Plains Game Ammo

[JMM]

I did a bullet test several years ago and shot a lot of wildes. The 180 grain Scirocco was the best killer out of 8 bullets tested. I would shoot 5 with each bullet, record the results and then start over.

 

[The Engineer]

I have taken 22 species of African game with my 300WM and all but one were taken with factory loaded 200gr Trophy Bonded Bear Claws. With the exception of a couple where I did not hit exactly where I should have they were one shot kills. No animals lost. That load shoot minute of angle in my rifle.

My PH suggested Barnes in the 300WM for Crock instead of also bringing a 416. He likes the Barnes as it behaves a bit more like a solid when hitting bone. The Barnes shattered the spine and the Crock never moved. A peculiarity I found, maybe just my rifle; is the Barnes required and absolutely clean bore (No traces of copper fouling remaining.) to obtain the best accuracy. If I started with the clean bore and fired the TBBCs first, the accuracy of the Barnes was diminished by about 3/8" at 100 yards. Accuracy with the Barnes optimum for at least 20 rounds when starting with a clean bore.

All of the above having been said, if I were starting now, I would probably go Barnes. However, I believe any premium bullet would suffice as shot placement is really the critical factor.

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

I would not want to be at odds with my PH! You are dependent on him for success… If you don’t agree, discuss it, and get it sorted before you just show up with what you want.

I’ve used a lot of different bullets over the years in 30 caliber, including jacketed lead-core, bonded, and mono-metal: partitions, bonded, lead, different varieties of core, and types of tipped bullets. I do prefer Barnes bullets, because I’ve killed hundreds of animals with them over the years and none have run off injured and not been recovered in a short period of time the same day.

That said, I use Barnes TTSX and TSX and find them to be very accurate. They are also very effective on most animals in a variety of calibers. I use them in my .22-250, .243, 7MM REM MAG, and several .30 Calibers including my .375 H&H on Buff, Croc, Hippo. Don’t think of the bullet weight as a primary factor. If you hand load, you should appreciate ballistic coefficient. My most accurate rifle is a 300 RUM and uses a 210 grain bullet at extreme range (out to 2,000 yards) and this I’ve achieved several times in shooting schools and competitions. I don’t hunt at long range as a practice. And, I don’t like to target shoot. I do it so that I’m certain that I can validate, in progression, that the rifles and chosen ammo I hunt with are predictable at all distances I may encounter while pursuing game.

I am trying to make the point that there is a lot of math and science put in to bullet technology and load development to figure out accuracy. It’s easy to go down an unfamiliar rabbit hole trying to obtain a desired outcome. I’m not sure, I could diagnose your rifle’s issue with Barnes bullets without understanding your processes. Clean your rifle well, go back to the range, foul it in, and then start with the basics to get your desired outcome. I belong to a couple other sites that deal with accuracy issues and provide helpful Information on bullet choices and load development at all distances/ranges. You may want to try there.

**I only contribute content here on AH and I try to post, in detail, my first hand experiences.

Good luck!

 

[Trogon]

It seems the Hornady 200 grain ELDX loaded by my outfitter to be a wide "coverall" bullet and effective on game from Springbuck up to Sable/Cape Kudu, from around 100 yards to over 400 yards. I've used this bullet on 50 plus animals in three trips to the Eastern Cape. I wonder what issues an outfitter would have experienced with the ELDX. 100 yards and less, rarely saw a bullet exit though.

 

[WildWill]

I have had two instances of accubonds performing spectacularly bad, extremely shallow penetration, and I have zero instances of ELD-Xs doing the same on a couple truck loads of African PG.

See how that works.

Two out of how many? I've only shot 3 animals at 150, 240, and 260 yards with a 178 gr ELDX in a 30-06. All 3 shots had essentially what you described shallow penetration, almost zero weight retention, etc. After that I refused to use them again so my reference pool isn't huge. Although I know of several who've had similar experiences with them. Interesting about your bad experience with accubonds from pronghorn to elk I've never had a failure on a couple truck loads of north American game. Glad your experience with ELD-X was better then mine.

