Disruptive bullets for medium calibers

[Okie_Poke]

Fusions might create a bit larger wound than some/most NBT’s- NBT’s tend to have tick jackets. But, they both are pretty close.

Thank you.

TGK is in no way comparable to a TMK- very thick jacket, and the core is different. They are a deep betraying, relatively narrow wounding bullet at most impact velocities. They create narrower wounds than Accubonds on average that I have seen.

That’s interesting but consistent with some Internet videos I’ve seen showing shots into clear ballistics gel. None of those have been head to head comparisons of those two bullets but there are videos showing long, narrow wounds for the TGK, especially at somewhat lower impact velocities. But since those all use clear ballistics gel, I take them with a grain of salt.

I appreciate the response.

 

[MoeFaux]

@Formidilosus,

Thank you, sincerely, for chiming in and sharing your insights.

If we were to place all these projectiles on a spectrum of "most to least Splashy", or "most disruptive to deepest penetrating" or "widest to narrowest wound channels" (whichever title suits your fancy), would it look something this?

TMK > ELD-M > ELD-X > VLD > Gold Dot > SST > Fusion > Partition > NBT > TGK > Accubond > Monos

 

[Formidilosus]

@Formidilosus,

Thank you, sincerely, for chiming in and sharing your insights.

If we were to place all these projectiles on a spectrum of "most to least Splashy", or "most disruptive to deepest penetrating" or "widest to narrowest wound channels" (whichever title suits your fancy), would it look something this?

TMK > ELD-M > ELD-X > VLD > Gold Dot > SST > Fusion > Partition > NBT > TGK > Accubond > Monos

Nope. They’re different- all of them. The wound shapes are or can be quite different.

Depth of penetration:

Monos> TGK (maybe)> Partition> Accubond/NBT> TMK> ELD-M (lot dependent)> ELD-X (lot dependent)> Gold Dot/Fusion> VLD> SST (lot dependent)


Max width of wounds:

VLD/SST (lot dependent)> TMK> Partition> ELD-X (lot dependent)> ELD-M (lot dependent)> Gold Dot/Fusion> NBT/Accubond> TGK> monos


Consistency and total volume of wounds (maximized for the first 16-18” of penetration:

TMK> Partition (bullet dependent)> Gold Dot/Fusion> ELD-X (lot dependent)> ELD-M (lot dependent)> NBT/Accubond> TGK> Mono

The most variable in behavior from bullet to bullet and lot to lot are the monos- though their wounds are generally narrow and failure to fully upset is harder to notice; the ELD-M and X’s- some lots create very wide wounds, some feature long and deep wounds with modest width (though the M’s much more so than the X’s in this case), and VLD’s.

All of the above is at “normal” impact velocities and lower (I.E.- 2,700-2,800’ish to 1,800’ish fps).

 

[Okie_Poke]

Thanks, @Formidilosus, there’s a lot of info packed in there.

 

[MoeFaux]

@Formidilosus - thanks again. That's such a rich summary that I think we might to share it with the world:

 

[brolo]

if one wants to pull some spark plugs out of a 308 to reduce meat loss, is there an option that has decent BC, slow twist stability, wounding on par with a smaller TMK?

 

[Rich M]

Just makes me smile to see the Partition so high on all three lists. That's my hunting bullet of choice out of 243 these days.

Where would the Sierra Pro Hunter fall in the mix? I know they are the flat bottom version of the Game King. These shoot the tightest of my reloads.

 

[bojangles808]

if one wants to pull some spark plugs out of a 308 to reduce meat loss, is there an option that has decent BC, slow twist stability, wounding on par with a smaller TMK?

Fusion/ tipped fusion if you need even more bc

 

[grfox92]

Fusion/ tipped fusion if you need even more bc

I wonder how a Juggernot would do in that application ? @Formidilosus

Sent from my SM-S931U using Tapatalk

 

[jesco88]

For the SST bullets, I think it really depends on the bullet. The 6.5 Grendel 123gr SST had a much larger wound cavity over the 150gr 308 SST in my experience. It would make sense that Hornady designed the 123gr bullet to work at 6.5 Grendel velocities, whereas the 150gr 308 bullet can be in various cartridges at various launch velocities.

 

[MoeFaux]

Nope. They’re different- all of them. The wound shapes are or can be quite different.

Depth of penetration:

Monos> TGK (maybe)> Partition> Accubond/NBT> TMK> ELD-M (lot dependent)> ELD-X (lot dependent)> Gold Dot/Fusion> VLD> SST (lot dependent)


Max width of wounds:

VLD/SST (lot dependent)> TMK> Partition> ELD-X (lot dependent)> ELD-M (lot dependent)> Gold Dot/Fusion> NBT/Accubond> TGK> monos


Consistency and total volume of wounds (maximized for the first 16-18” of penetration:

TMK> Partition (bullet dependent)> Gold Dot/Fusion> ELD-X (lot dependent)> ELD-M (lot dependent)> NBT/Accubond> TGK> Mono

The most variable in behavior from bullet to bullet and lot to lot are the monos- though their wounds are generally narrow and failure to fully upset is harder to notice; the ELD-M and X’s- some lots create very wide wounds, some feature long and deep wounds with modest width (though the M’s much more so than the X’s in this case), and VLD’s.

All of the above is at “normal” impact velocities and lower (I.E.- 2,700-2,800’ish to 1,800’ish fps).

Here's the question that keeps bugging me:

If the Eld-X outperforms the Eld-M in penetration AND total wound volume AND consistency, then why has the M earned such a following as a hunting bullet? Is it's accuracy really that much better?

 

[JCMCUBIC]

I've had really good results with the AccuBond Long Range bullets from up close to over 400 in 6.5 (129's & 142's but less experience with 142's) and 7mm (150's) with non-mag rounds, usually with less than max loads. They exit, and it's a wreck on the inside between entrance/exit. Where I would normally expect a 75-100 yard (down hill) run with a lot of cup/core bullets (Interlocks, Ballistic Tips) on double lung shots, I'm seeing a wobbly 10-20 yards with a pool of blood from mouth/nose when they fall with the ABLR. I think for medium caliber's they're an overlooked option if you desire a fast opening bullet.