Bullet weight for 9.3x62

[WAB]

@michael458
A crazy Dutch mate of mine brains scrub bulls out the back of Canberra at at little place called Captains Flat with a 223. The load he used was a 55gn Sierra game king boat tail. He would hit them on the little curly tuft of hair between the eyes. I did ask him what happens when the bull moves its head a bit as he shoots and it all turns to shit. He didn't have an answer and gave up that game a short time later. He did shoot 6 or 7 over the time. More guts than brains.
Bob

Yep, he needed to step up to a .243…

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Yep, he needed to step up to a .243…

@WAB
Like myself he doesn't like the 243.
His next step up from 223 is a 30-06 that he loves.

 

[michael458]

Like myself he doesn't like the 243.

Yep, Bob is 100% Spot on........ .243? I just don't see a reason nor need for such as that???? Right oh..... .224 for obvious reasons, and skip all that other crap until you get to .308 caliber........ That in between Junk is just totally uncalled for..................

 

[hawkeyesatx]

My 2 cents worth here, since I like both the .35 Whelen, and the 9.3x62…

In the .35 Whelen, the starting point for serious game hunting is the 225 gr bullets pushing them in the 2800 - 2900 fps, the 250’s pushing just a hair under at 2700 fps range.
In the 9.3x62, I would start with the 250 gr Accubond bullets, pushing 2600 - 2700 fps. The 285 - 286 gr bullets start at 2450 - 2600 fps, a serious bullet weight for large bovines with attitude problems, I just might go up to a 320 gr bullet pushing at 2400 fps, or a little faster.
Now, I know I’m going to ruffle some feathers here, but my .270 Winchester, shoots flatter, and at distances hits harder than my .30-06. Not knocking the .30-06, since I have one as well.
The .270 big game bullets starts at 130 grainers, and is equivalent to a 165gr .308 bullet in SD. It penetrates just as well, and shoots flatter than the .308, and .30-06, and retains more energy than both on really long shots.


Hawk

 

[Wyatt Smith]

I know what you mean about similar SDs Hawk, but whatever your using 130s out of a 270 for, 150s will work out of the 30-06. Mostly deer I assume.
However I rarely shoot anything but 180s or heavier in my 30-06.

 

[hawkeyesatx]

I know what you mean about similar SDs Hawk, but whatever your using 130s out of a 270 for, 150s will work out of the 30-06. Mostly deer I assume.
However I rarely shoot anything but 180s or heavier in my 30-06.

I shoot 180’s out of my .30-06, as well.
You’re right about the 150’s in the .308 bullets if your primary animal is going to be deer and smaller.


Hawk

 

[Rell]

I’ve killed a good bunch of Cape Buff, a Savannah buff, LDE, a few Common Eland, and a whack of PG with the 9.3x62.

I’ve only used a few bullets, 286gr Nosler Partition, 286 Banded Solids, 250gr Barnes TSX and 250gr Barnes solids.

I’ve never lost anything when using the 9.3x62 and everything died … appropriately?

Shooting 6 buff and 20 PG isn’t enough to be an expert on a caliber but my experience alongside stories of how effective it has been for over a century make me very confident in it. I carry it around elephants, hippo and buff and never feel undergunned.

PS In DG country I do prefer to have my 450-400 3” inch in my hands, cause … it’s more then enough gun.

 

[Vanguard2279]

I used a 250-grain Barnes TSX loaded with Varget to around 2520 FPS for my hunt with Takeri in October 2020. It was more than I needed for the Common Reedbuck, but absolutely perfect for the Lechwe and Sable. The 250-grain TTSX shoots as well but a little faster with the same charge weights of Varget. I love this cartridge and the rifle I shoot it out of. So much so that I consider it my most useful rifle. I've played with 285, 286-grain bullets (Nosler Partitions, Lapua Megas and Norma Oryx's). When it warms up, I'm going to work on the 286-grain Barnes TSX and Swift A-frames for a hunt with Dave Freeburn in October. I feel that the 250-grain bullets would be adequate for an Eland, but I would use a 286-grain bullet for that in the future. Maybe I worry about minutiae, but I'd rather err on the side of caution.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Yep, Bob is 100% Spot on........ .243? I just don't see a reason nor need for such as that???? Right oh..... .224 for obvious reasons, and skip all that other crap until you get to .308 caliber........ That in between Junk is just totally uncalled for..................

