help needed load with N160 and 95gr sst in 243

big ears

Well-Known Member
cannot find load range anywhere. anyone got any pet loads and safe range of loads please.

BE
 
Currently using Nosler 95g Ballistic tip with 43g of N160 in my .243 Sako. It is similar to your round but be care full. Starting with low loads can also cause problems.
 
Disclaimer: the information below relates to MY rifle and may not be safe in yours; work up to this load and follow advice in standard reloading manual for safety.

I have been using the Hornady 95gr SST with N160 in my Tikka T3. I started at 42.5gr and worked up to 45.4 (eventually.) The latter was exhibiting early pressure signs but nothing drastic (October temps, bullet seated with 3.5thou jump)

I repeated various loads within that range and at various jumps (no jamming, of course.)

Final load: 44gr N160 seated to "touch the lands" (which equates "base-to-ogive" length of 57.57mm in my chamber, using the Stoney Point comparator.) 5 shots routinely group into 0.75" which is good in this gun (strangely my .243 Tikka has always been the hardest to load for.)

This load is much faster than I expected, given that it seems not to be overpressure in my rifle. Exact speed is unknown as it started tipping it down before I chrono'd it. But before the rain started, 42.5gr gave av. 3112fps and 42.8gr gave 3140fps. I am guessing 44gr will be humming along at over 3200fps.

So far I have found this round performed well on deer (fallow) and opportunistic foxes, however, it's early days yet. I neck shot a fallow buck at 46yds off sticks and although there was some fragmentation on impact with spine, enough held together to exit.

Exit side, jacket fragment near tip of blade, exit wound in reflected skin below:
ACE45185-82CA-4367-B430-FF8F5AD559B9.jpg




This wasn't the case when I performed a similar shot/range using 100gr Speer BTSP (deer just as dead, though!)

My previous standard .243 deer load was Sierra Prohunter 100gr at 3020fps. Nothing wrong with it but I like the SST in .308 and thought I'd give it a try in .243Win.
 
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cannot find load range anywhere. anyone got any pet loads and safe range of loads please.

BE

In .243 the 95 grain SST / N160 combination used to be quoted in the Vihtavouri loading tables. The maximum load quoted was 45.4 grains. 43.0 grains of N160 worked very well in my 22" barrelled T3 with a muzzle velocity of 3,060 fps.
 
I have been using the Hornady 95gr SST with N160 in my Tikka T3.
I neck shot a fallow buck at 46yds off sticks
and although there was some fragmentation on impact with spine, enough held together to exit.

Exit side, jacket fragment near tip of blade, exit wound in reflected skin below:
ACE45185-82CA-4367-B430-FF8F5AD559B9.jpg

Observation on the bullet and terminal effects rather than criticism of its use (in case this is misconstrued)...

..but that looks awfully messy and the fragmented jacket would alarm me in a supposed "Interlocked" hunting bullet.
The fact that you comment it has held together and exited as a good thing implies that some don't. Is that the case?
Especially considering the range. (at 46yds ANY game bullet should exit)

I am afraid its pics like this that confirm my disinterest in using SST's on deer.
I use AMax on foxes and it makes less mess
 
I am sorry and don't want to offend but that is an awful mess that your SST is making. I would hate to think of the carcass damage if you were to take a H&L shot. What is wrong with a basic soft point, at least they will hold together a bit better?
 
Observation on the bullet and terminal effects rather than criticism of its use (in case this is misconstrued)...

..but that looks awfully messy and the fragmented jacket would alarm me in a supposed "Interlocked" hunting bullet.
The fact that you comment it has held together and exited as a good thing implies that some don't. Is that the case?
Especially considering the range. (at 46yds ANY game bullet should exit)

I am afraid its pics like this that confirm my disinterest in using SST's on deer.
I use AMax on foxes and it makes less mess

Just to be clear, I'm no expert and don't want to seem to be lecturing fellow stalkers (don't want to be misconstrued either!)

High velocity/close range can be a challenge for expanding bullets; even to the extent that under-penetration occurs. Whereas at longer range the bullet is less likely to fragment, paradoxically increasing penetration (perhaps less so in .243 than more powerful cartridges.) I'm not talking about highly frangible constructions like Barnes Varmint Grenade or V-max, but uncontrolled expansion of bullets designed for deer-sized game can occur at high impact velocities such as at close range.

The pic above shows the worst of the wound channel, which was about 1-1.5" diameter, after I have removed some overlying muscle. The area of damaged meat was quite localised. The pic below shows the same area before dissection to show the permanent wound cavity. Remember, this is a neck, not a thorax, so it's hardly a massive area of damage:




My point is that even at close-range/high-velocity the bullet has expanded in a controlled manner, retaining enough mass to make a clean exit wound after hitting the spine (much more substantial than rib). It's possible that the interlocked section remained fully jacketed and intact, we'll never know. The fragmentation was not excessive, not a case of "bullet blow-up".

Recovered fragments:


My previous experience with Speer 100gr BTSP at similar range did not not exit (and that was a high cervical impact.) Of course, no two shots are identical so one must be wary of definitive statements based on limited data. It may well be that further use puts me off the SST in .243.

After the Speer, I switched to Sierra Gameking and subsequently Prohunter. The former tended to exhibit jacket/core separation, the latter were fine (though the meplats tend to get deformed in the mag by recoil.)

Happily, most bullets are going to get the job done most of the time, if put in the right place. But having had a heart-shot fallow buck stroll toward me with no sign of a hit, I am aware that "most of the time" is not "every time". Since the .243 is at the lowest end of the UK deer-legal calibre spectrum, I am happy to experiment to get the best out of it.

