Just wondering what opionions were floating around out there about the "premium", high-dollar cartridges. For example, I'm about to purchase a .30-06. The "regular" rounds from Winchester/Remington/Federal run around $15 per 20 round box. Then there's the $20 to $30 boxes of ammo. Has anybody found that these bullets are consistently better performing than their less expensive brethren? Do you think they're worth the extra $$?

My boss, who doesn't reload, shoots nothing but "premium" ammo. IMHO, since the bullet is what actually does the job, its the worst place to scrimp on cost. In the overall scheme of things, how much does the bullet cost that is fired from your multi-hundred dollar rifle with a multi-hundred dollar scope on it, that's about to take the life of an animal? Don't mean to sound like i'm on a soapbox, because i'm not. I just think we owe it to whatever we hunt to do the best job we can to make a quick, humane kill, and i think premuim bullets are worth the extra cost.

I'll take a flyer on this one...

For most applications, "no." For those who insist on shooting the various magnums, ultramags, shortmags, purple screamers, etc. then perhaps "yes." But for me the answer is no because I shoot traditional non-mag cartridges and even then I do not load them to the max.

Conventional bullets perform consistently well, with good shot placement, at ranges from a few feet to 250 or 300 yds. because they are designed to operate in the range of velocities represented over that distance. So various conventional bullets fired from my '06 at muzzle velocities of 2500 - 2800 fps work just great on antelope, deer, and elk.

Take those same bullets, push them to MV of 3000+ fps and shoot them into a bull elk at 30 yds. and you just might need to shoot again IF the bull gives you that chance AND you are expert enough to recover from recoil, recover from the shock of not seeing the bull vaporized, reload, get back on target, and make the shot on a now highly motivated animal that is taking radical evasive action.

Hence the rage over premium bullets that can hang together at terrific impact velocities and still open effectively at a much lower velocity after traveling some astronomic distance that super magnum shooters often assume they are capable of covering.

I fully acknowledge that A FEW rifelmen can effectively employ magnums at all ranges. I can't. So I stick to conventional cartridges and moderate ranges. Within my self-prescribed limits traditional factory ammo and component bullets work just fine.

I just returned from our local "canyon range" where I shot my '06 (150 gr. Rem. Bulk SP @ MV approx. 2600 fps.) at steel targets (chicken, boar, turkey, ram) at a variety of distances (50 - 400 yd.) from standing, kneeling, sitting, and prone field positions as I hiked up the valley (no set firing line). Results of this field test: 250 yds. is my outside limit for consistent hits on these targets. Hits on live game at these ranges call for nothing more than conventional ammo.

That's how it works out for me. It will be interesting to hear the perspectives of others.

For info, i don't shoot magnums, either. I shoot things like '06, .260, etc, and not loaded to the max. I load my '06 for example, with 57 gr of 4350 and a 150 gr bullet, normally Nosler partitions. I have enough guns that if i need a bigger gun, i go to my gun cabinet and get it, so i don't load hot. My longest shot is around 325 yards, and while conventional bullets will hit at that range, i still prefer the premium bullets. That's one of the reasons i reload. And, just my opinion..

Well, since I am a newbie and don't plan on reloading in the foreseeable future, I'm more interested in factory loads.

Well, since I am a newbie and don't plan on reloading in the foreseeable future, I'm more interested in factory loads.

Understood. I think the confusion came from the use of the word "bullets" rather than "cartridges". I also suspect that to get a good answer it will help if you identify what game you're hunting and at what distances do you expect shoot, thus the level of accuracy required. I can't answer your question because I only handload, but many articles indicate that the new premium factory cartridges rival good handloaded cartridges. But then, magazine articles aren't what you'd want to bet the farm on. I'd buy a box of each and prove to yourself if the value is there.

Dan

Crushert -

Reload about 99.9% of ammo needs (.22LR and other rimfires excluded!). The ONLY factory ammo used is the Hornady Light Magnum 30-06 in my old pre-war Model 70 Win. It has an affinity for this ammo in 180 grain standard Hornady inter-lock bullets, which rival the best I can roll on my own. Took my last 7x6 bull elk with one round of it, right behind the shoulder joint. Trotted about 40 yds and laid down quietly.

