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Posted: 4/9/2015 1:34:58 PM EDT
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I'd like to know what you guys are using mostly with your night vision scopes / thermals. Ar-15 or Ar-10? Which do you like for hogs? Any blackout users?
Caliber and grains would be nice. ie. 308- 150 grain, 223- 70 grain, 300 AAC - 110 grain, etc. I've got several rifles to choose from. I do reload, so I'm wondering what's best for pigs. |
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For hogs you have to see what Texas Lawman does! The guy can shoot, running game included. He ussually uses a 6.8 SPC II AR ( and a PVS 14 and either an Armasight dedicated thermal scope or an Armasight thermal clip on.)
He has been trying an AR in 308 lately. He uses LWRC AR's. Watching his videos, it seems the 6.8 would be hard to beat for hags (ha, that was an error, but I think I'll leave it) He uses Hornaday 120gr SST's in the 6.8 for the most part. They seem to work very well on the coyotes he shoots too. Here is a link to his site, with videos found, oddly enough, under "Hunting Videos." http://lonestarboars.com/ The few hogs I have killed have been with a 30-06, and my son has killed several witha 243 and 270wsm. Partially based on TLM's success and recommendation I recently got a 6.8. My daughter will start college in TX this fall, and I will visit toting my 6.8 for extra curricular porcine activities. JPK |
| I have used .308, 6.8, .223, .17 hmr, 12 gauge, and right now I carry a 300 blackout with a light weight 10 in barrel. If you can hit them in the neck pretty much any center fire rifle will do. My back sure appreciates the little blackout now. If you don't have a sbr lower then the 16 inch 6.8 has worked great for me. Most of my videos on here and YouTube are with the 6.8 spc. As you can see in the videos the 6.8 and 300 blackout to the neck drops them every time. I don't see any need for an AR10, other than the fact it's more deadly when you hit them in the ass running off. I have a logbook of my kills this year. It's around 30, so I don't care if a few get away after being hit with the blackout. I use 120 grain in both 6.8 and blackout. They run from subsonics just the same as supersonics , so the subs have no real advantage. |
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I run thermal and 300BLK on my main gun, and for my loaner/backup I use a helmet mount PVS-14 and an reflex dot/ir laser setup on the rifle (5.56). I've run 308 before and in the end, it just wasn't worth lugging around the extra weight etc. If you don't have to move around a lot, this may not be as much of an issue to you. 300BLK is nice, but 223 is good enough. Right now I'm eyeballing a 7.62x39 Mutant, just to save on ammo costs. |
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Quoted:
I have used .308, 6.8, .223, .17 hmr, 12 gauge, and right now I carry a 300 blackout with a light weight 10 in barrel. If you can hit them in the neck pretty much any center fire rifle will do. My back sure appreciates the little blackout now. If you don't have a sbr lower then the 16 inch 6.8 has worked great for me. Most of my videos on here and YouTube are with the 6.8 spc. As you can see in the videos the 6.8 and 300 blackout to the neck drops them every time. I don't see any need for an AR10, other than the fact it's more deadly when you hit them in the ass running off. I have a logbook of my kills this year. It's around 30, so I don't care if a few get away after being hit with the blackout. I use 120 grain in both 6.8 and blackout. They run from subsonics just the same as supersonics , so the subs have no real advantage. This is why I'm asking the the question. lugging around a 308 two weeks ago, gave me a sore back. And I'm in good shape. Probably that and dual PVS14. I put the MK II on my 300 and am going to use it this coming weekend with some Barnes 110 through an SDN 6. SBR- 10 inch barrel. Felt much easier to manipulate. Most of the time, I hit hogs that came into the feeder late in the afternoon and had my deer rifle with me. So, I haven't used my 300 as much as I'd like but want to. |
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I started with a Blackout in 16" and then got a 10". Since you reload, my hog load for the 300BLK is 18.8 grains of Win296/ H110 (same EXACT powder), CCI450 primer, under a 125 SST at 2.100" OAL. Averages 2265 fps in the 16" and 2095 fps in the 10". A better load would be 20.2 grains of H110/ W296, CCI450 primer, and the Barnes 110 TAC-TX (#30321) to 2.250" OAL. The 16" gets 2450 fps and the 10" gets 2250 fps. It is very likely the best bullet for the 300BLK, but it's a bout $.65/ round to reload. These loads work for me, but they are toeing the line in terms of pressures.
