November 20, 2009
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October 2007 Barnes Bullet-n
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I’ve always loved hunting. The experience is even more enjoyable when my wife or daughters hunt with me. Coni and I began hunting mule deer together right after we were married. We taught our two daughters, Jessica and Chandra, to hunt as soon as they were old enough. My grandchildren are following in their footsteps.
Before we bought Barnes Bullets, Coni and I operated a dairy farm in Colorado. In 1972 I drew a Colorado sheep tag, and Coni accompanied me on that hunt. We could only manage three days away from work, so it wasn’t surprising the hunt didn’t succeed. But we had a great time together.
Because we’re so busy here at Barnes, Coni and I often go on separate hunts. But we still go together every chance we get.
Last month we drove to Northern Utah to hunt mule deer. Coni was the hunter, while I shared guiding duties with our friend Garrett Woolstenhulme. We worked hard on the hunt, getting out of bed every morning at 4:00 a.m. and not returning until evening around 9:00 or 9:30.
To reach our hunting area, every day we had to climb an 11,400-foot-high peak. It was fun watching Coni hike through rough country and climb nearly vertical slopes. No one is a more tireless, more determined hunter. She’s a tenacious taskmaster at both work and play. Still as trim and petite as the day we met, she’s developed incredible toughness during a lifetime of hunting. When trailing game, she’s totally focused on the task. Few men are more persistent.
We experienced days of rain, sleet and high winds before Garrett finally spotted a good buck lying in the sagebrush 700 yards away. Then clouds and rain moved in, making it hard to see. The deer was out of range, and it was too late in the day to try stalking closer. We headed back to camp, hoping the buck wouldn’t travel far during the night.
We returned the next morning before daylight, then sat down and began glassing with binoculars. We didn’t see the buck at first, but we eventually spotted him. He’d moved to the next canyon along with two other bucks.
We stalked to within 374 yards, but there was no way of getting closer without spooking the animals. Looking around, I found an outcropping of rock and placed my pack on it. Resting her gun on the pack, Coni carefully aimed and fired. She was using a .300 Winchester Magnum and Federal prototype factory loads that started our new 130-grain Tipped Triple-Shock at just over 3500 feet per second.
The deer was standing, quartering toward us. Coni’s raking shot struck just behind the buck’s shoulder. The bullet penetrated more than 30 inches before exiting the right hip. The buck didn’t move three feet before going down to stay.
I’m proud of my wife. She’s a great outdoors person, and we’ve shared some wonderful experiences. We’ll continue to do so as long as we’re physically able. We hope to continue hunting with our daughters and grandchildren, as well. These experiences are an investment we’ll appreciate even more as we grow older.
Randy Brooks
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There’s good news to report about my recent Utah mule deer hunt.
I was lucky to find a really great deer! My guide and good friend Garrett Woolstenhulme had seen this deer in mid-summer, but hadn’t seen him again since. He thought I’d like this deer, but the challenge was to find him again. The area the buck had been living in wasn’t easy to get to.
Fortunately my husband Randy was able to join me on the hunt. Each morning we hiked up a very tall mountain, starting very early so we could be on top where we could view a lot of country. Getting up there was not an easy task—the elevation was over 11,000 feet. Once there, we spent our time glassing, moving, then glassing again.
Just before sundown Wednesday evening, Garrett spotted the deer lying in the brush, along with another pretty good buck. I really can’t believe Garrett saw him. The way the deer was positioned, spotting him was like finding a needle in a haystack.
It was too late to do anything that evening, so we went down the mountain, intending to be back the next morning even earlier than before. We hoped to spot the buck before he moved to somewhere else. We settled in on top of the mountain around 6:45 a.m.. As hoped, the buck finally appeared a little after seven. He was with two other bucks.
It was going to be a long shot, but I felt confident I could make it. Before the hunt started, I knew I might have to shoot at long distance to get a good trophy, so I was prepared. I was using a Kimber Montana in .300 Winchester Magnum chambering. It was loaded with Federal factory ammunition featuring our new 130-grain Tipped TSX bullet. I was excited to be the first to try this new bullet on mule deer and see just what it would do.
