XCR 300 Win Mag 165 or 180grains

[KBF]

Just purchased an XCR just curious as to what preferences people have from 165 or 180gr bullets and what brand. And at what range should I be zeroed at?Help appreciated.

[GRUNTCALL]

You didnt say what youre using it for but some discussion about different weights here: http://www.outdoorsmenforum.ca/showt...ighlight=grain

[elkhunter11]

Depending on the bullet construction,any bullet from 165gr to 180gr will work fine for big game hunting.

[Tundra Monkey]

Hey KBF,

Elkhunter is right on the money. I've always used 180's. Try both and see what your rifle likes. I zero my 300wm @ 300yrds and it works well for me.

tm

edit: I used to use partitions but now I'm a copper guy.

[justinO]

Hello what XCR do you have? I just bought the long range tactical. I use to shoot a browning stainless stalker in 300wm and reloaded 165gr ballistic tips but had a bad result on a mule deer at 384 yards bullet didnt perform how i liked found the bullet and there was no expansion bullet looked brand new just the actual tip was broke off. I still dont know how this happened but the deer still only ran 15 yards and bedded down I had to finish him off when i got there. I have friends who love the ballistic tip and they were super accurate for me and performed well on all the other animals i killed with them just after that one instance I lost faith but could have been just a freak situation to. With my new gun I am going to reload the berger 190gr match hunting vld's I like shooting at distance so that bullet for me with the high BC is my choice. It totally depends what you are hunting and what ranges you will be shooting at. Also if you want your gun to be only for hunting or if you enjoy also shooting at long range targets as I do. if it is under 400 yards you should just shoot what ever is the most accurate.
All the best

[KBF]

I have the model in Stainless steel synthetic. This is intended for moose and elk.I was thinking a Hornady bullet because we have had good luck with 140gr in 270. bUt not familiar with the performance on the larger calibre Hornadys.

IS there any sort of a trade off between a 165 shooting a little flatter or the 180 hitting a little harder.?

[Tundra Monkey]

I think that "theoretically" you'll get less drift with the 180 but it's pretty moot. I'd find a good bullet that the rifle likes and you'll be good to go.

tm

[justinO]

Originally Posted by KBF

I have the model in Stainless steel synthetic. This is intended for moose and elk.I was thinking a Hornady bullet because we have had good luck with 140gr in 270. bUt not familiar with the performance on the larger calibre Hornadys.

IS there any sort of a trade off between a 165 shooting a little flatter or the 180 hitting a little harder.?

Like i said inside of 400 maybe 300 yards depending on your load the lighter bullets should have more speed little flatter shooting the bigger bullets start over passing the lighter bullets past that 400 yard mark in both energy and velocity because of the capability for better ballistic coefficients. So depends what you are looking at doing inside of 300 it wont make a real difference lighter or heavier. The lighter bullets will kick less if that is something that effects you. I have herd good thing about hornady, sierra nosler really any of the premium bullets should be fine just find what shoots best out of your rifle sometime they like a certain bullet over the other. Hope this helps.

[Sneeze]

You don't buy a 1 ton to haul a tent trailer.

Just like you don't buy a 300 Mag to shoot 165's.

165's are for 308's! A lot of guys are getting the best performance from their 300 Win Mags with 190 Grain Bullets. Check your twist rate.

[elkhunter11]

Out to about 500 yards,the trajectory and wind drift will be comparable with similar bullets weighing 165gr and 180gr.The 165gr bullets will kill an elk or moosae just as dead as a 180gr bullet.pick a well constructed bullet,in the weight that shoots best in your rifle.

[justinO]

Hey KBF if you want go on the berger website and download their ballistic calculator you dont have to shoot berger bullets just know your bullets weight, ballistic coefficient and velocity then fill the other variables like altitude temp all that good stuff what your sighted in at and then hit shoot and it will tell you your bullets velocities and energy and droppage at all the distances in multiples of 50 or 100 up until whatever you want farthest I have looked is was out to 4000 yards just for the fun. you can even input wind to see wind drift. I spend lots of time on that program tinkering its a very useful tool. If you reload you will need a chrono to find out exactly what your muzzle velocity is but if you dont just use the reload datas info and you should be close. And yes Know what your twist rate of your barrel is Mine is 1-10 and the 190gr or heavier are best fit for my rifle. As for what you want to shoot whatever shoots best out of your gun some times a certain bullet weight or type likes a certain guns. Happy shooting.
hope this helps

[Pathfinder76]

Bullet construction far outweighs (pardon the pun) 15 grains of bullet weight. It's an amazingly simple concept that is somehow very difficult to grasp.