This stuff isn't as high priced as the true "premium" factory ammo of today, but is a darn'd fine line of ammunition in it's own right. Try some - I'm sure you'll agree it's all you need for your hunting purposes.

Just wondering what opionions were floating around out there about the "premium", high-dollar cartridges. For example, I'm about to purchase a .30-06. The "regular" rounds from Winchester/Remington/Federal run around $15 per 20 round box. Then there's the $20 to $30 boxes of ammo. Has anybody found that these bullets are consistently better performing than their less expensive brethren? Do you think they're worth the extra $$?

Myself like many other hunters around the USA, have killed truck loads of deer since 1957 with a rifle. A lot of those deer were killed in fact with Remington Core Lokt 150 & later 180 grain bullets. I have had some bullet failures in the past years of hunting (not like counting your change in your pocket understand) however it can and does happen on a hunt.

I believe that using a premium bullet on a trophy hunt especially, is the cheapest form of insurance a hunter can purchase for the money spent.....Bar-None! I have only had one premium bullet fail to do the job on an animal I shot. This was my fault for not using a bigger bullet and caliber on the animal that weighed over 2000 pounds. The shoulder bone on such an animal is very thick and heavy, I used to light a bullet on the animal.

A hunter spends $5000 dollars for an elk hunt and won't spend a dollar & a dime, for the shell and bullet he is going to kill that trophy bull elk with? Now that is what can cause a hunters lifetime dream to fad away real quick like in elk country. Now after that elk gets hit with a raking shot and bullet fails because it hit a rib going in or went South instead of North bound inorder to get to the vitals.
Ummmmmmm guess I should have used a premium bullet, the boys at the barber shop might say later. :D :D :D

If you're limited to factory ammo, you should try a few different offerings to find out what your rifle likes. I would just shoot your rifle's most accurate cartridge that is designed for the game you want to take.

Before I got into reloading, I shot a 4x4 Washington Mulie at 75 yards(quartering away) with a Winchester Power-Point Factory Load, and he didn't make it 10 yards. The bullet entered just ahead of the last rib on his right side and stopped under the hide of the deer's chest behind the left shoulder.

It mushroomed from .277 to .530 at its narrowest diameter, and it retained 68.7% of it's weight (89.3 gr/130.0 gr). The truth is that "basic" hunting bullets have come a long way. These bullets are cheaper, but they are also designed to take the same game. Think of how many game animals have succumbed to Winchester Powerpoints and Remington Core-Lokts over the years. Based on my own personal experience, I believe that these cheap bullets will do the job.

However, I must admit that since I've gotten into reloading my own, the quest for accuracy, consistency, and the urge to try new loads (bullets, powders, primers, brass, etc.) seems to be never ending. Even though I know the old factory stuff works just fine, my next deer will probably be getting a dose of some "premium" stuff.

I have no experience with the magnum cartridges, but if you're shooting a non-magnum cartridge, I would just use whatever your rifle likes the best. Whether it's a premium load or a cheaper one, you will more than likely end up with the same end result (meat on the table and horns on the wall) as long as you do your part.

Just my opinion, but I've ranted long enough. Hope you find the answer you are looking for.

I live in TN and currently the only big game I hunt is whitetails. Sorry, I forgot where I was and should have realized that 'cartridges' and 'bullets' are not interchangable. Sorry for any confusion.

I've killed too many deer from too many different angles with the .300 gr. X bullet out of my TC .45-70. Expensive, yes, worth it, most definitely. Would other cheaper bullets work just as well, unquestionably, especially the hard cast bullets by BTB, which while cheap in price, are premium in every other since of the word. However, the price of a premium bullet is chump change compared to the price of the handgun, scope, stands, tags and licenses, and most importantly, the responsibility I feel I owe to make the death of the animal as quick and as humane as possible. IMO I get all that and then some with the premium bullet, X and hard-cast lead.

One of the good things about big dumb heavy bullets from big-bore rifles is that nearly any bullet works pretty well.

The 30-06 got along fine for years without the super-premium bullets. The faster you drive a bullet, the more you need the exotic bullets....the smaller the bullet diameter you intend to use on big game, the more reliance on speciality bullets.

