Deer bullets - Balistic tip or soft point?

Mauser 308

Guys what is you thoughts on Bullet types for deer hunting. Do you find ballistic tip or soft point type bullets better? I remember talking to one of the Wild Deer association guys at a game fare once and he recomended only soft point bullets as ballistic tip bullets caused too much meat damage. My experience though was that BT put the animal down quicker and had less meat damage than some soft points I have used.

It wasn't me!

It's all down to the construction of the bullet. I'd worry more about what the rifle likes as just about any modern bullet is more than adequate for killing deer. Get something that shoots well enough for you, that you can find in good supply and that's affordable, spend lots of time shooting it and you won't worry about anything else.

Tackleberrywho

Mauser 308 wrote: »

Guys what is you thoughts on Bullet types for deer hunting. Do you find ballistic tip or soft point type bullets better? I remember talking to one of the Wild Deer association guys at a game fare once and he recomended only soft point bullets as ballistic tip bullets caused too much meat damage. My experience though was that BT put the animal down quicker and had less meat damage than some soft points I have used.

Meat damage?

I'd prefer a round that transfered almost all it's energy on a deer than a round that just exited.

Anyway Ballistic Tipped rounds are more accurate than soft nose, as the soft nose gets damaged from handling.

If you shoot a deer in the head does it matter how much damage you do
Fore quarters is stew anyway and I'm more a steak man

If you go .308 Superoperformance are Awesome!

Tackleberrywho

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyDBPEtqwgQ

Just watch!

daithi55

its twenty euro to join the wild deer society
joining it doesnt automatically make ya right in what ya say
there not a proffesional organisation there just normal joes
like anybody else
go with what you think is right

ballistic

Mauser 308 wrote: »

Guys what is you thoughts on Bullet types for deer hunting. Do you find ballistic tip or soft point type bullets better? I remember talking to one of the Wild Deer association guys at a game fare once and he recomended only soft point bullets as ballistic tip bullets caused too much meat damage. My experience though was that BT put the animal down quicker and had less meat damage than some soft points I have used.

My priority is to kill an animal swiftly and to go home with that animal. Meat damage is secondary to this. I have used soft points and ballistic tips both work. The Bts tend to have a higher bc. Not all ballistic tips explode. A federal 130 bt (nosler head) is a very hard bullet and will do less damage in comparison to a hornady sst and about the same as a federal 130 softpoint (speer head). Irish deer dont require massive penetration and I am a firm believer in a bullet leaving as much energy in an animal as possible. I have shot deer with 110 v max loaded by norma and they kill efficiently too.

Bts fly better and kill quicker and are more forgiving with a marginal shot i.e clipping both lungs high, the shock to the vicinity will often flop the deer. Where as if you have a hard bullet it will drill and the animal will run and die.

clivej

I used Federal Fusion150gr last year and didn't find the exit wound that big.
http://www.chuckhawks.com/federal_fusion_ammo.htm

Using Hornaday BT's 150gr this yesr and find the exit wounds are that much bigger so I would believe that the wound channel would therefore be bigger also. I think I'll stay with the Bt's.
http://www.hornady.com/store/SST/?page=3

The InterLock™ Ring
Ensures the core and jacket remain locked solid during expansion, so the SST retains the mass and energy needed for dramatic wound channels. Perfected in the famous Hornady InterLock hunting bullet.

zeissman

I use both. The balistic tips will do more damage and are great for neck and head shots.
Make sure you use the hunting tips like the sst and not the varmit type like the vmax.
The vmax will work most of the time but sometimes they will come apart on the hide and not penetrate.
I have seen this happen a few times.

It wasn't me!

Even within each there's huge difference. A v-max doesn't perform like an SST which doesn't perform like a Nosler BT and a Gameking doesn't perform like a Partition which doesn't perform like an A-Frame. I don't know why, but soft points always appeal to me, something about the traditional aspect of them I guess. Currently I'm using a 115gr Partition, which will expand violently on impact, shedding a lot of weight, like a BT, but will retain it's core and rear half and penetrate very deeply, so I can get all the initial shock of a BT, while ensuring I've enough penetration to break the offside shoulder for an anchoring shot if needs be. There's the pitch, anyway, still have to see how it holds up in the real world.

zeissman

I have recovered a good few bullets from deer over the years.
mostly hornady sp and sst.
The bullets were 129 grain hornady.
All the sp bullets peeled back perfectly as far as the interlock ring and still weighed between 105 and 110 grains.
Some of the ssts shed their core and some peeled back to the interlock ring and weighed around 80 grains.
They all worked fine though as they were all one shot kills

poulo6.5

Mauser 308 wrote: »

Guys what is you thoughts on Bullet types for deer hunting. Do you find ballistic tip or soft point type bullets better? I remember talking to one of the Wild Deer association guys at a game fare once and he recomended only soft point bullets as ballistic tip bullets caused too much meat damage. My experience though was that BT put the animal down quicker and had less meat damage than some soft points I have used.

i use hornady 150gr sst superformance at the moment and they are magic. i find them very accurate and i have had no runners useing them.

before that i was using standard hornady 150gr sst. also excellent and accurate.

i have also used various soft point rounds and i never had a problem with them. they kill just as good

i prefer BT type rounds as i find them just a bit more accurate. but to be honnest there is not much in it

its a case of finding a bullet that works for you as confidence in a round is very important.