The 300BLK will work, but after losing some that I didn't think I should have lost, I picked up an ARP 12.5" 6.8 barrel and just built an upper with it. Once you get to 100 yards, the 300BLK just leaves way too much on the table compared to the 6.8- this coming from a recovering 300BLK addict, so that's a bit tough to admit. Oh, and I typically run an Armasight Zeus 640 on the 300BLK with back up helmet-mounted PVS14 and various IR lasers. |
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at the expense of getting into a 6.8 / 300 blackout debate. At ranges of 50-100 yards, I bet they are equivalent. I don't own a 6.8 and don't plan on another caliber to load for. Using super sonic ammo in the 300, based on the paper ballistics, there isn't too much difference at those ranges. The larger frontal area of the 300 might even give it a little edge. I reload for only a couple of cartridges, and then only because I can't buy loaded ammo which meets my requirements for those cartridges. That was a leading factor in my choice of the 6.8 vs the 300. I know some guys like to reload, but for me it is a chore. Since you apparently already load for the 300 I can see why you would stick with it. JPK |
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Quoted:
Using super sonic ammo in the 300, based on the paper ballistics, there isn't too much difference at those ranges. The larger frontal area of the 300 might even give it a little edge. I reload for only a couple of cartridges, and then only because I can't buy loaded ammo which meets my requirements for those cartridges. That was a leading factor in my choice of the 6.8 vs the 300. I know some guys like to reload, but for me it is a chore. Since you apparently already load for the 300 I can see why you would stick with it. JPK Quoted:
Quoted:
at the expense of getting into a 6.8 / 300 blackout debate. At ranges of 50-100 yards, I bet they are equivalent. I don't own a 6.8 and don't plan on another caliber to load for. Using super sonic ammo in the 300, based on the paper ballistics, there isn't too much difference at those ranges. The larger frontal area of the 300 might even give it a little edge. I reload for only a couple of cartridges, and then only because I can't buy loaded ammo which meets my requirements for those cartridges. That was a leading factor in my choice of the 6.8 vs the 300. I know some guys like to reload, but for me it is a chore. Since you apparently already load for the 300 I can see why you would stick with it. JPK response to the last two comments. the Barnes tac-tx is my go to. I don't know how much I paid for them. Got them a ways back but I have 150 rounds made up already. I did the ballistics on it a second ago. Comes out of my 10 inch barrel at 2280. @ a 50 yard zero, the drop is .53 at 25 yards, 0.06 at 75 yards and .39 at 100 yards. 3 inches at 150 (but won't be making those) I plan on zeroing my MK II this weekend at 50 and going from there. So Bacically, I'm within half an inch up or down from 25 to 100 yards. Most of my feeders are at 25 yards from my treestands (for bow hunting). Walking around, I know I can get within 30-40 yards. |
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There are 30 cal AR15 cartridges galore and for a reloader you should take a look at
Black Hole Weaponry's American 30 and a Remington 30 AR - both offer increased powder charges over 300 blackout so you can sling 125gr - 150 gr bullets faster than 300 BO could every dream of and you can approach 308 ballistics without the added heft. Its a win-win if you ask me and I have tried most all of the following: 6x45mm 7mm 6.5 Grendel 308 etc etc HTXH |
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Quoted: I'd like to know what you guys are using mostly with your night vision scopes / thermals. Ar-15 or Ar-10? Which do you like for hogs? Any blackout users? Caliber and grains would be nice. ie. 308- 150 grain, 223- 70 grain, 300 AAC - 110 grain, etc. I've got several rifles to choose from. I do reload, so I'm wondering what's best for pigs. I would never suggest using subsonic when hunting hogs. I have tried on multiple occasions with poor results. Here is a .223 and 300 BLK Barnes TSX recovered from dead hogs.   Now compare this .223 with a soft point  |
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Gotta agree on the Barnes, its good stuff, but also expensive. I shoot it when I stumble across it, but otherwise it isn't worth the extra cost with the volume of shooting I do. ^^^ x 100 I cannot afford to shoot them especially on runners and hail mary shots I find Hornady SSTs every bit as effective at standard velocities for my use. As to how I choose a caliber for NV hunting it seems that 308 can shake scopes pretty good so I seek to dial down the recoil for the sake of my gear without giving away too much terminal performance, hence the other 30 cal options I mentioned earlier. Tyler's photo of the Barnes shot from a 300 blackout is why I won't shoot it with anything heavier than 110 grain bullets. That bullet under performed, still got the job done but probably was a good shot to begin with. HTXH |
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I've went back and forth with this for years.
