165 Sierra Gameking vs 165 Nosler Ballistic Tip

[filmjunkie4ever]

So my Winchester Model 70 30-06 really loves Nosler bullets. A good thing I say. However when you like to shoot your 30-06 a lot, the bill for 165 grain Accubonds by the 100's gets a little high. So I bought some 165 grain Sierra Gamekings for practice loads. They shoot okay but not near as well as the Accubonds. I was wondering today though, why dont I just shoot the Ballistic Tips? Because they blow up a little too much, I answered myself back...I do this sometimes, dont judge me :grin: . But the Sierras are also sometimes explosive.

My question though is this...how do they compare on weight retention? Also I am not trying to load them way hot, a velocity of 2800 fps is my rifle's happy place with this bullet weight. And I am content with it as I have taken several deer and elk with the 165 grain AccuBond and Partition at this speed.

Should I just go get some Ballistic Tips and ride off into the sunset? Or are the Sierras just as good? I still plan to use the Accubonds as my go to load but the Ballistic Tips or Sierra Gamkeings may still see use in deer season as this is my favorite rifle.

 

[SJB358]

I would either pick up 165 AB 2nds, or do the same with 165 BT's. I don't think the BT is worse than a Game King at all. Anything I would use a similar weighted GK, I would use a BT for. Same Same in my book. Scotty

 

[Guest]

I shoot 168gr Nosler Ballistic Tips in my 30-06, at about 2900fps. Accuracy is stellar - sub-half-inch groups at 100yds, and maintaining sub-moa out beyond 200yds (farthest I've shot it at the range so far). I shot a doe this year, and I can tell you two things. Shots through soft tissue with no bone hit are not explosive, but when you hit heavy bone in a white-tail, the BT will expand quickly, even when launched at sub-3000fps velocities. I don't have a problem with it, though, as the deer drops right there when hit. The exit will be about 2-3' if through a shoulder, or 4-5" if through the spine, as far as I've seen. Deer will drop right there, though, for the most part.

If it were me, I'd load up the BTs and ABs and skip the Sierras. You're likely to get similar if not dead-same POI and accuracy from these two, where the Sierras aren't giving you that.

 

[DrMike]

The Gameking is a fine bullet that has stood the test of time. The BT is equally good. Scotty's point is well taken, however. If you can buy seconds (whether ABs or BTs), you will be dollars ahead.

 

[BK]

So why don't you just shoot the AB for the week-and-a-half of hunting season and BTs the rest of the year? I can't imagine trajectory will be much different. Any POI (if there are any) changes could be fixed with a few clicks of the scope.

 

[300WSM]

Go with the Ballistic tip bullets.

In all honesty the difference in potential meat loss vs non is minimal at most.

What I mean with that is lets say you shoot through the shoulder with AccuBond. The exit hole being a certain size.

The same shot with a Ballistic Tip...exit hole might be a little bigger. But the increase in exit wound would really equate to about two or three bites at the dinner table.

People sometimes act as if using a ballistic tip they will lose several meals from the prize and that isn't the case.

 

[CatskillCrawler]

I have had great success using SGKs in every rifle I own except one. Most of my wallet pic groups are from SGKs. That being said, BTs are no slouch either. Both bullets have their naysayers when using them on game. I think they both work great as long as you keep impact velocity below 3k fps.

I can buy BTs for $3-5/50 rds more than the seconds cost (not counting the shipping!) at the local store. I would rather keep them in business for the slight savings I'd feel from buying from an internet vendor I'll never meet or need on a weeknight at 7:00 pm for the next morning's hunt.

I practice with BTs and hunt with ABs with my .270 and 30-06. POI diff is about an inch for both. /shrug

Edit - I just rechecked prices at the Pro Shooters Site. If I spend over $50 there, the savings are significant enough to cover the cost of the shipping and still make it worthwhile. I recant some of my statement above. I still want to keep the locals in business but can see me buying a large amount of seconds in the future.

 

[joelkdouglas]

I shoot the Custom Competitions for practice and whatever seems like a reasonable bullet for hunting. The Custom Competitions are significantly cheaper, and fly a touch better on the range.

Seems like I come out some dollars ahead, but I do have to move the scope some clicks a couple months before hunting season.

 

[ScreaminEagle]

I've had great success with gamekings in a variety of calibers. They seem to retain their weight quite nicely and work great on a variety of game. Nosler makes great bullets, but when you can buy a hundred sierras for less than the price of 50 Noslers, then your too expensive! Not bashing nosler, but it's the truth!

