Accurate rifle bullets

It is almost time for me to buy some 22 to 30 cal. bullets for my rifles
for the use of target loads and some days in the field for little critters, when Spring rolls around, again.

I have shot a lot of JHP, HP/BT and ball ammo, as well as the fancy
Sierra BX, B tip, Hornady A & V max and Nosler FB tip (Varmageddon) style bullets.

I do well with the lower priced FMJ ~ FMJ/BT in my rifles.........
but do you think that the higher priced bullets are really that much better with the 200-300 yard shots that come up?

I have to admit the 165 gr Hornady poly tip does a great job with fps and groups
in my old 30-06, bolt action.

Just trying to cut down on the number of bullets that I will be buying with the higher cost, these days.

Instead of 17 boxs of bullets..............
maybe dropping down to just 9-10 different boxs, for my rifles.

"The grin widens as the rope stretches." Meaning that POSSIBLY the higher cost bullets MIGHT stay within a tighter group at longer ranges. I don't have the distance here to find out for myself, and I don't have the resources to expend inorder to travel, and I don't have a network of buddies to impress who will honestly feedback anyway. In other words I still have a sufficient supply of Sierra 168's which got me distinguished using my M1A 20 years ago. I have learned that for 100 yds 180 and 200g cast with gas check will print moa out of my 30-06's.

I haven't priced them recently as I'm pretty well stocked but Speer bullets were downright affordable a year or two ago and have proven up-to-the-task regarding accuracy and terminal performance. The Speer Hot-Cor rifle bullets are almost always priced a little less than reasonably similar Sierra and Hornady offerings and always less than Nosler jacketed rifle projectiles. I like them all and think they all have a place.

For what it's worth I believe some of the more "basic" projectiles are a better value and perform as well or better on our local whitetails and feral hogs. My favorite rifle bullet made by Sierra is the Pro-Hunter. One does not need boat-tails until well beyond common hunting ranges around here. I love the Nosler Partition but reserve it mostly for elk although it does a heckuva job on whitetails and hogs. The Speer Hot-Cor soft point is roughly comparable to the Sierra Pro-Hunter in my estimation and lots of both get sent towards local game. I buy whatever bulk .223 is available and on sale - usually 55 grain FMJ for plinking.

We use a variety of handgun bullets from a variety of makers but I tend to like Acme and Brazos, and usually buy them powder-coated whenever possible. We also like X-Treme plated projectiles. For more demanding purposes I like Nosler jacketed handgun bullets or stout hard-cast lead.

As others have said, I’ve always been pleased with Speer and Hornady .22 caliber bullets. They are reasonably priced (by comparison with some other brands) and accurate in my rifles. I am hard pressed to spend more. In .30 caliber, all of my shooting is drilling holes in paper, but I do have a few boxes of game bullets - Nosler Partitions, Swift A-Frames, and Barnes TSXs - just in case. Most of my .30 caliber target loads are made with Hornady BTHPs. I am about out of one they no longer offer, and the ELD replacement is considerably more money.

Nevada Ed said:

It is almost time for me to buy some 22 to 30 cal. bullets for my rifles
for the use of target loads and some days in the field for little critters, when Spring rolls around, again.

I have shot a lot of JHP, HP/BT and ball ammo, as well as the fancy
Sierra BX, B tip, Hornady A & V max and Nosler FB tip (Varmageddon) style bullets.

I do well with the lower priced FMJ ~ FMJ/BT in my rifles.........
but do you think that the higher priced bullets are really that much better with the 200-300 yard shots that come up?

I have to admit the 165 gr Hornady poly tip does a great job with fps and groups
in my old 30-06, bolt action.

Just trying to cut down on the number of bullets that I will be buying with the higher cost, these days.

Instead of 17 boxs of bullets..............
maybe dropping down to just 9-10 different boxs, for my rifles.

Click to expand...

Ate you talking about 17 TYPES of bullets or 17 total BOXES of bullets?

OK, when you say "little critters", just how little are we talking about? How tight a group do you and your rifles shoot anyway?

When I was competing in F class long range, I fed my .30 a steady diet of Sierra Match King HPBT bullets. But you're talking about 200-300 yard, not 600+.

On groundhogs, I discovered that the Sierra 69 gr Matchkings were very accurate, but after whacking a couple of ground hogs that were sitting up right smack on the sternum, I realized the bullets were coming apart on the rib cage on entry. Very dead critter, but obviously not the proper bullet for the task. The same is true for the FMJ with/without boat tail.

