nosler balistic tip vs hornady sst

[JEB]

i have been working up a good 30-06 load for whitetails this season and have narrowed it down to two; the hornady sst and the nosler balistic tip. both are running right at 2900 fps. accuracy is a wash; i just dont see much if any difference between the two. the balistic tip has a slightly higher BC than the sst, but at the ranges i will be shooting (very unlikely to get a shot past 200yards) i dont think that it makes any difference. the only real difference that i can see between the two is the price, with the noslers costing a bit more. given the similarities, the only thing left to figure out is how they hold togather on game. so has any had any experience with both? i know the balistic tip has a pretty large fan base but i dont hear much on the sst.

so for whitetails at 200 yards and in, considering the same bullet weight (150gr), same velocity, same caliber, same gun, etc. which would you choose and why?

 

[jmr40]

I've shot game with the BT. The same load/ bullet combo. I've never recovered a bullet, including a complete pass through on a larger than average black bear. Everything dropped dead in their tracks with fist sized exit holes.

I've not been able to get the SST's to shoot well in my guns. The standard Interlocks shoot much better for me so that is what I now use. I've read that the SST's tend to expand too fast at times, not giving adequate penetration, but no personal experience. I don't think it would be an issue on deer sized game however.

Older BT's had a reputation for doing the same when new, but Nosler has toughened up the bullet and more recent bullets seem to do better.

My opinion, for whitetail, I think either would be fine. If I wanted to stay with that bullet weight and there was a possiblity of anything larger I'd feel better with an Accubond, Partition, or Barnes TTSX, but would take the BT over the SST.

 

[Mobuck]

I've used both and seriously doubt you'll see a noticeable difference in the two bullets when used on deer sized game.

 

[rule303]

I have tried both in the '06. I have since switched to Partitions. The Ballistic Tips were extremely accurate for me, the SST's were OK, but both bullets will fail to penetrate more than a few inches on close shots. I still shoot the Ballistic tips when hunting out west, but for woods range hunting I think something like a Remington Core-Lokt or Nosler partition is a more reliable performer in the 150gr .30 cal.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

rule303, I have experienced the exact opposite. I have shot 7 deer with ballistic tips. The ranges were from 15 yds to about 125. I've never recovered a bullet.
The fact is, on white tails it doesn't really matter IMO. Either is fine.

 

[Ridgerunner665]

From my 30-06 (M70)...


SST's...150 grain.



Ballistic Tips...168 grain though.



Ballistic Tip exit hole...ALWAYS...bullet entered the other shoulder (quartering to me), destroyed it as well as the lungs and heart...exited just behind the diaphragm...and kept on going...don't let anybody tell you BT's won't penetrate...I could sit here all day posting pictures that say otherwise.

 

[Water-Man]

I've had better luck with the Hornadys at shorter distances but at 200yds. I'd call it a wash.

 

[tcb1709]

I hunt with a 270 using the Hornady SST in a 130 grain load at 2900 fps. I have no problems with any deer that I've shot. All of the bullets fully penetrated and did terrific damage. My rifle shoots a1/2 inch group with load I'm using. I have taken shots out to 250 yrds with excellent results. I have not used the Nosler so I can't comment on them.

 

[Lloyd Smale]

I kind of chuckle at guys that bad mouth bts for deer. I have to wonder how many deer theyve actually shot with them or if there just another wanabe internet expert. Ive shot probably at least a 100 deer with them in various calibers from the 250 sav to the 8mag and the results all had one common denomenator. I ate back straps!

 

[Kachok]

Both work just fine, I use which ever groups the best in each rifle. never had a deer run with either put through his lungs. I like the SST 100pk better then Noslers 50pk for the money.

 

[Skyshot]

I have to say of the some 20 calibers I load for the Noslers are more accurate usually but not always. In fast mid caliber rifles say in the .264 win mag/270/7mag/300mag, both bullets seem to blow up on deer if they are pushed above 3000 fps and the shots are taken at close range at say under 100 yards. So you get a lot of meat damage in that situation. If woods hunting with calibers mentioned I tend to favor a bonded core or heavy jacketed bullet.

 

[Captcurt]

I decline not having shot the SST. My bullet of the moment is the Accubond, but I'm pretty fickle.

 

[MCgunner]

rule303, I have experienced the exact opposite. I have shot 7 deer with ballistic tips. The ranges were from 15 yds to about 125. I've never recovered a bullet.
The fact is, on white tails it doesn't really matter IMO. Either is fine.

+1....me, too Nosler is very accurate, why I shoot it in .30-30 and .308.

 

[hardluk1]

I use both. My 7RM load is a 139gr sst drive at 3400fps. It is very accurate but also shoot thru a krieger barrel and is good for 2" at 400 yards. I bought a buch of the same lot number ammo years ago. Works very well with all chest shoots from 20 feet to 385 yards. Some pass thru's some fragged. Deer hit the ground with in a couple steps. A buddy uses 140gr nbt in a 7mm stw at 3480fps. They hit like lighting. He did liquify one deers chest cavity. That one got hit to far back but never had any run away.
My 308 has shot both NBT's and SST loads. 125gr for both use for close up bottom hunting. The NBT's are a bit more destrutive but neather let deer run more than a couple steps. And the 308 is basicaly as accurate with ether one. The nosler runs at 2985fps from georgia arms and the sst runs at 2698 fps. These are a hornady custom lite load for my daughters.

