With Club X™ and Barnes’ Copper Club™
Your Barnes Product Test Results
We’re pretty excited about the great feedback we’ve been getting on the BLOG. How about letting us know some of your “home-brewed” test results with Barnes products?
*NOTE: FOR TECHNICAL QUESTIONS, PLEASE EMAIL:
email@barnesbullets.com
Thanksgiving morning, my hunting party was doing drives. My friend next to me kicked up a bedding doe and instead of running ahead towards the shooters, it headed sideways straight at me. I didn’t have much time to set up the perfect shot. All I could do was locate the other hunters so I wasn’t shooting into them, line up the Bushnell Trophy red dot between the front shounders and squeeze off a round. I hit her perfect at 10 yards and she dropped instantly. This was the first animal I have taken with a Barnes bullet so I was eager to see what it had done.
I was very surprised to see the entry wound as large as the exit, around 1 1/4 inch. I know the Barnes TSX bullets are supposed to open on contact, but this made no sense. I looked back towards where I took the shot and sure enough, I found a sapling (2″ diameter) with a small chunk taken out on the back side at almost exacly 5 yards from the deer and 5 yards from my shooting position.
Luckily for me, the bullet went dead center through the sapling and didn’t deflect to the side. When the bullet struck the chest of the doe, it was fully expanded and I could clearly see the X shaped cut from the 4 petals. The bullet tore the aorta completely from the heart and exited just beind her ribcage.
AR10-A2 (.308 Win) Barnes TSX 168gr Varget handload
Prior to my trip to South Africa in August 2007 , I made the decision to go with one load for both my and my son’s 30-06 rifles , to make bullets the easiest part of the trip . I settled on the 180 grain TSX . It was a very good decision . The load killed everything we shot at , usually with one shot . All the way from a little Steenbuck up to a Kudu bull . Weight retensions were almost all 100% !Needless to say , some were not weighed because the bullet passsed all the way through .
I followed Barnes own load chart specs exactly .
For my next trip , I am developing some new loads for my recently acquired .375 Ruger , with 270 , 300 grain TSX , plus a 300 gr banded solid .
a new Barnes tsx fan after dissatisfied w/ the preformance of other bullets i will not mention i found my .280 T/C Prohunter likes this tsx and the deer dont. rarely will you here a GA deerhunter say this. I shot a deer @ 225+yards(just dont get that many long shots here in the south) The bullet preformance was great. this was from a factory load federal on the range i have been throughly impressed all though im going to see what kind of hand loads i can come up w/ Look ing foward to using more of Barnes products in the yrs. to come
I use a remingtom M700BDL in 308 Handloaded 150 gr.TSX. Deer season this year in Nebraska I shot a 6×5 mule deer at 360 yards. Witnessed and distance was verified with two diferent Busnell Yardage pro rangefinders This was in the Sandhills area so close shots are almost nill. Three deer seasons using the TSX in this rifle = three deer
P.S.have pictures
FIRST,THANK YOU FOR MAKING SUCH A GREAT BULLET!!!!I AM USING YOUR 120 GR.TSX IN MY 7MM MAG. I WAS HUNTING IN KENTUCKY AND SHOT THE BIGGEST DEER I HAVE EVER SHOT.300LBS. WITH 14 P0INTS.ABOUT AN 30YD.SHOT THAT TOOK OUT BOTH SHOULDERS,COMPLETE DESTRUCTION OF EVER THING BETWEEN!!EVEN AT POINT BLANK RANGE,BULLET DIDN’T BREAK UP ON IMPACT,JUST KEPT ON GOING.VERY HAPPY AT THE RESULTS OF YOUR TSX. BULLETS.
This past sunday mourning 12–16-07 my wife tested her 6.5×308 again( aka .260 Rem.)with a 120 gr. x bullet on her late season cow elk . Again a one shot kill at a lazered 347 yds. Total penatration into the neck and out the right shoulder. These bullets make all the differance. Lite recoil like a .243 but takes elk size game with no sweat. Love those “X” bullets.