My deer stalking is only in double-figures per year so I am guided by the opinions of those who shoot triple-figures or have a lifetime of experience behind them. Not many people document terminal ballistics in detail: Terminal Ballistics Research is an interesting repository of observations of the performance of different bullets on game. The .243 is not the site authors favourite calibre but the 95gr SST is, in his opinion, the best of a bad bunch.

If things don't continue to go well with the SST, I'll switch back to the 100gr Prohunter.

Hopefully, by sharing our experiences (on forums, in the pub, etc.) we can peel back hype and hyperbole and make informed decisions based on in-field results. It's good to share!
 
I can;t quite see what is removed to get pic 1 to look like picture 2 but I do agree with some of the points

short range and long range impact speeds can do strange things...but.. I have seen a few of the SST wounds to draw my conclusions from, including my own. its the reason I moved them on and stuck with standard Interlocks.

My guess is the higher velocity impacts cause the ballistic tip to open the jacket that much more ferociously than a standard soft point.
resulting in fragmentation and frangibility at higher impact speeds
they were after all designed with a higher BC for 3-400yd plains game and open range US market application where the BT would ensure a good expansion in impact scenarios where a lower velocity can see "pencilling"

This is a 130gr .270 Non-SST interlock at 40yds. thats a short range and high impact velocity buy anyone's standards

no fragmentation at all.
petals are curled perfectly
it demonstrated none of the secondary meat damage

 
I am sorry and don't want to offend but that is an awful mess that your SST is making. I would hate to think of the carcass damage if you were to take a H&L shot. What is wrong with a basic soft point, at least they will hold together a bit better?

I've tried a number of soft points (as well as those detailed above I've also used the Hornady 100gr BTSP) and none were any less messy. Similarly, none were awful, though the Speer 100gr BTSP (not the Hotcor) fragmented to the extent of not exiting the neck at all.

I'm not trying to start an argument here, but differentiating the expected bullet performance based on whether it has a plastic tip versus an exposed soft point does not really make sense to me. It sometimes seems that any bullet with a plastic-tip is pigeon-holed as being explosive, like a "varmint" bullet. Jacket design/taper/thickness, core alloy, interlock and partitioning can all outweigh whether the effects of a plastic tip. Granted, there are highly frangible polymer-tipped designs and some may have been used inappropriately on deer with poor results. The SST is not such a design; testament to which is that this bullet exited with minimum fragmentation after traversing a fallow buck's spine at 46yds, from a MV of 3200fps. I reckon that's quite good performance. The only directly comparable shot (same size fallow, buck, similar range) with a 100gr BTSP was much messier, more fragmentation and didn't exit.

It's all a bit academic, since both deer were cleanly killed. I certainly haven't noticed more meat damage with the SST but it may be too early to tell. The best of the SP has been the 100gr Prohunter, in my use (which mostly fallow, some roe.)

I have no agenda here- my mind is open. If the SST disappoints in some way, you'll hear back from me!
 
I can;t quite see what is removed to get pic 1 to look like picture 2 but I do agree with some of the points

short range and long range impact speeds can do strange things...but.. I have seen a few of the SST wounds to draw my conclusions from, including my own. its the reason I moved them on and stuck with standard Interlocks.

My guess is the higher velocity impacts cause the ballistic tip to open the jacket that much more ferociously than a standard soft point.
resulting in fragmentation and frangibility at higher impact speeds
they were after all designed with a higher BC for 3-400yd plains game and open range US market application where the BT would ensure a good expansion in impact scenarios where a lower velocity can see "pencilling"

This is a 130gr .270 Non-SST interlock at 40yds. thats a short range and high impact velocity buy anyone's standards

no fragmentation at all.
petals are curled perfectly
it demonstrated none of the secondary meat damage


Do you know the retained weight? I agree the expansion looks good, but I wouldn't be surprised if 30-50% of the weight has gone. Probably shedding core, rather than fragmentation, though. This wasn't the case with the 6mm SP I was concerned about.

I was getting less than 40% weight retention with the Speer BTSP and 100gr Gameking, higher with the Prohunter, as you might expect . However, with the latter, and the SST, there have been more exits, so less recovered projectiles to examine. Obviously, if a projectile exits then it hasn't spent all of its energy in the deer, but there were no delayed deaths; "dead runs" of less than 20yds.

Please don't forget that while I may come across as a rabid SST-fan, it is quite new to me. I have shot more soft points (in any of my calibres) than I have SSTs and the SPs have generally performed well. In fact, the only calibre I've had any concerns with, has been .243. Hence trying the SST; it may not be the answer. This what I meant about hype and hyperbole: the manufacturers will persuade us that a high-tech, polymer tipped bullet offers something new. It may not. In my rifle it is accurate at a decent velocity, the tips are robust and it seems to kill well.

I suspect the smaller 6mm bullet is more of a compromise in construction than .270, .30 etc. I generally favour a larger calibre for fallow but the landowner on one of my permissions was given the idea that .243 was safe where .308 wasn't and although my FAC is open, I prefer not to rock the boat. So on that land, it's .243.

By the way, the SST in 6mm is not a boat tail (though it is in .30cal).
 
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Do you know the retained weight? I agree the expansion looks good, but I wouldn't be surprised if 30-50% of the weight has gone. Probably shedding core, rather than fragmentation, though.

Oh yes, very low comparatively
Off the top of my head it was about 60%
I don't mind loss off mass per se. its the mechanism and resulting damage that I do

I recovered this one as it came out just under the skin on the opposite side.
core loss is often through an abrasive effect rather than lumps and chunks flying off. as such you don't get the secondary would channels and damage that you can get from splintering and fragmentation.



By the way, the SST in 6mm is not a boat tail (though it is in .30cal).
now that is interesting
I was under the impression they all were
strange as its whole design seems to be around high BC
 
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