Try them both and use what shoots best??

 

[JEB]

wow, im kinda surprised to see the votes devided so evenly (50/50 right now). hopefully i will get a chance to test both of them out this season and we will see what happens. keep the opinions coming!

 

[Kachok]

I think you will get reliable penatration out of either the BTs or SSTs as long as you keep impact speeds below the 3k mark, above that you are at risk of a blowup with anything shy of bonded bullets. I usualy push mine to 2600-2900fps and never had a blowup even on close up shots. I have pushed Ballistic Tips to 3300fps+ out of my 270 WSM but I only use that out in the wide open. Some of my rifles like the Nosler better, some like the Horandy, I feed them what they like.

 

[glockky]

I wouldnt worry about either. As for the ballistic tips not penetrating, I have never seen that. I have killed almost all my deer with my handloaded ballistic tips in .243,30-06,and 270 and always got a pass thru. I am hoping to see how some 168gr BT do out of my 300 WSM this fall.

 

[gspn]

I've shot perhaps 80 whitetail with ballistic tips...ranges from 10 to 300 yards, almost all double lung shots. I keep the bullets I find and weigh them. I find that on average (of the bullets I can recover) I get roughly 30% weight retention.

Most of them absolutely come apart in the deer...I get exceptionally few pass through shots. So few in fact that I can't recall one at the moment.

I shoot a 7mm mag.

Now...this isn't NECESSARILY a bad thing. Those bullets turn a deers vitals into mush when they come apart in the boiler room...it's like a small frag grenade went off. I've never lost a deer that I shot with a BT.

However...if I'm hunting in a place where I will need a solid blood trail (thick cover) I opt for a different bullet.

I don't care how well you shoot a deer they can and will run off a ways. I've shot them square in the heart and had them run 100 yards. The only sure hit to drop one on the spot is a central nervous system shot...spine or brain.

Sometimes you find that you get lucky and you shoot them in the lungs and get a "dropped in their tracks" moment...only to find out that the bullet went in and immediately curved upwards to break a vertebrae. I've seen all types of crazy bullet movements inside those animals.

I've only seen one deer shot with the SST so my sample size won't mean much. That bullet was a total failure. Shot from a .243 at a broadside buck standing still at 142 yards the bullet hit the shoulder and failed to penetrate. It absolutely blew up on the meat and never penetrated the chest cavity. 2.5 hours later...and 300 yards away we found that buck. Longest morning of my hunting life.

 

[hardluk1]

You have to place ether of these bullets some where beside on the shoulder. I would not expect ether to do well with a shoulder hit but in the forword chest or base of neck area they both work well. If you want a blood trail use a heavier bonded or all copper bullet and then shoulders are fair game too. I have not in 20 years had a deer leave my sight with either a NBT or SST in the chest but also don't use a 243. Only real field use can verify that.

 

[JEB]

well i did some informal bullet testing with the nosler BT and the hornady SST using lined up water-filled milk jugs. the SST penetrated very well but the jacket seperated. the jacket was left in the fourth jug while the core split the back of the fifth jug. the core and jacket togather weighed 88.8 grains. the nosler remained intact but only penetrated to the fourth jug with no visible impact on the back side of that jug. recovered weight was 104.6 grains. both expaned to roughly the same size (+/- 0.68) but the nosler maintained more of the classic mushroom shape while the hornady was much more over-expanded with the petals reaching much further back than the base of the bullet.

good results from both but i was a little surprised to see that the bullet that retained less weight actually penetrated further.

 

[Ridgerunner665]

4 jugs is typical for a BT, I've probably killed at least 200 jugs with them.

 

[wyohome]

The larger hole was the entrance wound. 160 yards, my wife's first shot at any living animal. 150 grain NBT, .308

 

[theblakester]

Ridgerunner665, why did u shoot a 4 point in the first place?

Btw this thread interests me, bc I'm looking for a good hunting round that will preform adequately for large (250+) lb hogs at less than 250 yards in my .308.

 

[Ridgerunner665]

Thats not a 4 point...and I shot him for the meat...he may have been a little short on horns, but he dressed 150 lbs. (4.5 years old)

I "thought" he was a nice tall, wide 6 point...it was getting dark though and the 3-9x scope didn't show me that he was missing a brow tine on one side...he was a nice tall, wide 5 point...

Is this one more to your liking?

 

[theblakester]

Cool. Yes that pic does do more justice. The first made him look like a 2nd year 4 pt. I originally asked because, the neighbor just next to my dad's ranch, has a bit of land (22 acres) that he bought to hunt on. He has no concern for wildlife management. He will invite several friends per year during weekends, and they will literally shoot anything that moves. Quite frustrating.