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Forum Index > Rifles general discussion > Ad nauseam question

Ad nauseam question

14 Feb 2020
@ 12:11 pm (GMT)

Scott Struif

There seem to be 2 camps, or schools of thought, about bullet design. One says you need an exit wound, and the other says you need energy dump with fragmentation and collateral damage. With their latest product offerings, Winchester, Hornady, and Berger seem to have hopped on the latter band wagon: Winchester with its Extreme Point, Hornady with its ELD-X, and Berger with it Hybrid hunter. Assuming the perfect broadside shot, I'm curious if there's a majority opinion. (While I understand the best-of-both-worlds solutions, such as Partition, that's not what I'm asking.)

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27 Feb 2020
@ 09:16 am (GMT)

Fernando Cundin

Re: Ad nauseam question
A follow up.

A rethinking has me now motivated to qualify some of what I have shared recently. My intent here is to disclose some learning and to dissuade any beliefs in the material that I have shared as anything more than options.

I hope to be brief.

The .308 caliber is just that. It can be reloaded with interesting bullet and powder combinations to stretch a hunting rifle into many roles, but the caliber remains as it is. Souping up the charge in a 30-06 and you can chase 300 H&H performance, with the aid of a long barrel. And downloading with 4895 one can load 125 grain Sierras to well performing 2500 fps speeds that capitalize on the flexibility of the .308 bore and the 30-06. I have explored some of these tinkerings and I am sometimes impressed with what I have found.

For practical field applications though there is a fast limitation in the bore caliber and actual performance characteristics of unpredictable bullets in the field on game and so on. Just what can be done about these nonlinear and chaotic variables?

Mainly, an accurized rifle is important. Solid shooting skills matter. Bullets and game loads that work is another arena where some (too much sometimes) thinking gains attention. Overall the secret I believe is all about the basics.

I recently loaded 165 gr SST to a strong charge and fired them into my usual test media. Wet newsprint is not a pig, a deer or anything other than test media. My impact results explain that I am to expect similar performance on game as I have at least experienced with 170 FN and RN loads as I shared before. This is only anecdotal comparatives from what I can gather from the test media, but until hunting again I will not know well enough and can only speculate. Speculate enough!

I prefer to handle and explore information and knowledge with empirical returns from practical efforts. I should like to share what I learn on actual pigs and field experience from future hunts and applications. I am hoping here to explain that I may have been misleading in my suggestion that my ideas on bullets and loads are at all more than only alternatives to other equally proven and successful bullets and loads. The 30-06 is a great favorite of mine for hunting. It is certain that the 30-06 will perform with solid loads within its performance or design range. The .308 caliber is just that and cannot be tweaked into a field performing "other" outside of its actual bore and powder case limitations. Therefore to capitalize on the 30-06 advantages there are many options to explore and apply, but actual testing is required.

This is a very serious forum for good information and exchange. I do respect that position and will remain conscious of suggestions that may have some readers gaining some expectations without also testing ideas on their own.

Best

27 Feb 2020
@ 11:45 am (GMT)

Scott Struif

Re: Ad nauseam question
Thanks, Fernando. I share your enthusiasm for the 30-06, although I had a bad experience taking a 450 yard shot with a 150 grain cup and core flat base spire point - I didn't understand the limitations of the bullet and the MV at the time. A couple days ago I watched a review by an Alaskan hunter of a Sauer 100 XT Classic in 30-06 that he recently acquired. I thought about you because he said he used 180 grain RN bullets. The reason being that there are a lot of brown bears where he hunts, and he wants a bullet effective for bear protection as well as taking game. I enjoyed your pig stories, by the way.

Regards.
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