I can remember when the .270 win and Winchester's 140 Failsafe was very popular. It seemed to work really well on elk, according to a lot of reviews I read. I have also read where some really like the 140 TSX and/or the 130 TTSX. No Failsafes around now, so does anyone like any other mono, 130 or 140 and why? Not talking about anything but monos now, as I know there are many good bullets out there. Thanks guys

130 ttsx in 270 is elk bread and butter
Monos retain almost 100 % of their weight. No reason to go heavier and they work going faster

I've taken deer and elk with the 130 TSX and deer with the 130 TTSX. Lately I've been shooting the 129 LRX - they shoot just as well but I haven't killed anything with them yet. Assuming they perform as well as the others, I'll stick with the 129 LRX...

I went with the 140 TSX, simply because of the greater weight and the higher BC. However, probably just as well served with the 130 TTSX. Plus, if the shots get “stretched out”.....the TTSX offers a little lower velocity threshold! memtb

130

Most of the guys I have asked around here also use the 130. In cup n cor, others use the 150 store bought loads. Handloaders usually pick the 130 if they use a mono. Anyone else?

I've had good results on elk with the (untipped) 130 TSX BT in a Cooper .270 using H4350 powder.

The TSX 130 grain have worked good

I’ve had good luck on a couple bulls with the 130 Etip out of my 270Wby. If that doesn’t stress one I see no reason a 270 Win would and can’t see any reason to go heavier.

130 TTX or 129 LRX whichever your rifle likes.

I've killed 1 elk and watched 2 others killed by hunting partners w/270Win/140TSX. I also killed 2 Caribou and watched a 3rd die via same combo. I use Ramshot Hunter and get them a bit over 3K fps from 3 different factory Winchester SS 22" bbl's.

The 140TSX/270Win has been my "go-to" for deer since '05-'06 as well. I've taken deer from "point blank" coming out of cattails or CRP out to 560yds.

I don't know why but you don't hear of that many 140 mono users. As I mentioned, the old 140 Failsafe was pretty stout on smaller game ( a Spanish goat for my God-son required I follow it up, he hit it a bit behind. I gave him a Washington D.C. ( I don't like the term Texas HS, ha) and both wound channels were pretty small. It would seem the 140 TSX opens a bit quicker than the old FS. The ones that I have heard from who used the 140 TSX also like it very much. I don't however, hear of anyone really who uses the 150 TSX in the Winchester. It should be pretty wicked in the Wby! I have had the last three .270s I've owned "love" the 110TTSX/Hunter combo. How do you find Hunter behaving in really cold temps there Horse?

A friend has killed several elk with the 110-grain TTSX at ranges out to 500+ yards.

I haven't chrono'd in the cold. I haven't lost/missed a critter due to POI/POA being inaccurate in cold weather.

Not at all scientific, but, the coldest I can think of using Hunter was -21F ambient calling coyotes and killing one @ 300yds w/243Win and 85TSX's with 1 shot.

The deer I took @ 560yds was Oct '19 in SW WY. Ambient temp was in the 20's. Prior to the trip I'd printed out a new ballistic table for 6K' but didn't adjust ambient from ideal of 59 degrees. One is just as likely to have 75 degrees as 0 in that country that time of year. One shot, behind the on-side shoulder out just ahead of the off-side and the deer never took a step.

The bulk of my big-game hunting has been done in ambient temps of 20-40 degrees. Most of my practice is spring, summer, fall from 20-80 degrees. I'm going to do some shooting this weekend but forcast is for high 20's.

I load (prime, charge powder, seat bullet) prepped brass for the 270Win/140TSX combo on a Dillon 550 press w/Forster seater die (non micrometer). Brass prep is minimal. Partial neck sizing with a Forster bushing die on a Co-Ax press. WLR primers in Rem brass. I crack necks before I get loose primer pockets FWIW. Buddy recently bought an AMP annealer so maybe I'll have to keep closer track of exactly how many loadings I can get on a primer pocket???

I didn't see any mention of the Trophy Bonded they are excellent and the tipped version could be even better. I shoot 140s and still have about five boxes of the Fail Safes but have been shooting mostly the Accubond and Interbond with excellent results in both the Winchester and WSM. I am loading both with R26 and cool temperatures don't seem to affect it much just hot temperatures. With R26 the two are pretty close in velocity with a 50-75 fps advantage for the shorty.

Just read the original question was on Monos. The LRX is excellent, if they shoot they are my first choice with TTSX as second but all the Barnes have performed well for me even the original Xs. If I can get blems or over runs the Nosler and Hornaday monos are good too.