I Started with a .223 and killed hundreds of hogs with it then moved to a .308 and killed more than I can count. Then I had the same dilemma carrying it around for 6-8 hours all night. I made the switch to a 12.5' 6.8. I loved the weight and I killed quite a few hogs with it. However, it wasn't a .308. My .308 just carries more ass, and I like that. I put a ultralight criterion barrel in it and started using a titanium can. Its not bad at all to carry all night imo. My go to round has always been cheap old 150gr core lokts. Just lately i've been trying out some 130gr TTSX's that have also worked very well. All of them will kill the shit out of hogs. However, the .308 will give you better results with less than ideal shots. I love to shoot them in the ear, but that shot doesn't always present itself. |
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^^^ x 100 I cannot afford to shoot them especially on runners and hail mary shots I find Hornady SSTs every bit as effective at standard velocities for my use. As to how I choose a caliber for NV hunting it seems that 308 can shake scopes pretty good so I seek to dial down the recoil for the sake of my gear without giving away too much terminal performance, hence the other 30 cal options I mentioned earlier. Tyler's photo of the Barnes shot from a 300 blackout is why I won't shoot it with anything heavier than 110 grain bullets. That bullet under performed, still got the job done but probably was a good shot to begin with. HTXH Quoted:
Quoted:
Gotta agree on the Barnes, its good stuff, but also expensive. I shoot it when I stumble across it, but otherwise it isn't worth the extra cost with the volume of shooting I do. ^^^ x 100 I cannot afford to shoot them especially on runners and hail mary shots I find Hornady SSTs every bit as effective at standard velocities for my use. As to how I choose a caliber for NV hunting it seems that 308 can shake scopes pretty good so I seek to dial down the recoil for the sake of my gear without giving away too much terminal performance, hence the other 30 cal options I mentioned earlier. Tyler's photo of the Barnes shot from a 300 blackout is why I won't shoot it with anything heavier than 110 grain bullets. That bullet under performed, still got the job done but probably was a good shot to begin with. HTXH I would rather have the performance of the over expanded, lost core plain Jane cup and core on the left In Tyler's post than the 300 Blackout TSX shown in his photos. Those plain Jane cup and core look like SGK's, probably with a boat tail. I have recovered many that looked like that from stone dead deer, shot out of a 30-06. "At what point In the death of the animal did the bullet fail?" JPK |
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I've went back and forth with this for years. My go to round has always been cheap old 150gr core lokts. Just lately i've been trying out some 130gr TTSX's that have also worked very well. All of them will kill the shit out of hogs. However, the .308 will give you better results with less than ideal shots. I love to shoot them in the ear, but that shot doesn't always present itself. It's funny you say this. The 308, 150 grain core Lokts will group one ragged hole in my tikka CTR at 100 yards. I scratch my head everytime, but that's what I hunted whitetail and hogs with this year with my Harvester suppressor. I've only fired 6 shots with it while hunting and had 6 kills this past winter. Don't know why the core lokts shoot so well in that rifle. I've finally got some 168 grain SMK loads of my own that can match that hole distribution. |
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Quoted: . I would rather have the performance of the over expanded, lost core plain Jane cup and core on the left In Tyler's post than the 300 Blackout TSX shown in his photos. Those plain Jane cup and core look like SGK's, probably with a boat tail. I have recovered many that looked like that from stone dead deer, shot out of a 30-06. "At what point In the death of the animal did the bullet fail?" JPK Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Gotta agree on the Barnes, its good stuff, but also expensive. I shoot it when I stumble across it, but otherwise it isn't worth the extra cost with the volume of shooting I do. ^^^ x 100 I cannot afford to shoot them especially on runners and hail mary shots I find Hornady SSTs every bit as effective at standard velocities for my use. As to how I choose a caliber for NV hunting it