Hornady SST's On Big Game?

[TERMINATOR]

Any body used the Hornady SST bullets on big game? I am going to give some a try and was wondering how well they held together.

I am assuming they would be more like the Nosler Accubond than the Nosler Ballistic Tip in performance but was wondering if anybody here has some actual experience.

Thanks

 

[Pacontender]

The SST is nothing like an Accubond. In my opinion, it is a horrible bullet. I have to kill over 100 whitetails a year at the ranch, and I won't even use them for culling. It's not if they will fail, it's when. They are very accurate, but I would highly advise against using them for big game.

 

[TERMINATOR]

The SST is nothing like an Accubond. In my opinion, it is a horrible bullet. I have to kill over 100 whitetails a year at the ranch, and I won't even use them for culling. It's not if they will fail, it's when. They are very accurate, but I would highly advise against using them for big game.

What caliber where you shooting them out of and at what ranges? Thanks for sharing your experience!

 

[Pacontender]

7-08. 139gr. 2900 fps. Ranges from 50 to 350. Hornady claims that the SST is a tipped version of the interlock. All I know is that Myself and three other guys were shooting management bucks over a weeks time, and out of 150 deer killed the three wounded were with the SSTs. We never recovered one of them, and the dogs found up the other two. The bullets blew up on impact and would leave orange sized holes.

 

[TERMINATOR]

7-08. 139gr. 2900 fps. Ranges from 50 to 350. Hornady claims that the SST is a tipped version of the interlock. All I know is that Myself and three other guys were shooting management bucks over a weeks time, and out of 150 deer killed the three wounded were with the SSTs. We never recovered one of them, and the dogs found up the other two. The bullets blew up on impact and would leave orange sized holes.

So you were using the "Superformance" ammo from Hornady? That does sound bad. When they blew up were they shoulder hits?

Do you remember what ranges the 3 lost deer where shot at? Just trying to figure out if it was the close ones with really high velocity or all ranges?

When you say "orange size holes" you talking entrance or exit holes?

Thanks again. Sorry for all the questions but I am really curious to hear that a bullet from Hornady was that bad. Glad I got to hear your experince before I wasted some game with them.

 

[Pacontender]

No, they were hand loads. This was before the superformance came out. I use the Hornady interlock with no problems. The holes I am referring to were entrance holes where the SSTs came apart. Almost like a ballistic tip.

 

[TERMINATOR]

No, they were hand loads. This was before the superformance came out. I use the Hornady interlock with no problems. The holes I am referring to were entrance holes where the SSTs came apart. Almost like a ballistic tip.

Ok, thanks again!

 

[enysse]

I like the SST bullets by Hornady. I have used them in my 270 Win and 7mm Rem Mag and have had no problem with them. Last year killed a 6x6 elk in New Mexico at 200 years with 150 of Triple 777 and a 250 grain bullet and performance was excellent. I think they more like a ballistic tip....they are usually accurate. I think people have unrealistic expectation of bullets like this....and expect a Barnes X performance. A well placed SST is super deadly.

 

[TERMINATOR]

I like the SST bullets by Hornady. I have used them in my 270 Win and 7mm Rem Mag and have had no problem with them. Last year killed a 6x6 elk in New Mexico at 200 years with 150 of Triple 777 and a 250 grain bullet and performance was excellent. I think they more like a ballistic tip....they are usually accurate. I think people have unrealistic expectation of bullets like this....and expect a Barnes X performance. A well placed SST is super deadly.

I would expect these bullets to kill game like they were hit by lightning if you get animals in the lungs and at longer ranges of 100 yards plus (I am referring more to the .270 and 7MM Mag) just like the Nosler BT's do. I am more concerned what happens if an animal appears closer than you were expecting and you catch some shoulder bone.

The only deer my son and I have ever lost was hit with a .30-06 at 30 yards broadside with a 165 gr BT. That combo killed deer stone dead at 125-300 yards but I caught some shoulder on the close shot (it was getting dark and I was intentionally wanting to err toward the shoulder vs. the gut). That deer went down, laid there for a full minute and about the time I was climbing out of my blind it jumped up and ran off. I am pretty sure it died but there was little blood beyond the first 10 yards of the the trail and a followup search in the morning failed to locate any additional blood or dead deer.

I was bummed and went back to Nosler Partitions after that.

I was just hoping the SSTs were a little tougher than the BT's, more toward the Accubond range because I wanted to shoot the Superformance Ammo in my 7mm-08 to get a little more velocity.

 

[enysse]

I like the SST bullets by Hornady. I have used them in my 270 Win and 7mm Rem Mag and have had no problem with them. Last year killed a 6x6 elk in New Mexico at 200 years with 150 of Triple 777 and a 250 grain bullet and performance was excellent. I think they more like a ballistic tip....they are usually accurate. I think people have unrealistic expectation of bullets like this....and expect a Barnes X performance. A well placed SST is super deadly.

The elk was killed by a 50 cal Muzzleloader....TC Omega. 150 grains of powder.

I think shooting any big bone...in any animal can result in deflection or poor bullet performance with a soft boattail bullet. I think frontal shots are faught with disaster most days. I have seen Barnes X bullet deflect if they hit the bone in the right spot. The more solid a bullet is the better the change of breaking the bone and busting through to the rest of the bodily tissue.

