Thank you! I made the post in jest assuming you were too quick with the finger stroke.
It would have been interesting to know what the MAXIMUM suggested velocity was.
I think a lot of people are loading the bullets too hard thinking they'll get some more punch, knock-down power [magnum itis if you will], and that's what is causing the disintegration issues with the SS bullets. When I began using XTP's I liked to load really hot and found that any bone contacted really did a number on the bullets [250 and 300 grain bullets by the way]. After reading some of the recommended beginning operating velocities on some of the XTP bullets I had my eyes opened. When I sat down and looked for a tighter group with my Accura, I switched from the .451 and .452 fodder to .429 and .430 bullets and cut back quite a bit on the charges and found accuracy I'd never imagined in a muzzy and those bullets performed absolutely beautifully. I don't shoot the BH anywhere near the maximum at 77 weighed grains, even with a 250 grain Barnes copper bullet. I still have a whole range box full of 240, 250 and 300 grain XTPs in both .451 and .429 sizes if I can't find the Barnes bullets after next season and will simply make an adjustment to load level. because I don't need a bazooka at the usual 15 to 30 yard ranges I shoot my deer at.
Every gun is different and my first experiences with the XTP's came in using a really early Optima. I use a V2 Accura today and that is where I did the cut back to get better accuracy and noticed that the bullets did not fail to function as a good hunting bullet should. Plus, they didn't tend to gernade on bone. The longest shot I ever took with any gun using the XTP bullets was about 80 yards, but that shot came with a jacked up load and a 250 grain XTP that hit smack on the cenbter of the shoulder of an average sized buck. I had to toss that shoulder after a lengthy tracking job because the bullet's energy went into demolishing that shoulder and never went any further.
Pellets, granular...it matters little. More is not always better when it comes to charge size and velocity. Some bullets just don't like to operate at hyper velocity, but it's hard to get that thru heads at times. If one is going to focus on 150 to 250 yard shots, maybe the heavier charge is warranted, but then that'll nix pretty much any shot under the 150 yards if they want the bullet to work right. XTP, SST, makes no difference. They have parameters around where they function properly. Learn them. Load accordingly.