seems that 308 can shake scopes pretty good so I seek to dial down the recoil for the sake of my gear without giving away too much terminal performance, hence the other 30 cal options I mentioned earlier. Tyler's photo of the Barnes shot from a 300 blackout is why I won't shoot it with anything heavier than 110 grain bullets. That bullet under performed, still got the job done but probably was a good shot to begin with. HTXH I would rather have the performance of the over expanded, lost core plain Jane cup and core on the left In Tyler's post than the 300 Blackout TSX shown in his photos. Those plain Jane cup and core look like SGK's, probably with a boat tail. I have recovered many that looked like that from stone dead deer, shot out of a 30-06. "At what point In the death of the animal did the bullet fail?" JPK I pulled all three of the soft points out of one pig, and I remember he was still trying to get up and run off. They killed him, but it took 3 bullets and hes was not DRT. I pulled the one 300 BLK out of a pig that was DRT. Not only that, the pig was running away at 200 yards and the shot placement was less than ideal. The bullet entered high on his right side just behind his rib cage and was lodged.......IN HIS CHIN!  The soft points are usually 4-6 inches in and all busted up. The TSX are usually 12 inches in and all in one piece with a trail of destruction and blood clots leading you right to them. Believe me, I wish the soft points were as effective because it would save me lots of dough. Here are 3 different .223 bullets all shot on the same night and pulled out of pigs the same sounder.  So, why did they expand so differently? Velicity(different in the SBR than the 16 inch barrel), shot placement, distance to the hog, and the ol X factor. Really there is no way I know of completely explaining why they performed differently, but I know they were much more effective than a soft point. Just my .02. Hopefully copper prices go down!  |
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And here is the 24 inches of TSX penetration hog. I could not believe it when the bullet was lodged in his chin, but he was only shot once so it had to be the bullet. http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d6/tnadair/IR%20Defense/IMG_4446_zps8d5a8d6b.jpg I see you won't have to worry about running your gun dry and having to reload. I think 60 should do it 
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I have found the best type of round for hogs are the solid copper rounds. They are effective out of a 223, 300BLK, and .308. I would never suggest using subsonic when hunting hogs. I have tried on multiple occasions with poor results. Here is a .223 and 300 BLK Barnes TSX recovered from dead hogs. http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d6/tnadair/IR%20Defense/FullSizeRender_zps7c4bef29.jpg http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d6/tnadair/IR%20Defense/IMG_4470_zps37ace5f6.jpg Now compare this .223 with a soft point http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d6/tnadair/IR%20Defense/FullSizeRender1_zps4f202667.jpg I have shot 200-300 pigs with my 6.8 and I've found the opposite to be true. The WORST bullets I've ever tried in my 6.8 are the Barnes 95gr TTSX. I dont care what the bullet looks like after. I dont care about ideal theoretical bullet performance. I care what happens to the animal after I shoot it. With excellent shot placement 55gr FMJ .223 works great. The difference with pigs, especially at night is how many shots happen with poor/mediocre shot placement. Shooting offhand, shooting at running animals, and willingness to take questionable shots that most deer hunters would pass on or try to wait. After you drop one, the rest are running everywhere and they get hit wherever you can hit them. If you can hit them at all. The barnes bullets penetrate well always and always look pretty, but they simply dont do nearly as much damage as the 120gr SST's or the Nos Accubond or the Nos Ballistic Tip Hunting version (they dont make a NBT that works well for the 6.8. If I was using a .300 BO, the 125gr NBT would likely be my choice. With a suppressor, it is super easy to know if your shot hit or missed, sssssstttttt....THWAMP. I got SO many pigs that never even slowed down when hit with the Barnes. I shot one 3 times, one shot actually went through the shoulder and exited, two were high, but hit. I found it still alive and able to stand up 12 hrs later the next day! Pics below. 