The deer was quartering towards us on a 25° downhill angle 374 yards away. I aimed just behind the deer’s shoulder. When I fired, the deer went down immediately. I was overcome with joy because, first, he was a really great mule deer and, second, I didn’t have to climb up that awful mountain again.
When we reached the deer he was even bigger than I had thought he was. A deer looks a lot different up close than when you see it far away. The bullet had hit a bit higher behind the shoulder than I had planned, but it was definitely a killing shot. The bullet penetrated over 30 inches through the body and exited out the opposite rear leg. The bottom of the heart had turned to jelly, even though the bullet hadn’t hit it. The liver was jellied, as well.
The bullet really did some damage. I was thoroughly impressed with how this relatively lightweight bullet performed. It definitely is a winner, I am really excited to get some bullets out there for the public to try. If you’ll visit our website, you’ll see we are selling .308-caliber, 168-grain Tipped TSX right now. The other calibers and weights I mentioned last month will soon follow.
I really enjoy hunting with Garrett and his outfitting business, Red Creek Outfitters. They have a beautiful lodge, great food and lots of game. You will almost always see moose and elk, and deer are everywhere, along with a lot of other critters. Oh, and if you get your trophy early, you can go fishing in their pond near a lake that is full of trout.
These outfitters know the area like a woman knows a shopping mall. The hunt can be difficult or somewhat easy, depending on how hard you want to work. You’re likely to find a trophy deer anywhere—that’s the beauty of this hunting area. I plan on making many trips back there, and so do a good share of their clients. You can check out their website at www.redcreekoutfitters.com.
I’m preparing for a busy remainder of 2007, and what I’m sure will be a very busy and exciting 2008. We’ll be introducing a lot of great new products, and expect 2008 to be a banner year!
I wish you lots of success in your hunting this year. I hope you’ll share some of your successes with us by sending us photos and stories.
Thanks for supporting Barnes Bullets and being a Club-X member.
Coni
Clean cases make happy loads! When I first started handloading, I noticed my brass had black necks after a single firing. Trying to keep the cases clean, I’d wipe them with a cloth. Much of the black powder residue would come off, but some would remain. I realized I’d have to come up with another method to remove the baked-on residue.
Since I had once worked with paints, I began using a fine rubbing compound commonly used to polish paint. This seemed to work well, but was very time consuming. When my brother returned from the Army, he told me how soldiers used Brasso to polish their belt buckles and other military brass, so I gave it a try. It did well, too, but was still very time consuming.
Rubbing my fingers to the bone cleaning a couple of brass cases wasn’t my idea of a fun hobby. There had to be a better method. I finally broke down and spent the money needed to buy a brass tumbler. Different styles were available, but the cheapest was a vibratory tumbler that just happened to fit my budget. After using it a few times, I decided this cleaning method was the best thing since the invention of the toothbrush.
Two types of media can be used in a brass tumbler—corncob media and walnut shell media. Corncob media seems to shine cases better, but is less aggressive at removing the more stubborn deposits. I prefer using walnut media.
After awhile, walnut media deteriorates, so it takes much longer to achieve the same beautifully polished case. I began using a media rejuvenator called Flitz. This product reduces cleaning time to just a few hours, but leaves a residue you must remove. I do this by laying out an old tee shirt and piling polished brass in the center. I then pull the four corners of the shirt together to create a loose pouch. Next, I roll the brass-filled shirt around on the floor for a few minutes until the residue is removed. I still use this method. If you prefer, you could wipe cases clean one at a time.
Another issue is that the polish builds up inside the cases and eventually gets in the dies. Regular cleaning of the die is required if you intend to use Flitz. A customer once suggested removing the polishing residue by rinsing the polished brass in white gas (unleaded) and leaving the cases out to dry.