What about the Cutting Edge products, especially the newer Maximus bullet? Has anyone tried these?
I have used their match,tactical hunting bullet( mth)
Off the bench the .270 wcf and the 130 gr mth worked well enough, but they are costly.
These bullets require some reading about ,careful seating of the bullet because of its bore rider design.
I did not use them for hunting, the hollow point was tough to keep open in hunting conditions.
The new Maximus appears to have a larger h.p.

Mule Deer- did your friend say what kind of penetration he got with those 110's?

RL26 with 150gr in the 270 has kind've changed things. The 270 with 150 gr bullets has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of RL26.

One of these days I intend to try my 130 gr E-Tip load on a elk, but 160 gr NPt with RL26 is on tap for next season.........

I hear you alpine! I got 2930fps and .90" groups with 60gr/160 NP from my last .270...from a 22" barrel! I did see both groups and pressure get wonky right at 85 degrees though. Cold, no sweat. I had extremely good results with R23/150 NBT in that rifle also. I have a 24" .270 win I plan on using next year...but want to use either the 129-140 monos...just for grins! I have used monos in many calibers, from small .221 Fireball rifle to .375 Wby...I really feel confident hunting with them. I guess you could say I have "proven to myself" I'm able to take some pretty hard angle , penetrating shots on a variety of game. I am way behind the curve for killing game with the .270 win...so playing "catch-up"! I've played with them all along since about '98, but always used something else...this 24" I'm working on getting now will be #10 for me, maybe I can hold on to it....maybe!

Most recently worked up load for the 129 LRX and RL23. No animals down as yet. Rifle is bofors age sako 24” bbl and getting 3050-3075 and 3/8-1/2 groups. Can’t wait to hammer something.

I have a friend who owns a Mod 70 EW, 24" and he shoots the top load from Barnes with R19/129 LRX for a tad over 3200! I doubt I could ever measure any real-time hunting difference between that and 3050fps, but I "would like to get it that fast", ha. I have Hunter, but no R19, and it is running right with it.

thanks I was given some 110 grain tax bullets and was thinking of trying them.

The 6.5's with the Barnes 100gr TTSX will cleanly take the largest muley buck with ease. Any one who has used this bullets understands this. So, there is no reason the 110 gr mono 270 should not work easily as well. The mono bullets perform way out of what their weight would indicate. Like wise the 270 with a 130 gr mono will take elk cleanly with a complete pass thru. I have observed this success numerous times. My 270 with it's 24" Bbl will deliver in excess of 3200fps with 59.5grs of Rel 19 & the Barnes 130gr TSX / TTSX. This is an outstanding load quoted right out of the Barnes manual.. The fast time of flight & flat trajectory on my 522 yd range has proven it's ability to hit the target with authority..

What primer you using behind that R19 load Uncle Hesp? I know you told me once, but I've 'slept since then", ha. And you say you still have not seen any cold weather effect on your R19 load???

I'm using the CCI LR # 200 primer with the Rel 19...This load right out of the Barnes manual ( Max of 59.5 grs ) does not show the slightest sign of pressure & my chrono reading matches Barnes . A beautiful load for the 270 that put's it into a higher category of performance. The 24" Bbl. really makes the 270 shine.

Thank you sir! I shoot basically the same thing for primers...CCI BR-2. Next time I'm by sportsmans warehouse I'll check on R19 availability! I like Hunter for the 110 TTSX, works swell.

What are you getting for speed with hunter and the 110?

My last three .270 all had 22" barrels, and I was still getting over 3400fps! Very accurate load. Even the discontinued Federal Premium factory load with the 110 TTSX shot super good, I have no idea why they discontinued it. Try it pard, I think you will love it!

Good to hear. I’ve got a 24 inch barrel on mine. It looks like 3500 FPS can be obtained with RS hunter.

I take my elk each year with a 6.5 & Barnes 120gr TSX or Hammer 121gr with complete penetration A 270 with one of the 130gr mono's is a cake walk.. Nothing magic about it. Place the bullet accurately ( guts don't count not even with a 338 mag ) & you've got your game.

Have used both 130 TSX & TTSX extensively. Used the LRX not as much maybe 40 - 50 plains game. The TTSX LRX are much more consistent than the TSX, no reason to use them. I prefer the TTSX because of the larger hole in the point but that is just because it makes me feel better, I haven’t been able to observe any difference in terminal effect.

I have a hunch that the E-Tips will produce slightly better terminal performance but they have been fussy accuracy wise. I wish Nosler would put the old Zipeedo grooves on them.

If your 270 with a 130ish mono won’t do the job you need a 375.