 

[JD338]

fj4e

The Sierra GK is a fine bullet for target shooting and deer hunting at 30-06 velocities, same with the BT.
I have taken quite a few deer with the 7mm 140 gr BT and never had to track a deer more than 50 feet. I also shot a couple bull caribou with the BT and they went down fast yet the bullet exited with a quarter size exit wound.
Check with Shooters Pro Shop for seconds on both the AB and the BT. Stock up when they go on sale and don't look back.

JD338

 

[filmjunkie4ever]

Kurt, thats what I was thinking of doing too was using the BT for all year around and loading up with the AB's for deer season. I have shot game with both of these bullets but the Noslers seem to be more accurate as my tests have revealed. The Sierras werent horrible but I have been spoiled with Nosler accuracy for so long that I expect it from other bullets too. Haha :grin: , so I guess you get what you pay for. I will be posting some pics comparing the Ballistic Tips to the Gamekings. That will decide it for good.

 

[SJB358]

Can't beat BT's as a deer bullet. With a proper weight used like CC mentioned and others, they are deadly on the deer. Plus, if you get into the 2nds, you will come out ahead. At least this is how I feel about it.

 

[tecumseh]

I've taken a couple of deer and hogs with my 280 Rem using a Gameking and had no issue with them before switching over to BT and Accubonds, I use the ballistic tips for practice and the Accubonds for hunting.

 

[Guest]

fj4e,
I also shoot a 30-06 with 165 Ballistic tips. I developed this load this past fall intending to switch to Accubonds, but didn't get that far before hunting season arrived. The BC is the same with BT vs AB in the 165 bullet. My load is going 2840 using 59.0 H4350 CCI250 Primers in a 22" barrel. Shot a Doe with it thru the neck @ 60 yds, hole was golf ball size exiting. The load prints .442 three shot groups @ 100yds. I'm so pleased with it I may not go to Accubonds any time soon! :mrgreen:
Ballistic Tips a fairly reasonable in price, seconds would be the ticket for sure.

Don

 

[FOTIS]

Like it was suggested. Keep an eye out for 2nds NBT and NAB, When you find them stock up!

 

[Guy Miner]

I like the Sierra Gameking and have found them accurate and deadly.

That said, I like the Nosler Ballistic Tip better! Just as accurate, if not more accurate, and the base seems to hang together really well. There's a tremendous difference between the Sierra jacket and the Nosler Ballistic Tip jacket. The base is a lot thicker on the Nosler.

My son and I both shot our bucks this year with 165 Noslers. I used the Ballistic Tip from my .308 Win, and he used the predecessor to the Ballistic Tip, the old "solid base" which has a lead nose, from our .30-06 rifle. The bullets were NOT recovered, just like they weren't recovered when he shot his bear with the same ammo in 2010.

Sierras are good, but I made the switch for a reason. For practice, pick up a big bag of 168 gr match bullets and load 'em up. Relatively inexpensive and mine hit the same point of impact as my more expensive hunting bullets.

Regards, Guy

 

[BK]

Dale, kinda nice living near SPS, isn't it?

 

[Oldtrader3]

I usually shoot Bt's for practice in several calibers, including my .30-06. In fact for any of my rifles that shoot bullets below 2900 fps. For hunting, I use Partitions.

 

[35 Whelen]

We have been fortunate to have been able to hunt all over the world for big game. And very early on I decided to pick one load, learn how to shoot it and stick with it. I was very impressed with Jack O'Conners writtings and so I started out using this load in 1977 in an 06; 52grs of 4064 and a 165 Nosler Solid Base; that was running at 2900 then and now. The load has accounted for many dozens of deer sized animals including Dall Sheep, Himalayan Thar,Austrain Chamios, Wyoming Antelope, Fallow Deer,Mountain Goats, Red Deer Stags,Black Bears,and more Whitetail and Mulie Bucks,and Caribou Bulls, than I can remember em all. And in 35 years of using that load; [Which was O'Conners load] it has NEVER let me down. The only thing that has changed, is they now call the projectile a Balistic Tip and stuck that plastic tip ontop of it.
The results of that load are now harbored in a leather bound photo album, containing hundreds of pictures of game shot all over the world. Since I am not consirned at all, with the amount of meat that is damaged when shooting any animal and only consirned in dispatching it as quickly with the least amount of suffering to the animal itself. If there is a better load for the 06 than the track record with this one, it must be a beauty, as old Jack said so many years ago ."This loading will take care of any game under 500lbs."

 

[Guest]

35 Whelen,
No one could argue with that load nor the results you've had over the years.
Thanks for sharing that information.

Don