grain for deer and ??beear
07-20-2017, 08:41 AM
#41
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 5,605
The simple fact is NOBODY would ever load that kind of soft HP bullet in full power 50 Beowulf or 500S&W for hunting deer or bear. Why in the world some people seem to think it is ok in a ML is beyond me. Muzzle velocity would be extremely close to those two centerfires.
07-20-2017, 01:10 PM
#42
Typical Buck
Join Date: Apr 2017
Posts: 995
Exactly my point. Why pay a premium price for a sub par bullet? Why use a bullet that you have to load down or it will blow up on shoulder contact? Why use a bullet that, if you have a healthy load, you have to stay off the shoulder? Why advertise a bullet, that is commonly known to fail, for a dangerous game animal? This is my opinion only here but, why flat out lie and say a bullet is tough when it is well known to be just the opposite? There is no such thing as a tough copper washed lead bullet. It just isn't so. I've been making my own bullets for a lot of years. Just over 3 decades to be exact. The lead used in those is a soft alloy. If they were a copper washed harder cast, I would have some more faith in them. But they are pretty close to pure lead on the index. Fine for whitetail, probably fine for elk if you stay off the shoulder, but absolutely not a bullet I would bet my life of for an adult boar bear. If you want to advertise for CVA and powerbelts, more power to you. But lets be a little more thoughtful about recommendations on bullets that will be used for a dangerous game animal. And yes, black bears are very dangerous. They are fast, incredibly powerful, and quite vicious when cornered, injured, or provoked.
07-20-2017, 05:06 PM
#44
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Rapid City, South Dakota
Posts: 3,732
Seems strange that an individual would think a 338 grain lead projectile couldn't reliably kill black bear, knowing that 230 grain round ball have been killing black bear for centuries. They say history education is lacking in our schools; perhaps some are ignorant of the facts. The facts are 170g, and 230g prb have been killing black bear successfully, as you write, for HUNDREDS of years. Wouldn't a 338 grain lead bullet do better than a lighter weight round ball?
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07-20-2017, 07:02 PM
#46
Typical Buck
Join Date: Apr 2017
Posts: 995
Yes Ronlaughlin, PRB's have been killing Black Bear for hundreds of years. And I'm sure hundreds of men using PRB's have suffered as well from not penetrating and anchoring that animal. Shot choice is limited when using a weak bullet. That's all I'm saying. And when you are shooting at an animal that can turn around and rip your throat out or crush your scull without much effort at all, then I myself like using a bullet that I know will penetrate well and crush bone. I'm not saying that the 338plat wouldn't kill a Bear. I'm saying I wouldn't trust my life on it's poor record for penetration. It's fairly simple logic that I just don't understand why some on here can't seem to understand. Soft lead, copper washed that can't even be honestly called a jacket, hollow point. Just were in that combination do you see a beast of a bullet? I see a failure waiting to happen myself.
07-20-2017, 07:31 PM
#47
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Rapid City, South Dakota
Posts: 3,732
Believe what you wish. If you want to peddle misinformation....fly at it.
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07-21-2017, 09:29 AM
#48
Typical Buck
Join Date: Apr 2017
Posts: 995
I'm not biased ronlaughlin. I just do my research and go by the thousands of reports. Even our resident CVA and powerbelt advertiser, MountainDevil54, has many posts about the need to load down the 338 platinum. I ran across one of his reports under his Frontier Muzzleloader ID that stated that exact thing. Stay off bone and load 90gr or less for close up shots because of over expansion and poor penetration. I'll try to pull the quote and put it up here. Not 100% sure how to do that but I'll give it a swing.
That was a direct quote from him while in the same article he was saying they were fantastic penetrating bullets. Just how can it be a fantastic performing bullet if it penetrates poorly, you have to stay off heavy bone, and you need to load it down for closer range shots? That doesn't add up to a fantastic performing bullet in my book. Or anyone else's with even a small amount of experience. That ads up to a sub par, not even close to a premium bullet. Now if you want to continue arguing about their poor performance, go right ahead. I'll take the word of the thousands that have had bad experiences with them as well as what I have seen for my damn self.
If you know the area you are hunting very well and have a good idea on the ranges you will be shooting, you'll be able to settle for less powder and get better penetration at shorter distances. Powerbelts are pure lead and like all pure lead conical bullets, pure lead plus high velocity plus close distance shots, often result in an over expanded bullet that has limited penetration, especially once it makes contact with heavy bone. Remember this and try to avoid hard heavy bone shots if the animal is a lot closer than you had planned on it being!
07-21-2017, 10:21 AM
#49
Banned
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Boncarbo,Colorado
Posts: 9,186
seems that some are trying to re-word to put my words in the wrong order.
The 338gr platinum is a BEAST. I'd have no problem using it on an elk, bear or even a moose if I had any to hunt.
If you think you need a streamlined armor piercing bullet pushed by 120+ grains of blackhorn209, by golly, you folks go right ahead!
The 338gr platinum is a BEAST. I'd have no problem using it on an elk, bear or even a moose if I had any to hunt.
If you think you need a streamlined armor piercing bullet pushed by 120+ grains of blackhorn209, by golly, you folks go right ahead!
07-21-2017, 10:38 AM
#50
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Rapid City, South Dakota
Posts: 3,732
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