another powerbelt thread
#11
I ahve been hunting with a muzzleloader for the last 3 years. I am 3 for 3 on whitetail.
1st year.. Cva Wolf loaded with a 295 grain hollow point powerbelt, and 80 grains of
777 loose powder. Shot a doe at 50 yards, and she dropped in her
tracks. Found the bullet inside, and it mushroomred perfectly.
2nd year.. Cva Wolf with the same load as above. Shot a doe at about 40 yards
quartering to me. She ran about 30 yards and dropped. Found the bullet
inside, and it mushroomed perfectly.
3rd year... Remmington Gennesis, loaded with a 295 grain Aerotip Powerbelt, and 80
grains of 777 loose powder. Shot a 7 point buck at 40 yards, quartering
to me just a little. Bullet went in right side in front of front shoulder,
same spot on other side. Buck dropped in his tracks.
Now, I have not had to follow a blood trail yet since 2 of them fell in their tracks, and the doe last year, ran right into the river and died. So, I cant say anything about the blood trails. But, so far, I see no reason to change a thing.
1st year.. Cva Wolf loaded with a 295 grain hollow point powerbelt, and 80 grains of
777 loose powder. Shot a doe at 50 yards, and she dropped in her
tracks. Found the bullet inside, and it mushroomred perfectly.
2nd year.. Cva Wolf with the same load as above. Shot a doe at about 40 yards
quartering to me. She ran about 30 yards and dropped. Found the bullet
inside, and it mushroomed perfectly.
3rd year... Remmington Gennesis, loaded with a 295 grain Aerotip Powerbelt, and 80
grains of 777 loose powder. Shot a 7 point buck at 40 yards, quartering
to me just a little. Bullet went in right side in front of front shoulder,
same spot on other side. Buck dropped in his tracks.
Now, I have not had to follow a blood trail yet since 2 of them fell in their tracks, and the doe last year, ran right into the river and died. So, I cant say anything about the blood trails. But, so far, I see no reason to change a thing.
#12
Spike
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Byhalia, MS
Posts: 25
I think on some things, like beer and pickups, there's a bit of personal preference involved. But a bullet seems a different thing, in the sense I don't reckon folks really care how it tastes, what it looks like as long as it does the job. From my pov a bullet only has a few jobs a) be easy (enough) to load b) be accurate c) make two holes in a critter, and bigger is better.
I used 300 grain Nolser hollow points (.429) and several other .429s including XTPs to kill several deer, generally just one a year, and every single one I was either getting small exit or no exit and finding my bullets fragged to tiny pieces. This after dozens of shots trying to get the muthers to group, settling for 4", 75 yard groups. So I was shooting at close range, relatively, from 20 to 50 yards.
Finally I changed my charge from 100 grains (Pryo) to 80 grains experimenting for accuracy... and because I'm a cheap bastid and ran up on some 30g pellets for 1/2 price. LOL Sha-zam! Other than dropping a fair bit, ~8" I figure on my zero, I'd have no problem taking 150 yard shots, and a 125 I'm in the black. Last year I got full penetration even on quarting away full diagonal lenght from last rib to first rib (doe) at 120 stops. Year before, another doe, shot straight through the base of the neck, big exit hole, again over 100 yards.
My point is this. I've never fooled with the power belt bullets or experimented too much with any of this but if the trouble has historically been fragmentation then one really should consider the velocity they are being used at. If you are pushing bullets past 1500 fps many of the hundgun designed bullets simply are made too soft for that. And from what I've read folks are pushing bullets up to 2200 fps or more. There are some great bullets for this, centerfire .451 stuff, customs, those frequently mentioned here... I'm rambling. But the point remains, pick the bullet for the kinda work you want to do. But don't get fooled into thinking just because a bullet has worked well that it will work well under any conditions. For example, even at 80 grain charge my 300g Noslers might still frag on me inside of 30 yards.
I used 300 grain Nolser hollow points (.429) and several other .429s including XTPs to kill several deer, generally just one a year, and every single one I was either getting small exit or no exit and finding my bullets fragged to tiny pieces. This after dozens of shots trying to get the muthers to group, settling for 4", 75 yard groups. So I was shooting at close range, relatively, from 20 to 50 yards.
Finally I changed my charge from 100 grains (Pryo) to 80 grains experimenting for accuracy... and because I'm a cheap bastid and ran up on some 30g pellets for 1/2 price. LOL Sha-zam! Other than dropping a fair bit, ~8" I figure on my zero, I'd have no problem taking 150 yard shots, and a 125 I'm in the black. Last year I got full penetration even on quarting away full diagonal lenght from last rib to first rib (doe) at 120 stops. Year before, another doe, shot straight through the base of the neck, big exit hole, again over 100 yards.
My point is this. I've never fooled with the power belt bullets or experimented too much with any of this but if the trouble has historically been fragmentation then one really should consider the velocity they are being used at. If you are pushing bullets past 1500 fps many of the hundgun designed bullets simply are made too soft for that. And from what I've read folks are pushing bullets up to 2200 fps or more. There are some great bullets for this, centerfire .451 stuff, customs, those frequently mentioned here... I'm rambling. But the point remains, pick the bullet for the kinda work you want to do. But don't get fooled into thinking just because a bullet has worked well that it will work well under any conditions. For example, even at 80 grain charge my 300g Noslers might still frag on me inside of 30 yards.
