Nosler Ballistic tips

[gd357]

I loaded up some ballistic tips in my 7mm Rem Mag for deer hunting this fall to see what the difference would be in terminal performance on whitetails versus factory ammo. I may have overdone things. Took a neck shot on a doe at about 60 yards. The exit hole nearly encompassed the entire width of the off side of the neck. I also shot a doe at a similar range in the chest. She was slightly quartering towards me, and the bullet exited 3 or 4 inches in front of the diaphram. However, the fragmentation was such that the diaphram and stomach were both ruptured. Now the whole idea was to shorten tracking jobs and drop the deer on the spot, but this seems a bit extreme.

gd

[L. Cooper]

My experience with Ballistic Tips has lead me to the opinion that they are ideal deer bullets in "heavy for deer" calibers if you go to the heaviest Ballistic Tip you can find for your caliber. I shoot 150 grain B.T. in my 270; 180 grain B.T. in my 300 Win., for example.

You didn't say what weight you were using in the 7 Mag, but I suspect it was a light version.

Ballistic Tips in my rifles are very accurate, and they provide good blood trails as well as fewer tracks after the shot than "harder" bullets like Nosler's Partitions.

I like them for deer.

[Rocky Raab]

60 yards is also rather an extreme test for any bullet from any magnum.

It just wasn't an appropriate combo for the conditions.

Ballistic Tips are superb long range deer bullets, out where their impact speed allows them to perform normally.

[wyt_tail]

I have had very good luck with Nosler B.T. bullets. I have shot deer with 7mm Rem Mag, 6.5-06 and had the same results, one shot kills! These kills were at all ranges from 35 yards to 220 yards. I have killed at least 14 deer or antelope and had the following entrance and exit wounds without any type of large exit holes as some claim. I think they are using lighter, varmint type bullets for deer size game!

Entrance wound:


Exit wound:


I use them and will continue to use them on deer size game or smaller.

Jude

[RUMLUVER]

I have had nothing but bad luck with the Nosler Ballistic Tip bullets they have always exploded and only one exit wound. The only exit wound that I have seen using one came from a 25-05 and you put a basketball through the hole! The rest of my experience with them is all failure to exit. Most recently was 3 years ago with a .270 Winchester loaded with 140gr B.T.'s at about 3000fps. This buck was shot twice first time in the neck at 80 yards and the second time in the chest. The first shot exploded on the neck failing to penatrate through or break it all that resulte was blood shot meat. The second shot entered on the near side and exploded no exit wound at all. After that I use Hornady SST's and Swift Scirocco's all the accuracy benifits without the explosions. I have used these 2 bullets in everything from .260 Remington to my .338 Ultra Mag with great results and have found no reason to try B.T.'s again. Most recently I am experimenting with .30 cal 180gr Interbond's in my .300 RUM to see what these will do.

[Rocky Raab]

Purely for info, RUMLOVER, at what ranges/velocities were the other BT "failures?"

I ask because that doe was a short range/high speed hit, just like gd357's.

[Evan03]

i dunno but ive seen less damage way less on the deer i shot this year at about 200yds with the my2506 and 100gr nosler balistic tip. bullet fully penetrated and exspanded into mushroom comeing to rest inside the hide on the far side.

maybe that was just perfect ideal sinaro for the bullet.

my reason for decideing the bullets would work well on deer was because theyve seemed to work great on coyotes. small exit wounds from 100yds and further. much smaller exit wounds than the 220 swift pushn 55vmaxes.

i know coyoite realy isnt any comparison but i did recently shoot one right through the vitals with the 2506 and 100gr nbt. bullet exited with hole that was very small to say the least.

im loading strickly nosler balistic tipps in my rifles for deer. 165s in the 3006 140s in the 270 and 100s in the 2506.

so far i havent had any bad luck.

on a side note. i ounce shot a deer at about 40yds with 130gr core lockt factory load through my 270win. right through both shoulder blades. this was very ugly. id almost wonder if balistic tip wouldnt have been better in that situation. needless to say that was one shot afair. but hole front end of the deer was pretty well gone.

[wyt_tail]

BTW, the load I was using in my 6.5-06 was 120 grain Nosler B.T., 54.2 gr. of Rl-19 @ 3025fps doe was 35 yards when hit.

