Barnes bullet expansion in large calibers (375 and up)

[Jon Glajchen]

This is a Barnes 300gr TSX recovered from a Blue Wildebeest shot at approximately a 100m. The ammunition was reloaded by a mate of mine.

The BW was facing me and the shot was into the centre of his chest. It was later recovered next to his tail after penetrating the full length of the animal. I was disappointed with the performance of the bullet as the expansion was poor in my opinion.

I later pulled the heads of a couple of rounds and checked the powder weight. I discovered that the ammunition was under loaded to the extent that it was just under the recommended minimum starting load.

I surmise that the muzzle velocity was under 2100 f/ps and the impact velocity was probably under 2000 f/ps. The Barnes bullet still showed some expansion despite the low impact velocity, the penetration was outstanding!

 

[Ridgewalker]

This is a Barnes 300gr TSX recovered from a Blue Wildebeest shot at approximately a 100m. The ammunition was reloaded by a mate of mine.

The BW was facing me and the shot was into the centre of his chest. It was later recovered next to his tail after penetrating the full length of the animal. I was disappointed with the performance of the bullet as the expansion was poor in my opinion.

I later pulled the heads of a couple of rounds and checked the powder weight. I discovered that the ammunition was under loaded to the extent that it was just under the recommended minimum starting load.

I surmise that the muzzle velocity was under 2100 f/ps and the impact velocity was probably under 2000 f/ps. The Barnes bullet still showed some expansion despite the low impact velocity, the penetration was outstanding!

Yes your muzzle velocity is quite low! Barnes factory 300 TSX ammo in my MRC is 2,529 fps. My handloads are over 2,600 fps. Velocity with monolithic bullets is critical.

 

[1dirthawker]

I was disappointed with the performance of the bullet as the expansion was poor in my opinion.

that bullet looks just like the 300 gr barnes we pulled from a cape buffalo shot at 100 yards, i was underwhelmed by the expansion as well

 

[Jon Glajchen]

that bullet looks just like the 300 gr barnes we pulled from a cape buffalo shot at 100 yards, i was underwhelmed by the expansion as well

Hi 1dirthawker
I think the expansion issue is solely a consequence of poor velocity. My experiences with Barnes indicate that it reliably expands when pushed hard enough.

I wouldn’t hesitate to use Barnes bullets again provided they loaded up to the correct speed.

 

[Velo Dog]

Fellow Hunters, Rifle Enthusiasts, etc.,

From my personal experiences plus, observations and discussions with other Firearms Enthusiasts, I do not favor hollow point bullets of any brand.
My opinion toward hollow point bullets includes mono-metal ones such as, Barnes and copies thereof.
It also includes hollow point bullets that have that little plastic thingy in the hole.

Bah Humbug,
Velo Dog.

 

[IvW]

I dont like them the slower they go the worse they perform....

Why fool around with it when there are well proven bullets availible especially for DG?.....

 

[Bert the Turtle]

Performed as expected (excellently) in all my uses except my 404. Didn’t expand well/evenly. These were bullets of about 2010 vintage at about 2200fps at the muzzle.

not sure what to make if it. Certainly killed the animals. I’d may switch to something else in my 404 but based on how well Barnes bullets work in general, I’d not hesitate to chalk it up to a subpar batch/ luck of the draw with a few funny impacts and load some newer Barnes in the 404 if that’s what I could get

 

[Velo Dog]

I dont like them the slower they go the worse they perform....

Why fool around with it when there are well proven bullets availible especially for DG?.....

Exactly.

 

[colorado]

I actually called Barnes and talked to them about expansion of their .510 caliber TSX bullets. "As long as you are over 1,200 fps they will open up" was the answer I got.

I spoke to them too got the same answer. I killed a cow elk at 225 yards and the 570g TSX opened up nicely. I shoot A-Frames in our 375 H&H and 416 Rem.