You asked me how many animals I have taken down. I said not many.

Now lets factor in the next part where I said WE have downed a lot of deer and elk with them since 2002.

WE, my dad and brother and I.

Since 2002.

Powerbelts in general.

Its like explaining things to children! :D

Just trolling me as usual though. I get it ;)

WAUGH! We'll make you a mountain man sooner or later with yarns like that! :party0005:

:D

Please correct me if i am wrong...........The posters in this thread that are bashing powerbelt bullets are posters that are going by what they have 'read'. These powerbelt bashers have never actually shot an animal using the bullet, yet they are vehemently bashing it.

This type of poster has been witnessed here for years now. This exact same behavior is going on currently by the folks in the minority.

For clarification purposes...... i should write, i have never hunted with a powerbelt bullet, nor will i, however i do know they actually work, and am not afraid to admit the truth.

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I've never used Powerbelts either. Not on the range or for hunting. But only because I refuse to pay over a dollar a bullet for what they are. If I were going to lay out that kind of money for bullets it would be for a Barnes.

That said, I believe the game killing performance of a (non-HP) Powerbelt and the game killing performance of a .50 or .54 round ball would be pretty much the same out to 75/80 yards. Beyond that, the PB likely has the advantage due to weight and BC.

If I'm hunting where I expect shots over 75 yards or so I'll use a full bore soft lead conical or a jacketed bullet in a sabot. However, I do love round balls in the right situation. My longest RB kill was a frontal chest shot with a .535 ball at 145 lb. buck at 82 yards. He ran about 40 yards, laid down and died. Still, I hesitated to take the shot at that distance.

hesitated on a deer at 82 yards? WAUGH! Pilgrim, you wouldnt make it out here in the rockies.

Lung shots fellows. Head shots if they are within 40 yards or so. I hate that though, its messy.

Incorrect again ronlaughlin. I haven't used them but the old man gave a few of them a shot and I have witnessed for myself the horrible penetration of several powerbelt weights and models including the 338plat. I have also seen the horrible reports online about them. The simple and inarguable fact is, they are a pure lead conical bullet that has an extremely light jacket if you can even call it a jacket. Bullet making isn't rocket science people. Pure lead doesn't hold up at speed when confronted with bone. Just why do you think the copper jacket was invented? It surely wasn't to make the damn bullet pretty. Electroplating copper onto lead doesn't do much of anything to increase the strength or better control the opening.
ronlaughlin, you will find I am very much like my old man. I don't speak from just what others have said. If I am in a subject, you can bet it will be from personal experience on things I have either been directly involved in or personally witnessed for the most part. I may pad my experience with research just to make sure my ducks are in a row but you can bet I will have personal knowledge.
MountainDevil54, you trying to say I haven't taken 10 black bears weighing in over 400 pounds? And another 11 over 300? My very first black bear was taken in the Smokies in 1979 and weighed in at 342 pounds. Taken with a .30-30 Marlin at approximately 70 yards. I was a crusty old age of 12. Even back then I didn't shoot the little ones. The old man damn near made me pass on that one. I would have probably kicked him in the shin and shot it anyway but it was a close call. My largest was 508 pounds taken in almost the same area in 1989 with a .30-06 at 110 yards. Never insult my integrity MountainDevil54.

Those deer where you are must be bullet proof! I bet I could come out there and drop them all day long with those no killing powerbelts.

Im not a huge bear hunter. I kind of put it in the same class as turkey hunting. Boring. I prefer deer and elk hunting. Better meat and more options.

Now thank you for bringing up the 30-30... The kind of game crippling... Or so I read.

What you mean................i haven't been incorrect ever in this thread.


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Yes, because it was a frontal shot. I have limitations and so do round balls.

You were incorrect and asked to be corrected when you stated I and others had no personal experience with powerbelts. And you were incorrect when you stated that the powerbelts were good penetrating bullets when it has been proven time and time again that they aren't. A good penetrating bullet doesn't have to be shied away from bone impact. That's just plain ridiculous to claim otherwise.
No MountainDevil54 the deer here aren't bullet proof. Nor are they anywhere else in the world I'd imagine. But we weren't talking deer now were we? We were talking black bear. I know you like to change the subject when you are getting proven wrong over and over and over again. But the simple fact is, black bear, especially when it comes to shoulder shots, are a damn site tougher than whitetails. So you say, stay off the shoulder. Sure, take away 45% of your target area because you want to use an ill performing bullet. Makes sense huh? Again, ridiculous.