I have killed 8 or 10 with a 270 and 110 grain TTSXs. My son killed 8 with his 270 and 130 TSXs. Every single one of his dropped where they stood. Some of mine never moved, the farthest one went was ~70 yards. That particular deer made the 70 yards with red soup lungs and 3/4 of the heart gone. I have never killed a deer with any mono in any caliber that needed a second dose, nor have I ever been able to correlate the hole in the animal to the caliber. To me all the holes look more or less the same. Calibers used on the deer ranged from .223 to 50 ML.

This mirrors what I have experienced. I spoke with a Nosler rep two weeks ago, and he said they (Nosler) supplied the bullets to Federal for their Trophy Copper rounds Federal cuts the grooves afterwards. Both Barnes and Federal rounds shoot better in my rifles than E-Tips, and maybe Mule Deer and step in and explain the difference in grooves vs non-grooves in bullet pressure, accuracy etc.? Or, maybe it varies only with individual rifles.

Not MD but the grooves greatly reduce pressure due to less bearing surface and less swagging pressure. The Barnes produce even lower pressures than some comparable C&C bullets. The E-Tips and GMX will produce more pressure to the point that maximum loads need to be cut back, some times as much as a grain and a half. The respective velocities also follow suit. Not a huge difference and many shooters ignore it and get away with it.

The hollow base mono produces extreme expansion while not shedding petals. I have not tried them yet. Have some Lehighs ready to go but have not shot any game with them yet. I will have to try them on my favorite test medium, feral hogs soon. The Cutting Edge bullets have a good reputation but have yet to try them, likewise with Hammer bullets. Too many good bullets, not enough time.

I always wonder what the TSX, TTSX, & LRX would do if Barnes used their old blue coating on them? I only shot a couple boxes of the Blue Meanies but they seemed to live up to their claims, more velocity and less fouling.

The old XLC worked, and they could be pushed fast. When the TSX came out, we ended up using a lot of XLC data for them. They seemed to get identical speeds and pressure . The original X? Great IF you could find a load your rifle shot well, and you bought a bottle of CR-10 with them, ha. After "fighting" them for years, the XBT was a relief ( again, less bearing surface) and the XLC was sweet! But the TSX ( and later TTSX) all seem to respond well to being crimped ( preferably via FCD) in all my loads. Now, I have no idea how this may affect LR ( past 400yds) accuracy, but up to there, perfect. The old FailSafe was a good one too, a bit tough in my experience on lighter game, but on heavy muscle/thick hides, sweet! I still find this true ( for me) with monos on lighter game, I will try to take out some bone.

130 TTSXs...Pre-64 Model 70 FWT

What a great post. With your experience we all need to pay attention. I have a wilderness elk hunt scheduled for this fall and I’m taking my .270 Win because it’s light and accurate. I have good loads for it with 130 grn TTSX and 140 grn TSX. My question for you is when you say you’ve found the TTSX more consistent, did you mean accuracy or terminal performance?

I made the commitment today; bought 2# of R19 and 2 boxes of Barnes 129 LRX to try out. May be a couple week s or more before I get back to the range, we're getting dumped on a bit...winter storms are back,

61.0 grains of RL26 in WW cases makes the 129 LRX sing in my M70. Ive been using the 110TTSX last couple years for deer but am going to move over to the LRX this upcoming season.

If your the type that likes to try multiple powders then also get some R23 & R26. I don't have any experience with R19 I passed it over due to rumors of it being highly variable both lot to lot and temperature wise. R22 has the same rumors associated with it and I have been pleased with it, rumors and facts be damned. But R23 is in the same or better velocity league and is equal to the best extreme powders as far as temperature indifference. For slightly more velocity disregarding hot temperature pressure spikes R26 is the champ.

The fall back is always H4831 and with it you can get close to 3,200 fps but anything over 3,000 will do. JOC's 60 grains of 4831 is a classic. He used Milsurp and then Hodgedon but kept on with the same load as far as I know.

I have some fail safe bullets if your interested in them these are 140 grain and highly touted by Ross Seyfried and others. PM and let me know what you have for a trade. I think they are a great bullet for larger game but I already have multiple good loads for the 270's worked up.

Thanks Tejano- I have a bit of both R23 & R26 on hand. At the time, I was using R26/160PT as its accuracy/speed just blew me away...and from a 22" bbl besides! ha. Thanks for the heads up on the Failsafes, but I'm good for now....I have bullets backed up on the runway to try out, ha. Its been 18yrs since my last cow elk, so I'm not in a bind for good elk bullets, ha. I do have a last yrs postponed cow elk hunt back on track, but in late September. I normally prefer to hunt them in late winter, but this was easiest for the ranch, and besides, its a beautiful time of year! So I don't expect anything below 30 deg that time of year, but who knows? It could also be 75 deg! So I figure on working with loads from now until late summer, just checking on speed/accuracy with the temp changes and make any adjustments as I go. Its fun anyhow! ha Thanks again for the heads up Pard! ( Born & raised in Liberty county Texas!)