The only gripe I have with this method is that the polishing compound leaves my hands red as I dump media from cases by hand. This problem can be resolved with another great tool—a plastic media/case separator used to remove walnut media from the cases.
In our ballistics lab, we simply change the media more often and allow the brass to tumble longer. This eliminates the need to remove polishing residue.
Another trick I quickly learned was to tumble cases prior to sizing. Cleaning cases after sizing allowed media to become stuck in the flash hole, thereby causing an extra step—poking the media out with a straightened paper clip.
When I began working at Barnes, we usually weren’t cleaning large quantities of brass at a time. One of the ballisticians taught me to use fine 000 or 0000 steel wool to shine up a few pieces quickly. If you try this method, you’ll be impressed!
I’m sure there are as many brass-cleaning methods as there are handloaders, and no method that works is wrong. Some just take longer than others. A clean case sizes easier, feeds better and looks nicer.
As I end another Ty’s Tips, again I want to thank you for your patronage!
Ty Herring
Colby Kroff shot this tremendous black bear with a .35 Whelen using a .200-grain Barnes Triple- Shock X-Bullet at 158 yards. The bullet broke both shoulders and exited, putting him down instantly.
“Your bullets are accurate, expand reliably, and produce devastating terminal results,” he said. “I won’t trust my hunts to any other bullet. Thanks for the great products.”.
—Colby Kroff
Boar Stew
2 lb. Wild boar meat cut in 2″ cubes: then marinate in buttermilk and tenderizer for one hour. Wash thoroughly.
1/4 c Flour
1 tsp. Each of Salt and pepper
3 tbsp. Bacon fat
1 diced onion
1 tsp. garlic powder
3 cups meat stock
1/2 tsp. sage
1 cup sherry
3 stalks diced celery
4 diced carrots
Salt and Pepper
Coat wild boar in flour mixed with salt and pepper. Heat fat in a deep pan and brown meat on all sides. Add vegetables and garlic and cook 5 minutes longer. Add stock or water with herbs and cook covered, 1 to 2 hours, depending on the toughness of the boar, until meat is tender. Last, blend vegetables in meat juices, add sherry, and serve.
Serve with potatoes and bread.
Jessica Brooks, Manager
Clay Eshom, Supervisor
Muzzleloader Accuracy with .50-Caliber Expander and Spitfire TMZ Bullets
Recently in the lab, we were talking about the upcoming muzzleloader season. We thought it would be interesting to focus this month’s “From The Lab” on the Expander MZ and tipped TMZ bullets. Customers frequently ask us “which of your saboted bullets should I use, and why?” For our test we used three different firearms—the T/C Triumph, the Knight KBR7, and Knight’s D.I.S.C. Extreme. We used Barnes .50-caliber, 250-grain TMZ and Expander MZ bullets. Velocities recorded in this report are an average for both bullet styles. TripleSeven and Pyrodex pellets were used, with CCI 209 primers for ignition. No lube of any kind was used. We recorded 3-shot group accuracy results at 100-yards for both bullet styles.
When we began testing, we monitored seating pressure, along with other variables like powder charge, primer type, bullet type and weight. Knight and T/C were kind enough to supply the rifles for the test, so we thought we would add a few product comments as well. Note that we consider 50 pounds of pressure to be “medium” in terms of difficulty in pushing the sabot down the barrel.
THE TEST
We began with the KBR7 Rolling Block. The bore of this rifle was tight for the first few inches, then opened up. We had no problems seating the sabot. Our tests indicated no increase in seating pressure between a clean barrel and one that had multiple rounds fired through it. It took 45 to 50 pounds of pressure to start the sabot down the first few inches of the bore. After that, the sabot slid easily down the bore until fully seated. Accuracy with this firearm proved to be best with a 100-grain load of TripleSeven with an average velocity of 1850 fps. Increasing the powder charge to 150-grains of TripleSeven produced an average speed of 2250 fps, but had a tendency to decrease accuracy.
