Best bullet for 150 to 175 yard shots?
 

I know this has been discussed a lot in the past but I am looking for the most recent info on this. I will be hunting wild open mule deer county and I want a bullet gives the best results at 150 yards. I have read a lot of good things about the Barnes Expander 250 grain and I will be very interested in reading how the bloodlines do this year for long range shots. Right now I am shooting 300 grain .452 deep curls for elk and these are very accurate in my .50 cal extreme. They performed great on an elk this year on a 50 yard shot but I don’t think that is what I want to shoot out to 150 yards.

If the .300 gr DC is accurate in your rifle at longer ranges, why change? it has a .233 BC and has excellent terminal performance.

+1 for out to 175yds. I don't think you will find a better bullet for terminal performance, even spending more money for the barnes, will not improve your results. Now if you are someone that thinks more money equalls better results, by all means, go with the barnes.

I have had great results on mule deer past 200 yards with barnes TMZ 290 gr.. and shockwaves 250 gr .

I'd stick with the Deep Curls Washatonian. Do you know the velocity of your load? What powder charge are you using?

Washatonian

For the question asked and from the additional information that I know about you, your hunting conditions, and the fact that you have to use open sights and cap ignition. I really think that Builder is correct. I would see no reason to move from the 300 grain Deep Curl for those ranges. Also I know you really only want to shoot one weight bullet for both deer and elk. And again that falls right where you are with the 300 grain Deep Curl.

But, now in the same breath I would also suggest to you the the .451-300 grain Nosler partition PP has better Terminal Ballistics than a Deep Curl. It is also a stronger bullet and will be able to handle marginal shots into the kill zone somewhat better than the Deep Curl. One other thing the accuracy of the Nosler is not questioned by me. I shot the bullet years at elk here in Idaho for many years and I suggest to you that it is devastaing on game. As you know since we have shot together on different occasions I am now shooting a Lehigh/Bloodline and it took a lot of effort on my part to make that switch from Nosler, but I do feel it offers some additional factors that the Nosler, Speer, and Barnes do not. Please bear in mind all of this is just my opinion.

This is a recovered Nosler from an elk I shot a few years back... I have onlt recovered two Noslers from all the animlas that I shot with them this in 1 of 2...



This is the animal harvested....



Here are the aftermath pictures...



This guy did not like a Nosler either...



This might give you some indications also... Next time yopu get over this way we run out to the farm and shoot a few....

I am using 110 grains of T7 fff, I want to try 120 grains but the quick loaders I am using would only hold up to 110. The reason for my concern is that I decided to buy 200 rounds of nosler partions 300 grain .451 as I think they should shoot exactly like my deep curls and have a better reputation. I asked the fellow I am buying them from (a forum member) what he was planning to shoot now and why and he mentioned that he was now shooting a better long range bullet because of the open mule deer country. Well that got me to thinking and….

i'd go with the Barnes.

Washatonian, I got a five shot average of 1675 fps with the chrono 12 feet from the muzzle with 105 grains of T7 FFFG and 300 grain Deep Curls shot from my Lyman Mustang. So I would expect your muzzle velocity to be right around 1700 fps.

Here's what the trajectory will likely look like out to 200 yards with a zero at 125 yards.



With your load and sighted in two inches high at 50 yards, you should be able to hold dead on for any shot out to 150 yards, just a few inches high for 175 yards, and right at the top of the back for 200 yards.

There's almost a thousand foot pounds of energy remaining at the two hundred yard mark. That's "sufficient" and if you manage to recover a bullet it will likely look something like this.

Thanks for the great information there. I am not refuting anything here, I just have no experience with any of the bullets since this is my first year muzzleloading. I am just thinking out loud here, I have read many comments on different hunting boards that the Barnes Expanders drop animals in their tracks and you can send a 250 grain with 125 grains of T7 FFF at 2100 fps they claim. While out elk hunting this year I came across a dead elk that had been shot right in the boiler maker right behind the lower shoulder, a perfect heart shot, It had been there for a couple days it looked like, I could see no blood trail, the animal had obviously ran off after the shot and the hunter lost it after making what I consider a perfect shot. The shot could not have been more than 100 yards considering the terrain it was in. How could there not be an exit wound and blood trail on this animal? After talking with a few other hunters I was told that there is rarely an exit wound and many hunters think they have missed when the animal goes running off and there is no blood trail. I want to know that if I make a great shot, the animal is going to drop or there should be an exit wound that leaves a good blood trail. I will pay more money for a bullet that does that.