To those of you that have taken the time to read these blogs and have given the support to Barnes for there so deserved efforts. Here is a story that I would like to share with you. I recently took a hunting trip to Bedford, PA with my father in-law like we do every year. I purchased the Barnes TSX 130 grain in .270 cal. I took a shot on a 8 point buck which was 140 lbs dressed. The biggest I’ve ever killed. With the bullet entering his back it broke his spinal cord in half dropping him in his tracks. It was not the best shot placement but the buck turned right as I shot. I have pics of the recovered bullet and will show them on thefiringline.com under the art of the rifle topic. These are the best bullets ever produced IMO. After dressing the deer I have never seen so much damage to the vital organs. It was amazing to see the meat untouched. It sends a shock exactly as advertised to the soft tissue causing a huge channel wound. If anyone is interested in the pics or video email me at haffieldj@aol.com Thanks, Jason Haffield
Also I would like to add to the above response that the shot was recorded at 156 yards. Pretty Awesome!
Barnes TSX 130 grain in .270 cal
——————————————————————————–
I asked a few questions in a thread a few months ago before going on my annual deer hunt in Bedford, PA. I am sure gald I made my choice on the Barnes TSX because here is what happened:
About an hour had past just sitting under a oak tree when I suddenly heard a single deer running my way. I knew from previous experience hunting in PA that doe usually run in herds so I was pretty sure that this was going to be a buck. I did not waist any time and had my rifle up to my shoulder. As I was looking through the Nikon Buckmaster scope I saw the one side had three points so I knew right away I had a shooter especially by his body size. I took my shot ranging in at 165 yards. As soon as the Rifle Basix trigger was pulled the deer suddenly turned quick making the bullet place in his upper back. The deer dropped in his tracks like a ton of bricks. I could not believe my eyes when I saw the deer channel wound. The spinal cord was completely blown in two and only the soft tissue (skin, arteries, veins…) was torn. The muscle had very little damage. The bullet did as advertised on Barnes website. It completely made a shockwave upon entering the cavity it created. As I entered his body in the ridge where he lay I noticed a shiny object. It was the bullet completely together, 100% retention, and split like a four way razor. I was amazed! I took a video clip of the bullet and also took some pics. Hopefully, when Barnes hears of this story they would like to see the video of the bullets aftermath. I was so pleased with the results I got with the 140 lb dressed deer. Please look at thefiringline.com website to see pics and if anyone wants to see the video of the bullet recovered please email me haffieldj@aol.com
Just want to share my experience with Barnes Bullets. My son got me interested in using them a year ago and it has been my choice since then. He shot an 8 point and it dropped in it’s tracks, actually went sideways with a hit from a 7mm mag. I have followed up on that by taking a doe this year that reared up when hit and jumped straight up from it’s hind legs and crashed onto it’s nose. This shot came from a 7mm08 in 140 gr TSX. Upon cleaning this deer it was found that the heart had actually been severed at the top and was basically lying free in the chest. My son’s deer also had a heart shot and this time it also sustained brain damage from the hit as noted when we cut the skull plate to get the antlers off. Of note to me was that unlike other bullets, the Barnes TSX didn’t do excessive meat damage and both deer yielded considerably more meat than I have gotten in the past.
Next we will be loading 30-06 and 9.3×62 mm. I am sure both will be exceptional bullets too.
Thanks for the forum………….Tom
Hi there, I do a lot of coyote calling with my .223 Remington, and recently found an area where there are ferral Russian bores. Not wanting to pack a larger (or another) gun, I loaded some 53 grain .224 XLC up to 3200 fps. Accuracy is great (less than 1/2″ at 100 yards) and performance is fantastic. I have taken 4 boars with these bullets, and all were lethal and efficient kills. The largest boar was 350 lbs neck shot at 250 yards. The bullet destroyed the spinal column and exited. The other 3 boars were in the 150 lbs range and were double lung shots at 150 to 200 yards. I did not recover any of these bullets, as they were all pass thoughs. Fantastic performance and a fantastic product all around!!
howdy. just wanted to let you guys know that your new varmint grenede is fantastic. i have shot over twenty coyotes with that cute little 36 grain .224″ bullet. the big surprise was that i have yet to ruin a hide. the bullet leaves the muzzle of my 22-6mm imp. at 4500 fps. accuracy is in the .5 to .75 inch range. cant wait to try the new 26 grainer in my 204. any chance you could make .172 tsx? thanks for a fantastic product.
