XTP Hollow Point vs Pollymer Point Bullets On Deer

[Davexx1]

One of the common complaints of using XTP hollow point bullets for muzz deer hunting is the frequent lack of an exit hole and little or no blood trail in many cases. I have experienced this many times with XTP bullets with a good broadside shoulder shot on deer in the 80-100 yard range.

The XTP bullets shoot fine and do a good job on the deer as it appears the bullets unload 100% of their energy inside of the animal but as was mentioned, on shots at average or longer distances the bullet does not usually exit the far side which does not allow a good blood trail.

This situation may not be a problem to those hunting deer in more open country, but in the dense woods and brush of the South, it can be/is a problem if the deer does not go down quick within a short distance

My question is: would the pollymer tipped bullets or a more pointed style hollow point bullet such as the Barnes MZ as likely to fully expand and devastate the insides of the animal and still exit the far side on deer making a good blood trail much more likely?

Next questions is: are the pointed style bullets more accurate or consistent than the blunt end hollow point style XTP bullets?

Dave1

 

[Grouse]

I have had great results with both 250grn and 300grn XTP'S out of my Savages. Blood trails and performance are equal to any pointed bullets i have ever used. The 275grn Parker BE and the 250grn XTP might be the best bullets i ever used on Deer.

 

[Davexx1]

The experiences I spoke of, with the exception of one kill with my new 10ML-II, was from an old TC Renegade sidelock gun using 100 grains of real blackpowder and the XTP bullet. Maybe I should have put this thread in the sidelock section.

I am guessing the difference in our individual results may have been because of an increased velocity achieved in the Savage rifles. I have talked to hunters and read on other forums where others are having similar experiences as I with various BP guns. I was just curious what others thought of the two types of bullets and if they had similar experiences.

Dave

 

[AJ]

WRT to your final question are spitzers better? I think so. I have taken a few whitetails with them and have had great performance. If you are running on side of the higher velocities, you may want to look at the bonded bullets. I will be using them for elk this year in my Omega only because smokeless is not legal here in ML season.

My experience with XTP and SST bullets in the Savage are like this:

The XTP is ok as long as deep penetration is not desired. When they are pushed to the 2400+ fps, they tend to act like varmint bullets and frag inside the body. The deer died very quickly and tracking was not an issue but there was no exit. The Mag series of XTP is a lot tougher though and may give better performance. You can always slow the bullet down a bit to get it to perform better.

The SST is my bread and butter bullet for the Savage. It has a lot better numbers down range as its not a flying brick like the XTP. It expands and drives fairly deep and the only time I did not get an exit was on a shoulder/spine shot on my biggest deer. The deer did drop on the shot though. You can step up to the 300 gr bullet to get deeper penetration if needed.

I do not like them in Pyrodex/Black Powder/T7 guns though. They shot accurately enough but I did not care for the results. I think there are better choices on the market.

 

[schoolmaster]

If you want pass throughs then I would step up to the 300 grain class of bullets. I have had excellent results with the Barnes bullets. The one I did recover was perfectly expanded and penetrated about 36 inches in a 5x5 bull elk. All the rest were pass throughs. They went through bone and all and left a decent exit hole. The 250 xtps and the 250 shockwaves all came apart on white tails and a hog. The 300 grainers stayed together and left 50 cent sized exits. These bullets were all shot from savage rifles at 2200 to 2300 f/s.

 

[DW]

If you want pass throughs then I would step up to the 300 grain class of bullets. I have had excellent results with the Barnes bullets. The one I did recover was perfectly expanded and penetrated about 36 inches in a 5x5 bull elk. All the rest were pass throughs. They went through bone and all and left a decent exit hole. The 250 xtps and the 250 shockwaves all came apart on white tails and a hog. The 300 grainers stayed together and left 50 cent sized exits. These bullets were all shot from savage rifles at 2200 to 2300 f/s.

Jacketed Barnes Original or all copper bullet, which did you use on the elk? Thanks.

 

[RAF]

I used to use 300 Grain XTP's in an inline shooting at about 1700 - 1800 FPS. All shots were pass throughs with a blood trail that I had to follow on average for 80 - 100 yds. At Savage speeds it might preform differently. I'm sure it'll mushroom more and fragment and may not pass through but it will hit a lot harder and pass throughs for blood trails may not be required. I've never used them in my Savage so can't say for sure. The SST and bonded SW's don't pass through, at least haven't so far but don't need to track the deer as they are on the ground at or close to the spot where they were hit.