I shot a mulie at 223 yards , she didnt go but 20 yards. The bullet went clean through and killed the yearling standing behind her. He dropped on the spot. That was a 250 gr shockwave. Dropped a mulie at 234 yards with a barnes tmz 290 gr. Needless to say because of those two and numerous others I am a big Barnes fan. I am testing lehighs this year but at the moment still prefer Barnes.

Thanks, that’s the kind of real life experiences I am looking for. I will definitely be looking for your report and everyone else’s on the bloodlines.

The 300grn Bloodline should exit every time. Of course there are exceptions with all bullets. Once people understand how this bullet works, they will see that bigger isn't always better.

After reading some of your post and people losing game, i think you will love the Bloodlines. Those petals shear and get into the vitals and cause damage and even more trauma. They even help when a bad shot is made.

I have done a lot of testing on game and on targets. I really believe this is the best ML bullet made today. Now it's for sure the best bullet i ever used. I will say, i never used any Nosler bullets. Below are some examples of performance on game.

I don't see any elk hanging there.

I find it hard to believe any bullet can out perform a Nosler Partition.

Everybody and their brother knows Barnes is better than Nosler :s2:

Like i already said, never used Noslers before.

Does Nosler make a partition round ball just for you:D

Everybody has a brother?

Gee, I guess there is a lot of things you don't know:s13::confused:

Like what?

Thats some serious damage on the hog, grouse. but at the same time alot of un needed loss of edible meat. i have never seen an animal that needs a hole like that to take down. But, i guess if you shoot alot of questionable or bad shots, it could build your confidence!

Would be interested in some .45 auto rounds, though!!!

The biggest factor in sucessful 175 yard shots is putting the bullet where you are aiming. Most modern bullets will cleanly dispatch deer. 175 yard shots in the field with a ML isn't a chip shot. Any of the bullets mentioned will work. If it were me, I'd pick one that is accurate and you feel confident with.

What is wrong with using that 300gr Deep Curl out to 150 yards???

If it's accurate in your gun, it will kill at 150 just as well at 50...

The target was punched with 5 300g Deep Curl at 271 yard.



Here is a thread about capturing a 300g Deep Curl at 200 yard with 3 one gallon jugs

Wow, it looks like a grenade went off in that pig. As far as continuing to use the deep curls for long range shots, I was perfectly fine with that until this happened, let me explain. It was my son who shot the elk at 50 yards with the deep curl. The elk came up the hill under were my son was standing and froze, Andre dropped to a knee and nailed him in the chest. (see picture) It was a devastating hit exiting out the opposite side next to the spine leaving a golf ball sized wound. Hearing the shot I rushed to where my son shot and he was busy reloading his gun. He said he was sure he hit it but not positive so I give him my gun with the same load and tell him to go after it while I finish loading his gun. He fires again and I run down the hill and he tells me he thinks he missed the second shot so I give him his loaded gun back and he runs down the hill and shots a third time, this time putting the elk down for good. The third shot is also a devastating hit breaking through the shoulder and taking out the lungs but does not exit. As we are skinning out the animal we find the second shot, as you can see by the pictures, it has fully mushroomed as it should. Now here is the mystery, the mushroomed bullet was planted between the hide and the rib cage at the point of entry, not the opposite side as you would normally find it. It barely made it through the hide fully mushroomed. The only thing I can figure is it must have gone through a small tree or tree branch first. Anyways, that concerns me a bit. By the way, good shooting Ron!

I read a couple of rushed reloads. Are you sure you didn't load it light? Maybe some powder hit the ground, and you didn't notice.

yeah, I considered a light load because of nerves but I wonder if you would get a full mushroom like that on a light load?

It would have almost had to be a small tree/limb that took the blunt of the energy. From what I have seen a deep curl do to an animal there is just no other explanation.

I agree. There's no way and elk hide and rib could stop a 300 grain Deep Curl.

That's exactly what I would expect. What more could you ask for?

I've seen some mighty "wierd" things happen, especially in the heat of the moment and when taking multiple shots at game...

I know I've killed deer at 150 with 250 SSTs and 300gr Hornady XTPs with no problem...

I'd stick with the Deep Curls and pop a few more deer and elk before throwing them out...

I would think you should be fine with either bullet. In theory, the design of the Nosler may give better penetration, but this is just speculation on my part. What happened with the 300 Deep Curl and the elk is a mystery to me, but strange things like that happen occasionally. It very well could have gone through a sapling or small tree first. My only experience with a Deep Curl so far was a 250 grainer moving at about 1600 fps that blew right through a doe standing broadside. Exit wound was about the size of a golf ball.