I'd kinda expect that maybe except for ball type bulk bullets, that the limiting factor on accuracy is you/your scope. My ground hog rifle does very well with the Hornady 75 gr HPBT match bullet for way out there. That particular bullet is supposed to do good things on critters too, haven't tried it. The Sierra 60 gr JHP, 55 gr Blitz do the job on the pests, but I'd expect similar performance from similar Hornady products.

What sort of rifle(s) do you have? Are they the limiting factor or is it the bullet? In my experience bullet choice in an accurate rifle (< 1 MOA) makes the biggest difference, followed by powder choice/weight, then seating depth. If a rifle is only capable of 2 MOA or more because of sights or native accuracy, bullet choice doesn't matter much accuracy-wise.

In my .22 centerfires, I have found that the plastic tipped bullets tend to shoot tighter groups than soft point bullets. I am talking about Vmax and Ballistic tips, and soft points like bulk Winchester 55 gr SP's or Dogtown 50gr HPs. The rifles are mix of Tikka, Cooper, Remington and Weatherby. It may be that I spend more time on load development with the plastic tips, or it may be that the tooling to make the plastic tipped bullets is newer, or it may be nothing at all. In any case, I have been able to find good loads for my rifles using all brands and styles of bullets.

Day in and day out, I have found that Sierra Match King bullets tend to be the most accurate out of a variety of the rifles I shoot for accuracy.

But, that said, there are plenty of other brands that shoot all most as well, and once in a while better, at less cost. Speer, Hornady and Nosler OTM and tipped bullets come to mind. These days, though, they are up there in price too.

For informal range and plinking use, standard bulk Hornady FMJ ball in .22 and .308 usually works just fine, and is what I usually shoot the majority of the time. Saves a lot of money.

As I am sure you know, each rifle is different. One of the most accurate rifles I own is a 6.5cm chassis rifle. The most accurate factory load in that gun is also the cheapest, the S&B 140 grain FMJ. Only my handload, with the 140 grain Match King beats it, and not by much.

Larry

Well, first of all you need to define accuracy, as it applies to your needs. Hitting a tin can at 50 yards, or the X-ring at 1000? For your stated distances, pretty much any reasonably priced bullet should do. The more expensive, more precise bullets definitely do offer an advantage, but it often isn't really significant until the range increases. Then the difference will be clearly evident.

For 22 caliber center fire (bigger than Hornet) I use 50 grain polymer tipped bullets., 218 Bee (Ruger No 1), 221 Fireball ( 2 10" Contenders), 223 rifles, and 22 BR (custom 700 using 1:12 twist 26" Schneider barrel.

Most cartridge/gun combos perform better with one brand above the others! I never had good luck with barns poly bullet so they are out of the 4 brand mix: Nosler "Ballistic Tip", Sierra "Blitzking", Hornady "V-max" and Combined Technologies "Ballistic Silver Tip" (the hands down most expensive!)

I developed my most accurate load based on recommendations from articles and loading manuals using the most plentiful bullet I had (usually A-Max). After that load was determined I loaded 10 rounds with each of the other 3 poly tipped bullets (same powder, primer, and brass) That way the most accurate bullet for that load in my rifle was found.

221 Fireball (H-4227) and 22 BR (H- Benchmark) by far perform best with Ballistic Silver Tips! My 218 Bee Ruger likes the A-Max (H-4227) best and my 223 Cooper 21 1:12 Liked a load with H332 and the Blitzking, but I latter found a Ramshot/ A-Max load that matched it. Both loads at 100 yards produces 5 shot groups with Centers of .010 or less very consistently! All 5 of these loads use Federal 205M primers.

Before the panic, you could find bulk packs of each of the bullets helping keep costs down.

I also have two 6mm rifles for varmints to 500yards or so. A Sako Varminter in 6PPC (the last Sako factory Varminter in PPC made!) and a Custom 700 in 6x284. The Sako 6 PPC likes Sierra 55 Blitzking (H-322 & Rem 7 1/2). The Custom 6x284 Likes 70 grain Blitzkings and H 4831SC & Fed 210M primer (this gun held a 1" group at 523yds. in a very mild wind, and won me a nice stack of cash in the first competition I shot it in!)

For plinker 223 with 55 FMJ bullets, I like WW748, CCI SRM primer and GI brass. I loaded 20,000 in 1984 and am down to a few thousand left. Out of my 1996 Bushmaster with 20 power scope they get 1/2 MOA or usually better, out of my 2001 Cooper 21 1/4 MOA or better. (powder and primer formulas have change enough, I don't think I can just use the data and get the same results!)

Ivan

WR Moore said:

OK, when you say "little critters", just how little are we talking about? How tight a group do you and your rifles shoot anyway?

When I was competing in F class long range, I fed my .30 a steady diet of Sierra Match King HPBT bullets. But you're talking about 200-300 yard, not 600+.