I have swore of the quartering to shot after my last trip to Africa. It either drops the animal on the spot or the bullet can deflect off those huge bones. A true frontal shot is ok...just smaller target.

 

[TERMINATOR]

The elk was killed by a 50 cal Muzzleloader....TC Omega. 150 grains of powder.

I think shooting any big bone...in any animal can result in deflection or poor bullet performance with a soft boattail bullet. I think frontal shots are faught with disaster most days. I have seen Barnes X bullet deflect if they hit the bone in the right spot. The more solid a bullet is the better the change of breaking the bone and busting through to the rest of the bodily tissue.

I have swore of the quartering to shot after my last trip to Africa. It either drops the animal on the spot or the bullet can deflect off those huge bones. A true frontal shot is ok...just smaller target.

Only way I will take the quartering in shot is if I have what I think is MORE THAN ENOUGH gun and a tough bullet. Then I want to put it just inside the near front leg between it and where the neck hits the body. They drop like somebody dumped a load of bricks on them assuming you have enough gun.

I have a lot of confidence in my .300 Wby with a 180 grain Partition or TBBC to punch through the front quarter anything smaller than an eland. But I wouldn't take that shot with my '06 on blue wildebeest or similar things and I wouldn't take it with ANY gun with a bullet that is known to over expand/seperate.

If I have enough gun and a tough bullet...I will take it. If my gun is at all marginal for the animal in question...I would pass.

 

[35bore]

I agree with TERMINATOR in his last statement, basically if you have confidence in your gun and ammo, then you will go to the field with confidence. If you DON'T have that same confidence in a "marginal" gun and ammo, or have had a bad experience with it, then you should pass on it. Think about it, there have been probably hundred's of thousand's animals fall to a basic 30-30 using factory Remington core-lokt factory ammo or Winchester silver tip, but, if you have a couple of bad experiences then you find something better, right.? If you have had nothing but success with the combo, why switch. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" comes to mind. Personally I love the TBBC in my 35 Whelen, but, that's me and it's what the rifle shoots, REALLY WELL.

 

[enysse]

I agree you have to have enough gun and a premium bullet to take the quartering to shot on all game. I personally have never used the TBBC, I know what the bullet is...it's a premium bullet! I don't use the Nosler Partition or TBBC because of the cost of shooting....and that is the only reason....they are very excellent bullets. I have some Swift -A bullets and they are very similiar to the TBBC....they work excellent. I set my hunting budget on bullets that are cheaper to buy....so I don't feel to guilty practicing with them.

You definitely need velocity and big bullet to shoot game in the quartering to shoot or the high shoulder shot. I personally don't like to take the high shoulder shot....because it ruins way too much meat. I prefer the lung shot over any shot...just because it ruins less meat. And any animal dies quickly if it can't breath.

 

[TERMINATOR]

I agree you have to have enough gun and a premium bullet to take the quartering to shot on all game. I personally have never used the TBBC, I know what the bullet is...it's a premium bullet! I don't use the Nosler Partition or TBBC because of the cost of shooting....and that is the only reason....they are very excellent bullets. I have some Swift -A bullets and they are very similiar to the TBBC....they work excellent. I set my hunting budget on bullets that are cheaper to buy....so I don't feel to guilty practicing with them.

You definitely need velocity and big bullet to shoot game in the quartering to shoot or the high shoulder shot. I personally don't like to take the high shoulder shot....because it ruins way too much meat. I prefer the lung shot over any shot...just because it ruins less meat. And any animal dies quickly if it can't breath.

+1

I hunt with my premiums but shoot a lot of cheaper ammo for practice. I just know where it hits in relation to the premium stuff and make a slight adjustment during practice for offhand and sitting shots. For example, my .270 shoots 140 grain TBBC's about 2" high at 100 and dead center. My handloads with Win Powerpoint 130 grains hit about 1/2 higer and 2 inches left

It is simple for me to practice by aiming slightly low and a little right of the target. If I am practicing on paper plates from field positions (which is practicing putting it in the lungs) I can do it quite easily with a slight hold adjustment...kind of like I was doping a big crosswind. At 200 yards I am aiming just off the plate and pretty much center high.

I have to admit that more than once I have forgot to hold adjust on the first practice shot and sent one high and outside Then I remember and adjust

 

[enysse]

That is brilliant way of looking at things Terminator! Not too many people are that sharp when it comes to shooting. Some guys I know practice with cheap ammo and then change the scope tracking when hunting. I never trust scopes no matter what....I would have to go to the bench after changing the scope turrets and fire a round at 100 yds. or 200 yds. to feel any level of comfort!

 

[TERMINATOR]

Way I figure it, hunt with the best bullet you can find, zero your scope for it and then buy (or load) the cheapest ammo you can find for practice and just find out where IT hits.

Out to 100 yards there is a good chance you will still be on the paper plate anyway, but the key is just knowing where that practice ammo hits and make it part of your practice. I think it really does improve your focus when you have to make the concious adjustment on the hold and still hit the plate.

Then it seems like a piece of cake when I am in the field and the bullets really are going where I point the scope LOL