The barnes bullets poke holes, which is great if they are in the exact right place, not so great otherwise. That shoulder shot would have turned the entire vitals area and associated organs into soup with an SST. See the two high shot marked above? Below is an exit from a high shot with a 120gt SST. The vertical cut going down is from a knife. The triangle shaped flap above that was caused by the exit of the bullet pushing a huge wave of pig matter along with it. 
If I shoot a pig in the ass/hindquarters with an SST, it will go into a helicopter spin, fall down, or run at only 30% normal speed. Same shot with a barnes, the only way I even knew I hit it was from the sound of the bullet impact. They often never even flinch or slow down. Added to all this is that they cost twice as much. Ammo cost is of little concern to me, but I'm not paying more to get less. TX Lawman and I have talked about this and we have both come to the same conclusion via live fire results. I've killed a lot, but he's probably killed 3-4x as many as I have. There are no doubt 1000's of bullet impacts on pigs b/t the two of us. I've also had great luck with the Nosler 110gr Accubond. It's terminal behaviour in a textbook sort of way is in between the SST and Barnes. It holds together better than the SST but still fragments some. From a real life shooting live pigs standpoint, It seems to work just as well as the SST for me, but I have only shot about 30 or 40 with that bullet. Pretty mushrooms are pretty, but an animal that drops when I drop the hammer is the ultimate litmus test for me. |
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Quoted: I have shot 200-300 pigs with my 6.8 and I've found the opposite to be true. The WORST bullets I've ever tried in my 6.8 are the Barnes 95gr TTSX. I dont care what the bullet looks like after. I dont care about ideal theoretical bullet performance. I care what happens to the animal after I shoot it. With excellent shot placement 55gr FMJ .223 works great. The difference with pigs, especially at night is how many shots happen with poor/mediocre shot placement. Shooting offhand, shooting at running animals, and willingness to take questionable shots that most deer hunters would pass on or try to wait. After you drop one, the rest are running everywhere and they get hit wherever you can hit them. If you can hit them at all. The barnes bullets penetrate well always and always look pretty, but they simply dont do nearly as much damage as the 120gr SST's or the Nos Accubond or the Nos Ballistic Tip Hunting version (they dont make a NBT that works well for the 6.8. If I was using a .300 BO, the 125gr NBT would likely be my choice. With a suppressor, it is super easy to know if your shot hit or missed, sssssstttttt....THWAMP. I got SO many pigs that never even slowed down when hit with the Barnes. I shot one 3 times, one shot actually went through the shoulder and exited, two were high, but hit. I found it still alive and able to stand up 12 hrs later the next day! Pics below. http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn127/shrockworks/Hog%20Hunting/panzer-pig2.jpg http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn127/shrockworks/Hog%20Hunting/panzer-pig3.jpg The barnes bullets poke holes, which is great if they are in the exact right place, not so great otherwise. That shoulder shot would have turned the entire vitals area and associated organs into soup with an SST. See the two high shot marked above? Below is an exit from a high shot with a 120gt SST. The vertical cut going down is from a knife. The triangle shaped flap above that was caused by the exit of the bullet pushing a huge wave of pig matter along with it. http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn127/shrockworks/Hog%20Hunting/IMG_0927.jpg If I shoot a pig in the ass/hindquarters with an SST, it will go into a helicopter spin, fall down, or run at only 30% normal speed. Same shot with a barnes, the only way I even knew I hit it was from the sound of the bullet impact. They often never even flinch or slow down. Added to all this is that they cost twice as much. Ammo cost is of little concern to me, but I'm not paying more to get less. TX Lawman and I have talked about this and we have both come to the same conclusion via live fire results. I've killed a lot, but he's probably killed 3-4x as many as I have. There are no doubt 1000's of bullet impacts on pigs b/t the two