Here is another shot with a Nosler B.T. 120gr. with 53.5 grains of IMR 4350, in 6.5-06, of my Sons doe. His shot was about 45 yards and the same results. Notice the trickle of blood behind the front leg. Bullet exited just as the pics above with a heart/lung shot. Lot of blood from mouth from taking out both lungs.



Here is a pic of my doe shot at 35 yards. Bullet entered just behind where the scope turret lays (dot behind turret) as seen in pic.



Jude

[RUMLUVER]

Rocky ,

The other B.T. explosions I had were with a 115gr B.T. from 25-06 traveling about 3000fps it impacted braodside at about 150-175yds entered and blew big hole out other side but that was 15yrs ago. Another example was a 165gr B.T. at about 2950 from a 30-06 4 years ago this one entered the deer looking at me center chest about 7 inches down from neck crease. That bullet entered and exploded shredded lungs and heart. I won't argue that all these deer died but that kind of performance is not what I'm looking for. I shot 3 deer 2 years ago with 180gr Swift Scirocco's from my .300 RUM travel at 3276fps at ranges of 60 - 300 yards and always complete pass through and instant kills that's what I expect from my bullets. I know my B.T. experiences arn't the norm but they were mine and that is why I don't shoot them.

[wyt_tail]

I'm curious! I have always heard these explosive stories about the Nosler B.T. and never experienced any in the years I have used them. Does anyone who has no luck with these bullets have any pictures to back up the story?

Even an outfitter I had hunted with in Montana asked me what type bullets I was using. When I told him Nosler B.T. he told me that that was the worst bullet made for hunting. That was until I shot an antelope with one and that changed his mind on the B.T. bullets.

Jude

[Evan03]

one thing that im curious of is that the ones that have seen the bullets perform not as theyd like still seemed to be shooting them.

if a bullet isnt performing why keep useing it. do something difrent.

or maybe over 15 years time the acuracy was so great they just had to be tried again.

anways i am beliver and will use the nosler balistic tipp untill it fails to impress me.

[Rocky Raab]

They have changed over 15 years, as a matter of fact. So the way they perform today should be different.

However, they ARE designed to be a quick-opening bullet, so I will not doubt that they sometimes may open explosively.

Just curious, RUMLOVER, if complete penetration is your goal (and there's nothing wrong with it), have you tried Partitions?

Nosler specifically says that the BT is for quick expansion and the Partition is for penetration. They're clearly trying to meet the needs of both sides of that debate - and have succeeded.

[RUMLUVER]

wyt-tail,

I wish I had some pictures to show you but we never have taken pictures of our deer while gutting them.That would have been the only way to show that the bullet exploded once it entered. The one doe that was shot and had the big exit hole I'm not sure if we have a picture of that or not but if we do I will post it. I'm glad that you have had the best of luck with a B.T. I know others that do also but as for me I will continue with a Hornady SST and Swift Scirocco's in polymer tipped bullets.

[L. Cooper]

I have seen almost all of the disadvantages mentioned here go away when I started using heavy for caliber Ballistic Tips. They tend to be heavier in construction than the lighter versions, and start at slower velocities, so the effect on deer is a reliably expanding bullet that will always penetrate completely on broadside shots.

I have seen the opposite shoulder become jelly if both shoulders are shot at relatively close range (less than 100) but the accuracy in many loads, the reliable expansion and energy delivery, and the long range energy retention keep me using them. I think they result in less hunting after the shot too.

But only if they are the heaviest I can find in that caliber.

[RUMLUVER]

As for me I like to be ready for anything that presents itself. A shot between 50 and 500 with whatever I'm caring. This year it was a .338 Ultra Mag and I don't think a B.T. would have held together at the range and velocity that I hit my deer this year but it was the only deer I saw that day and had to take the shot. I was using a 210gr TSX at a muzzel velocity of 3379fps and the deer was 90 yards away when I hit it and the bullet stayed together very little blood shot meat and complete pass through. The deer didn't go 5ft from where it was hit either. This load consits of 96gr of RL22 and shoots 1/2 groups when I do my part what more could a guy ask for. I use another load with a 210 Swift Scirocco and 97.5gr of RL25 this moves at 3248fps leaving 1/2 to 5/8 groups day in and out. To me this too is a better all around bullet for all circumstances one may come across in the field. But these are just what I choose to use right or wrong that's the way it is.