I’m beginning load development for a 6.5×280 Ackley custom by Holland and would love a 90 or 95-gr. TSX. As everyone is discovering, the quick expansion and high mass retention of X Bullets makes light-for-caliber bullets more effective that much heavier, traditional bullets. The old 75-gr. X in my slow-twist 6mm Rem. was deadly on whitetails, and the 130-gr. X in my Win M70 Featherweight .30-06 grouped at an amazing 1/2 inch. Light and fast with an X is the way to go. Shoots through nearly everything and puts it down faster than any other bullet I’ve ever used — and I’ve used most of them on 6 continents. Bring on the 95-gr. 6.5 and bring back the 75-gr. .243!
First let me thank you for building a bullet that the .300 ultra mag does not destroy.I have been using the 180 gr. tsx on bear and have shot 5 all one shot kills and not a step taken. Recently I used my .243 for black bear in PA and took a 280 lb sow with a tsx in 85 gr it was a 160 yd shot it ran 15 yds. another 1 shot kill. I think that says it all. thanks again for a great bullet
Regards
Ed Rozanski
Owner
HIGH PEAKS BUGS & BONEZ
I bought my dad a Rem 700 Sendero in .300 Win for a Wyoming elk hunt two seasons ago. With Federal Premium/180gr TSX and a little trigger work the Sendero grouped well under 2 inches at 200 yards right out of the box.
My dad’s first shot with his new rifle was at a pronghorn about 150 yards away. The TSX bullet broke the last rib going in, tore up the vitals, and produced a 1-inch exit wound behind the off shoulder. The animal ran about 50 yards and piled up. We never did get a shot at an elk, though.
Last summer we took the Sendero to Zimbabwe. Our P.H. indicated that African game would likely run some distance after being hit, but everything we shot was dropped in its tracks — 2 warthogs, 2 impala, and a Cape buffalo cow. The only bullet recovered was from the buffalo, hit with a frontal chest shot just inside the shoulder at 40 paces. All 4 petals were broken off the TSX, but the retained weight (124gr, 69%) was sufficient to penetrate the full length of the vitals and well into the grass-filled stomach.
In September my dad got his 6×6 bull elk in Utah at 175 yards. The elk was uphill, almost broadside on the edge of a canyon, and had to be dropped on the spot. The TSX broke the near leg below the shoulder, destroyed the heart and lungs, broke the off shoulder, and lodged under the hide. The elk collapsed on impact. Bullet weight retention was 88%.
After seeing this versatility in producing one-shot kills on everything from a 100 pound pronghorn to a 1300 pound Cape buffalo, penetrating plenty of bone and muscle to get the job done, and considering the excellent accuracy of the TSX, my dad and I won’t be hunting big game with anything else. Except for one sighter shot taken before his elk hunt, every TSX my dad has sent downrange has put meat on the table!
I have to tell you that i love your bullet design!
You can call me a barnes bullet freak or a barnes junky, but i have to say yall got it goin on with bullet performance! As of now i reload six different styles of your product line,-varmit grenade,-tsx,-barnes original,-xpb,-tmz and -mz expander. I load your .429 225gr xpb in my 444 marlin and get 1 inch groups that i am happy with but the big hollow point makes the bullet not ballisticly friendly. A TMZ in .429 would be the ticket! Please consider and let me know. THANKS FOR YOUR TIME MR.RANDY!
Hi there! I am a professional hunter in South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique and shoot between 600 and 800 of your bullets every year. Just as I settle on one bullet for any of the 7 rifles that I reload for, then you change the design or stop making it. It is costing me a fortune to work out new loads every time you guys change something that aint broke. For my 243win, 308win and 30-06 I have been using the 95gr xlc. 150gr xlc and 180gr xlc. All shot half MOA groops and now I can not get them anymore. PLEASE!!!!!!! Help me out and stic to one that works. Thanx 4 a great product
I recently bought a new Ruger Hawkeye 338 win mag.