of us. I've also had great luck with the Nosler 110gr Accubond. It's terminal behaviour in a textbook sort of way is in between the SST and Barnes. It holds together better than the SST but still fragments some. From a real life shooting live pigs standpoint, It seems to work just as well as the SST for me, but I have only shot about 30 or 40 with that bullet. Pretty mushrooms are pretty, but an animal that drops when I drop the hammer is the ultimate litmus test for me. Quoted: Quoted: I have found the best type of round for hogs are the solid copper rounds. They are effective out of a 223, 300BLK, and .308. I would never suggest using subsonic when hunting hogs. I have tried on multiple occasions with poor results. Here is a .223 and 300 BLK Barnes TSX recovered from dead hogs. http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d6/tnadair/IR%20Defense/FullSizeRender_zps7c4bef29.jpg http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d6/tnadair/IR%20Defense/IMG_4470_zps37ace5f6.jpg Now compare this .223 with a soft point http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d6/tnadair/IR%20Defense/FullSizeRender1_zps4f202667.jpg I have shot 200-300 pigs with my 6.8 and I've found the opposite to be true. The WORST bullets I've ever tried in my 6.8 are the Barnes 95gr TTSX. I dont care what the bullet looks like after. I dont care about ideal theoretical bullet performance. I care what happens to the animal after I shoot it. With excellent shot placement 55gr FMJ .223 works great. The difference with pigs, especially at night is how many shots happen with poor/mediocre shot placement. Shooting offhand, shooting at running animals, and willingness to take questionable shots that most deer hunters would pass on or try to wait. After you drop one, the rest are running everywhere and they get hit wherever you can hit them. If you can hit them at all. The barnes bullets penetrate well always and always look pretty, but they simply dont do nearly as much damage as the 120gr SST's or the Nos Accubond or the Nos Ballistic Tip Hunting version (they dont make a NBT that works well for the 6.8. If I was using a .300 BO, the 125gr NBT would likely be my choice. With a suppressor, it is super easy to know if your shot hit or missed, sssssstttttt....THWAMP. I got SO many pigs that never even slowed down when hit with the Barnes. I shot one 3 times, one shot actually went through the shoulder and exited, two were high, but hit. I found it still alive and able to stand up 12 hrs later the next day! Pics below. http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn127/shrockworks/Hog%20Hunting/panzer-pig2.jpg http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn127/shrockworks/Hog%20Hunting/panzer-pig3.jpg The barnes bullets poke holes, which is great if they are in the exact right place, not so great otherwise. That shoulder shot would have turned the entire vitals area and associated organs into soup with an SST. See the two high shot marked above? Below is an exit from a high shot with a 120gt SST. The vertical cut going down is from a knife. The triangle shaped flap above that was caused by the exit of the bullet pushing a huge wave of pig matter along with it. http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn127/shrockworks/Hog%20Hunting/IMG_0927.jpg If I shoot a pig in the ass/hindquarters with an SST, it will go into a helicopter spin, fall down, or run at only 30% normal speed. Same shot with a barnes, the only way I even knew I hit it was from the sound of the bullet impact. They often never even flinch or slow down. Added to all this is that they cost twice as much. Ammo cost is of little concern to me, but I'm not paying more to get less. TX Lawman and I have talked about this and we have both come to the same conclusion via live fire results. I've killed a lot, but he's probably killed 3-4x as many as I have. There are no doubt 1000's of bullet impacts on pigs b/t the two of us. I've also had great luck with the Nosler 110gr Accubond. It's terminal behaviour in a textbook sort of way is in between the SST and Barnes. It holds together better than the SST but still fragments some. From a real life shooting live pigs standpoint, It seems to work just as well as the SST for me, but I have only shot about 30 or 40 with that bullet. Pretty mushrooms are pretty, but an animal that drops when I drop the hammer is the ultimate litmus test for me. Great pics, and