I've been reading this thread with interest because I'm on the central Texas Gulf Coast. Even in South Texas which is about 200 miles South of me they don't have deer with the body size they do in the Mid West and the North Country. They've got some monstrous racks but not so much big bodies. So we don't need a super bullet to take our deer. Some people around here do use the bullets you stated but most use cup and core bullets and something in the Remington Core Lokt class or Nosler Ballistic Tip, Sierra Game King, Hornady SST class. However, I've thought of looking into the Barnes line and trying a couple loads just in case I ever have the opportunity to go on an elk hunt. I also would like to try the Nosler Partition, what I consider the king of the cup and cores because I've tried them on paper and they're very accurate out of my .270 Winchester. Anyway, I'll keep reading and learning here.

Hey there Fil- what caliber are you shooting? I like to use the lighter weight, fast monos on Texas game if I'm after Exotics. I did usethe 150 partition in a 7mm Rem Mag to keep from tearing up game when I lived there, I left in '87.. Surprising to me was a 300WM I used with Sierra 150 Pro Hunters on Hill Country deer...they acted like Partitions! In 30-06 and a .280 I found the Hornadys to be hard enough to be fine on deer.. The faster the bullet, the harder I want the bullet to be because 95% of the game I killed were under 100yds. Corlokts worked swell but I first used them in the 7mm Mag with 175gr (1973) to keep from tearing up meat too bad. I also found, in the 30-06/308 that 150 corlokts and Sierras were fine on deer. All hogs got shot at head/neck junction. My dad was pure OCD in saving meat! ha I guess that's why I hate running shots til this day! I had about a 50-50 record of hitting them too far back, deer or hogs, and even the 150 corlokts in my 30-30 would do some damage! He had a way of chewing your azz out and making you like it, ha.

I grew up poor. My father had passed & it was just me & my mother. Hunting put meat on the table. I have been hunting all my life starting with rabbits. It was mandatory rabbits were approached close enough to make head shots only. If I shot a rabbit thru the body I would catch it from my mother. That's how I grew up. So putting wild meat on the table is still important to us. We consider the meat a gift from God & therefore to be treated with care & keep waste to a minimum. There are those who hunt mainly for the horns so they care little if copious amounts of meat are destroyed . That is why Colorado mandates that the meat be harvested . If the meat is not brought out it is a felony . I always use the stoutest bullets like the mono's because they have absolutely proven to me over the years to be the least destructive to valuable meat. As the saying goes you can eat right up to the hole where a mono passes thru. The elk I took this past season was hit thru both front shoulders with a 6.5 & the 121 gr Hammer mono. This was the only shot I had thru a window in thick brush. As it turned out almost no meat lost or blood shot . Very positive. When it comes to elk the mono's are the only bullet I use.

I only really like a few wild game critters for eating...elk is #1, ha. Followed by Mule Deer that have been eating right. Axis is tops, but a long way from me now, ha. Blackbuck and Fallow eat good. Pronghorn Antelope...its beautiful meat, I know how to take care of it in the field, but OMG, smelly goat. Some really like it, I just have them cut/wrapped and I give it away. But I cherish the meat! "Any elk on the ground" is the "best"!

Great thread, got me thinking, "What if"? If it came down to a decision of only being able to have one Mono bullet I would choose Nosler E-Tip 130 gr. I think a solid copper bullet would be tougher than most 140-grain lead cores. The E-Tip's list their bullets at 95% weight retention. I believe 1800 fps minimum for good expansion which I could shoot to 800 yards. The Hornady GMX to follow.

Hey Jim Knight, I use a .270 Winchester with a 130 grain Sierra Game King and have for almost 40 years. It's killed a truck load of white tails and about 10 hogs. I like my .06 for hogs. The .270 kills them fine, but I have a lazer light on my Model 700 SPS .30-06 for hogs at night. I do head-neck shots on both deer and hogs when possible. I like the way a Game King takes out a large area of the neck severing thet spine and putting the deer down grave yard dead right in its tracks.

