Experience of Remington ultra bonded 150 grain?

[TheSwede]

Hi!

Thinking of trying a new bullet in my .30-06. Barrel is 24 inch and I want a new 150-165 grain bullet, velocity around 3000 fps.

So I need a pretty hard one. I've been thinking about tsx but im not convinced yet. Think I wanna continue with good bonded lead-bullets. I like the BC on scirocco II and Accubond but not the weight retention when striking bones on moose or large deers.
A-frame is too expensive, atleast here in sweden, so I wonder how remington ultra bonded performs.

 

[H&Hhunter]

My experience with the Ultra Bonded is that they are very poor at weight retention especially at high velocity. Not worth the extra money IMO. If you want weight retention the TXS is the way to go.

 

[TheSwede]

Thanks! ok then I forget about them. The ultra bonded doesnt have good BC either so...

Would a 165 accubond hold it toghether at 3000fps? I know scirocco II is harder and would be perfect but I've also heard they can be very tricky to group well?

 

[Kachok]

You should get more then adaquate penatration and weight retention out of an Accubond, expect aprox 75% weight retention plus (at 3000fps) though and through penatration on any broadside shot deer. Accubonds are rated to 3200fps but maximum impact speed is listed as unlimited. Very tough bullet, I have some for my 06 just have not found occasion to need that much penatration. Plain old ballistic tips shoot through and through on any deer around here.

 

[H&Hhunter]

Swede,

The 150 gr Accubond wouldn't be my first choice for moose but they do will hold together as good as anything out there outside of a TSX which will hold together and give spectacular penetration. If I was shooting a 150 gr .308 bullet on moose I'd go with the TSX first with the accubond a very close second. I've found that they perform much like a Nosler partition retaining about 60 to 80% weight.

In 180 gr bullet out of an 06 they are fabulous bullets I've found that much above 300 and they tend to open very quickly which limits penetration somewhat. I'd be leery of shooting for shoulder bone with a 150 gr Accubond @3000 FPS on a moose. The 180 at 2750 FPS wouldn't bother me to much and a TSX would be no concern at all.

For deer and cow elk I would have no concerns with the 150 gr AB on a big bull moose I'd be more careful with my shot placement and aim for the soft places behind the shoulder.

 

[TheSwede]

Awesome! thank you very much.

Then I order 165 accubonds, they are also at less cost than scirocco.

 

[H&Hhunter]

Then I order 165 accubonds, they are also at less cost than scirocco.

A good choice.

 

[Kachok]

There are 4 classes of bullets.
1 Varmint: designed to come completely unglued on impact and maximize trauma through a shallow wound tract. Target game: small furry things.
2 Partial fragmentation: Expands quickly on impact and the front portion fragments to some extent (to maximize trauma) but almost always leaves at leased the back half of the bullet intact to continue penetrating. Most big name hunting bullets fall into this category; Core-Lokt, Game Kings, Ballistic tips (Hunting), Speer BTSP....etc. Best terminal performance on thin skinned game. Target Game: deer/pronghorn
3 Bonded/Partitioned: Either bonding a thick jacket to the core or dividing the core in two ensures 75% or better weigh retention at anything resembling rational impact speeds. Some minor fragmentation but deep reliable penetration for larger game. Target game: Elk/black bear
4 Mono-metal/solid bullets. The ultimate in reliable penetration 99-100% weight retention at darn near any speed, great for the largest game around but at the cost of reduced trauma on smaller targets. Target Game: Anything too big for Nosler Partitions
General rule: If you are expecting impact speeds above 3,100-3200fps it is often a good idea to use one class harder bullet then is normally recommended for that class of game to ensure adequate penetration (except on varmint game) because expanding lead core bullets LOOSE penetration at higher speeds due to more weight shed via fragmentation.
The Accubond is a good example of a class 3, might be a little "hard" for deer but you should always get a though and through.

 

[TheSwede]

Thanks for the input! Yesterday I really narrowed it down. I was thinking about what type of game im really hunting... yes I hunt moose and I hunt big boars BUT 90% of the game I've shot have been deer. So what I really hunt is deer so I should pick my bullet after that. If im lucky to get a chance on a moose I'll go behind shoulder I guess. I really like the 165 grain weight and 2950-3000 fps and the flat trajectory when hunting deer. If I would hunt 90% moose I might go for a 200 grains.

 

[Kachok]

You using RL22 to get those 165s to 3000fps? That is the only powder I know of that does that in an 06.
Note: 300 win mag muzzle blast and recoil with that load. 114% compressed at max COL

 

[TheSwede]

Well to be honest I will be satisfied at around 2950! I will use Norma powder called URP. 3000 fps is possible with a 25 inch barrel (61cm metric system)
but I dont want to be at absolute max. If I get good groups at 2950 im more than satisfied.