condition of slowing down to the speed of sound. When they go transonic, as Ted mentioned they can destablize.

Rotational velocity slows far less than linear velocity. Bullets actually get more stable as they go downrange. Slow twist barrels do not rotate long bullets as much as fast twist and since bullet length is a huge factor in stability longer bullets need faster twist rates.

Your situation is unusual if only Sierra bullets do that, but it is not a bullet stability issue.

I would use Sierra seconds before I would use Accubond firsts... I have never seen an Accubond exit hole.

I do not doubt your data at all. I do doubt the conclusion you came to about cause.

If a betting man did not bet on parallax he would lose this bet more often than not.

I find it interesting..........

Any caliber is ok, you just gotta be accurate.

Sierra bullets ( my impression) strives on accuracy.........allegedly the most important point.

But not good enough.

Can't lose 4 winning?

Well I'm watching rainman, so I can buy that funky machine put it together and become the bullet whisperer. Anyhow pass me the hornady ELD X if you are shooting past 300yds please..

I used the 100gr Pro-Hunter in my 243 Win back in the 80's. Yes, they were very accurate at my ranges, but too many of them came apart on WI whitetails. No science, no parallax issues, just observation. They came apart on little deer, they came apart on big deer, I have a collection of separated bullets. I'm a hunter, and only care about hunting. I switched to Barnes and have never looked back. When you look at the overall expense of a hunting trip, bullets/ammo are the cheapest component. My bullet choice for hunting wouldn't be anything Sierra, but that's only my decision for me.

Been watching this thread with keen interest. My observations line up very well with the majority here. I used 0.308 cal 180 GK last year in my 308 to take an elk and several deer. I opined that I thought I should get complete penetration on apparent broadside deer at 308 vels with the GK. You'd have thought I committed the ultimate sin and was called BS by at least one person who is conspiciosly absent on this thread. Funny how people can have different results.

FWIW I've seen complete penetration with the 30 cal, 180 PH from 308 and 30-06 on deer. I beleive them to be 'harder' than the GK. Too bad they quit making them.

OK, I see what you're getting at with my use of the word "transonic", and see where I was confusing. When I said "still is transonic", I should have just said something to the effect of "above the speed of sound".

This physics stuff makes my head hurt. I think I'll just go blast prairie dogs instead of playing Steven Hawking.

Thanks for the explanation.

Very true, and this thread is a prime example.

Maybe it's how we load our rounds vs others, each individual's definition of "good" performance, how we hold our rifles, or some other seemingly non-related factor.

I've also been watching with great interest and glad you weighed in on the 30 cal 180 pro-hunter. Hope some more folks do as well because most are talking about the Game Kings. I have to wonder if there was a period where Sierra produced weak bullets (soft cores or thin jackets) based on some of these reports. And if so, whether they quietly made any adjustments.

Sierra shows 30 cal 180 gr Pro-Hunters on their website and MidwayUSA shows them to be in stock/available.

Another interesting thing I noticed is MidwayUSA shows Sierra 6th Edition Reloading Manual, but neither Sierra nor Amazon do. I checked because unlike other manual producers, they hadn't updated the 5th edition for a very long time.

I'm a fan. Especially of the PH's. Used in both 6.5 and 7mm, and they kill stuff. Great value.

The 180 Pro-Hunter is my 30-06 bullet.
Half hearted attempt to load for a 760.
Had a half box of 180's, dumped in 58 gr. H4831.

Good enough, them stupid pumps don't shoot, I don't even like the 30-06.

Easy 1" 3 shot groups, anytime.

Still don't like pumps, but those bullets have killed several deer with one shot.
Only one needed more, placement issues, not the bullets fault.

Have never seen a fired one, they fled the scene.

Those bullets, the'06, and 760's, learned something.
And have respect for all three.

Have used the 165 hollow point GK, in a 308.
Some claim they hang together, I have only found 1 in about 10 deer.
They were the most effective bullets I have ever used.
But the damage was unreal.
A cloud blowing out the far side was not unusual, double fist exit holes weren't either.
A hit in a shoulder, destroyed that shoulder. With a 20" barreled 308!
Ballistic Tips replaced those.

