Federal Ammunition and Sledgehammers

[Luvthunt]

Just hung up the phone with a Federal rep , who informed me that no

“ hvy caliber ammo will be loaded until after the first of the year” and “they have not decided wether to produce and TBBC OR TBSH bullets for sale to reloaders.”

Talk about arrogance in conveying that info. Obviously Federal no longer cares about customer satisfaction, iF you want an eye opener call 800 379 1732 and listen to the mega corporation list that is programmed to answer your call. By the way Federal is listed on the all other list and that takes you to an operator who directs your call.
For those who damn Hornady just try the attitude of the guy who responds to the Federal customer line.
My take on his info is they have no interest in the reloader.
No wonder the bear claw and sledgehammers-have been failing.
I have been a Federal customer for more then 60 years, but I am NO MORE.

 

[curtism1234]

Didn't Federal change hands a few years back?

I had a good experience with them recently via Facebook message as I had a question about the rebates. They were very good, followed up a couple days later, and apologized for the delay as they wanted to make sure the info was accurate.

Could be whoever they source the bullets from is having a problem which prevents them from being able to sell as reloading components...as well as the quality...

 

[Wyatt Smith]

The price on the 375 300 TBBC was well over 2 dollars on MidwayUSA. Also they’re not in stock they’re “coming soon” like the have been for 4 months. A US shooter looking for premium lead cored 375 bullets has one good choice, Swift A-frame

 

[Hoss Delgado]

This is most avaricious . But it may be a blessing in Disguise for you. I myself was wanting to try a few in .375 HH Magnum for my new BRNO ZKK - 602. However , they gave me such a reply as well. Not taking anything offensively ( though l should have ! ) , I decided to get a few Trophy Bonded sledgehammer solids second hand from an online auction. I was really looking for some 300 grain full metal jacket round nose solids, other than Kynoch ( which l had a little bit of a shaky experience with ) . At the time , Sledgehammers were the only option. Norma does a 350 Grain Full metal Jacket Bullet with a round nose . But l heard that velocity was lower than ammo loaded with 300 grain bullets. So l acquired my Sledgehammers ( federal factory loaded ammunition ) and decided to do some testing on wooden boards stacked horizontally to mimic the honeycomb structure of an elephant skull. 13 of the 24 Bullets had pretty serious distortion for a " solid ". Either noses flattened or the bases got squished with the lead core coming out , or the bullet slightly bent in a curved angle.
Not good performance at all !
I have now completely shifted to Nosler factory loaded Monolithic ammunition or 300 grain Cutting Edge Monolithic meplat brass Solids for my .375 HH Magnum Winchester Model 70 and BRNO ZKK - 602.
It's a real shame how federal turned out. I used to be a steady purchaser of their 10 gauge Cape Shok hollow point rifled slugs.

 

[sgt_zim]

The price on the 375 300 TBBC was well over 2 dollars on MidwayUSA. Also they’re not in stock they’re “coming soon” like the have been for 4 months. A US shooter looking for premium lead cored 375 bullets has one good choice, Swift A-frame

Hmmm...I'd say Norma would also be a good choice for a premium 300 gr lead core. Woodleigh, too. Even NP would be a good choice. The NP failures I've heard about (core separation) seem to have been close shots at high velocity. 2600 fps may be "high velocity" for a DG cartridge, but 2600 fps isn't "high velocity."

 

[Wyatt Smith]

I should have been more specific. I meant lead cored solid shank or segmented core. I left out the NP because the lack of bonding. The ones you listed are good bullets.

 

[Ridgewalker]

Midway has Federal 300 gr TBBC in stock now at $69.90/25! I think I’ll just stick with Swift A-frames at less than half the price. Premium priced premium bullets is nice, but you can spend an awful lot trying to find the right load.
Swift’s are proven performers by vastly more hunters I suspect than TBBCs.

 

[Luvthunt]

Totally in sinc with you , A frames are reliable and to my understanding have always been....

 

[fourfive8]

Haven't conversed or dealt with any of the big manufacturers in years and too bad to hear about the attitude of Federal. For a long time they were the American leaders in high quality ammo and R&D, especially for high performance shotshells. Haven't used any factory ammo in my own rifles for years, so not much help on the current offerings other than experience with some of the bullets loaded in factory cartridges.

Swift A Frames are hard to beat and right now they are probably the go-to, tough, reliable, predictable, controlled expanding bullet. North Fork was giving them great competition then went away- rats! I really had good results with the North Fork bullets I tried. For FP solids, I have a good supply of GS Custom monolithics. They too are excellent and have very similar performance to the North Fork FP solid.

Time will tell how well the Hornady DGX bonded version in the larger calibers holds up to real world scrutiny and field experiences. As best I can tell they simply bonded the same lead core to the same copper clad thin steel jacket. Why they insist on using that thin steel envelope as the method for controlling expansion in their DG series, I'll never know! I guess they are so "invested" in the validity of the theory, they can't just abandon it.

 

[chashardy]

I don't reload my own ammo, so can't speak to availability of supplies. However, as to Federal factory ammo, the local sporting goods store in Dallas where I usually buy my ammo says that the supplies of Federal big game calibers typically get very scarce in fall and winter then pick up again in the spring when American hunters are getting ready to head to Africa. That being said, even with the difficulty of supply, Federal TBBC and Swift A-Frame shoot more accurately in my big caliber rifles than other brands.