It shoots 1″ groups with all bullets & most loads at 100 yards, but When I tryed some of these .338 Barnes Tripple Shock bullets, I discovered a level of accuracy that blew my mind.
I set up my targets at 200 yards, put my rifle on the sand bags and carefully shot a 3 shot group measuring .41 inches at 200 yards with my 3-9 power scope. I couldn’t believe it!
There was somewhat gusty wind that day and the temp was -12 degrees. I seated the bullets to the lower edge of the first groove.
I can’t wait to try the bullets on game and think I will never find another load and bullet combo that will shoot this accurately.
The Barnes Tripple Shocks are definately worth the money and I will be tryin some of their 250 gr bullets next.
Is it just me or am I the only “crazy go nutz” hole-puncher on the firing line completely gaga about .257 ballistics. I have a .25-06 Rem that is lights out with the 100gr. TSX, IMR 4831, & Federal 210M primers in a heavy barrel Encore. To date my longest one shot, dead where he stood, 206 lb. whitetail kill is 315 yds! It really doesn’t matter which quarter bore platform you fire from (except for the .257 Roberts, case capacity issues) you’ll get some of the best trajectories, i.e. .25-06 Rem or Ack. Imp., or .257 Weatherby Mag, and great knockdown energy for medium sized game out to distances most of us wouldn’t bother to shoot. Finally and most importantly they are powder-puffs to shoot. I mean if recoil is the sworn enemy to accuracy then .24, .25, .26, and .27 are really all a boy or girl needs in the deer woods. I have shoulder thumpers in my gun safe as well, but dead is dead! Please Randy and all the people there at Barnes, give a fanatic quarter bore guy a Tipped TSX or even better yet an MRX in .25 cal. offerings.
P.S. Long live the quarter bore!!
Thank you for creating the triple shock. This is the deadliest bullet on the plantet. I shoot the 100 gr tsx out of my .257 stw, vel averages 3790 fps, and can group 1/2 in @ 100 yds most any day. I have shot 17 deer during the last 2 deer seasons and all acted as if they had been hit in the head with a sledge hammer. When I pull the trigger their chin hits the ground. My farthest shot to date is 418 yds in an Alabama hayfield, the distance made no difference, the result was the same. The combination your superior bullet and the velocity of the stw is certain death to our Southern Whitetails.
A big +1 to Mr. Spomer’s request for a lighter .264 TSX/TTSX.
I have had great results with the 100 gr .257 TSX out of my 25-06. No complaints with the 120 or 130 gr TSX/6.5×55 combo other than I’d like to drive the bullets faster at reasonable pressures to ensure the traumatic expansion we know and love.
Count me in as a member of the we-want-a-lighter-6.5-TSX crew. I killed three mule deer with my .260 shooting the 120 TSX at 2900+ fps last year, so I’m by no means dissatisfied. But…a 100 gr TSX would let me pick up a couple hundred feet per second velocity and attendant trajectory improvement — without giving up any terminal performance.
So what do you say? Anything between 95 and about 105-108 gr would be great.
Thanks!
would like to see 75gr .243 tsx 85gr .257tsx 100gr .284tsx these bullets are awesome.
I’m trying TSX bullets for the first time. I’ve used the rest so my results with the TSX will be measured against a known quantity. I’m currently working up loads for the .223 Rem/53 gn. & 45 gn TSX (1in12 twist), 6mm Rem./85 gn. TSX (1in10 twist), 270WSM/110 TSX (1in10 twist). I’m only on the 223 at this point, but if this is any indication of what to expect from the other calibers I’m already impressed. Working up in 1/2 gn increments, 22 gn to 24 gn of AA2460, I’m already getting 2988 average fps and 1/2 inch 3shot groups with the 53 gn TSX. This from a Ruger 77 MK II factory stock (with Timney trigger) Standard Sporter 22″ barrel. I’ll come back at the end of the 2008 hunting season and give a full account of results and performance.