For the 30-06, most of the "standard" bullets from 150 to 200gr. (excluding the flat nosed versions specific to the 30-30) are just about perfect for the velocity range you'll be using. Buy them, load them, test them agasint an improvised test media, decide. One of the "secrets" is that as the premium bullets have gotten popular, some of their improvments have trickled down into the "standard" bullet line up.

On the other hand, once you've coughed up all those thousands of dollars on a dream hunt to Alaska, fussing about a few bucks on bullets seems stupid....but people do just that. Not unlike buying a Viper and them complaining about the gas milage.

I should be so lucky as to have to worry about the cost of bullets actaully fired at game.

Just for hunting whitetails, the premium ammo isn't really necessary in the '06.

I feel better using a Partition or X-bullet when going after elk in my neck of the woods, simply because it is very brushy and angles can be questionable. But many folks I know and hunt with use traditional ammo with satisfactory results.

For the purposes you name, ordinary ammo will work fine. Try a few brands to see what shoots best in your rifle, and place the bullet well. You'll have meat on the table.

For small to medium game where accuracy at long range is important, I like ballistic tip bullets. For heavier game I prefer the X bullets. Do I need them? no. Do I like the performance they give me? yes! I do hand load, but I also shoot alot of factory ammo to. The Winchester Supreme is the closest thing Ive found to hand loads. But at $30+ a box (for the calibers I shoot) I can load almost three boxes for what I would pay for one. I wish I had a dollar for every animal ever killed with a plain old Remington Core-Lokt or Winchester Power Point.

I'll throw my .02 in on this one. For most hunters in N.A. I'd say no, regular off the shelf stuff like Rem corelokts will do just fine. There are some times that a high quality bullet is demanded though. Such as a trophy/once in a lifetime type hunt. Like many have said, its the cheapest insurance you can buy on that kind of trip. Another case is hunters pursuing game with a little less rifle than maybee they should. A good example of this is, one day I'd love to get the chance to do it, an elk hunt with a .270. If I were to bring my .270 I would be using a failsafe or partion or some other ultra tough bullet. I feel the need to have a premium bullet when going after something that big with a 270. But for most of our whitetail only hunters, standard stuff will do just fine for them IMO.

I would have to go along with the posters that lean toward premium bullets. It has always struck me as foolish considering what we spend on rifles, scopes, the hunt itself and then go cheap on bullets. Bullets are the cheapest part of your hunt and money well spent. What you want to achieve is consistency of results, preferably boringly consistent. If you don't roll your own some suggestions would be Federal with Trophy Bonded bullets, Remington's Safari line of Swift A-Frames or Winchester Fail Safes of which I am especially fond of. There, that's my .02, end of sermon. :D

I agree with mattpair and others. Deer, even very large mule deer are not armor-plated. I've knocked over many of these large bodies animals with "plain" Remington, FEDERAL, and Winchester ammo.

Some of the Premium bullets are more accurate than traditional hunting bullets. Hornady SST and Nosler Ballistic Tip are good examples.

Yet other Premiums are bullets that hold together or penetrate deeper than ordinary bullets. Winchester Fail Safe and Trophy Bonded are good examples.

Some cartridges really shine in the lethality department when Premium bullets are used. Our old .243 is a good example. I'll even go as far as to state that .243 with Nosler Partition takes it to .270 level of lethality. All-the-way-through penetration is virtually guarenteed with Nosler's Partition while even Hornady's very fine inter-lock bullet typically "stays inside". I do not want to start an arguement about penetration, but in my opinion two holes are better than one for the really large mulies.

In summary, many cartridges are truely enhanced with Premium bullets. But for vast majority of deer hunters, the tried and true "plain" bullets are quite deadly indeed.
TR

In my 26 year experience standard factory ammo works just fine for white tails, non trophy, just meat, but when it comes to expensive trophy hunts, once in a life time hunts, don't skimp on the ammo! Become a handloader, use the premium bullets, that way you will stack the deck in your favor all the time. I just did seven head of African plains game with handloaded .30-06 - 220 grain Nosler Partitions- and never had a question at all, the game was down and that was it! Using the best ammo with the best bullets is a real peace of mind issue, and with the ammo companies starting to cater to serious hunters, you can even find off the shelf ammo that competes with top notch handloads.
Good luck
Larry

I'll take a flyer on this one...