I enjoyed reading your post. SST is a great bullet, but I still have not experienced the quality of results that I get out of a Barnes TSX in any caliber. Just for reference myself and a few hunting buddies have taken more than 200 hogs off of one property since October using all kinds of calibers and bullets. That's just one property. I've tried the SST in fact just a few weeks ago I decided to try some SST out of a 7.62x39, but hey I just might have to try them again. Glad to see you like the results. I'm only reporting what I have personally experienced. It ain't about the mushroom, make sure to read the entire thread Quoted: I pulled all three of the soft points out of one pig, and I remember he was still trying to get up and run off. They killed him, but it took 3 bullets and hes was not DRT. I pulled the one 300 BLK out of a pig that was DRT. Not only that, the pig was running away at 200 yards and the shot placement was less than ideal. The bullet entered high on his right side just behind his rib cage and was lodged.......IN HIS CHIN! The soft points are usually 4-6 inches in and all busted up. The TSX are usually 12 inches in and all in one piece with a trail of destruction and blood clots leading you right to them. Believe me, I wish the soft points were as effective because it would save me lots of dough. Here are 3 different .223 bullets all shot on the same night and pulled out of pigs the same sounder. http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d6/tnadair/IR%20Defense/0C599AB7-4DA0-4CC6-8938-BFCEFEC7518C_zpsgfg9nwl6.jpg So, why did they expand so differently? Velicity(different in the SBR than the 16 inch barrel), shot placement, distance to the hog, and the ol X factor. Really there is no way I know of completely explaining why they performed differently, but I know they were much more effective than a soft point. Just my .02. Hopefully copper prices go down! |
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One 70 grain handloaded Barnes TSX 230 yards: http://www.phossil.com/thom/TC/Monster%20Hog%20II/Monster%20Hog%20IIA.jpg One 70 grain handloaded Barnes TSX 175 yards: http://www.phossil.com/thom/TC/Monster%20Hog/TC%20Hog7.jpg Where do you buy those miniature rifles? |
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Quoted: Where do you buy those miniature rifles? Quoted: Quoted: One 70 grain handloaded Barnes TSX 230 yards: http://www.phossil.com/thom/TC/Monster%20Hog%20II/Monster%20Hog%20IIA.jpg One 70 grain handloaded Barnes TSX 175 yards: http://www.phossil.com/thom/TC/Monster%20Hog/TC%20Hog7.jpg Where do you buy those miniature rifles? |
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UNV Tyler,
I set up my son's rifles with TSX's, a 243 and a 308, both bolt rifles. 85grs and 130 respectively, so I am not a Barnes basher and appreciate their performance . But I do think they need good velocity to perform well, and their length and construction allows/requires using a relatively light for caliber or cartridge bullet (requires: lighter Barnes for some mostly older cartridges or rifles with either small case volume or slow twists.) I chose Barnes for my son's rifles when he was a youngster since recoil is more bullet weight dependent than velocity dependent, and I was trying to minimize recoil. His rifles are both 20" aand both loads use a relatively faster powder for the respective cartridges to minimize muzzle blast. My son is 15 now, and recoil and blast aren't the issues they were seven or eight years ago, but we stick with the Barnes loads because they work very well. As I wrote in my post," At what point in the animal's death did the bullet fail?" It is hard to complain about a bullet recovered from a dead animal. But I suspect that bullet managed to hit the CNS or come close enough to disrupt the CNS. If a bullet performs like that on a thorax shot it is a long recovery or it is lost. The more so if the shot is marginal or worse. It looks to me like the 300 used doesn't provide sufficient velocity to allow the Barnes to perform like it could or should reliably. And last comment, when you can't decide on what bullet you will give you the best performance from choose a Partition! (Your post edited and mine deleted from this post to make length limits) JPK |
Here are some handloaded 70 grain TSX recovered from hog shot @ 175 yards:
I weighed the recovered Barnes 70 grain TSX in my powder measure and it weighted 69.9 grains!