Cleaning the gun was easy; when the trigger assembly was removed, the breech plug was accessible and came out easily. We are all particularly fond of this rolling block with its clean lines and simplistic design. The biggest drawback we found was the location of the safety on the hammer – this could take some getting used to. It was noticed sometimes that the breech block was difficult to open. This wasn’t due to pressure or any type of residue build-up, it appeared to be a mechanical inconsistency of some sort. The trigger could also use some work, but we feel these are very minor issues.
Next, we tested the Thompson/Center Triumph. When we first tested this rifle, we found that Winchester 209 primers would not allow the action to close because the Winchester primers were slightly larger than CCI 209s. With CCI 209 primers, we had no problems closing the action.
This gun has several neat features. It has a break-open action with a breech plug that comes out with a simple half-turn twist. The plug does become harder to remove as repeat shots are fired, but a simple tool is included with the gun to assist in removal. Another built-in feature is that the first ½ to ¾-inch of the bore is larger in diameter, allowing the sabot to be seated in the muzzle with thumb pressure alone. The sabot fits tightly down the remainder of the bore. After four or five rounds are fired more pressure is required to seat the bullet. This was very apparent when the bullet reached the bottom of the barrel. The rod was marked to ensure proper seating depth.
This firearm produced very good accuracy, but exhibited a few drawbacks. The way the action opens is not conducive to easy loading and firing in the field. The break-open system seems to work well, but you must be sure to place your fingers where they won’t be pinched. It also felt awkward to load the charge down the barrel, and then break the action through a roughly 50-degree arc before inserting the primer cap.
Initially, it required 40 pounds of force to push the sabot down the bore. By the 3rd shot, the required amount of force had increased steadily to over 50 pounds. As the gun was fired multiple times, the bottom of the barrel was noticed to be particularly tight, making it harder to seat bullets. Cleaning was very easy, as removing the breech plug left the barrel open to swabbing out. The best accuracy was obtained with 100 grains of Pyrodex producing an average velocity just shy of 1950 fps, while velocities exceeding 2325 fps were achieved with 150-grain Pyrodex loads. Again, the maximum charge did not produce the best accuracy.
The Knight D.I.S.C. Extreme uses red plastic primed caps. The firearm worked well with most loads tried. The gun was fired more than a dozen times in a row without cleaning, and the pressure remained at 50 pounds to seat each sabot with the exception of the TMZ’s. They were slightly easier to push down the bore for the first few firings. They required about 45 pounds of pressure for the first few shots. The one drawback was that firing this gun created vibrations, resulting in the sights becoming loose after several firings. Installing the sights with Loctite solved this problem.
When the gun was fired, a slight amount of excess gas vented from the disc. We didn’t consider this to be a safety concern. When it came time to clean the rifle, the breech plug was difficult to remove. This is not something you would want to try in the field. You should remember to always use a good amount of lithium grease on the plug before reinserting it.
Once again, optimum accuracy was obtained with 100-grains of TripleSeven and produced an average velocity of 1875 fps.
CONCLUSION
First of all, a big thanks to TC and Knight. They put out excellent products and they continue to support us in our projects.
In all three of these particular rifles, we did not see a significant difference in seating pressure between the two different sabots. However, we do understand that some customers experience this. If you have a very tight bore, you may want to consider using the TMZ or Spitfire TMZ as the yellow sabot is a slightly smaller diameter than the Expander MZ black sabot.
As far as accuracy and velocity are concerned, in this test all three rifles produced better groups with the lighter charge. However, we’ve shot unbelievable groups with maximum charges too. But the law of averages has shown us that giving up a little velocity typically produces better accuracy. It’s up to the individual what their priorities are.
Finally, choosing bullet style. Call us lab folks simple, but we’re kinda fond of the Expander. Barnes introduced that bullet in ’94 and it just plain works. The TMZ is a neat projectile with its plastic tip and boattail design. And the higher B.C. certainly gives you an advantage when shooting at a distance. No matter which bullet you choose, they both smash through heavy bone and offer better overall performance than any other muzzleloader bullet available. It’s really tough to go wrong with either one. So, tried and true or new and blue? They’re both excellent choices.
