Who has used these on elk or moose or similar-sized game?

How did they perform for you?

Thanks.

Have killed two elk with the 350s. Held up well and I was pleased with terminal performance. First one went through the shoulder blade, broke a rib, went through the chest and was mushroomed inside the skin on the far side. The second plowed through the elbow joint (was shooting at a severe uphill angle, broke into several pieces, but one large chunk went through the heart and ended it quickly.

They also shoot well in my guns. This year, dropping to the 300 gr as I will be hunting mule deer. Brother is sticking with 350 for elk.

Thanks. I shot the 350's yesterday and they did well in my rifle. A little hard to load, but hopefully I'll only need to do that once this year.

Hard to beat a big hunk of lead.

Maybe a small hunk of copper?

im gonna give the 300,s a spin in my renegade 50 cal

gonna get some from midsouth shooters supply

and see what they do with 100 gr charge

wanna try the thor 250,s also somewhere down the line

make sure you have a GOOD solid bullet starter

im kinda wondering about the bore size and loading them


the thor site said their bullets for tc rifles were .502 diameter
if i remember right

and everything i have ever heard most people say about the fpbs
is that they require alot of force to ram home


im gonna give em a try just to see how they shoot

Gosh damn being stupid really sucks.

Can someone tell me WTH FPB's are?

Gunner

http://www.hornady.com/store/50-Cal-350-gr-FPB/

As stated, a good, short bullet starter is the key. Their rear skirt is bigger than bore size and you have to size them to YOUR gun. Set them on top of the barrel in allighment and place a short bullet starter on top (with a special pointed type loading jag) and give it a sharp "whap" with your other palm. couple of sharp whaps should have then in the barrel and eaier to put down the barrel. That said some CVAs are so tight they are a booger to load. Load great in my Omega, Renegade, and Knight LRH. Also, I have the kind of ramrod with a folding/inline "T" handle which makes pushing it down that much easier. You can also get the kind that just friction fits on the end of your ramrod so you aren't pushing that skinny metal piece with your palm.

What I use:

http://www.cabelas.com/product/TC-T-Handle-Short-Starter-and-Ramrod-Extension/734697.uts?Ntk=AllProducts&searchPath=%2Fcatalog%2Fsearch.cmd%3Fform_state%3DsearchForm%26N%3D0%26fsch%3Dtrue%26Ntk%3DAllProducts%26Ntt%3Dt%252Fc%2Bbullet%2Bstarter%26WTz_l%3DHeader%253BSearch-All%2BProducts&Ntt=t%2Fc+bullet+starter&WTz_l=Header%3BSearch-All+Products

with this on the end:

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Shooting/Black-Powder/Loading-Accessories%7C/pc/104792580/c/104701680/sc/104436180/Hornady-SST-Loading-Jag/735140.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Fshooting-black-powder-loading-accessories%2F_%2FN-1100209%2FNs-CATEGORY_SEQ_104436180%3FWTz_l%3DSBC%253BMMcat104792580%253Bcat104701680&WTz_l=SBC%3BMMcat104792580%3Bcat104701680%3Bcat104436180

And this:

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Shooting/Black-Powder/Loading-Accessories%7C/pc/104792580/c/104701680/sc/104436180/ThompsonCenter-Universal-Power-Rod/706074.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Fshooting-black-powder-loading-accessories%2F_%2FN-1100209%2FNs-CATEGORY_SEQ_104436180%3FWTz_l%3DSBC%253BMMcat104792580%253Bcat104701680&WTz_l=SBC%3BMMcat104792580%3Bcat104701680%3Bcat104436180

Thanks TX, hope they at least bonded the little pointy slug.

Gunner

pushing them down on top of the powder isn't hard, its the getting them into the bore part thats a PITA.

.502" Traditions bore and the 300gr Hornady FPB.

I almost broke my hand trying to load that damn bullet.

The Thor is much more friendly. Push them in with my thumb.

im getting a tc spin jag to load them after seating the round
got a tc short starter already

they sound like a pain in the butt to load at first but then they slide down easier once engraved at the skirt

is that one that got started off canter to the bore
it looks like about 1/3 of the skirt is messed up and the other 2/3rds of the circumfrance of it aint from the angle of the picture??????