@michael458
Nothing wrong with a good 25 cal

 

[geoff rath]

The major point I read in this thread in to choose the bullet to suit the game. We have such a wide choice available it would be difficult not to be very happy with good 9.3X62. So much so I'll be selling the Kimber 280AI soon....

 

[John Wasmuth]

I’ve settled on the 285/286 SP or solids with my most accurate load at 2550 fps. I use it for pigs, sheep, deer, buffalo and anything else I can find to shoot. One load for everything works fine.

 

[michael458]

@michael458
Nothing wrong with a good 25 cal

I went to Mongolia for one of those goats with a 25 WSSM. It was a fantastic little gun, shot great, I think I was running a 100 gr Barnes at that time...... would have to look....... one of my local kids borrowed it for deer hunting, then his truck was broken into and it was stolen. I tried a couple after that, but nothing shot as well...... never worried about it again, still have brass......... had a couple of 25/06 nice Winchester M70s, just could not take up with them..... then one of those 25/45 Sharps AR's, and just never really got much into it either.........I get really bored with most of those rat shooters......... better off to turn them into real guns, like .500 calibers...........

 

[rdog]

What I know about a 9.62X62 you can put all that knowledge on the tip of a very sharp pencil, cartridge wise that is.........

But I do know a little bit about Bullet Tech. I have a 9.3 B&M cartridge, and I don' t believe at all it should be used on buffalo, I have used it on Australian buffalo, and find it coming up extremely short in caliber.......... Regardless of bullet......... But if you consider .366 adequate for less than buffalo, plains game, most Alaskan game, deer/hogs and such as that, I don' t use, nor need but one bullet, and its one we worked with extensively here from Cutting Edge, 200 gr Flat Base Raptor.

Oh that is TOO LIGHT and I can hear the naysayers already.......... Well, what do you know about Bullet Tech? Do you know how a Raptor works and what it can do? Ask first, before being ignorant.

If interested fine, if not, fine.......... I shot about 2 dozen plains game with 9.3 B&M running 200 Raptors at 2900 fps in a 19 inch gun, up to and including zebra, and never recovered the first bullet, all exits.... Zebra I shot all ran like hell, 40-100 yards and fell over dead.....bleed out, so much blood you could not believe it and how it could go so far, zebra are tough. Wildebeest/Oryx 50% of them DRT on the spot, the other 50% ran for 20-30 yards and pitched up stone Cold......... Everything else smaller than these, were all DRT on the spot....... This is small caliber at work......... Up the game to 416+ and all of the above are DRT......with Raptors anyway...........

But .366, like it slightly bigger cousin .375, is not worth wasting time on buffalo, unless you like to just shoot a lot..............I like to shoot, don't get me wrong, but I like putting stuff in the dirt..............

You can enhance your smaller caliber guns with proper bullet tech, but you still can't stretch caliber capabilities.................

View attachment 453800

What case is the 9.3 B&M based on?

 

[rdog]

@michael458
A crazy Dutch mate of mine brains scrub bulls out the back of Canberra at at little place called Captains Flat with a 223. The load he used was a 55gn Sierra game king boat tail. He would hit them on the little curly tuft of hair between the eyes. I did ask him what happens when the bull moves its head a bit as he shoots and it all turns to shit. He didn't have an answer and gave up that game a short time later. He did shoot 6 or 7 over the time. More guts than brains.
Bob

Bob the owner of the Property where we shoot most of our pigs shoots every thing including big wild cattle with 80 grain 243, out of his truck head shots most under 100 meters they just collapse, but never get out of the truck until you are sure they are dead thats the rule.

 

[hawkeyesatx]

I’ve settled on the 285/286 SP or solids with my most accurate load at 2550 fps. I use it for pigs, sheep, deer, buffalo and anything else I can find to shoot. One load for everything works fine.

