Looking at loading Barnes bullets for whitetail and mule deer out of my .270wsm but I havent found anyone that has used them, is that because they suck?? or because you can't but ammo over the counter with them.
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IT' S NOT HOW FAR.....IT' S HOW CLOSE!!
Barnes bullets definitely do NOT suck. Nor are they cheap either. I believe Federal offers one or two choices with barnes Bullets in factory loads.
The problem with Barnes bullets is that they can be VERY picky. Some guns love 'em while others refuse to shoot them worth a darn. They are very picky about the bullet's distance from the bore lands when chambered...................which is why it's hard for the factory to load them for general use for the public. AT least 1/2 of the rifles they would be shot in wouldn't like them.
Barnes bullets are really reloaders' specials for best service.
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"Every moving thing that liveth, I give unto you as meat" (Gen 9:3)
From what I read Barnes bullets don"™t suck at all as Mark mentioned. The blue coated bullets cost about a $1.00 a piece for my 7mm. I"™m looking forward to reloading them for my rifle and hopefully they will work fine.
From what I read Barnes bullets don"™t suck at all as Mark mentioned. The blue coated bullets cost about a $1.00 a piece for my 7mm. I"™m looking forward to reloading them for my rifle and hopefully they will work fine.
I have had a love/hate relationship with barnes for a long time. I tried them years ago. It was hit or miss. worked great in some guns, not at all in others. they bascially worked or they didn't. I don't think its the bullets fault but the barrel. A lose barrel didn't seem to like them as John Barsness and other writers say. But a tight new barrel loves em. I gave up on them.
But then I tried the TSX recently. I am back in love. Barnes is the best terminal performance bullet on the market IMO for big game. They will not fail you. I could never get the failsafes, TBBC, or other solid shank bullets to fly good. Only thing left was barnes.
Barnes does make a good bullet. But...Just for kicks one day, we decided to compare bullets. We stood about ten barnes X bullets beside each other. To my surprise, some bullets were slightly longer than the next. We then weighed them. The weights were close, but still off by a grain or two here or there. I'm sure it's not that big of a deal, but this might explain why some guns will not shoot them at all. Oh yeah, the length difference was most prevaliant on .30 cal on up bullets. Check it out. I do, on the other hand like the failsafe design. It's a cross between an X bullet, (Hollow point, petal expandind nose) and a partition (Solid, lead enclosed rear core). The draw back is they aren't know for accuracy either. Though, I did try them out of my .300 Win mag a few years back. I do remember they grouped o.k at 200 yards, but my point of impact was off by some ridiculous amount. good luck this fall.
I liked the look of them so I tried reloading some for my 7mm Rem Mag. They performed ok but the nosler partitions did better. Needless to say I'm not using them but try them, you never know how they will perform in your gun. JDinAB
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JDinAB
" I'm your huckleberry!"
I'd skip the old regular Barnes bullets and go straight to their new TSX if I were you. These have worked great for me. They're accurate and their terminal performance is about as good as it gets.
I compared the Barnes TSX against Nosler Accubond and Hornady Interbond. In two rifles, the Accubonds grouped best, followed by the Interbonds and then the TSX, last. Not reason to make any scientific conclusions, just my experience.
Looking at Barnes Bullets
