Lead-free copper ammo

[Glass eye]

Which brand of lead-free 100% copper ammo do you like the best, and which one do you not like ?

 

[ltdann]

Boy thats opening up a can of worms!

I like the e-tips, made from gilding metal, not solid copper. My Tikka likes them and they're super accurate.

 

[gundogtrainer]

I have had great results with barnes ,1/2 moa in all of my rifle and one shot kills every time except for one very large cape buff. Only thing that I have notice is that in every caliber 243 win through 505 gibs is that they group 4 to 7 inches from any other bullet I load while all other will group in the same are. Want to try e-tips to see how they group compared to others

 

[buckfever07]

I shoot the barnes TSX in 150gr. No problems yet.

 

[socalkid]

The only lead free I've tried are the Barnes TSX.

In my Savage .223 the Cor-bon 53gr. TSX's shoot pretty darn good. I have a couple boxes of the Federal Speer 43gr. TNT Green stuff but haven't tried it yet.

I also bought a very expensive custom box of 7.62x54R in 165gr. TSX to shoot out of my open sighted Mosin Nagant. It hits 6" steel plates consistantly at 120 yards. Haven't had the chance to shoot any game with it yet.

And then there's my CVA Wolf .50 muzzleloader. Switched from Powerbelt bullets to the Barnes 250gr. TMZ Spitfires after the lead ban. After sighting in, I shot a sub 1" 3 shot group at 100 yards. I'll take that any day.

I also carry a Taurus m66 .357 revolver as backup when rifle hunting. I hunt in the lead free zone so I have to shoot Barnes 125gr. in it.

So I haven't shot many animals with the Barnes yet, but at the range they work great in my guns.

 

[myfriendis410]

Omega: 250 gr. TMZ, 110 gr. Blackhorn 209
A Bolt (7mm r.m.): 150 gr. TSX 65.0 gr. H4831sc
Rem 700 300 win mag: 165 gr. TTSX 75.0 gr. IMR7828ssc or
200 gr. TSX 69.4 gr. RL22
45-70: 300 gr. TSX 48.0 gr. IMR 4198

Killed big hogs with all of these and usually it's bang/flop.

 

[Val]

I've tried and use the Hornady GMX, the Barnes TSX and the Nosler E-tips. The easiest one to convert to is the Hornady GMX. True to their advertisements the Hornady GMX is interchangeable in a recipe that works for their equivalent weight leaded bullet. This has proved true for 150 grain and 165 grain GMX in 30-06. The bullets are longer so you have to reduce the Overall Cartridge length to fit into your chamber.

I use the Barnes TSX in my 25-06, .243 and my slow twist .257 Roberts. This pellets all give me sub moa three shot groups. I have used both the tipped and untipped versions with excellent results.

The Nosler e-tips in my opinion are a problem. For lack of definitive reload data, Nosler states that max powder charge should be two grains less than the max load per their reload manual in the equivalent weight leaded bullet. This is regardless of bullet weight or caliber (very scientific). In trying to develop a load, two grains less IMR 4350 in the 150 grain e-tip, in my 30-06 was yielding poor groups. Prior to be aware of this two grains less, I read an article in Shooting Times that stated that the e-tips could use the same recipe as the accubonds of equivalent weight. I did build up and sure enough at 59 grains I did indeed get good groups. The Nosler manual states the 59 grains of IMR 4350 is the max load for leaded 150 grain bullets. With the 59 grains I noted some very slight cratering of the primers in my Model 70, 30-06. The e-tips are just to expensive to try and develop a load that groups well, 2 grains below book max in another powder.

 

[gundogtrainer]

Have you had the chance to take any game with the GMX bullets you loaded? I loaded some for my 30-06 and 30/378 good acuracy, less fouling but when tested them in balistic gel got almost no expansion from 30-06 and only a little from the 30/378.

 

[Val]

GMX Bullet Game

I just got rhe GMX pellets this year and have not tried them on game yet. My Blacktail last year was taken with a Barnes 85 grain TSX in my .243. I've developed the GMX loads to use for Kalifornistan pigs.

 

[Cowmanone]

Best by miles and miles has been Cutting Edge.

Worse in descending order. Nosler, Barnes, Hornaday. The issue with all three is they perform as advertised. Little hole in, very little expansion on small black tail deer, little hole out. In heavy brush, often little or no blood trail.

 

[Georgia Archer]

Cowmanone, I just found out about Cutting Edge on another thread on this topic today. Have you shot them through a lever gun? It took me awhile of digging on their site to find a bullet for a .30-30. I've always run Core-lokt till I moved here and switched to Hornady Leverevolution. I've yet to take a deer since moving here, so I haven't seen how they do on game, but I'm very impressed with them at the range.

 

[Takeem26]

i made the switch to Fed Trophy Copper for my 7 mag in 150 grain about a year and a half ago and they shoot great out of my weatherby. Went to montana last year, shot a large white tail buck at 200 yards and he dropped in 20 yards. shot a decent size doe at 80 yards and she dropped in about 10 yards and shot a cow elk at 400 yards and she dropped quick too. they def do the job for me.

 

[hightide]

180 gr tsx. 300 wsm 64.5 gr re17 3055 fps . Sub moa at 800 yards. But if ur worried about over penetration than this might not be a good choice. Shot a nice buck about 200 yards a while back and the tsx passed through and ricocheted off the rocks and blew off a nice chunk of what used to be a 3x3 to a 3x0.5 Sucks for me but a good laugh for the forest ranger that validated my tag and the fellas back at camp. I didnt find it too funny.