On groundhogs, I discovered that the Sierra 69 gr Matchkings were very accurate, but after whacking a couple of ground hogs that were sitting up right smack on the sternum, I realized the bullets were coming apart on the rib cage on entry. Very dead critter, but obviously not the proper bullet for the task. The same is true for the FMJ with/without boat tail.

I'd kinda expect that maybe except for ball type bulk bullets, that the limiting factor on accuracy is you/your scope. My ground hog rifle does very well with the Hornady 75 gr HPBT match bullet for way out there. That particular bullet is supposed to do good things on critters too, haven't tried it. The Sierra 60 gr JHP, 55 gr Blitz do the job on the pests, but I'd expect similar performance from similar Hornady products.

Click to expand...

I was talking parrie dogs, that are evey where, here in the spring time, when the grass is low.

We use rimfire out to 80-100 yards if not to windy and then move
up to .22 centerfire loads to 300 yards in most areas.

We do use the large bore rifles on 10 mph days due to wind drift
if we spot a rock chuck (Marmet) in the rock slides or other "Trash" that the farmers & ranchers want help with.

I liked Sierra until Speer was a better value...... then Hornady.
Now it is what ever you can find, unless you don't mind waiting.

I will be loading revolver & pistol for the next five months.......
since no "antler" tags this year.

Oh;
Those 10 boxs of bullets are mixed brands for different calibers.

I used Sierra 55-grain SPBTs in my .223 for ground squirrels and rock chucks in WA. Shot very well and were explosive on the critters at ranges out to 300 yards. My -06 loved 165-grain Sierra SPBTs. For a while, until I bought the .223, I loaded 130-grain HPs on the chucks. Nothing but a red poof and loose hair when I hit them.

My.223 Savage 1/9 twist. seems to favor 69gr Nosler Custom Competition
HPBt`s a bit in accuracy compared to SMK`s.
My 1/8 Sport 1 favors the SMK 69gr bullet.
It is about barrel as well as bullet,
Jim

As posted by TXBryan the Speer line of rifle bullets were very reasonably priced projectiles that performed as well or better than most other brands.

Like most components they too have been scarce and seen price increases in the last year or so. Some .308" I use have went up almost 50% in the last year or so. They're still less than most brands today.

Over the years I've shot more Hornady and Sierra rifle rounds than most others combined, but since giving the Speer bullets a shot a few years back I'm questioning myself about value. Sierra Pro Hunter have been my "Go To" hunting bullets for years, and I still use them. The Speer have proven to be a much better value with excellent performance in the proper application.

Smaller critters like groundhogs, etc, the Vmax bullets have been my "go to" projectiles for many years. Don't get much opportunity to shoot varmints at long distances now, so I haven't put the .224" or lightweight .243" Speer offerings to the test.

I used to live in Bend, Oregon, home of Nosler bullets. They sold factory second bullets over the counter at a serious discount. They were very accurate for me in several calibers.

I notice that a number of internet outlets are selling them now. It might be worth taking a look.

Ed

Quality bullets are a big part of accurate shooting .
Over the last 50 years bullets have gotten better and accuracy improved . 3"-4" groups at 50 yards used to be adequate for deer ...not any more ...as the bullets have improved we now expect / demand 1"- 1 1/2" groups at 100 yards and that's a minimum .
Looking for accuracy ... Berger Bullets ... they make some of the most accurate hunting bullets ... if you haven't already , try some .
Gary

For hunting I have used Nosler Partition for many decades. .257, .284, .264, .30, .340. Every load is MOA. For match shooting I use Sierra match boattails. 168, 190, and 220 grain. With My old eyes I doubt I could tell the difference between these and the new match grade bullets. Five holes touching at 100 yards is good hunting accuracy for Me. Inch and 3/4 at 500 is good enough for match shooting.

I have gotten behind in my 22-250 shooting and testing and have
three packs of bullets to try out for accuracy from slow to fast.

Here is a picture of the two "Fancy" bullets and the other is a bag of Win fmj/bt w/can in the same weight.


I also picked up a bag of Win 147 fmj/bt w/can........
only one left on the shelf, darn the luck.

I don't know if I will get around to these rifle loads this year...... maybe?
I have a lot of revolver and pistol loads to catch up on, now that I have primers.

Have a great Holiday, that is coming up and stay safe and warm.

When I had my 22-250 it loved Berger 52 grain flat base benchrest bullets. Those and Watson 52 grain bullets are the best 22 bullets I've ever used accuracy wise. Ed Watson is no longer with us, but I think Bart's Bullets is making them now. I know the trend now is toward bigger bullets, but these bullets shot through a good 14 twist barrel will shoot bug holes all day long.