Dang so it's a pointy little mono.

Gunner

And I realize I'm behind in the new tech ML stuff, but my old 290 gn tipped TMZ's are bad mofo's on critters, with 150 gns loose 777 under 'em.

When I get them and the 777 shot up, I'm gonna try Thors and BH-209 for the inline Omega.

Gunner

i wanna give the thors a whirl espically if they are way easier to load

just dont wanna play the mail order game right yet

midsouth shooters is 4 miles up the road and call in orders only take 2 hrs for them to be ready to pick up

That'll work.

Gunner

just the angle of the picture

I use the FPBs in my T/C renegade with good success, but not sure about using the thors in a gun without a breechplug. Since there are 4 differnt sizes, not sure how to use the sizing pack. Would be afraid if I got one that was too tight and couldn't get it down all the way on the powder, how would you get it out? With an inline, no problem, just hammer it through.

That said, the Thors are great for inlines

haha true, in my cva mountain stalker i had to tap the bullet down and then shoot it off. You have to be real careful, if its tight at the muzzle, it aint going to work.

I use the 350gr with 100 grains of Blackhorn 209 powder in my T/C Prohunter. No problem loading, just have a get a routine of loading and make sure you seat the bullet firmly agains the powder each time. I'm shooting 1.25" groups at 100 yards and 2" groups at 200.

Great bullet!!

I had that same thought when I wanted to try a Thor in a sidelock. I gave up on the idea.

hmmmmmmmm.

No, it's lead with a copper jacket. They load fine in my Encore with just a ramrod, takes more elbow grease though.

i wouldnt say its jacketed, its basically a very thin electro plate. Most of mine, the plating is so thin is just looks like spider web cracks.

Hornady calls it a jacket, do you know something they don't?

jacket to me is the thick stuff that actually helps hold the bullet together. The stuff they put on is mainly to give it that eye candy look and maybe reduce lead fouling.

Here is a picture with a cross section:

http://www.hornady.com/store/50-Cal-300-gr-FPB/

Whatever you call it, it does not make the bullet tougher. just protects the barrel from leading. But the bullet is a lead alloy, so it is tougher than pure lead.

The difference between a jacket and an electroplated coating of copper is in how it's applied and the thickness. I just sectioned a powerbelt (plated) and an FPB, and the FPB's copper is much thicker. If you read the Hornady description, they say it's a jacket designed to help with terminal performance.

When I ram one down the barrel, it's a tight fit and requires a lot of pressure all the way down, not just at the start when it engraves on the rifling. If it was just a thin wash of copper over lead, I don't think that would be the case.

But back to the question, who has used one on elk-sized game and how did it perform?

It does? It says this.

"Copper jacket and specially engineered profile eliminate bullet/sabot fouling and the need for a �plastic skirt.�

Yup, you're right, I read that somewhere else, not in their description. But it is a jacket, and a bonded one at that.

I wouldn't doubt it. As I said already. I hurt my hand trying to pound one in one time.

"One time" being the key words.

no way the copper wash on an FPB is thicker than a powerbelt copper wash. I melt powerbelts down for the lead and the "jacket" is .005" thick and holds its form after the lead melts out. Do that with an FPB and the copper just spreads out in no form whatsoever.

Hey BB455, other than being a bit harder to load, IYO has anyone made a better performing inline BP bullet than the 50 cal. 290 gn Tipped Barnes TMZ?

Thanks
Gunner

300gr Thor would be the only bullet that compares to a 290 barnes. simply because it is a full bore barnes.

Thanks BB455, and not to muddy up another mans thread, but does the Big Thor have a tip that goes in that gaping hole?

Gunner

And when I get the TMZ's shot up, the Thors and BH-209 should be pure Hellfire on BG animals.

yep you can get them with the ballistic tip

You want to bet on that? $100 maybe??

i have both bullets brother, the FPB is just a very thin wash, its not thick at all and cracks off when its loaded into the bore, Just look at this picture,

well just as i said gents, The FPB copper wash IS thinner that the Powerbelt. The harvester Sabertooth has the thickest copper wash coating on it as you will see.

