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Post by bigbrowndog on Aug 6, 2023 10:37:58 GMT -5
I would love speak with the guys at Hornady and find out how they determine bullet suitability. The fact that they recommend the FTX line for large game, is a curiosity to me.
Trapr
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Post by dougader on Aug 6, 2023 13:33:21 GMT -5
I would love speak with the guys at Hornady and find out how they determine bullet suitability. The fact that they recommend the FTX line for large game, is a curiosity to me. Trapr I hear you. A buddy in Oregon shot a smallish blacktail deer a few seasons back with his 45 Colt Ruger Bisley and the FTX bullet, and his shot went high, hitting the buck in the spine, just behind the neck. The bullet lost half its weight and stopped in the neck/spinal column bones. No real penetration to speak of. He recovered the bullet. We were not impressed. |
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Post by zeus on Aug 6, 2023 14:37:51 GMT -5
Mr Rey I ran them exclusively for probably 5 years. Shot maybe 12K of them over that time. 32 grains of 296/110 in my FA. Did about 1615. It was a hammer. I shot quite a few deer end to end. Shot extremely tight groups at 100 yards. Wish I had a pile of them again now. Never shot anything larger than big pigs with them over the years. Deer aren’t much of a test for them 🤣 DID THE BULLETS EXPAND/MUSHROOM OR WERE THERE ANY THAT DIDN'T? I ASK BECAUSE ONE OF THE "REPORTS" I HAVE (2nd or 3rd HAND, MAYBE MORE) IS THAT ON A SHEEP IT DID NOT EXPAND, WHICH SINCE I GOT THAT "REPORT" I HAVE WORRIED ABOUT THE XTP MAG's CONSISTENT EXPANSION AND/OR OCCASSIONAL FAILURE TO EXPAND. I HAVE A BUNCH OF THE 300 XTP MAGS AND HECK IF THEY ARE A GOOD DEER AND HOG BULLET MAYBE I NEED TO START USING THEM. COULD LOAD THEM FOR USE IN REVOLVERS AND MAYBE FOR USE IN MY ROSSI 454 AT MY Punta del Monte HUNTING LEASE WHERE HANDGUN HUNTING IS NOT PERMITTED. I never recovered one honestly. I had exit holes about the size of a half dollar on some but the damage inside was significant. I had one deer that I shot quartering away about 70 yards one afternoon. It had explosive exhalation from entry and blew off the offside shoulder. Literally hindquarters over head and done. I’ve never chased African game or anything like that so I don’t know their reaction but being more muscled up versus deer and hogs, I would think it may give it more resistance and possibly open more but I’m guessing. Based on what I saw with mine, I would hunt anything in the US with them but that’s just me. |
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Post by zeus on Aug 6, 2023 14:40:00 GMT -5
WHAT HAS BEEN MOST SURPRISING TO ME ON THIS THREAD ARE: 1) HORNADY's LISTING THE 300gr XTP FOR USE ONLY ON MEDIUM GAME UP TO 300lbs; and 2) THE VERY FEW USERS THAT HAVE COME FORWARD AND POSTED. I guess part of that could be that when I used them, it was 20 years ago. They were cheap and easy to find. Not long after that, they stopped making them or whatever but I bet a lot of guys on this forum weren’t doing this back that long ago honestly. We have lots of new folks that came on board here since they dried up. Just a guess. But I will say, that bullet at about 1600-1615 was exceptionally accurate in my FAs |
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Post by 45MAN on Aug 6, 2023 14:44:17 GMT -5
LOADED UP 12 300gr XTP MAG BULLETS IN STAR LINE 454 CASES OVER 31.1grs OF 296 VWITH REM 7 1/2 PRIMERS. WILL TEST 'em IN A 12" FA MODEL 83 SIDE BY SIDE WITH SOME 300gr SWIFT A FRAME LOADS IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF WEEKS (I HOPE).
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Post by seminolewind on Aug 9, 2023 18:39:51 GMT -5
Like Rey, I have used the 300 gr XTPM for load development and practice in my 454 and wondered how they would perform on deer and hogs compared to Swift Aframes. I tried both bullets side by side in wet newspaper to get a better feel for how the XTPM would hold up. Wet newspaper is a pretty tough test, and I think the Hornady bullet held its own pretty well compared to the excellent Swift bullet. I hope the link I just learned how to attach will show how the bullets performed. imgur.com/a/jyanbiZ |
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Post by bigbrowndog on Aug 9, 2023 19:07:12 GMT -5
Looked good to me.
Trapr
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Post by 45MAN on Aug 9, 2023 20:23:51 GMT -5
YEP, LOOK GOOD.
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Post by zeus on Aug 9, 2023 21:33:10 GMT -5
Hard to beat an a frame
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Aggie01
.375 Atomic
max
Posts: 1,780
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Post by Aggie01 on Aug 10, 2023 8:43:36 GMT -5
I shot an armadillo at about 15 feet once with a 454 using a 300 XTP. That was inside the splash radius of that combo.
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Post by x101airborne on Aug 10, 2023 8:49:29 GMT -5
I shot an armadillo at about 15 feet once with a 454 using a 300 XTP. That was inside the splash radius of that combo. Yep. Especially if you are downwind of it. LOL. I shot a huge mudslider turtle at 10 feet with a hollow point 44 magnum load and when that turtle vaporized I got a shower of it. I smelled like dead fish all day. Talk about a learning experience. |
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edk
.375 Atomic
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Post by edk on Aug 10, 2023 9:33:59 GMT -5
The A-frame looked as if it indeed held up better than the XTP in seminolewind's testing but it would be fair to say the XTP's performance was in the ballpark. Yes, Swift makes a good bullet however consider that the last online pricing available for the now unavailable A-frame is around $1.50-$2.00/ea while the XTP is available now for around 50 cents. Sure, that money is nothing in the scope of an African safari however the math on Zeus' 12K shots is not insignificant.
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Post by bigbrowndog on Aug 10, 2023 9:45:08 GMT -5
The A-frame looked as if it indeed help up better then the XTP in seminolewind's testing but it would be fair to say the XTP's performance was in the ballpark. Yes, Swift makes a good bullet however consider that the last online pricing available for the now unavailable A-frame is around $1.50-$2.00/ea while the XTP is available now for around 50 cents. Sure, that money is nothing in the scope of an African safari however the math on Zeus' 12K shots is not insignificant. And when considering only one inch of penetration difference, I’d say, save the AF for bigger expensive hunt s and game, and use the XTP for light boned medium game without hesitation. The differences are so close an average of bullets could easily be the same dimensions, or these two could be anomalies and the differences much greater. Still for deer and the average feral hog where 45man hunts the XTP is a good choice. Trapr |
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Post by 45MAN on Aug 10, 2023 10:01:56 GMT -5
LOOKS LIKE THE .452 300gr XTP MAG IS A VIABLE AND AVAILABLE BULLET FOR 454 REVOLVERS AND DEER AND MOST HOGS.
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Post by seminolewind on Aug 10, 2023 10:04:09 GMT -5
I want to note that the bullet tested was the XTPMagnum version of the Hornady bullet. I’d be a no go with a 300 gr XTP at 454 velocities on game.
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