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I am a professional gunsmith with nearly 25 years in the business. I’ve held an FFL for all those years, as well. I own and run a small gun-related business as a gunsmith, with occasional firearm sales from my shop. I also own a website detailing the services my business offers.
I’m an avid hunter with both archery and firearms, and have hunted different types of game for 38 years. I use Barnes’ solid copper muzzleloader bullets, and have done so for several years. I’ve taken several big game animals with them. There’s nothing better for putting game down quickly. One shot, one kill! Many thanks.
—Curtis Wilbanks
IST Designs Rifle Sling
The new Outfitter Sling offers a reliable, positive locking device that is quiet, fast to use, durable, and does not slip. It performs when hot, wet, or cold—perfect for the most hostile environments. Simple to use: unlock, slide, and relock.
Sling features include:
· Superior positive locking slider
· Premium bridle leather or synthetic all-weather Biothane
· No moving parts, no knots, no dangling or loose ends
· Quiet, sturdy, comfortable
· New Blackhawk! locking QD sling swivels included
· Easy to thread through fixed swivels if needed
· 100% Made in the USA
The slider is made from glass-filled nylon, very strong and durable. Cross pins are solid stainless steel.
We made this sling of Biothane—a synthetic material since that meets the usability and texture requirements for rifle slings. It is widely used in the tack industry, and is very resistant to UV. It is perfect for the temperature variations encountered in hunting.
The material is PVC encased nylon webbing. It has excellent grip and remains flexible in sub-zero temperatures. Since the material has very little stretch, it is useable as a shooting sling (vs. neoprene slings, which are of little benefit to a rifleman other than for portage).
We offer the Outfitter Sling in three Biothane colors: black for synthetic stocked rifles, brown for traditional wood stocked rifles, and desert tan for camo shotguns and blending in with camo clothing.
MSRP: $49.95
For more information, contact IST Designs, Inc., 99 East Oak Street, Bozeman, MT 59715, call toll-free at 888-478-6565, or visit our website at www.istdesigns.com.
.460 Smith & Wesson
XPB Fired Through Gelatin and Simulated Bone
For our “parting shot” this month, we in the lab decided to shoot 200-grain XPB bullets from a .460 Smith & Wesson into a block of ballistic gelatin containing a two-inch-square fiberglass insert that represented solid bone. The fiberglass was placed 3 inches deep into the block. We used a load that generated approximately 2000 fps+ of velocity (actual impact velocity was 2050 fps), simulating a bullet striking downrange after exiting the barrel at approximately 2200 fps. The gelatin block was placed 15 feet downrange, just beyond the chronograph.
We were surprised at how much penetration was achieved with this load. In the photo below, “Shooter” points at the XPB bullet, which penetrated almost 18-inches of gelatin after passing through the fiberglass insert.
The bullet passed through the fiberglass, breaking it into several pieces. The force exhibited was very impressive. This type of penetration indicates that this bullet fired at a deer-sized animal would penetrate bone, soft tissues, and most likely exit the far side.
The bullet itself retained its original weight to within a few tenths of a grain. No petals were lost and the bullet lived up to our expectations in terms of function and terminal performance.
The above picture shows the pieces of destroyed fiberglass and the bullet with its curved petals visible. Overall performance was excellent. The bullet penetrated deeply, created a large wound cavity, shattered the fiberglass post, and retained virtually 100 percent of its original weight.
The photo above shows a piece of fiberglass still in the gelatin. The black images up front illustrate where other pieces of fiberglass have been removed. This photo illustrates the kind of terminal performance you can expect from the XPB bullet.
This photo was taken from the opposite side of the block, providing another view of the wound cavity the bullet created. The XPB expands to more than twice its original diameter, retains virtually all of its weight, and creates six razor-sharp petals for maximum shock and tissue damage.
At Barnes, we’re continually testing our products. “Parting shots” is one way we can share some of our results with you, our customer. See you next month!