I believe you when you say it works for everything.

Hawk

 

[michael458]

What case is the 9.3 B&M based on?

A 2.240 inch RUM case....... standard 20 inch barrels, but mine is 19 inches......... WSM actions......decent for a rat gun........

 

[sgt_zim]

The .270 big game bullets starts at 130 grainers, and is equivalent to a 165gr .308 bullet in SD. It penetrates just as well, and shoots flatter than the .308, and .30-06, and retains more energy than both on really long shots.


Hawk

Not really accurate. A 165 gr 308 Accubond at 2800 fps has more energy all the way down the line than a 130 gr Accubond launched at 3100. Not by a lot, but it still has more energy.

With a 100 yard zero, that 270 bullet will need 10" of compensation at 300 yards, and 308 bullet will need 13" of compensation at 300 yards. Change that to a 200 yard zero, 270 comes in at about 6.5" low at 300 yards, and 308 comes in about 7.5" low at 300 yards. For most shooters with off-the-shelf rifles and factory ammo, that 1-3" compensation difference at 300 yards is basically meaningless.

With few exceptions, all modern, small-bore (308 or smaller), bottle-neck cartridges are "flat shooting" out to 300 yards.

 

[sgt_zim]

But for the question at hand...

If you can get an accurate load with a 250 gr NAB at 2500 fps, your 9.3 will perform well. I've never killed anything with a NAB of any caliber, but my understanding is that their jackets are just about as stiff as Swift A Frame, which means below about 2k fps, you won't get a lot of expansion. And this bullet at 2500 fps MV will drop below 2k fps right at 300 yards.

Another 100 fps at the muzzle will extend you to 350 yards before it drops below 2k fps..

 

[Rick HOlbert]

I used a 250-grain Barnes TSX loaded with Varget to around 2520 FPS for my hunt with Takeri in October 2020. It was more than I needed for the Common Reedbuck, but absolutely perfect for the Lechwe and Sable. The 250-grain TTSX shoots as well but a little faster with the same charge weights of Varget. I love this cartridge and the rifle I shoot it out of. So much so that I consider it my most useful rifle. I've played with 285, 286-grain bullets (Nosler Partitions, Lapua Megas and Norma Oryx's). When it warms up, I'm going to work on the 286-grain Barnes TSX and Swift A-frames for a hunt with Dave Freeburn in October. I feel that the 250-grain bullets would be adequate for an Eland, but I would use a 286-grain bullet for that in the future. Maybe I worry about minutiae, but I'd rather err on the side of caution.

Yes sir, I agree whole heartily. I've used the 250grn A-Frames on game up to Eland with no problems. Barnes TTSX's shoot very well but I've not used them on game. I'm currently doing load development with 286grn A-frames and Norma 285grn Oryx bullets to see how they work in my rifle. Truth be told, if I need the heavier bullets that's why I have a 375 H&H. That said if I was carrying my 9.3X62 I wouldn't feel under gunned.

 

[hawkeyesatx]

Not really accurate. A 165 gr 308 Accubond at 2800 fps has more energy all the way down the line than a 130 gr Accubond launched at 3100. Not by a lot, but it still has more energy.

With a 100 yard zero, that 270 bullet will need 10" of compensation at 300 yards, and 308 bullet will need 13" of compensation at 300 yards. Change that to a 200 yard zero, 270 comes in at about 6.5" low at 300 yards, and 308 comes in about 7.5" low at 300 yards. For most shooters with off-the-shelf rifles and factory ammo, that 1-3" compensation difference at 300 yards is basically meaningless.

With few exceptions, all modern, small-bore (308 or smaller), bottle-neck cartridges are "flat shooting" out to 300 yards.

Ok, here is a ballistic calculator that I have on hand. The top one is a .308/ 165gr SST bullet at 2800 fps. The bottom one is a .270 130gr SST bullet, going 3200 fps.
You be the judge of which one shoots flatter, and hits harder.
And if you don’t think it’s possible to get to 3200 fps with a .270, it certainly is, and that’s not even pushing it to full throttle.
While the .308 165gr SST is right at max pressure.

Hawk