I’m a fan of the Prohunter bullets, I shoot 65 gr in 223 and 110 in my 6.8, 1 shot will work with either on deer and pigs.

Funny you mention that...my brother had an acubond fail to exit a whitetail this last year at 85 yards. A 180 fired from a 300 weatherby!

Pretty disappointing

Our game up here is much bigger than what most of you would be hunting down South. Accubonds have been called Accubombs by a few guys up here.

Ted

Never an issue with Accubond's here, they are one of the best all around bullets out there.

I have seen them used on bears, big and small, deer, caribou, moose, and bison. I have never seen an exit wound. That would include four broadside 300gr from a 375H&H in a very large brown bear. I have seen a whole bunch of 270gr X bullets in brown bears without catching a single bullet. And many of the Xs were full length.

I simply don't believe you. There are other reasons you don't like Nosler and slam them at almost any opportunity. I have only caught a couple in my time and have used them on moose, bear, deer and goats. I bet you saw quick kills with them unlike the 25-06 bear with TSX bullets that ran 200 yards but you still seem to think that was excellent performance. I'm not a Barnes hater by any means just pointing out something that makes no sense at all. There are other who have pointed out to you that they have seen your favourite bullet caught in game animals more than Accubond's. For some bizarre reason exit wounds seem to be more important to you than how quickly a bullet kills. If you don't like them that's fine but your reasoning is flawed.

Seen a few Accubonds caught in elk after smashing alot of bone, but honestly the elk went nowhere. Been using a few more TTSX's recently and they seem to work fine as well, but I haven't ever really any trouble with Accubonds and probably prefer them to Partitions at this point due to them usually being a bit more accurate for me on average.

I used the 130 GK in a Browning 270 for Texas muleys one year. Shot a nice 10 point in the neck and he dropped like a hammer. The bullet completely came apart and I found parts of the jacket between his shoulder blades on top of the back just underneath the skin. This was in about 1990 and I haven't used Sierra's since. Now I use the 140 gr. Hornady BTSP in my 270.

My only experience with the Accubond is in my 7/08, a Remington 700 CDL. My load was super accurate and I used the rifle to take a large hog at about 60 yards and a nice west Texas whitetail at 302 yards. The hog went boom-whop-thud, the whitetail got heart shot, spun around once, then staggered and fell. I found neither bullet.

For the longest time I shot a Remington 700 Ti in 7MM RSAUM and handloaded the Barnes 140 TTSX with 59.5 grains of IMR 4350 and average 3050 FPS. I have no idea how many critters I've killed with that combination, but none ever took a step. I never found a bullet either.

I'm currently working with the Accubond and the Scirocco in 6.5 Swede and 6.5 PRC. I'm getting good accuracy, but I think I can get better.

A brown bear hit through the heart once from each side IS going to run a long ways, regardless the bullet used. The fact it made it across an avalanche chute is far from a surprise and a 30 caliber rifle would have produced nearly identical results.

As far as not believing me on Accubonds there are several posters here that shot those bullets and in order for me to have seen them it had to be someone else shooting as I have never shot an Accubond at a game animal. And likely never will.

My "beef" with Nosler if you want to call it that is pretty simple. They produce what they call a premium bullet at premium prices. I find it works about like any other cup and core bullet of modest construction. When I shot Nosler bullets I caught a ton of them. I used them for many years. There are a number of "cheap" brands I have used a lot of and never found a real difference between them and Partitions.

I do insist on exit wounds for two reasons. When animals have just an entrance hole bleeding is slowed. Add a second hole and the advantage of tissues being laid pretty much in line with the exit, which is generally larger, seriously increases the bleeding. I want the blood trail if needed and the simple fact is more bleeding means quicker death. If you hunt in a rain forest a bit the need will be obvious.

