I think some hunters believe that by using a match bullet they are more likely to hit where they aim and they ignore the terminal performance aspects of a hunting bullet.
A lot of these guys seldom shoot more than 20 rounds a year, just go out before hunting season and "verify" their zero by shooting at dirt embankments. If they shot more on paper, which shows in horrible detail inconsistency, by the time they became skilled marksman, they would see that hunting bullets shot quite well, if the load and the gun is right.
I was very surprised at how well 80's vintage loads and Remington core lokts did at distance. I never fired anything but match bullets beyond 200 yards, but going to CMP Talladega, I was able to shoot any bullet and see how they performed, accuracy wise, at distance.
I bedded this pre war M70 in Dec 2016 and took it out the the range:
Now I will agree that SMK bullets are superbly accurate, I have shot them on paper for decades now. I do believe they will shoot inside of my hold, and inside of what I did here at 300 yards with this sporter rifle:
But, amazing darn thing, these Core Lokts shot a slightly smaller group on a different day. Might have been the coffee, or the wind, or maybe it was just me. At some level, the ability of the shooter to hold and pull is the limiting factor.
This boggled my mind, a 7 3/4" group at 600 yards with old loads and Remington Core Lokts. What is not showing is the 13 shots, some of which were not on target, adjusting that rifle to get in the ten ring at 600 yards. It ain't easy.
I took this pre 64 M70 Winchester in 300 H&H out and shot 190 grain Hornady hunting bullets out to 300 yards.
I greased the bullets and the cases. I believe greased bullets foul the barrel less and because these were new cases, the light grease coating on the outside of the case prevented any sidewall stretch. This is very common with belted magnums, the base to shoulder distance of the chamber is not controlled, and many shooters experience case head separations within a couple of firings. Given that new 300 H&H cases are about $2.00 apiece, I want them to last a long time. Grease or oil prevents the case from sticking to the chamber walls, on ignition, the case slides to the bolt face, the shoulders fold out, and I get a perfect, unstressed, fireformed case. Just as Bench rest National Champions do.
They also shoot well:
Now if I can shoot within 2 MOA at 300 yards with hunting bullets, is that good enough for hunting purposes? I do not believe match bullets will improve my hit probability on game, because, the errors due to my hold, my trigger pull, my alignment, are greater than the inaccuracy between a hunting bullet and a match bullet. I also believe that match bullets are thin skinned and will shed the core. I had that happen with a Norma hunting bullet, luckily the lead core continued in the deer and cut some blood vessels, but the jacket only went in an inch or two. It is better to have the bullet retain its complete integrity and make the biggest through hole possible on game.
A lot of these guys seldom shoot more than 20 rounds a year, just go out before hunting season and "verify" their zero by shooting at dirt embankments. If they shot more on paper, which shows in horrible detail inconsistency, by the time they became skilled marksman, they would see that hunting bullets shot quite well, if the load and the gun is right.
I was very surprised at how well 80's vintage loads and Remington core lokts did at distance. I never fired anything but match bullets beyond 200 yards, but going to CMP Talladega, I was able to shoot any bullet and see how they performed, accuracy wise, at distance.
I bedded this pre war M70 in Dec 2016 and took it out the the range:
Now I will agree that SMK bullets are superbly accurate, I have shot them on paper for decades now. I do believe they will shoot inside of my hold, and inside of what I did here at 300 yards with this sporter rifle:
But, amazing darn thing, these Core Lokts shot a slightly smaller group on a different day. Might have been the coffee, or the wind, or maybe it was just me. At some level, the ability of the shooter to hold and pull is the limiting factor.
This boggled my mind, a 7 3/4" group at 600 yards with old loads and Remington Core Lokts. What is not showing is the 13 shots, some of which were not on target, adjusting that rifle to get in the ten ring at 600 yards. It ain't easy.
I took this pre 64 M70 Winchester in 300 H&H out and shot 190 grain Hornady hunting bullets out to 300 yards.
I greased the bullets and the cases. I believe greased bullets foul the barrel less and because these were new cases, the light grease coating on the outside of the case prevented any sidewall stretch. This is very common with belted magnums, the base to shoulder distance of the chamber is not controlled, and many shooters experience case head separations within a couple of firings. Given that new 300 H&H cases are about $2.00 apiece, I want them to last a long time. Grease or oil prevents the case from sticking to the chamber walls, on ignition, the case slides to the bolt face, the shoulders fold out, and I get a perfect, unstressed, fireformed case. Just as Bench rest National Champions do.
They also shoot well:
Now if I can shoot within 2 MOA at 300 yards with hunting bullets, is that good enough for hunting purposes? I do not believe match bullets will improve my hit probability on game, because, the errors due to my hold, my trigger pull, my alignment, are greater than the inaccuracy between a hunting bullet and a match bullet. I also believe that match bullets are thin skinned and will shed the core. I had that happen with a Norma hunting bullet, luckily the lead core continued in the deer and cut some blood vessels, but the jacket only went in an inch or two. It is better to have the bullet retain its complete integrity and make the biggest through hole possible on game.