Took out my micrometer and measured the length of some of the different .224 slugs I've been using just to see how long the copper Barnes TSX really is, here are the results: Barnes TSX 70 grain - 1.040" Hornady Match 75 grain - 0.992" Sierra MatchKing 77 grain - 0.985 Nosler Competition 77 grain - 0.982 Barnes TSX 62 grain - 0.945 Nosler 69 grain - 0.900 Sierra 69 grain 0.890 As you can see, the Barnes 70 gr. are the longest slugs on the market that will run in an AR magazine. With 25.0 grains of Hodgdon BLC-2 in LC Brass and Wolf SRM primers chrono shows 2,700 fps at muzzle. |
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Quoted:
Here is a .223 and 300 BLK Barnes TSX recovered from dead hogs. http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d6/tnadair/IR%20Defense/FullSizeRender_zps7c4bef29.jpg http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d6/tnadair/IR%20Defense/IMG_4470_zps37ace5f6.jpg Now compare this .223 with a soft point http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d6/tnadair/IR%20Defense/FullSizeRender1_zps4f202667.jpg Thanks for posting. Have you ever tried the Barnes TSX 55 grain bullet? |
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The Barnes 64 grain TSX handloads chrono at 3,000 fps and are almost as good as the 70 grain for max penetration. The 64 grain bullet sounds great, but since I shoot mostly 55 grain ammo, it would be good to have a hog load that didn't drastically alter my zero. My rifles have 1x9 barrels, so if I did ever go up in bullet weight, the 64 would probably be the way to go. |
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Easy fix for that 
Seriously, if you are wanting to hurl some heavy lead (or copper), build a 1/7 upper... or 1/8 if you want to be able to still shoot light varmint stuff. Quoted:
Quoted:
My rifles have 1x9 barrels Easy fix for that
Seriously, if you are wanting to hurl some heavy lead (or copper), build a 1/7 upper... or 1/8 if you want to be able to still shoot light varmint stuff. Agree. Get a good 1:7 barrel. Swap it out. Easiest fix there is and you don't need to build a complete upper. I load H4895 in my 70 grain loads. I've been very happy with accuracy. |
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I'd like to know what you guys are using mostly with your night vision scopes Here's a different take on a hog gun/caliber. I shoot a .243 Win, it gives me the chance to shoot fairly heavy loads, 100 gr.,at 2900 fps. My goto bullet is good old Rem core-lokt, though lately I have been using some cheaper Monarch bullets with good results. Recoil is manageable for follow up shots on sounders,. I'm shooting a DPMS hunter that has been flawless with 25 round pmags. For me the .243 seems like a good balance between the light 5.56 and the heavier .308 |
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Here's a different take on a hog gun/caliber. I shoot a .243 Win, it gives me the chance to shoot fairly heavy loads, 100 gr.,at 2900 fps. My goto bullet is good old Rem core-lokt, though lately I have been using some cheaper Monarch bullets with good results. Recoil is manageable for follow up shots on sounders,. I'm shooting a DPMS hunter that has been flawless with 25 round pmags. For me the .243 seems like a good balance between the light 5.56 and the heavier .308 Quoted:
I'd like to know what you guys are using mostly with your night vision scopes Here's a different take on a hog gun/caliber. I shoot a .243 Win, it gives me the chance to shoot fairly heavy loads, 100 gr.,at 2900 fps. My goto bullet is good old Rem core-lokt, though lately I have been using some cheaper Monarch bullets with good results. Recoil is manageable for follow up shots on sounders,. I'm shooting a DPMS hunter that has been flawless with 25 round pmags. For me the .243 seems like a good balance between the light 5.56 and the heavier .308 Yep, the 243 is a great round. Mine is a bolt gun, but an AR chambered for the round would be fun. 
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