Powerbelt = .005
FPB = .004 " With lead stuck to copper wash! I easily pealed a section of copper off with my fingers" So in truth, its actually even thinner if the lead was completely off it.
Sabertooth - Unknown. The thickness is amazing as you will see in the pictures.



FPB VS Sabertooth copper thickness.

You should have made the bet before showing the pictures.

Too funny. Think I will stick with solid lead and flat points for big critters.

Hey 30338, go down to Crosfires thread "New 8 Bore" thread and click on page 4 and check out my homemade speed loaders for BIG CRITTERS .

Gunner

I love FPBs and my brother and I will be using them in CO this year for elk and deer, but I have never seen anything to convince me that the "jacket" does anything for terminal performance. The reason it is harder to push down is that it is not a pure soft lead bullet. It is a lead alloy and is harder than the lead in a powerbelt or any other pure lead bullet. Also, the skirt is the only thing that engages the riflings on the way down because it is 0.507 before you size it to your bore. The body of the bullet itself is smaller than .500 and "obturates" to engage the riflings when you pull the trigger, just like a powerbelt.

LOL, while an 8 bore would be very emphatic with 300 grains of powder pushing it, I am not sure I am man enough to carry 5 or 6 of those speed loaders! But big and solid lead they most certainly are.

Well, A couple of things. I think you're right on one count, the FPB is not what I would call jacketed, because the copper is not that thick. It's thinner than their description and cutaway diagram make it out to be. That kind of surprises me coming from Hornady.

But it's still thicker than a powerbelt, I believe. This is based on some highly scientific work I did in my basement with a hacksaw, some tin snips, and a grinder. I can't get the jacket to separate (didn't heat it) but eyeballing the thickness with a caliper it looks to be between 10-15 thousandths. Four thousands is barely enough to see that the calipers are open and to my eyes the copper on the FPB is obviously thicker than that. And I would say that if you heat the "jacket" to get it to separate, then you may be distorting the actual thickness because as you noted, the alloy in the jacket flows when heated.

Anyway, the main thing I got out of this is just what TX said above, and that is, the lead alloy in the FPB is definitely tougher than the PB. That's what's going to keep the bullet from pancaking when it hits, at least in comparison to a PB. When I cut the PB in half with the tin snips, I could do it with my hands. When I tried that on the FPB, no dice, I had to brace the tin snips on the floor and really lean on 'em to get it cut in half.

Plus, it's just more accurate in my rifle. So I'm hunting with the FPB this September.

350g FPB after smashing a bull's shoulder at 40yds. The bullet was against the hide on the off side(slight quarter to presentation). The bull was still flopping a bit and sliding down the mountain, so a second was placed thru the ribs and exited.




Damn site better than the 348PB HP I used on the trip. A broadside rib impact shredded that pill and deflected it hard only taking out one lung and leaving a tiny piece of the shank behind his diaphram.

Surprised you guys are having trouble loading the FPBs, I've ran them in a Knight, CVA Optima, Encore, and Omega and they are easy to start in all of them with just the rod.

I still have about 7-8 packs of them and wouldn't hesitate a bit to use them on a bull.

loder

good proof at how thin that copper coating is!

BB, you must have gotten a soft batch of the FPBs, the thin jacket on the lots I've gotten is much tougher than the last few batches of PBs I've bought. The PBs wash is easy to scratch off, but the Hdy not so much. Not that it really matters, they are so thin on either, I really can't see either having an advantage over the other. I believe the alloy is a touch harder in the FPB, hence the better performance as noted in the on game example above.

i look at the stores before i buy and i havent found one package of FPB's where the copper isn't all cracked up. No biggy, Thors are the better choice for me anyways and run just a few bucks more.

A few of my packs have some cracking in the cup under the base, but most seem just like a typical CF cnc pill as far as the look of the jacket.

No doubts, solids are the real deal. I love my TMZs. Haven't gotten on the Thor wagon yet.

And good proof at how tough the lead alloy is!

I have the same experience. Shot an elk and went through the shoulder blade, broke a rib, took out the aorta on top of the heart, broke a rib on the other side and lodged under the skin. I suspect it retained at least 300 gr. Was goint to photograph it, but alas I left it on the hotel counter when we went hunting the next day and the cleaning crew threw it away!

Looks good to me, thanks for posting that. FPB it is.