my friends and i have been messing with barnes bullets for years. never have one of us come up with a sad tale. bullets always perform as advertised. almost allways a pass through on deer and elk, with all bullets, from .270 to .375. i couldnt get the coated ‘x’ to fly very good in my .375 ackley magnum, but the 400 lb. black bear i shot had a giant hole, right on the money , and expired instantly. 340 yds, 270 gr. coated “X” at 2925fps. there was also an interesting tunnel through the oak brush after exiting the bear, but we couldn’t find the bullet. since colorado doesn’t offer anything to stop an ‘x’ bullet from a larger caliber, we have experimented on green pinon trees about 16″ in diameter, these are a pass through also. whereas a 300 gr. round nose lead bullet comes apart and sometimes the lead will exit the tree. we have also shot sandstone boulders, and have yet to see an ear break off of a barnes bullet. the bullets open up as advertised and stay together in solid rock, so for now i think i’ll stick with barnes as the best performing, toughest hunting bullet on this planet. thanks guys! p.s. id love to see a 270 grain triple shock boattail for my .375. cooper.
I’ve been using Barnes X bullets for as long as I can remember. I still have some in 348 Winchester that I use in my model 71 and have killed several deer with it and have never found a bullet; all one shot humane kills. What amazes me is how accurate my rifles are with Barnes bullets. From the 348 to my favorite caliber the 35 Whelen to the 300 WSM Kimber rifle………..using the MRX bullet. My Ruger 77 in 35 Whelen using 225 grain XLC’s shoots a half inch group. That’s incredible!!! Glad I still have a good supply of those blue babies!
The main thing I have to say is: The quality of your product is unequalled in this industry. PERIOD. Yes, Nosler is a good if not great product but no one can beat the “unleaded” fuel I put into my rifles. Thanks again for a great bullet.
Now where’s my Reloading Manual #4? heh heh
I HAVE WORKED FOR ONE OF THE MAJOR BULLET COMPANYS FOR SOME TIME NOW .(NO LONGER)
THE FIRT BULLET I WANTED TO HUNT WITH AFTER LEAVING THE COMPANY WAS BARNES. WHY BECUSE I SAW WHAT THEY DID IN BULLET TESTING. WENT ON A TEXAS HILLCOUNTRY WHITETAIL HUNT 480YRDS 300 WSM 130 TTSX 3550 FPS.
3 SHOT GROUPS .730 -.308=.422 SUB HALF M.O.A @ 100 YRD. HIT THE BUCK 3RD RIB BULLET EXITED FAR FRONT
SHOULDER HE WAS DOWN FOR GOOD. GREAT BULLET DO I NEED TO SAY ANY MORE. (THANKS RANDY & CONI )
I shot and killed a feral hog at 100 yards with a 130 grain Barnes triple shock-x bullet (270 Win.) from Federal premium ammunition last weekend. That bullet dropped him like a hot potato! This is an amazing bullet.
I went on a pronghorn hunt a couple of years ago in Wyoming. Using the 180gr. in my .300 Win Mag, with 18-20mph cross winds, dropped a nice one at 349yds. The Steyr was sighted in for 200yds and the bullet hit within an inch of where I was aiming. Great Bullets!
Please bring back the 0.30 caliber 220 grain RN Super Solid. Please do not re-design it with the flat nose. The spitzer nose was a good design. It did not tumble. Maybe give it the bands in the shank for less barrel fouling. That bullet provides some awesome penetration. Great product.
I hunt varmints with my 6.5-06 using your competitors 100 gr plastic tip bullet @ 3300 fps — this sure shoots flat. BUT using this same bullet would not give me much confidence should I come across some bigger beast especially at close range (oink). A 6.5 mm 100 to 107 grain triple shock would make me happy. I don’t plan to shoot elephants or nothing like that with the 6.5.
I bought a 458 Winchester Magnum as a fun gun. I shoot primarily targets and at times venture to the farm for varmints. I started developing loads using 350 to 400 grain bullets at various velocities with poor results. Being used to shooting below 1/2 minute groups I was determined to achieve the same performance from this cartridge. Many said it wouldn’t happen. At a local gun show I talked to an older gentleman who claimed that since the 458 was originally developed with the 500gr bullet in mind – thats what I should be firing. I located a box of Barnes 500gr.X and a box of Triple Shock. Back to the bench. Loaded 50grs of IMR 3031 5 rounds each.
