Kachok,
In my previous post I put down the CL from your list, with the Solid Base being my all time fav.
In looking over what I have sitting on the shelf since, I would have to add it depends on the caliber. For the ones I shoot the most frequent, I have to stick with the CL simply due to price, as most of what I have was purchased years ago in bulk. For the lesser shot calibers I have a pretty decent assortment of the SST in .277- .308, the Ballistic Tip in .243 through .308, and Partitions from .223 up through .308. Also thrown in there in a couple of calibers are the Accubond and Berger's as well.
The higher priced premium bullets, like Barnes, the bonded cores, A-max, or Berger, I reserve for the highest velocity, or the absolute best accuracy loads, where they might actually be needed. For the rest in a standard C&C design, I usually keep the velocities down around the 2800fps range, or they are specifically loaded to top end loads, for ranges exceeding 250yds or more. In these situations the BT or SST do a fine job where their impact velocity is down around what they would be at 200yds or less in a regular load. While the A-Max might not be considered a hunting bullet in a few calibers like .264 and .284 where the SD is higher do to heavier weight for caliber bullets, if kept within an "impact velocity" range of around 2600 down to around 2300fps they do a VERY good job for deer sized game.
I mostly shoot hogs anymore, and have set up rifles specifically for different areas that I hunt. If its deer season and the buck of a lifetime does walk out however I won't be concerned with trimming up the meat, as much as putting the bullet in the right spot to anchor him.
Several years ago we found that the .284-162gr Hornady BTSP was an awesome bullet loaded up to around 3150'ish feet per second. IT was grouping right at 1" at 300yds from the Sendero we shot it from. It was however a bit much for deer within 200yds and was like a grenade on hogs, but from there on out to 500, it preformed perfectly. I put one through just in front of the onside shoulder of this deer at 287yds, which exited just behind the offside shoulder putting him on his nose right there. The damage was akin to a 180gr '06 load at about 100yds with simply a 1" or so area disrupted around where the bullet passed through.
So I guess it would all depend on the intended use for me, rather than just a blanket statement of the CL being my fav. Like some of the others I look for accuracy the most out of my loads, but in some cases like for hog hunting where the ranges might only be in feet rather than yards, and I might shoot a LOT more rounds than at deer, the CL's WILL usually get the job.
