BTHP bullets, what are they really good for?

[dcnewyork]

I have a SMLE, No.4 mk.1 I have always used BTHP bullets for target practice. well i was just courious if anyone has ever used them for deer, or for yote's or chucks? I would never use them for deer .....but they are pretty heavy 174g, so i dont know if they would be good for anything else. they are pretty accurate out of my gun, but not that much more so that useing light little 130's. So i guess i am just wondering what the point is? why are they hollow point? what are they good for other than a great BC?

[jd45]

I understand they're designed for exterme targetshooting accuracy.....the hollowpoint is so small it wouldn't open on a deer-size animal to create a large wound channel to let the animal bleed out quick, tho it might work for 'yotes & chucks, I don't know. Maybe someone with more experience with them can weight in, JD45

[ricciardelli]

I use them on everything from bumble bees to elk.

Never had to take a second shot and never had to track any animal.

[dcnewyork]

so...... you say that they work for hunting?  i am corious now .. why dont othr people use them? why does sierra not recommend them? do they work on small deer? what velocity do they need ? I am shooting 174g out of a 303 britsh .311 bullets. i am pushing them at about 2400 fps. i can shoot them very accurate, but i have always been told that they are only a target bullet. i am very interested to hear why all the "experts" are wrong about these bullets. i have never been able to get anthing else to shoot as well as these do. i do not think it is wise to drive them any faster than i am right now .( the enfield is not known for being a strong action, and i like my fingers and eyes right where they are) ......any other opinions about this issue?

[ricciardelli]

Okay...

I use the Sierra HPBT bullet exclusively in the following:

.22-250 Remington 52 grain at 3702 FPS
.243 Winchester 85 grain at 3010 FPS
.25-06 Remington 120 grain at 2922 FPS
.264 Winchester Magnum 140 grain at 3132 FPS
.270 Winchester 140 grain at 2944 FPS
.300 Winchester Magnum 200 grain at 2986 FPS
.30-06 Springfield 168 grain at 2801 FPS
6mm Remington 85 grain at 3128 FPS
7mm Remington Magnum 168 grain at 2943 FPS

And, as I said earlier, I have never had to take a second shot, and I have never had to track an animal.

BTW, if you do a search you will find this topic covered in MANY threads...some with 1000 posts.

[Idaho_Hick]

dcnewyork - There are different HPBT bullets out there.  For example, Sierra makes both matchkings and gamekings in that configuration.  Now the match bullets are not reccomended for hunting, but if you read Sierra's description in the bullet section, their HPBT gameking bullets are actually made to a tougher standard than ther Spitzer BT.  The Spitzers have a higher BC, but the Hollow Points are made with a harder lead alloy, according to them - and they should know.

[longwinters]

Yep, what they said.  I have used Sierra HPBT Gamekings for several years.  No problems with accuracy and no problems with cleanly taking Whitetails.  Just the results Sierra told me I would have when I talked to one of their guys at the factory.  Give them a call, they always seemed very helpful to me.

Long

[dcnewyork]

yeah, i have it figgured out now ..... i am sorry, i was talking about matchkings. i am sorry i did not make that clear from the get go.   I did not realive that there were HPBT GAMEKINGS also. i only reload for my .303 so i have a very limited amount of bullets available, in .311 caliber. now if my post is re-reviewed it should have read. matchking after every instance of me saying  BTHP, does this change matters ? i have tried a host of different weights but i can not get anything to shoot like the 174gr BTHP matchkings. although i can get the light little 7.62x39 style bullets to sizzle along pretty good, with good accuracy.

[John]

To me, and what do I know, it was quite a surprise to discover that bullet makers even make a bullet that is just for target shooting....never did see the point of it, even after I made the discovery.

I, in my ignorant stage, went down to the local sporting goods dealer and bought a box of 165 gr. BTSP's. I loaded up a hundred rounds, shot some, they went right where they were supposed to, and so I took them hunting.

The first buck, which is hanging above me as I type this, was killed at around 320 yds, the bullet fragmented. The second buck, whose rack is to my left was killed at about 100 yds, the bullet passed through the boiler room, so I don't know what it looked like after it did its work. The third buck, which is hanging next to the first was killed at around 250 yds, the bullet fragmented badly after striking ribs.

