The Right Stuff

Hunters and shooters love nothing more than arguing in favor of their favorite cartridge. As a gun writer, I’ve seen this play out many times and have read many irate letters from readers who felt I had slighted their favorite round.

Touching as such loyalty might be, it isn’t based in reality. The truth is there are a lot of great cartridges out there, and your irrational hate for, say, the 270 Win. and equally irrational love for 7mm Rem. Magnum doesn’t change the fact both rounds will cleanly dispatch most big game animals in North America or abroad, so long as the shooter does their part.

Part of “doing your part” is choosing the right bullet. As close as the 270 and 7mm are, I’d rather have a 270 with a good bullet than a 7mm with a bad one—or vice versa. It is the bullet and the bullet alone that strikes the target, transfers energy, creates a wound channel, does or does not penetrate, and ultimately kills or does not kill the animal. There are plenty of great cartridges for hunting all the world’s game, but none of those cartridges work well you select a lousy bullet.

But what exactly makes a projectile lousy—or great? Let’s take a closer look so you know.

Construction

Hunting bullet designs vary, but almost all are designed to expand and transfer energy to the target. How rapidly a given bullet expands depends on the design, but also upon the body structure of the target species and the shot distance. To illustrate, let’s use America’s favorite big game animal, the whitetail deer. Whitetails aren’t particularly large, heavy-boned animals, so most expanding hunting bullets work just fine. Bullets with thin jackets and open nose cavities expand violently. More rugged bonded bullets (which have jackets and lead cores that are physically secured to one another to prevent overexpansion) will penetrate deeper and retain more weight.

Bullets are typically designed for either rapid or slow expansion (the latter sometimes being referred to as “controlled expansion”), but this is dependent upon velocities. If you shoot a deer with a rapidly expanding bullet at close range the velocity will be very high, and that speed might cause the bullet to expand so rapidly on contact that it fails to penetrate deep. Conversely, if you shoot a deer with a controlled expansion bonded bullet at very long range, where bullet velocity has dropped substantially, the bullet may fail to open because the impact energy was not sufficient to initiate expansion.

The best bullets are the most forgiving. One of my favorites is Federal’s Terminal Ascent because it works well at such a wide range of velocities, and that’s a result of its construction. Its Slipstream polymer tip initiates expansion even at low velocities, so I know the Terminal Ascent bullet will expand and impart shock even at extreme distances well beyond my maximum effective range on game. It’s just as likely, though, that an animal will step out behind a tree at just 40 or 50 yards, and impact velocities will be very high. Terminal Ascent is bonded so the jacket and core won’t separate at high velocities. Near or far, I know my bullet will dispatch the animal quickly. To my mind, that kind of bullet performance is more important than caliber selection.

Bigger animals with larger bone structure require tougher bullets, so many hunters prefer bonded bullets for animals like else, moose and bears. But it’s common to take long shots on elk, and you need a bullet that will expand reliably even at relatively low velocities. Once more, this is why you need a versatile bullet like Terminal Ascent. The bonded design won’t break up on heavy bone, but tests have shown these bullets expand well beyond 1,000 yards in gel, which is beyond the practical and ethical limit for most big game hunters.

Bullets with lighter jackets that expand rapidly include Swift’s Scirocco II. Bullets with heavier bonded construction include Terminal Ascent. Mono-metal bullets like Trophy Copper and Barnes TSX are also a good choice. Any of these bullets will work under most practical hunting conditions.

Aerodynamics

Aerodynamics also impact bullet performance. A bullet that’s less aerodynamic (measured by ballistic coefficient, or BC) will lose energy more rapidly. Having a high BC projectile isn’t always important, particularly when shots are likely to be very close. But as ranges begin to extend to 200, 300, 400 yards and even farther, your bullet’s BC becomes critical. A higher BC means the bullet will be less affected by wind and will shoot flatter and retain more downrange energy than a bullet with a lower BC. High-BC bullets have an aerodynamic shape with pointed (what was once called “spitzer”) profiles and are heavy for caliber. They also have features like a boat tail (which reduces drag), polymer tips and grooves in the shank.

Do you always need an aerodynamic bullet? No. If shots are under 200 yards, a bullet’s profile isn’t as critical as it is at greater distances. Federal’s Power-Shok soft points, for example, are an affordable hunting rifle load, and while these bullets aren’t as aerodynamic as options like Terminal Ascent, they are plenty flat-shooting for moderate-range hunting.

The Key: Practice

No bullet, regardless of construction, will work properly if the shooter doesn’t do their part. There’s a prevailing notion that technology in the form of better bullets and cartridges, improved optics and ballistic software have eliminated the need for good, old-fashioned shooting practice. That’s not true. You still need to shoot often, get to know your gun, learn your DOPE (data obtained during previous engagements) and practice shooting from field positions. Combine capable shooting with a great bullet and a suitable caliber and game will go down every time.