 

[shootist~]

But first you might consider cleaning all of the prior metal fouling out of your rifle with a copper solvent. Then shoot a fouling shot with a Barnes bullet before shooting your groups.

I shoot a variety of bullet and use Barnes for hunting most of the time.
I have not encountered a barrel that won't shoot Barnes but some don't like to mix copper bullets and regular jacketed bullets (which is a harder alloy).

^^This.

Bore Tech Eliminator is the best and easiest to use, IMO.

 

[Hunter-Habib]

180Gr Nosler AccuBonds are a wise choice.

I agree with your white hunter. Hornady ELD-X Red Tips don’t hold together well upon striking heavy bone. A complete no-no for the wildebeest or zebra, esp. when taking shoulder shots.

 

[dchamp]

If you want to go with factory, there is a lot promising ammo out there. Norma Oryx might be a good one to try. Federal, Winchester, Barnes, Hornady, Sierra all have some new and interesting ammo available to try.

If you want to go with handloads then I would look at 180gr TSX, TTSX, Hammer for copper bullets and North Fork SS for lead core bullets.

Regardless what you do I would start by giving that barrel a good scrubbing.

 

[AimSmall]

Have used 180 Scirocco on game up to moose size with outstanding results.

 

[krusin]

A few thoughts on the subject:

1. I agree that you have to listen to your PH. They have an expertise and experience.
2. But also ACCURACY (read bullet placement) kills. Every experienced hunter knows that. Of course on the dangerous game a well constructed bullet is a must.
3. On my moose hunt PH insisted on Interlock bullets. I was taking my 300PRC rifle on that hunt. I obliged and loaded couple of boxes with interlock, BUT I also brought a box with ELD-X. Both were 220 grains bullets.

4. At longer distances high BC bullet has distinct advantages. ELD-X is awesome “flyer”. See comparison below.

And I was very glad that I had ELD-X with me. Moose was 403 yards away. I shot twice using ELD-X. Bullets hit the same spot, but at different angles. Both double lung shots. I’m convinced that Interlock bullets would have done much worse at this distance.

This is a recovered bullet from the moose. It ended up on the opposite side under skin. It retained 130 grains out of 220.

My advice: have a box of bullets that you can shoot accurately. Just in a case. But also bring ammo that is favorite with your PH.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

I’ve used Hornady SST and ELD-X on lots of animals and they work fine. Probably 20 animals with one shot kills. Having said that, Nosler Partitions or Swift A-Frames (if you can find them) are great options. Norma Oryx have a great reputation too. Heck, I have used Remington Core Lokt on PG with good results.

 

[YancyW]

Two out of how many? I've only shot 3 animals at 150, 240, and 260 yards with a 178 gr ELDX in a 30-06. All 3 shots had essentially what you described shallow penetration, almost zero weight retention, etc. After that I refused to use them again so my reference pool isn't huge. Although I know of several who've had similar experiences with them. Interesting about your bad experience with accubonds from pronghorn to elk I've never had a failure on a couple truck loads of north American game. Glad your experience with ELD-X was better then mine.

I still use accubonds, and I do so without a single worry. Sometime bullets don't react the way we think they should.

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

This is a general comment and opinion:

I no longer use Accubond bullets, because in my personal experience, I’ve had massive tissue damage and huge holes in capes on North American 1 Antelope, pigs, and Coyote, as well as PG - 1 Impala, 2 Wharthog, and 1 Jackal. I’ve also had good success with them on squared shots where I didn’t hit bone on entry. I still have some left in 7MM REM MAG. Just my choice and preference to use Barnes TSX and TTSX.

To each their own…

 

[skydiver386]

As others have suggested, try the Barnes X in a lighter weight after a good barrel cleaning. The factory loaded Barnes TTSX in 150 or 165 grain will probably shoot much tighter groups than the heavier bullets.

Unless you have a custom barrel with an especially fast twist like a 1/10 or 1/8, some of the longer bullets won't stabilize, no matter how fast you drive them.