Deer bullet for .30 caliber magnums

[LeonCarr]

Hey Ya'll,

I have been thinking about the next rifle to get, and no it is not an AR-15 .

I am thinking about a Remington 700 Sendero in .300 Winchester Magnum, set up for long range deer hunting. What bullet (bullet type/bullet weight/bullet brand) do you .30 caliber magnum deer hunters like to use?

Basically what I am looking for (you might be a gun nut if you talk about the ammo before buying the gun) is a bullet that won't blow up on a shoulder if the buck of a lifetime walks out at 25 yards, and will still work at extended ranges.

A buddy of mine had a similar thing happen with his 7mm Magnum. A monster 12 point whitetail walks out at 35 yards, he shoots it with a 150 grain Remington Core-Lokt in the lungs, the deer looked like he called in an air strike on it, and the deer still ran several hundred yards before it expired.

I am trying to avoid that .

Thanks in advance,
LeonCarr

 

[R.W.Dale]

use a TOUGH controlled expansion bullet and forget ANYTHING with a plastic tip

 

[ashtxsniper]

180 grn sierra gameking.

 

[PotatoJudge]

Nosler Accubond (sorry, plastic tip) in 165 grain or heavier (rated to 3100 fps). Best really to stick with 180 or heavier.
Nosler Partition in any weight (no velocity limit). Again, 180 is the gold standard.

If anybody has info about other bullet manufacturers' velocity limits I'd appreciate the links.

 

[R.W.Dale]

I e-mailed Hornady once on the minimum impact velocity for a 150gr 30 cal SST

they replied that it was 1700fps

 

[LeonCarr]

I have heard from several folks that the 180 was the best bullet weight for deer in the .300 Winnie, but was kinda concerned about them not expanding at long range.

Great responses, keep 'em coming!

Thanks,
LeonCarr

 

[bang_bang]

Face it, a 300 Mag is gonna blow some meat up, no matter what the bullet is. I've taken a few with mine, damage is similar to that of a 7mm Mag. I stick with the cheap Federal Power Shock ammo, 180gr Speer soft point. Best bet, with minmal damage but a huge drop in bullet trajectory would be the heavier Elk/Bear/Moose loads. These have a deep, delayed expansion but are equivilant to that of throwing a brick at 2700 fps. I shot 175gr out of my 7mm Mag for a few years, they really have a lot of knockdown but with less "explosive" after affects.

 

[Will Fennell]

Partition

I've had great luck with Nosler Partition bullets in fast magnum loading.....the front half of the bullet ALWAYS expands, even after the bullet slows down at extended ranges, and the back half always penetrates deep. Almost always exiting, giving a good blood trail if needed.

 

[Moose458]

Barnes bullets work great in the .300 mag. everything from deer, up to and including bison.

 

[moooose102]

180 grain tough expanding bullets. my favorite in no longer made. the winchester silvertip (NOT balistic silvertip). nosler partitions, trophy bonded bear claws, game kings, barnes x bullets, woodleigh protected round point, sierra pro-hunter, hornady interloc, all come to my mind.

 

[NCsmitty]

I've never used the Barnes bullets, and I'm sure they work well. My choice would be the old tried and true Nosler Partition that has been around for decades, and for good reason, they work. Up close or at long range, they are dependable.

NCsmitty

 

[R.W.Dale]

The only bad thing about partitions is many rifles will exhibit very poor accuracy with them. My rifles were no exception.

 

[tapout08]

180 gr Barnes Triple Shocks, I use them in my 300 wm with great results. Good penetration at all ranges and they retain all of their weight.

 

[MTMilitiaman]

I would moderate to a heavier for caliber bullet designed with controlled expansion, i.e Nosler Partition and Accubond, Hornady SST or Interbond, any non-solid Barnes, and the like--preferably of 180 gr or more. This should ensure expansion down to 1900 to 2000 fps while still guaranteeing that the bullet will retain weight and penetrate. It should also minimize meat damage.

 

[LeonCarr]

With the Barnes X-type bullets, I have read that you can go down one weight "level" and still get adequate expansion and penetration. For example if you shoot 180s in the .300 Winnie, you could drop down to a 165 or 150 Barnes X with better velocity and flatter trajectory, with performance equal to a 180 grain "cup and core" type bullet.

Any comments to that? What about copper fouling and accuracy with the Barnes X?

Thanks again,
LeonCarr

 

[Strongbad]

180 is going to be just about perfect in terms of weight. That's what I use in all my 300 mags. I let the guns tell me what they like, but I have have a general pecking order of which ones I go through. My preferences as of late, or basically what I try first is the Accubond, then the Scirroco, then the Barnes TSX (or Tipped TSX). I don't recall having to go any further than that to find one that shot. I also use Partitions out of one of my 300 H&H's. Any of those 4 are plenty good.

Most of the fouling and accuracy issues were in the past. Since then they've improved their QC and most of that has gone away. However, if you have a rough bore, you're still likely to see more fouling due to the softer composition of the Barnes.

 

[saskboy]

I use 150gr nosler partitions in my 300wsm, seem to work good for me. How come nobody like ballistic tips? My neighbor swears by them and it all he uses.

 

[NCsmitty]

The Ballistic tip is a wonderful accurate bullet for most people but at magnum velocities, and closer ranges, they can fragment on impact and that's what LeonCarr wants to avoid.

NCsmitty

 

[PotatoJudge]

Yep, Nosler lists the max velocity for the Ballistic Tip as 3000fps and even at that velocity they tend to be fairly explosive.