Hi All,
The land where I hunt will be allowing rifle hunting of whitetail deer for the first time this fall. I am planning to use a .308 Win rifle and reload my own ammo.
Unfortunately, it seems that the most expensive bullets seem to be the ones that give me the best accuracy in my rifle. In my testing so far, Nosler partition 165 grain has proven the most accurate. The only bullet that I still plan to test is the 165 grain Barnes triple shock.. I bought a box today (a couple of bucks cheaper than the partitions), but won’t be able to test the accuracy for a couple of weeks.
The land I hunt (for the last 3 years) is in western New York. I will be shooting across an open field. Opening day weather in November has ranged from 20 degrees with a light dusting of snow to driving rain (2008). The three years I have hunted the land I have had opening day success with a muzzleloader at ranges from 100-140 yards. The way my hunting blind is set up, the shots will probably be no more than 160 yards, 200 at the outside.
The four times I have hunted deer in the past, my bullet of choice has been the Hornady 300 gr XTP .452 bullet. Once in a revolver at 45 yards, and 3 times with the muzzleloader. The bit, heavy, slow bullets have given me entirely satisfactory one shot stops when placed in the boiler room. But I don’t have any experience with rifle hunting and light fast bullets. I have read that bullet construction makes a huge difference in these .308 bullets.
If the 165 grain Barnes triple shock (TSX) proves as accurate as the 165 grain Nosler Partition, which one would you folks recommend? Any real world experience with them? Reading the manufacturers advertising, they all sound wonderful.
Tom