Hello everyone, was hoping that there is someone out there that might be able to give me a good place to start with this bullet. I am using IMR 4350 but have no prior experience with this bullet. Could someone give me agood staring point and also tell me about your expierence with this bullet as far as accuracyand velocity from your rifle. Further this load will be used for deer out to 300yds so it needs to be accurate, plus it will be used for black bear as well. Thanks for any info or advice that can be given thanks. 336A

This is one of my favorite loads in my old tang safety Ruger M77.

140 gr Nosler Partition
66.0 gr IMR 4350
CCI #250 Mag primer
Federal cases
3.270" OAL
Chronographed at 3200 fps +-.

Shoots between .870" - 1.25" MOA, depending on which side of the bed I get up on and the weather conditions when shooting. This load has taken antelope in excess of your 300 yd deer distance.

This is the max loading in the Lyman 48th Ed. manual, where they achieved 3133 fps at 52K CUP in their test apparatus. Be sure to start out about 10% below this max and work up carefully in one to one and one half grain increments to see how your particular firearm accepts the loads.

336A -

Maybe I'm being overly cautious, but if I was going to hunt black bear (which I hope to do this fall), I would use a heavier bullet than a 7mm 140g.

For 20+ years I've used the 160g Speer Grand Slam with a max load of IMR4831 with excellent results - no lost animals and no tracking. Muzzle velocity is around 2900fps. Accuracy at 100 yards in my rifle is .5" and .4" in my buddy's rifle. At 300 yards we are still well under 2" when the wind isn't blowing. At 350 yards this bullet passed through a 6x5 elk on a broadside behind-the-shoulder shot. Only managed to recover one in all those years, and that one took out both shoulder joints of an elk.

Partitions work but have a reputation for losing the front core. I guess that doesn't matter if the animal dies quickly, but my preference is for bullets that hold together, and that preference is getting stronger as I get older. That means bonded-core bullets.

In the future I plan to try Swift Scirocco 160g bullets as they have a very heavy jacket, a bonded core and a higher Ballistic Coefficient. I also plan to try some of the newer Hodgdon powders, starting with H4831SC (since I already use that in my .257 Roberts) and moving to slower powders. I would think either the Swift Scirocco or A-Frame bullets would be excellent for bear.

The new Nosler Accubond bullets also have a bonded core but have a much lighter jacket than the Sciroccos. Still, I would probably prefer them over Partitions.

Other bullets I would reach for before the 140g Partition include the Speer Trophy Bonded and North Fork, both in 160g.


My 2 cents...

I would very much prefer more bullet weight for Black Bear. I am thinking 160 minimum if not a 175, as I would want some serious penetration and reliable weight retention in the 80% plus range.

The 140gr Partition is great for deer though! I have been using that slug for many years and its awesome. I have been trying other bullet types of late the last 3 years or so and havent settled on a replacement though.

I experimented with the 140gr Partition, getting a great load with 66gr 4350 powder and a standard primer. Velocity averaged just above 3200 fps with excellent accuracy. However, the 160gr at 2950 fps was the load I finally settled on. I am concerned with throat erosion when velocities exceed 3200 fps - why prematurely wear out a good barrel? Secondly, why shoot a magnum if you're not going to use a big bullet for better knockdown power and penetration? It seems that this velocity craze has hunters going in the wrong direction. For punching paper, the more velocity the better as long as accuracy isn't sacrificed. This isn't especially true in shooting game animals.

Thanks for all of the advise guys. However even though black bear is on the menue I for see no reason to go heavier. However if I were to go after larger stuff you can be assured that I would use the 160gr stuff for sure. the largest bear shot hear weighed in at only 320lbs I am sure that a well placed 140gr partition will take care of that. As an aside I just got done reading a shooting times mag where the author Layne Simpson wrote that he came across a lady in an elk camp in Idaho who used a 140 gr Swift Aframe for everthing from 200lbs deer to a 2000lbs Moose, that is out of a 280 REM. So I think that A 140gr partition should do for the bear around here. Again thanks 336A.

336A -

With reqard to your comparison of the 140g Nosler to the 140g A-Frame ...

In my opinion the A-Frame is in a better class of bullet than the Partition and I would not expect a Partition to perform as well. If you want to recover a bullet to look at later, use the Partition. If you want maximum weight retention with the penetration that goes with it, use the A-Frame.

Coyte Hunter,
I agree with you 100%, however I can't afford the hefty price tag that comes with the A Frame. So I thought that the next logcal choice would be the Partition.

Coyte Hunter,
I agree with you 100%, however I can't afford the hefty price tag that comes with the A Frame. So I thought that the next logcal choice would be the Partition.

336A -

I understand about the A-Frames -- the price is why I haven't tried any of the 7mm 160's yet. Take a look at the Scirocco's. They are half the cost of the A-Frames and, per 100, only a couple bucks more than the Partitions. But they are much more sturdily built.

If that still doesn't work, I would suggest at least stepping up to the 160g Partitions. They shoot plenty flat enough for your stated distance of 300 yards.

Good luck whatever you choose.

CH -

I've loaded the Nosler Partition in a lot of various cartridges and various bullet weights - in all the years of hunting and shooting from 60 yds to 400 yds, I've never recovered a Partition from an animal carcass yet. That includes several mature bull elk shot at the 375 yds + range.

kdub -

That's good to hear. But which would you prefer on bear - 140's or 160's?