130gr. Barnes for the 30-06

[Jeff Ovington]

Thinking of trying out the 130gr. Barnes-X bullet in my Husqvarna30-06 now that the hunting season is over and spring is near.
This will be used for open country mule deer.The reason being because the gun has a 1-12 barrel twist and I want to be sure that the bullet is still stabilized at longer ranges.
I also believe that a 1-12 barrel twist might be just the ticket to getting tight groups with these bullets.
Knowing that this bullet has a high weight retention,the bullet should retain as much weight as a recovered 165gr bullet of a conventional design. The B.C. should also be close to that of a 150gr.and 165gr. flat base bullet becase of the Barnes-X boat tail design depending on the brand of bullet used.
I talked to Ty Herring at Barnes about using this bullet for deer asked him if it would be effective enough to humainly kill a deer sized animal at ranges from 0 to 400yrds and he replied no problem.
I plan on loading some up and taking them to the range to find out the results of overall grouping and performance at these ranges and different
conditions in the next few weeks. I find that this time of year presents the
best time to test loads because it offers the same adverse weather conditions as Nov and Dec.
Have any of you tried this light of bullet in your rifle and how did it effective were they for you?

[travelr]

Jeff,
The 1:12" twist should stabilize up to 168-gr conventional bullet in your '06. And while the 130-gr X-bullet will perform at 400 yds, wind drift is still an issue regardless of mfr's bullet. You might wish to also try the
150-gr Triple Shock X-bullet. That would drift less than the 130-gr bullet,
and what you'd give up in velocity would be compensated for in BC (3100+fps w/.374 BC vs. 3000+fps w/.428 BC).

[James B]

I think the 130 grain X should work real well for Mule deer. If it shoots well in your gun it will work fine. I would lean toward the 150 grain tripple shock.

[rost495]

Too many folks get hung up on drop figures and light fast bullets. They think it makes a 300 yard shot simple. Yet the wind drift issue is a huge factor, one indicating you need to lean towards a heavier bullet if you actually want to make longer shots.

In my 223 I shoot tons of ammo and usually use 69-90 grain bullets out to 1000 yards. Yet I use a 60 grain bullet a lot for practice. While any of the above work out to 200 yards, once you get to 300 yards the 60 grain becomes very tricky in the wind.
Just an example.

Jeff

[48thguns]

Hello Jeff. I see a big problem here. Go to the charts and look at the velocity and energy at 400 yards for the 165 gr vs 130 gr bullet. There is a huge difference because of BC. I have had poor luck working up the XXX bullets in my .243. If you are serious about 400 yard shots...especially under windy conditions, my recommendation is the 165 gr nosler partition or combined technology bal tip or the Hornady interlock/SST's. Jusy my 2 cents. Good luck and regards, Rick.