 

[schoolmaster]

DW used a 300 gr. Barnes expander MZ all copper on the elk. He was quartering to at 50 yards and turned a walked a very unsteady 10 to 15 yards and dropped.

 

[gateway]

never shot the xtp out of a savage .. killed 3 deer with the 240gr xtp all is with a t.c encore handgun. 80-90 gr of trip 7 .. never had a single bulllet failed to exit... on shot has right at 60 yards. one was 30 yards.. and the last one was 20 yards .. did say i' like a XTP THANKS WORM :shock: WORM :shock: :shock:

 

[flatland hunter]

All of my Sav kills have come with the 300 gn xtp at about 2300 fps... 2 of 3 dropped where they stood. One ran about 80 yds. All shot under 50 yds. 2 of 3 exited (2 broad side, 1 head on). Never recovered the xtp on the head on shot... couldn't find an exit hole anywhere. After going through the guts all we found was one lead flake.

Great bullet! Trying the Barnes Original this year... hopefully I will get a shot farther than 50 yds!

 

[Davexx1]

I did a search and was reading some feedback on the pollymer pointed Hornady SST and TC Shockwave bullets. Many hunters reported excellent long range accuracy and consistency with the "pointed" bullets, quick kills, etc. They also reported many pass thru's that had larger entrance holes than exit holes in deer.

I have never seen that. Why would an entrance hole be larger than the exit hole?

Dave

 

[schoolmaster]

I shot a meduim sized doe at about 20 yards quartering toward me with a 250 Hornady xtp traveling about 2400 f/s at the muzzle. The entrance hole was about 1.5 inches and the exit was 4x6 inches just past the ribs on the far side. When this deer was skinned I found a piece of the jacket with a little lead smeared on it (39 grains)just under the hide by the exit. The bullet had fraged big time. I believe that the SW and SSts start to expand on impact and as they come apart a part of the core continues on to exit creating the "reverse" entrance and exit holes when shot at high velocities.

 

[flatland hunter]

Why would an entrance hole be larger than the exit hole?

Dave

I had that happen with a 250gn Barnes MZ... shot a buck at 25yds broadside, softball size wound going in, caliber going out. Massive expansion at point of impact, lost all it's petals. I was shooting 130gns of Goex Clearshot.

 

[doulos]

Ive shot more than 25 deer with XTP's. From ranges from 10 yards to 165. Ive always used the .45 cal 300 grainer. Ive never used a smokeless inline (but am thinking about it) and have never shot one of these bullets with more than my usual 100 grain load . This has been with real black powder , Pyrodex select and 777. I have recovered only 2 of these bullets. And both were picture perfect mushrooms. Most deer were down within 40-50 yards. One traveled about 100. Some were shot through both shoulders. All left great blood trails. The 300 grain xtp is a great bullet. I couldn't ask for more terminal performance from it. Most of these loads were probably in the 1600-1750 fps range. This bullet would be a monster at over 2000 out of a Savage.

 

[Davexx1]

How many of the 25 hits on deer you mentioned were actual pass thru's?

The 250 gr XTP is a good bullet for deer but it seems there is generally much more potential for complete pass thru and "better" blood trail with the 300's.

Dave

 

[doulos]

Davexx

All hits were pass throughs except for 2. One was a frontal 30 yard shot in the chest of a medium sized doe. I found the bullet in the hind quarter. This was a 100 grain charge of Pyro Select. The other found bullet was the 165 yard shot at a 160 pound buck. The bullet entered on the upper shoulder scapula and penetrated the other shoulder blade and was found under the skin on the far side. Both deer dropped in their tracks.

I think its a great bullet. It stays together and penetrates at all angles. Ive always had good accuracy with it too. It has always shot better than the 250 for me except for one gun. My Encore likes the 250's. It will group about an inch with Blackhorn 209 and Wichester primers and MMP 3 petal sabots.

I actually set this gun up for my son in law to use this year and the 250's were for less recoil. But I wouldnt hesitate to take a 150 yard shot with them either. They are great .As you Henry Ball designed the Savage around these bullets.