For most applications, "no." For those who insist on shooting the various magnums, ultramags, shortmags, purple screamers, etc. then perhaps "yes." But for me the answer is no because I shoot traditional non-mag cartridges and even then I do not load them to the max.

Conventional bullets perform consistently well, with good shot placement, at ranges from a few feet to 250 or 300 yds. because they are designed to operate in the range of velocities represented over that distance. So various conventional bullets fired from my '06 at muzzle velocities of 2500 - 2800 fps work just great on antelope, deer, and elk.

Take those same bullets, push them to MV of 3000+ fps and shoot them into a bull elk at 30 yds. and you just might need to shoot again IF the bull gives you that chance AND you are expert enough to recover from recoil, recover from the shock of not seeing the bull vaporized, reload, get back on target, and make the shot on a now highly motivated animal that is taking radical evasive action.

Hence the rage over premium bullets that can hang together at terrific impact velocities and still open effectively at a much lower velocity after traveling some astronomic distance that super magnum shooters often assume they are capable of covering.

I fully acknowledge that A FEW rifelmen can effectively employ magnums at all ranges. I can't. So I stick to conventional cartridges and moderate ranges. Within my self-prescribed limits traditional factory ammo and component bullets work just fine.

I just returned from our local "canyon range" where I shot my '06 (150 gr. Rem. Bulk SP @ MV approx. 2600 fps.) at steel targets (chicken, boar, turkey, ram) at a variety of distances (50 - 400 yd.) from standing, kneeling, sitting, and prone field positions as I hiked up the valley (no set firing line). Results of this field test: 250 yds. is my outside limit for consistent hits on these targets. Hits on live game at these ranges call for nothing more than conventional ammo.

That's how it works out for me. It will be interesting to hear the perspectives of others.


I agree, you couldn't have said it better.

Tekaan

I'll agree with naumann, also.

Anytime you start pushing the envelope with what the bullet or cartridge is designed to handle, then it's a good idea to move up to premium bullets. I would also add when you start going after critters the size of moose or grizzly bear, it wouldn't hurt to use premiums.

I've seen big moose shot with 270's and 7mm's that I think would have performed better if a more premium bullet was used. Anytime you start pushing the envelope, premium bullets are a good idea. Whether that is using a minimum cartridge for a maximum animal, or pushing bullets faster than what they are commonly designed for.

This could turn into a friendly debate... I think as above
post stated, There definitly are situations where I would
get the best bullets possible. examble, When paying
thousands of dollars for a guided hunt. I think it would
be a shame not to get your animal because of a bullet
that wasn't up to the task. I love using my 30-30 for
Deer. A Nosler Partion bullet for the 30-30 isn't very
logical in my opinion. A hornady 170 grn bullet traveling
2000 FPS under 150 yards with the proper shot will bring
the deer down Perion. That said, A 170 hornady hitting
an elk is a bit risky. I matter of factly am considering
using the noslers this year for elk. as my son will be
using my 45/70. Federal has 30-30 fact cart for ELk, using
nosler partitions. I was surprised to see that So I figure I
will cook up some loads using the nosler partitions.

I would have to go along with the posters that lean toward premium bullets. It has always struck me as foolish considering what we spend on rifles, scopes, the hunt itself and then go cheap on bullets. Bullets are the cheapest part of your hunt and money well spent. What you want to achieve is consistency of results, preferably boringly consistent. If you don't roll your own some suggestions would be Federal with Trophy Bonded bullets, Remington's Safari line of Swift A-Frames or Winchester Fail Safes of which I am especially fond of. There, that's my .02, end of sermon. :D

Just experienced a treat, new Remington factory loaded ammo with Nosler Ballistip Tips. Using a .260 Remington M-7 I got half inch groups with the 120 grain BT. Took the combo out hunting (exotics) and wowsies!!!!! I see why the professional hunters don't want you using Ballistic Tips for heavy game, but wow do they put down small deer with authority. Yes, the new premium line factory ammo works!
Larry

Hard to figure with the fast 7.35" twist rate of the old Swede rifles, but the 120 gr bullets always shot best through them. Even my 6.5-06 likes them the best.

The Nosler B.T.'s and Hornady 129 gr always work well for accuracy.

Shot placement is a much more significant factor in killing game than whether or not a "premium" bullet was used.