Barnes Bullets

[25/06]

I am thinking of using Barnes Bullets in my Ruger#1 25/06 and Ruger blackhawk 44Mag,and was wanting some input?

[versifier]

Are you having trouble finding an accurate combination with regular bullets? I see no reason to shell out the substantial amout of extra cash to buy them when normal rifle bullets do the jobs they were designed for. As to handgun bullets, cast perform as well or better on game and at the range. They are a solution in search of a problem 99% of the time. If there are real accuracy issues, a new crown costs less than two boxes.

[Paul B]

I think I'm going to have to agree with Versifier on this, at least when it comed to handgun bullets. Ain't nothing a Barnes bullet wiill do that a properly cast bullet won't do, and at a lot cheaper price.

With that said, I'm on the fence about using the TSX bullets in rifles. I've loaded them in my .257 Roberts and they're decently accurate. They group as well or slightly better than the most accurate load I've worked up using conventional bullet so no problem there. The only thing I'm not quite sure of is how well they will work on game. They should be OK at the higher velocity of your 25-06 but possibly a bit iffy in the somewhat lower speeds of the .257.

On the other hand, the 225 gr. TSX is a tack driver in my .35 Whelen. I've dropped elk with my .300 Win. mag. and they go down quick when hit with that rifle and the 200 gr. Speer Hot Core. But the cow elk I shot last year in New Mexico went down so hard when that TSX bullet hit that she actually bounced when she hit the ground. I shot my first deer back in 1949 and a lot of hunting miles have gone down the road since that first deer. Never in all those years have I seen an animal go down so fast and so hard as that cow elk. Now I realize that a statisic of one animal doesn't mean very much but I have to say I was impressed. We jumped her at about 120 yards, give or take and she took off running almost directly away from me slightly quartering to the left. The bullet hit just behind the short ribs and exited between the neck and the right shoulder. Internal damage was massive.

I've picked up some 130 gr. and 140 gr. TSX bullets for my 7x57 Mauser. If I draw a tag for my hunt area of choice, then a bullet like the TSX, while not mandatory is requested by the state of Arizona to be used voluntarily as the area is part of the condor flyway. That doesn't make me too happy as the last time I drew a tag three years ago, the only decent buck I saw was standing with a bunch of does and if I shot him, there was a very good chance I'd have taken a doe as well which would have put me in a bad spot with the game Warden. Funny thing is I've hunted that area about a dozen times in the 33 years I've lived in Arizona (tags are very hard to draw for the area) and not once have I ever seen one of those oversized buzzards.

Personally, if I were using a 25-06 for deer, I'd use any good 120 gr. bullet and not worry. I think the 100 g. bullet might tear up too much meat. Anyway, my 25-06 doesn't like any 100 gr. bullet so it's 120's for me. However, if elk were on the menu, then I would consider either the 100 gr, or preferably the 115 gr. TSX as an option depending which one my gun shot best.

Anyway, those are my thoughts based on what little experience I have with those bullets. Too many people say way too many good things about them for them to be all bad. Me? I'll use them where I'm required to, or asked to use them on a voluntary basis. Other than that I don't see the need, at least for dersized game.
Paul B.

[kodiak1]

My Cast Bullets and Speers and Hornadys have made every animal they killed just as dead as Barnes Bullets or any others.
Dead is Dead.
Work with your gun and your load and unless the barrel is a sewer pipe you should be able to get it to shoot.

My two bits ken.