These were Oklahoma whitetails, they went from 110 pounds to 140 pounds, not big deer,  all killed with one shot, all ran less than 100 yds before piling up, but I was concerned about the fragmenting bullets.

Well, that's when I found that I was using target bullets...what the crap. I loaded GameKings after that. They shoot where they are supposed to, but I've not killed any good bucks with them as we've been doing some doe thinning that past couple of seasons. The deer killed with the GameKings have dropped like a sack of potatoes. The one bullet that I've recovered mushroomed very well, and weighed 100 grs. of the origional 165.

I don't know is that is good or not.

I'm thinking about loading the hollow points.

[flintlock]

John...Now you know what a deer looks like....shot with a 22-250 varmit bullet... :-D

[Steve P]

Sure cure for spring fever is big red spots where chucks used to sit.
That's what the hpbt's are good for.  Exploding chucks!!

I use them knocking over steel animal, target shoot, varmints, and other general play.  Use hunting bullets to hunt.

Steve  

[John]

It still seems silly to me to have "target" bullets, and "huntin'" bullets.

Why not one that flies straight and kills stuff all rolled into one. Isn't that what bullets are all about?

[dcnewyork]

well........anyone have any info on these HPBT MATCHKING bullets? ....i wish that my gun did not shoot them now..... it kind of irks me that they seem to be the only thing that works in my gun but i can not use them for hunting!..... I guess this summer i will try some diff brands and weights maybe i will find some other sweet load.....its just togh finding a .311 calber bullet.       Now i had an idea but it might be kind of dumb, what if i was to drill out the hollow point on thise matchkings. not a whole lot of drilling but just to open up the front a little for some expansion. i only shoot behind the sholder, boiler room shots. would this be a very ba idea? any sugestions for a fairly long bullet that does not weigh a whole lot and shoots similar to the 174 grain matchkings .311 caliber?

[Varmint Hunter]

If you searched the various hunting sites you would notice that many, many, many experienced shooters/hunters (including Steve) shoot every thing from groundhogs to elk with Sierra HPBT Matchkings. Matchkings have accounted for a considerable number of kills on biggame animals at looong-range by the guys who live to hunt at extended ranges.

If your gun shoots them accurately then I wouldn't hesitate to use them for deer hunting. I have on a few occasions and they worked just fine.

Lately I've been using Accubonds because they are extremely accurate for a premium hunting bullet, and the price isn't that bad either.

Although I see no reason to enlarge the tiny hollowpoint, it would be much easier to shorten the nose a bit to get the same end results. However, its a waste of time, they work fine just as they are.

[dcnewyork]

If i had an actual .30 cal that i could use .308 bullets in i would not be having any problems. i need to use.311's in my 303 british. this means that i am limited to 125, 150, 174hpbt's and 180 grian bullets. I think my barrel is a little on teh loose side so i believe that the greater bearing surface, of the long 174 gives it a better grasp on teh rifleing and stabalizes the flight better than anything else i have shot. factory loads dont shoot that well and when they cost over 20 bucks a box i hate just shooting them only to be disapointed. i have had good luck with 40g of imr4895 whish gives me about 2300fps. if enough people say its ok to shoot a deer with a matchking i may just give it a try. with these handloads i can easly shoot 1 inch groups at 100 yards.

[Patriot_1776]

dcnewyork,

The reason that Sierra's HPBT Match bullets are not recommended for game, is because they are not designed for hunting.  They were designed for paper and steel.  My point?  They don't have the necessary expanding qualities found in a hunting bullet.  

To confirm what I'm saying, do a search on the web on HPBT Match bullets and hunting.  There are those who give firsthand experience on using them; most often the game animal suffers more that need be...

In all reality, give yourself, the game animal(s), and the other reasonable hunters of this country a plus: use hunting bullets for hunting, and match bullets for matches.  The extra effort you may need to devote for an accurate load with a different (hunting) bullet is worth the insurance of a clean, humane kill IMO.


-Patriot