At 100 yds the best group measured just under an inch. I was jumping for joy as you can imagine. The Triple Shock group measured – YES .633″ This gun is not for sale – EVER. Ever gone squirrel hunting with a 458 Winchester. You know when he tries to hide on the opposite side of the tree? That doesn’t matter any more. Well, Barnes is definitely the only bullet this rifle will shoot.
Last night, I killed a 240 lbs feral hog (a boar) at 125 yards. Once again, I used a 130 grains Barnes triple shock-x bullets (270 Win.) from Federal premium ammunition. The hog ran about 40 yards from where it was shot. While gutting and cleaning the hog, I found one of the four razor-sharp copper petals that fragmented inside the hog’s shoulder.
I have used competitive products up til Sep of 2006. I had sent my Dakota 76 to HCR for accurizing and they returned the rifle stating that the guaranteed results were achieved with Fed Premium ammo loaded with 225 TSX. So…without time to handload some I went on an elk hunt with the Mescalero Apache Indians using factory ammo. 3 days into the hunt I had a 340 bull down with one shot at 175 yds. The animal went 20 yards and game over. Complete penetration. I then returned home and spent some time at the range and was extremely impressed with the accuracy. I decided to try 150 gr TSX in my 280. Same relults. Extreme accuracy (for me) and fantastic performance on everthing from 100# whitetails to 500# Nilgai. I headed to Mozambique in Jul/Aug of 2007 and used the 338 with the 225s on everything from Impala to Croc and Hippo. The Croc and the Hippo both managed to stop one bullet each so I managed to recover two bullets…everthing else is still whistling through the bush. I have since purchased 180gr TSX for my 300 WinMag. Same results…excellent accuracy excellent performance on game. The few I have recovered reveal superb mushrooming. The TSX is my goto bullet for all game (I have not,however used them in my 416 Rigby…too many rounds still left in my inventory). Fantastic product.
good product
I get a kick out of the cannons your product users use.I use savage 243 with 85gr tsx on deer 250 to 300lb/moose up to 1400lb and black beer to 750lb.every single animal I have shot has never taken 1 step after the shot.down at dead in tracks.An excellent bullets placed properly out 2 300 yards is far deadlier than a cannon poorly shot.
I have used your products for the better part of the last 20 years. I have had the opportunity to harvest several elk during this period of time. All of them with Barnes Bullets. I can’t begin to tell you how many deer and antelope that we have taken with you bullets as well. I might add that if we did our part all were one shot kills. The accuracy of your various bullets (I load for several different calibers) is absolutely amazing in my rifles. I’m very forunate in that I don’t own a rifle that won’t shoot you bullets sub MOA at 100yds. I have a Kimber Super America in .30 caliber that if I do my part it will shoot a 3/4″ group at 300 yds with your 180 gr. TSX. For all the years that I’ve shot your bullets, I’ve only recovered two of them. The most recent from a bull elk that I shot while he was laying in his bed. The bullet entered at the base of his neck and was recovered just under the hide in the upper portion of a hind quarter. It started out as a 180 gr., XBT. After cleaning it up I weighted it on my scale at 179.3 grains. None of the four petals broke off. It might have started out at this weight. Don’t know, didn’t weight it before I loaded it. You make a most excellent product that has given great satisfaction to me and my family. Thanks Guys!!!
Since 1992, when started handloading, lots of bullets from X family used in cal 222Rem to 416Rigby and not so many Solids in 270W 375HH and 416Rigby. In Norway we have restrictions so cal less than 6,5/.264 is mainly for Roedeer, tried so far 222rem, 22-250, 243W, 240Wby, 25-06. No recovered bullets, most dead on the spot. My favorit 240Wby will only perform with the old 75grs X, but that it does well. Other cal like 270W 7mmRM 30-06 also work great on Roedeer as well as deer and elg(our mooose). I like better 340Wby 375HH when statinary and 350RM when walking with dogs for this bigger game, many taken, few bullets to show. 400grs in 416 worked great when cape buffalo was standing still, but no bullet stayed on.
