Ive been using Barnes MZ Expander, 300 grains (.50 cal.), all copper bullets for some time now in all of my Knight muzzleloaders. In my opinion, these are the most accurate yet highest devastating bullet I can find for my Knights. The problem is, it seems that Barnes has them out of stock for the last two years. I cant find anywhere that Barnes has discontinued making them, but in every website that lists them, I find either they have been out of stock for some time or asking a crazy amount of money for them. Can anyone advise if these are a fading away breed of bullets and if there is a bullet out there with similar results. BTW, I have never tracked a deer utilizing this round and all shots have been between 80- 110 yards with 100 grains of pellets.
Barnes MZ Expander
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I bought some 250gr and 300gr MZ Expanders directly from Barnes last September. I would suggest to keep checking their website and purchase some as soon as they list them in stock. They don't seem to remain in stock very long.
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It would seem alot of people have moved to a tipped bullet. I know I am guilty of it. I use to shot the 250 Expander. I'm not sure there is a bullet out there that can beat them on deer.
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Just get the XPB CF version but im not sure if those are 250gr only. Cant say i ever seen the XPB in 300gr.
Knight still sells the 300gr Red Hot. Its the same bullet with another sabot. Might be able to find them cheaper from other online vendors too.
https://www.muzzleloaders.com/product/red-hot-50-cal-300-grain-muzzleloader-bullets/
Knight still sells the 300gr Red Hot. Its the same bullet with another sabot. Might be able to find them cheaper from other online vendors too.
https://www.muzzleloaders.com/product/red-hot-50-cal-300-grain-muzzleloader-bullets/
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Or buy the tipped and take off the tip…..
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I like those Barnes 195’s in my .45’s for deer. I guess I better see if I can stock up while I still can.
Yes, I’ve done that, then Annealed them to make them Softer for better Obturation & Accuracy
Not bought by Sierra. Sister companies with Sierra. Both owned by Clarus Corp of Salt Lake City, Utah.
Thanks for the ‘tip’, GM54-!
I love these Expander bullets. They shoot great out of my Optima rifle and pistol! I also bought those Bloodlines in 250gr.
I wrote to Barnes bullets and received the following:
Charles,
Thank you for choosing to shoot Barnes Bullets. That is a bullet we still carry on our 2022 bullet/cartridge list. I just don’t see a date for next the run. As you can hopefully understand our industry is backlogged at unprecedented numbers. In the last 2 years over 12 million first time gun buyers were added to the mix. All those new guns need to be fed. We are setting new production records on a weekly, monthly and now, yearly basis. Our employees are getting lots of overtime as we are running our bullet and ammunition making presses 24/7. Lots of 10-12 hour shifts, with overtime, since January, 2021. Our scheduling process is sometimes very fluid if something happens with our raw material supply. Which means a product may suddenly end up on our production schedule sooner than expected. Several things you can do. The best advice I can give is to 1) have lots of persistence and patience 2) check in to our online store to check availability. Home - Barnes Bullets Next, 3) keep checking https://ammoseek.com/
These first steps take about 1 minute per day. Last, get yourself on email waiting lists with several, if not more, online retailers such as Graf & Sons, MidwayUSA, Midsouth or Natchez Shooters Supply as well as a host of others. Hope you find what you're looking for!
Oh, and visit some outdoor chat forums that have classified sections and post a listing where you WTB….”want to buy”. Someone might be able to help you out.
Thank You
Alan Griffith | Consumer Service
Barnes Bullets
Charles,
Thank you for choosing to shoot Barnes Bullets. That is a bullet we still carry on our 2022 bullet/cartridge list. I just don’t see a date for next the run. As you can hopefully understand our industry is backlogged at unprecedented numbers. In the last 2 years over 12 million first time gun buyers were added to the mix. All those new guns need to be fed. We are setting new production records on a weekly, monthly and now, yearly basis. Our employees are getting lots of overtime as we are running our bullet and ammunition making presses 24/7. Lots of 10-12 hour shifts, with overtime, since January, 2021. Our scheduling process is sometimes very fluid if something happens with our raw material supply. Which means a product may suddenly end up on our production schedule sooner than expected. Several things you can do. The best advice I can give is to 1) have lots of persistence and patience 2) check in to our online store to check availability. Home - Barnes Bullets Next, 3) keep checking https://ammoseek.com/
These first steps take about 1 minute per day. Last, get yourself on email waiting lists with several, if not more, online retailers such as Graf & Sons, MidwayUSA, Midsouth or Natchez Shooters Supply as well as a host of others. Hope you find what you're looking for!
Oh, and visit some outdoor chat forums that have classified sections and post a listing where you WTB….”want to buy”. Someone might be able to help you out.
Thank You
Alan Griffith | Consumer Service
Barnes Bullets
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That’s kinda funny that Barnes is suggesting such intuitive and practical (and detailed) advice on finding their bullets. Hopefully they will “suddenly” produce more soon! Thanks for posting!
