winchester failsafes

mooseslayer3 · 08-14-2005, 12:31 AM

i already know that failsafes reatain there weight well but does anyone have any info on how the expand?

TomFromTheShade · 08-14-2005, 03:26 AM

I couldn't tell you how well they expand because I haven't ever gotten one back, but I can tell you that anything I've ever hit with a fail safe has died very quickly. Thats good enough for me.

New York Hunter · 08-14-2005, 11:49 AM

My friend went on a moose hunt in British Columbia, Canada two years ago. Hebought a Winchester model 70 Coyote in 300 WSM and used180 gr. Failsafe ammo. He shot his moose at 280 yards. One shot, one moose! He also used the same set up on a wild boar hunt with the same results!

My father and I are going to go to Canada on a black bear hunt. He'll be using my 444 Marlin with Hornady's 265 gr. lite Mag. ammo. I'm probably going to use my Remington 700 Classic in 280 Rem. I don't think I'm going to use Winchester's Failsafe ammo. The reason is because their only 140 gr. and I want to use a160 gr. bullet. I'll probably go with Federal's 160 gr Trophy Bonded Bear Claw, or their 160 gr. Nosler AccuBond. If Winchester loaded 160 gr. Failsafe for the 280 Rem.I woulddefinitely consider using them!

Gundigest · 08-16-2005, 07:05 AM

I bought some 160gr failsafes to reload for my 7mm but I have not done it yet because the Barnes XLCs/TSX do the exact same thing with a higher Ballistic Coefficient.

bob roberts · 08-16-2005, 09:55 AM

Like a previous poster, I've never recovered one. I've been fortunate enough to take a few elk with 180gr Failsafes and couldn't ask for a better bullet. I bought a new 30-06 a few days ago and will use the Failsafes (if they are the most accurate in this rifle) in it for elk this Nov in NM. Never used one on deer, but a buddy of mine shoots a 7RemMag with 160gr failsafes, and kills elk and deer with the same load. Everyboby is a little different!

RedAllison · 08-16-2005, 11:01 AM

Before I became a "diehard Barnes man" I shot several deer with 140FailSafes in one of my 7mags. Like everyone else, I NEVER recovered a bullet. The last deer I shot with that gun/ammo was a buck in south TX that was half a step from facing us dead on at 300yds. I hit him in the neck about 3/4 of the way up (just under the spinal chord) and the bullet traveled along clipping the bottom of each vertebrae of the spinal column for about 2' before exiting just in front of the off rear hip. Obviously he went down like he had been struck by lightning, but I know from bowhunting that the spinal column is a TOUGH bone column and is a true test of ANY bullet. And the exit hole on that buck wasn't much larger than the entrance in his neck. That tells me that there was little too no expansion. I get the same results with TSXs in my Warbird, even on heavy spinal column or double shoulder hits. With such heavy bone contact and little exit holes, there just can't be much expansion taking place.

But I think expansion is a bunch of bunk anyway. Penetration is key, a hole in the lungs/heart, central nervous system is a hole in vitals. Arrows don't kill by expansion, large dangerous game isn't killed by expansion when whacked with monolithic solids. So why should we worry or desire rapid expansion on non-dangerous big game?

I can fill my truck full of holes in about 85% of the body and it will keep on running. Put a well placed hole in the engine block, fuel tank/delivery system or the transmission/running gear and it aint gonna go to far. Same thing with animals!
RA