What I have not yet tried is my old Win 1895 405 with 300grs X, no data for european powder. Guess 10% off working load with other 300grs bullet will work?
The Hague, Holland, Europe.
Reload data for Vituviori powder: I use the Mauser M03 in the .243 Win Caliber with 85gn TSX bullets. Load with VV N160. At 100m I shoot 1/2″ groups. I use a .300 Win Mag (also with the Mauser M03) with 150gn TSX with VV N560 and sub MOA groups at 100m.
My experience in the field with TSX are 100% guaranteed result. The TSX will exit, while destroying vital organs like nothing else. I won’t use anything else.
I shoot a custom made 6.5-06 for deer. Because the barrel twist is not as fast as it should have been the only bullets that shoot are 100 gr. X-bullets. I have know complaints, these bullets shoot 3/4 MOA and I have made 8 one shot kills in a row. Please consider makeing them again or Tripple-Shock. I am hoarding the few I have left. Thanks
I live in New Zealand and use a Sako 3006 on Red Deer. About a year ago I started re-loading Barnes TSX 180grn projectiles. I used 22 projectiles to work up a load that performed incredible well, 15mm group at 120 metres and 31mm at 250 metres. I then set myself the target of taking a deer with each of the remaining 28 rounds. Well last weekend right on last light at 276 metres I saw a really huge stag right on the edge of the bush, there was already 5 or 6 hinds out in the open and I knew this guy had to be around somewhere. He stepped side on and then very warily gazed all around eventually staring straight at my position. I steadied the crosshairs directly in line with his front leg and about 150mm down from his topline.(Drop over this distance was around 165mm.) I concentrated on a slow, very steady closing of my trigger finger into my thumb, all the while feeling the added pressure of a truely big stag as well as the rapidly closing light and the fact he was number 28! My sight picture dissappered in the muzzle flash taking with it my night vision. By the time I had regained some sort of night vision the last of the light had faded and I could not make out any discernible objects. I found my flashlight and after a trek of around 30 minutes arrived at the spot I had last seen the monster stag. The shot had felt really good, (I always reckon its a good shot when I get a slight surprise when the rifle goes off, means I am concentrating on the squeeze not the recoil!) I flashed the light around and there right where I had last seen him was my stag, stone dead, he had not taken a single step after the shot hit him. He was a 12 pointer royal and measured a staggering 48.5 inches long and 38 inches wide with a beam of 7 inches. How would I score Barnes TSX? 28 out of 28! why do people use anything else?
I switched to Barnes copper bullets for big game hunting about five years ago, and since that time have killed six or so elk and a lot of deer with Barnes bullets in my 25 Roberts, 25-06, and 308Win.
Unlike previous experience with jacketed lead “H-mantel” bullets, Barnes bullets retain virtually 100% of their weight. Well, I’ve only recovered bullets from four elk and a few deer. Usually they go right on through.
Anyway, the big thing I’ve discovered is that with Barnes I can reduce bullet weight (and increase velocity). I’ve switched to 150-gr in the 308W, and to 100-gr in both the 25R and 25-06.
My “Little Brother” and I both happened to kill an elk (one cow and one big bull) with the 25 Roberts/100 gr, and it did just fine both times. We were not intentionally hunting elk with the little 25, but we stumbled on them while mulie hunting.
Great bullet: accurate, uniform expansion at all ranges, and lead free.
i’m new to this site and to Barnes Bullets. I currently shoot the 25 WSSM. I am wondering if any of the readers have any experience with the 25 WSSM. especially in the heaver animals: Pig, Aoudad, Mule deer, and possibly Elk. I have used the caliber with factory loads on light Texas deer and coyote.
Just returned from my second African hunting trip. This year, used the 160 TTSX in my Kimber 84M .338 Federal. Took everything from Waterbuck down to Warthogs with the same load. No problems! Used my .375 Ruger with a Barnes TSX 270 grain for Eland, but believe the .338 would have worked fine also.