I admit I'm inexperienced on anything other than Texas Game which includes Bear, Elk, and Antilope. I come on here to learn even though I'm opinionated on what I feel I know, just don't know crap about much else than White Tail or Hogs. I have never hunted elk, though I'd kill for the opportunity. I have shot coyotes, there's a few thousand down here and bob cats, and I have shot a lot of small game, rabbits and squirrels. I've been Nilgai hunting but never got a shot. I took my .300 Weatherby with a 200 grain Sierra Game King for that. I also took along my 9.3x62 with a 270 grain Speer hot core which I've taken deer with.

Also, the Sierra Game King on Deer AND Hogs penetrates into the body cavity and makes a quagmire of blood and they usually don't go far. But I still prefer a neck or head shot if its at close range, like under 100 yards. But if its much over 100 yards I find that if I can slip it in between the ribs it expands in the lungs and makes fast work of it. I love reading your posts Jim.

Thanks Fil, I'm only 5yrs younger than you! I left Texas in '87 for the Ministry and still have family there. My BIL still uses his Mod 742/308/150 Sierra GameKings on everything down there! Over in Liberty Co. I liked the old Red Box Federals 30-06 ( remember those) back in '79 that were loaded with the Sierra 165 GKs. It made my dad's old Mod 742 jammomatic go from 6" to 4" at 100! But, I never killed anything with it past 60yds ( they don't call it The Big Thicket for nothing ha) It held together fine at close range, didn't ruin as much meat as the 150 Corlokt even. There was only one .270 win in our group, and he never killed anything with it around me, so I could never compare it to anything. As a kid & teen, all the "old folks" said a .270 was "too da--ed fast for the woods! It would blow up on a twig! No scopes either..."you can't use a scope in the woods son". ha It was tough trying to be a gun looney around that mentality, I tell you! I've never seen a Nilgai in the wild, even on the Exotic ranches I hunted from Uvalde to Del Rio to Sanderson back to leakey. I never moved any oilfield equipment south, or West of Freer or past Port Lavaca further down on the coast. They tell me they are a worthy animal to hunt! Maybe you will run into a "free range" escapee from the King Ranch some day!

I haven’t played with the E-Tip’s at all, usually when I buy Noslers it’s Partitions or AccuBonds. But I have shot my fair share of TSX & TTSX in a variety of calibers. I also been loading quite a few GMX in a variety of calibers. Not much different on game performance that I have noticed, the GMX may be a tad easier to find a load for, seating depth is not quite as finicky as Barnes.(slightly) The only other difference is barrel fouling maybe more noticeable with the Barnes , barrel dependant and not a big deal in hunting situations. I went on a five year run where all I used were mono-metal bullets, and now I’m back to shooting a mix of C&C, Bonded, & Monos. Currently on the hunt for 90 gr GMX in 6mm hoping they shoot close to current 90 gr load for some testing.

Which 6mm you shooting there Abe? I like the 6mms myself, with the right bullet of course. My "favorite" 6mm is the 240Wby. I loaded the older 90X in my first one, back in the 90s. I killed a coyote and busted rocks with, then gave it to my pastor ( Mont Belvieu, Tx) we went out to Leakey and he shot a couple of Axis deer with it. Wicked killer!

I have a pre 64 featherweight 270 that I tried 130 etips in and couldn't get better than 3" groups. I tried deeper seating depths, too. I have never tried 130 TTSX for comparison, but can't imagine them shooting any worse. I went to 140 accubonds and it shoots those into 0.5". 150 partitions are about 1.5". So, I guess my gun just doesn't like the etips. I have heard mention that in general, people seem to have better luck getting the TTSX to shoot without as much work.

Currently I have 2 -6MM Rems in 788’s. One topped with a vortex and one with sightron.
And 2- 243 wins one 7600 rem open sights, one vanguard topped with 3x9 Redfield. It’s my go to coyote rifle/ truck gun. The 80 gr GMX and RL-15 is a excellent coyote round and surprisingly easy on pelts

I ordered some R16 to try, never had any before. I think I'm going to give this R19 to my SIL to play around with and just stick to "known" temp stable powders, ha I guess I'm getting too OCD, but It can go from freezing to 80-90 degs in the Fall over here, if not in one day, in one week I've seen it. I finally got my little Kimber 84L Classic home. I had the smith send it off to "300 Below" for cryo treatment, trying to hedge my bet on stabilizing this skinny barrel, ha.set the trigger at 2 1/4 , it sure is sweet!

My choice as well.

I loaded up some WW cases, BR2, 61gr N165 and the 110 Sierra for a sight in round, hopefully this Saturday. I had picked up this N165 to try in a 338WM for something, anyhow, we will see. Supposed to be 3200 ( is that coincidence or what?

The 110’s should be zippin along , I would think 3200 would be right in the ball park. Hope the shoot well , Sierra usually do. The 110 is actually a decent WT bullet.