To me it the NF bonded cores represent the best of the old and new. Like Velo Dog, I like lead up front. It's time tested and proven that lead tips will expand. But the lead is bonded. And while it makes for a somewhat longer bullet in comparison to a Partition (a bullet I still have affection for), it's pretty difficult with the all copper back to not have near perfect mushrooms. Furthermore the driving band design typically results in my loads to require less powder for the same velocity in comparison to bullet that don't have this design.
There are two drawbacks to the North Forks, price being the first. But develop your load and only use them for hunting. This is not a practice bullet.
The second is that with that driving band design, the bullets are just a bit larger in diameter than other bullets of the same caliber. This makes accuracy susceptible to variation in neck thickness of your brass. Either turn your necks or use better brass. I chose the latter and use Normal and/or Lapua brass depending on the caliber. This again adds cost to your rounds, but again use them for hunting not practice.
One way to reduce that cost a little bit is to use more standard brass such as Remington during load development. You'll find about every 3 to 4 shots is a flyer. No problem, just eliminate that shot and use the others to let you know when you're close to a good load. This will tell you what powder and approximately the weight you need when you switch to better brass. When you switch back off a couple of grains of powder and work back to that load you believe will work.
It's a great hunting bullet and I don't think you'll ever be disappointed.