During the last two years I have taken a whitetail buck each year. Both were one-shot kills, distances were 405 and 350 yards. I was using the Barnes TXS 150 grain .308 bullet. I am going to try the 130 grain Tipped TSX this year.
I have been using Barnes TXS 300grs in my Mauser M03 Africa 375H&H mag for the two last years both in Africa on all plains game, buffalo as well as on elk (moose) in Norway. The results have all been outstanding with top precision and performans, perfect mushroom and all recovered bullets weighing 300 grs! The ammo performed so well and impressed my PHs in Africa so much that they all asked me to sell the rest of my ammo when I left!
For my next trip to Africa I plan to try Barnes Solids on the buffalos as follow up shots as well as on elephant.
If there is any room for improvement on the TXS in .375 cal it could probably be to make it heavier, for instance 350 grs (with a core of Tungsten/wolfram) in order to increase the bullets SD and also the knock down effect.
I took my first Alaskan brown bear August 13, 2008 during my 4th hunt for a brown. I used a Ruger Hawkeye Alaskan in .375 Ruger. The bullet was a Barnes 300 grain TSX loaded to a muzzle velocity of 2550 feet per second. The bear was 35 yards from the muzzle when hit through the left shoulder. The bullet passed through both ventricles of the heart, the lungs and was found under the off side hide behind the last rib on the right flank. I estimate the bullet penetrated close to 36 inches before coming to rest. The bullet was intact (I have great photos of the bullet but couldn’t figure out how to submit them, I’d be glad to e-mail them if you’d like to have them), with a perfect X-pattern (expanded to 0.770 inch) and weighed 299.4 grains after recovery. The bear fell at the shot and was dead within 3 seconds – no backup shots or tracking. The bear hide squared out at 8 feet 7 inches, est. weight about 800 lbs. Perfect bullet performance. This is one of 3 bears I’ve taken with this combination this year. The other 2 were black bears taken at 269 and 330 yds., squaring at 6.5 and 5.5 ft., respectively, Both bullets passed through the black bears, so neither was recovered. The larger black bear dropped at the shot and never moved. The second, with a broken shoulder, was recovered about 250 yards away. This last was a function of shot placement, not bullet performance. The exit holes in each of the black bears was over 2 inches in each case. Greta bullet in a great caliber and rifle.
Wow! I was recently encouraged to try your TSX bullets for my 270. I picked up some 140gr TSX’s and worked up some loads. My pet load safely hums out of my model 70 @ 3000 FPS MV (+/-20FPS) and consistently delivers sub MOA 5 shot groups. I love these bullets and will continue to use them and not look back. the 140gr rounds are for Muley’s, Elk, and Moose. I think they will do nicely.
PS all recovered bullets retained 82=% of their original weight! the ones that had all four petals still after plowing sand and shale still had 91+% of original weight!-Devastating!
I am new to reloading, but today after firing 50 rounds from my remington model 710 i put a medium sized red apple up on a post at 100 yards split it in two. I am using a TSX 150 with 55 gr. IMR. 4831. I was pleased to have a group of less than 1 and a half inches at 100 yards to begin with and to split that apple. the X expanation was visable at the exit of the apple or what was left of it and the top half was nothing. I wanted to find a bullet that would give more expantion with deep penetration with out complete blow through so the stopping and dropping power of my shot would leave less walking and blood trailing. I think this bullet at less than 100 yards with a lite load will give me just that. I will only load a barnes bullet and tell all my friends that the all copper triple shock is the best way to go. For a 7mm Mag I was extremely impressed at the performance and accuracy I recieved today.
A bit late on this report, but hopefully sufficiently helpful for hunters bound for Africa to submit it belatedly. In June 2006, my son Mike and I hunted plains game in RSA. Mike used his Kimber 8400 in 270WSM shooting Barnes .277″ 140 gn. TSX handloaded to ~3175 fps. He shot 7 animals at ranges from 80-200 yds. No bullets were recovered as all were pass throughs. The animals shot he shot were black springbok, impala, blesbok, hartebeest, black wildebeest, gemsbock, and a zebra stallion – the 200 yd. shot. No animal was lost – impressive performance in my book!