my choice is BT but you might prefer something different

poulo6.5

zeissman wrote: »

I have recovered a good few bullets from deer over the years.
mostly hornady sp and sst.
The bullets were 129 grain hornady.
All the sp bullets peeled back perfectly as far as the interlock ring and still weighed between 105 and 110 grains.
Some of the ssts shed their core and some peeled back to the interlock ring and weighed around 80 grains.
They all worked fine though as they were all one shot kills

thats interesting.

what way would you read that. do you think its better that they stayed together or came apart

i would imagine that a bullet that stayed together would give good penetration.

and a bullet that came apart more would therefore expand more in the animal and cause higher hydrolick shock.

zeissman

poulo6.5 wrote: »

thats interesting.

what way would you read that. do you think its better that they stayed together or came apart

i would imagine that a bullet that stayed together would give good penetration.

and a bullet that came apart more would therefore expand more in the animal and cause higher hydrolick shock.

I would think the same.
Most of the time the bullets exit and any that I recovered were stuck on the hide on the far side.
The sp bullets did expand more in diameter though and both do the job well.
I think hornady bullets are great for deer.

clivej

There is a big difference between the Vmax and the SST. The Vmax is designed to fragment so the usage is more for vermin where meat damage is not an issue, whereas the SST is designed to expand back to the interlock and retain much of the original weight

323

It wasn't me! wrote: »

It's all down to the construction of the bullet. I'd worry more about what the rifle likes as just about any modern bullet is more than adequate for killing deer. Get something that shoots well enough for you, that you can find in good supply and that's affordable, spend lots of time shooting it and you won't worry about anything else.

Could not agree more, just about any modern bullet is more than adequate for killing any deer here.

However used to be partial to Noslers Balistic Tips and was once also told the same, that the were essentially vermin bullets, that broke up on contact.
This is definatly true with BTs for the hot 22 center fire cartridges, but not in larger bore.
Can't speak for the .243 but have used BTs on varous game in 270 and 8mm, also seen them used in various 30 calibers. All of tough construction and always worked well, very quick kills, relitively little meat damage.

New and recovered 270 Nosler BT.jpg
Photo taken years ago from a 270 recovered just under the hide on the far side from a huge red hind after busting the big bones in the shoulder.
No complaints.

It wasn't me!

That's great weight retention actually, good solid tough core to break through bones, much like what they advertise the partition as doing.

zeissman

Nosler make two types of balistic tip.
A varmit type and a hunting type.
Hornady make the vmax for varmits and the sst for hunting game like deer etc.

Mauser 308

323 wrote: »

Could not agree more, just about any modern bullet is more than adequate for killing any deer here.

However used to be partial to Noslers Balistic Tips and was once also told the same, that the were essentially vermin bullets, that broke up on contact.
This is definatly true with BTs for the hot 22 center fire cartridges, but not in larger bore.
Can't speak for the .243 but have used BTs on varous game in 270 and 8mm, also seen them used in various 30 calibers. All of tough construction and always worked well, very quick kills, relitively little meat damage.

New and recovered 270 Nosler BT.jpg
Photo taken years ago from a 270 recovered just under the hide on the far side from a huge red hind after busting the big bones in the shoulder.
No complaints.

Found Norma great amo, especially the Ballistic Tip. Anyone know what they have in BT 308?, also looking forward to trying the Hornady SST super performance, they sound special.....:):)

Tackleberrywho

Mauser 308 wrote: »

Found Norma great amo, especially the Ballistic Tip. Anyone know what they have in BT 308?, also looking forward to trying the Hornady SST super performance, they sound special.....:):)

I'll give ya a few rounds to try if you want.
The 150grain SST Superformance are Awesome!

It wasn't me!

Mauser 308 wrote: »

Found Norma great amo, especially the Ballistic Tip. Anyone know what they have in BT 308?, also looking forward to trying the Hornady SST super performance, they sound special.....:):)

Norma load a 150 gr Nosler BT to 2822 fps. Should be a cracker.

Mauser 308

It wasn't me! wrote: »

Norma load a 150 gr Nosler BT to 2822 fps. Should be a cracker.

Anyone have handy the FPS of the superperformance sst 308 to compare?

It wasn't me!

Mauser 308 wrote: »

Anyone have handy the FPS of the superperformance sst 308 to compare?

3000. Of course, without a chronograph, you're never going to know what it does from your own barrel.

Tackleberrywho

Mauser 308 wrote: »

Anyone have handy the FPS of the superperformance sst 308 to compare?

MUZZLE 100 200 300 400 500
3000/2997 2772/2558 2555/2173 2348/1836 2151/1540 1963/1282

Once you go super, you'll never go back!

Mauser 308

Tackleberrywho wrote: »

MUZZLE 100 200 300 400 500
3000/2997 2772/2558 2555/2173 2348/1836 2151/1540 1963/1282

Once you go super, you'll never go back!

Sounds like it Tack. Where in westmeath are u getting them?:)
What are they costing per 20?

Tackleberrywho

Mauser 308 wrote: »

Sounds like it Tack. Where in westmeath are u getting them?:)
What are they costing per 20?

Bullet Road Ballykeernan.
Big in 100's and you will buy cheaper