OK, I think both sides have had enough say. The thread is turning personal and therefore I’m going to exercise my authority as Moderator and lock it down.
There is probably good reason for the disagreement – even companies like Winchester, who loads both CT and AccuBond CT, classify each differently depending on caliber and velocity. For example, a 180g CT from a .30-06 is a CXP2 load (“Rapid, controlled expansion. Penetrates thin skin, light muscle and bone.”) while the same bullet in a .300 Win Mag is rated as a CXP3 load (“Delayed, controlled expansion. Deep penetration through thick, tough skin, heavy muscle tissue & bone.”). Notably, while Winchester offers CXP3 loads for the .270WSM, 7mm Rem Mag, .308 Win and .30-06, the CT is not used in any of those loads. Federal offers Class 2 (“Medium game”, including “antelope, mule deer, white-tail deer and black bear”) as well as Class 3 (“Large, Heavy game” including (elk, moose and brown bear”). Federal does not offer a BT in any load they classify as Class 3. Nosler does not classify their ammunition by usage but does call their BT a “deer” bullet.
I think a few conclusions can be made regarding the BT’s:
1. BT’s are a cup and core bullet. On the scale of bullet technology they are on the low end. In spite of any improvements in manufacturing precision, a sleek profile and their polycarbonate tip, they are little changed from cup-and-core bullets designed over 100 years ago - and can be expected to perform accordingly.
2. BT’s are designed for “Maximum Impact Velocity: 3000 fps” per Nosler. Contrast that to the maximum velocity rating of “unlimited” for the Nosler Partition. Many folks, even some of those who are BT proponents, are only comfortable with BT’s at significantly lower impact velocities and even Nosler recognizes that for high impact velocities there are better bullets available.
3. In general, neither Winchester and Federal feel the BT is the best choice for large game and tend to recommend the AccuBond, Partition and other bullets instead. (Winchester offers a variety of CXP3 loads starting with the .270WSM, but the first BT offering is the 180g BT for the .300 WM/WSM. Federal starts listing Class 3 loads with the 7mm RM but doesn’t use BT’s in any Class 3 load, regardless of caliber or cartridge.)
4. You can’t beat physics and there is a reason Nosler makes AccuBond, Partition and E-Tip bullets. People that desire high weight retention and deep penetration under a wide variety of situations are probably better served by a bullet designed to expand more slowly, limit expansion more positively and retain more weight than a BT.
5. Every situation is different and people can be expected to have different results. Some people have had good results with the BT’s others have not. Choose a bullet designed to work in both best and worst case scenarios and you will probably not be disappointed. Ignore the worst case scenarios and disappointment is much more likely.