I do hunt in a rain forest actually and like exit wounds if possible but I also like quick kills which Accubond's typically give with minimal trailing an animal. I bet you found those recovered bullets in dead animals and I bet they expired quickly in general given good bullet placement. Actually other than one 375 250 gr Barnes X not opening up on a bear and shooting it a second time (with an Accubond ironically and it was lights out instantly) pretty much all bullets used have done their job well. I'll keep on using the Nosler bullets plus Barnes, Speer, Hornady, Sierra, Woodleigh etc because it's fun to experiment. I like the Barnes TTSX but still think twice about the TSX and that small hollow point after that X bullet not opening that actually had a big hollow point.

I hope the 6.5 130gr Gamechangers hold up on game, they shoot excellent and the price is right.

Why limit yourself to those two options?

20 yrs ago or a tad more, I wanted to get a new 300WM "bloody", so to speak. I was invited on a Hill Country deer hunt near Llano. It was a 4 deer area, no more than 2 which could be bucks. I had been using Barnes X and Partitions in magnums (or hot wildcats) but since I had just bought the rifle, I had no loads worked up. I thought to myself " I want a bomb, I want it to blow up inside those very small deer. I bought some Federal Blue Box 300WM loaded ( it said on the box) 150gr Sierra Pro Hunter. I shot all 4 deer, none over 60yds. The only buck I I shot through the base of the neck. the does I shot in the lungs. All bullets exited, acted like Partitions! I barely even had any bloodshot meat. It surprised me to all get out. I have seen the SBT come apart, but so did 1 of 2 Hornady 180SP (30-06 Lite Magnum load) on my first cow elk. I shot a medium sized cow later with a handloaded 300SBT, in a .375 H&H. Same thing, just wanted to get it bloody. At 200yds, it blew on through (tight hold behind shoulder, but had an exit of at least 6 inches. It humped up and looked like it was going to run off into this godawful hole nearby. I popped her at the top of the shoulders and down she went. I would say at least 25% of the meat was badly bloodshot. I went to the 270 Failsafe after that.

Any Sierra heavy for caliber bullet in PH or GK works in any hunting condition.

I have killed mature bull elk with both in 30/200's and 28/175's.

Southtexas, Sorry for the late response, I forgot to check back in on this thread. My limited experience with Interbonds is just that, limited and I’m not trying to run down anyone’s preferred bullet. I shot a cow elk at just under 100 yards with my .338wm and a 225gr interbond. When butchering the animal I found the jacket without a trace of lead and as I got deeper into the butchering I found the lead core. If I remember correctly I weighed the 2 pieces and they weighed just north of 160 grains together. Obviously the animal died and it died rather quickly requiring only the original shot to do the job so in that respect I don’t have any complaints regarding bullet “performance”. After seeing the jacket and core separation I decided to do some unscientific experimentation. I soaked a bunch of phone books and shot the Interbonds into the wet medium at 100 yards. 3 of the 4 test rounds had partial to complete jacket/core separation. I used up the rest of my handloaded Interbonds at the range sighting in other friends rifles. I have one left that I use as a comparator for my reloads since it’s just kissing the lands in that rifle. During that same range session I used the same medium to test the 225 TBBC and A-Frame and they were picture perfect mushrooms. I’m not complaining about the Interbonds merely relaying my personal albeit limited experience with them.

Good luck!

Interesting. Thanks for sharing.

I would add that I killed one mule deer doe with a 25-06 and the 117 Sierra and I felt it was a pretty tough bullet. I also used the 165 SBT in the old Federal Red Box 30-06 ammo in the 70's. Up close on hogs it did swell, held together just fine. My BIL uses the .308 with the 150gr SBT on East Tx deer and hogs just fine. So, I a big heavy hog is what I call "big game" ( bigger than deer as far as being more solid, heavy muscle & fat plus thick skin which is( usually matted with mud) However, I sure did not like how that 300gr SBT did on that elk, it was only going 2600fps too. I have read where a lot of moose hunting guides use the 200gr SBT in the 30-06, but I have never used it myself. Just "off hand" I don't think I would use any GK when I could use the Pro Hunter, especially on elk/bear/moose. Have a ball though Pard!

Thanks for all your posts on this, Guys. Appreciate it.

Sounds like they have not really changed much from when I tried them many years ago, accurate but a bit lightly-constructed for really bg game.

Ted