#13
everyone has their preferences and everyone's gun is different. I shoot powerbelts and have killed 2 deer with them. neither did i have a problem with pass throughs or blood trails. they work perfectly for ME. its up to you to decide what you want to use to hunt all we can do on a forum is state our expierences. and others can take what they want from our expierences i wont bash sabots, im sure they work fine, i wont bash roundballs im sure they work fine too.
#14
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Kerrville, Tx. USA
Posts: 2,722
"and i was happy with them! and still am happy with them (shooting 777 100 grains with them). "
You don't really explain why you are happy with them. Because they are accurate or because you have had good luck with them in the field or both?
Everyone will pretty much agree that they are generally an accurate bullet. They are also a good hunting bullet that if used within their margins for errors (lower velocities and not passing through major bones). So if they work for you with how you use them, good for you and them.
Personally, I can get as good of accuracy in a different bullet that will hold up better at higher velocities and when hitting harder structures (bone) and costs me less.
You don't really explain why you are happy with them. Because they are accurate or because you have had good luck with them in the field or both?
Everyone will pretty much agree that they are generally an accurate bullet. They are also a good hunting bullet that if used within their margins for errors (lower velocities and not passing through major bones). So if they work for you with how you use them, good for you and them.
Personally, I can get as good of accuracy in a different bullet that will hold up better at higher velocities and when hitting harder structures (bone) and costs me less.
#15
Powerbelts
well, this is about a lot of things but it's connected to the powerbelt debate.
--just about any gun out there, including .22s, will kill deer. my grandfather put a number of deer down on the spot with a .22 magnum back in the day.
--there's a LOT of great guns and ammo out there today. a LOT. just like beer or food, each kind will have its faithful followers and also those that can't stand it. that's what makes the world go around.
what does this all mean? YOU need to decide for yourself. YOU need to do your own "taste test," as it were, and figure it out.
for example, i bought an inexpensive wolf cva package. it came with 15 powerbelt 295 hollow points. rather than throwing them out and buying something else (if i had just made that decision based on reading negative comments here and elsewhere), i tried them out FOR MYSELF.
and i was happy with them! and still am happy with them (shooting 777 100 grains with them).
now: does that mean you will be happy with them? no. just like it's not my job to discourage you from trying something for yourself, it's also not my job to get you to buy something simply based on my own success.
and i don't work for wolf or powerbelt, nor do i get any free stuff from them. just saying we all need to approach things this way. use these forums to get a little more educated--but stop short of talking yourself completely out of a product you've never tried yourself.
know what i mean?
--just about any gun out there, including .22s, will kill deer. my grandfather put a number of deer down on the spot with a .22 magnum back in the day.
--there's a LOT of great guns and ammo out there today. a LOT. just like beer or food, each kind will have its faithful followers and also those that can't stand it. that's what makes the world go around.
what does this all mean? YOU need to decide for yourself. YOU need to do your own "taste test," as it were, and figure it out.
for example, i bought an inexpensive wolf cva package. it came with 15 powerbelt 295 hollow points. rather than throwing them out and buying something else (if i had just made that decision based on reading negative comments here and elsewhere), i tried them out FOR MYSELF.
and i was happy with them! and still am happy with them (shooting 777 100 grains with them).
now: does that mean you will be happy with them? no. just like it's not my job to discourage you from trying something for yourself, it's also not my job to get you to buy something simply based on my own success.
and i don't work for wolf or powerbelt, nor do i get any free stuff from them. just saying we all need to approach things this way. use these forums to get a little more educated--but stop short of talking yourself completely out of a product you've never tried yourself.
know what i mean?
I was once like you, and thought a bullet was a bullet and as long as it was accurate "I was good".
Wait until you shoot a Trophy Buck, the smoke clears, you can't find blood and you have no idea which direction to search. I had this happen. I was lucky to recover the deer without any blood trail on a text book broadside shot at 20 yards. That was the last time I used a Powerbelt. It may not happen everytime, but even once, especially on the first time was enough to make me do some research and testing of my own. Luckily in the states I hunt I can shoot sabots and I have switched to the Barnes TEZ.
Your post
Comparing beer and bullets is a poor way to choose what you shoot. Drawing conclusions too quickly will often send you in the wrong direction.
There are a lot of people on this forum that posess a wealth of knowledge. It has taken them years and many shots from a muzzleloader to form their opinions. Don't be in such a rush to defend a product you really know nothing about.
Powerbelts sell because of their marketing, they put them in with certain guns like you bought, they are readily available, they are easy to load, they have flashy finishes and commercials. They know what sells and they capitalize on that. I spoke to a guy at powerbelt after I had a pencil hole passthru. He admitted to me that the hollow point design did not expand and stay together as well as the solid blunt nose bullet. He also said that the public thinks they need the hollow point, so thats what they push and the public purchases. He also told me if they had a rack of solid blunt nose bullets, and a rack of hollow points, the hollow point rack sells. Manufacturers and Retail Stores are in business to move product and make money. Most users never put it all together and keep buying what they always bought. Do as you wish, but don't defend a product you have very little experience with.
#18