I was considering using Barnes bullets to hunt whitetail deer with. Has anyone had any experience with them?
Brandon C asked:
I am curious as to which bullet I should use?
I am curious as to which bullet I should use?
Barnes X
Barnes Triple Shock
Barnes Tipped TSX
Most of my shots are 100 to 200 yards. The deer in my parts are rather large weighing in at 200 or more pounds.
Thanks, Brandon
I am hunting in Missouri and I shoot a Series 12 Savage in .308.
Caffeinated Content for WordPress
Tags: Barnes Bullets, Shock
Create a video blog
Not yet. Try it and let us know the results.
Where do you hunt? My son is going to try them in Wisconsin.
Comment by Donald S — May 25, 2001 @ 4:58 pm
Caffeinated Content - Members-Only Content for WordPress
ok what cal. i would use a bonded,, bal, tip ok thanks denise
Comment by eddieroachr — May 28, 2001 @ 11:47 am
Caffeinated Content
I have shot Barnes tipped TSX bullets, and I found that they performed well enough. Their penetration was good, the bullet expanded reliably, and it hit where it was suposed to. My only complaint about them was that there was some fragmenting of the round on shots under 100 yards. Barnes advertises that their bullets retain 100% of their weight no metter what. Obviously this is not completely accurate.
My favorite polymer tipped bullet remains the Trophy Bonded Bear Claw.
Comment by Shrapnel — May 29, 2001 @ 4:26 am
Kansieo.com
Barnes makes an excellent bullet. If you are loading your own beware,the lead free design makes for slightly higher chamber pressures than lead core bullets. If you are buying loaded ammo this will be of no concern to you.
Comment by dave3006308 — May 30, 2001 @ 1:50 pm
Caffeinated Content
I have had very good luck loading Barnes Triple Shock bullets as compared to the Barnes X bullets. Personally I don’t think there is a better hunting bullet, and that comes from a guy who never thought that the Nosler Partion could ever be beat.
Comment by Buckhunter — June 1, 2001 @ 12:32 pm
Kansieo.com
I guess all of us are sooner or later to be faced with a hunting situation where the anti-hunters have outlawed lead bullets purely to get in the way of hunters. So we had better get good with the copper Barnes bullets. The pure copper jobs penetrate really deeply because they don’t expand as much as lead. In 308 for mere deer, this will not be a problem, as the 308 is overpowered for elk. Copper is fairly heavy stuff, but the Barnes Silvex heavier-than-lead core Penetrator bullets hold great promise for big game use such as your oversized deer out that way, especially on long range shots. As you are facing 200 yard shots, with possible follow-up 300 yard attempts on hit game, the Silvex core stuff beckons. Whatever they cost, 2 or 3 of them will be the smallest expense of the hunt! Missouri, you say? Regards, Larry.
Comment by larry — June 1, 2001 @ 1:54 pm
Caffeinated Content for WordPress
My experience is limited. I’ve used the 225 grain X bullets in my 348 (there aren’t a lot of alternatives in that size) on a half dozen deer and fifteen or twenty hogs. I have yet to recover a bullet to see if they really retain all that weight, but from the way the critters hit the deck, and the wound channels on “autopsy,” they certainly seem to expand well. I’ve tried them in a few other rifles but haven’t gotten them to shoot well enough to hunt with. I may give them a try in my 9.3×62 next year.
Comment by John de Witt — June 2, 2001 @ 12:11 am
Caffeinated Content
I have used them for deer elk and antelope. I’ve shot them out of my 30-06 220 swift 338 win mag 260 rem and most likely a few others I can’t think of. First off, some guns hate them. My 338 win mag I couldn’t get to group 5″ with them. Shoots most bullets like a dream though. The barnes x bullet is designed for big time penetration. This can be good and bad. With my 338 for example, if you shoot a deer, it will not drop. there’s 4000 ftlb energy, but 3500 will go into the trees behind the deer. It will kill the deer, I’m not saying that, but there is limited energy transfer. If you are using a too small gun against a too large animal, the extra penetration can be helpful. If you insist on using a 270 to shoot elk, then you really need to look at them. Me personally, I’ve come to really appreciate the good old Nosler Partitions. Talk about energy transfer. That front half of the bullet is very soft. I switched to them in my 338 and won’t use anything else. My brother bought a 338-378 weatherby. At first he used the x bullet. Then he noticed the elk I shot dropped, His first couple ran before dying. I convinced him to try the partitions. He’s amazed at the difference. The 308 is plenty big for deer. You don’t need the x’s excessive penetration. Try the partitions. If you were using a 243 I’d recommend the x though.
Comment by travis s — June 5, 2001 @ 10:11 am