Trying out new bullets this year

Lhedrick1

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Heading to WY for billies and deer in a week or so. Had good luck with Hammers but as always, wanted to try something different. Due to the increased cost and scarcity of typical bullets (Bergers, Noslers, Barnes, etc.) I decided to go out on a limb and try out the Hornady SST.

I am taking a Remington 700 in 6.5-06 shooting the 123gr Hornady SST @ 3150 fps for goats.

And taking a pre 64 Win model 70 30-06 shooting the 150 gr Hornady SST at 3000 fps for deer.

Both are shooting MOA or better. And I picked up both boxes of bullets (100 ct) for around $38/box. Thought I'd try something cheaper and more readily available than the other big names.

Hope it doesn't come back to bite me in the arss. ?
 
From my experience with SST's, shooting at a much lower velocity than what ypu are reporting, make sure you don't hit any bone on the way in. They come apart fast and create quite a mess if the shot is not nearly perfect into the heart and lungs.

I have Hammers now loaded in the 243 and 30-06 for this season.
 
Shot placement is more important than bullet construction. Enjoy.


There, I said it. :ROFLMAO:

So what your saying is I should take the 375 H&H instead. Load it with 300gr A-Frames and it ain't gonna matter where I hit em! Thanks bluehair yous the best ?
 
Everything I read was that for deer sized game and under, shots behind the shoulder were bang flop. They're alot like a Ballistic Tip correct?
 
Everything I read was that for deer sized game and under, shots behind the shoulder were bang flop. They're alot like a Ballistic Tip correct?
Not as stout as the Ballistic Tip. People associate the Ballistic Tip as being really frangible. In the early years I think it was. The newer bullets have thicker jackets and hold together well. I'd use a BT before an SST any day. mtmuley
 
Not as stout as the Ballistic Tip. People associate the Ballistic Tip as being really frangible. In the early years I think it was. The newer bullets have thicker jackets and hold together well. I'd use a BT before an SST any day. mtmuley

Thanks MTMuley....if I could have got my hands on more of the 140gr BT i would have used in the 6.5. 1 raggedy hole groups at 100 yards, gun loves em. It's my first Brux barrel and accuracy has been excellent. 124 gr Hammers just as good.
 
My experience is Billies are tough to bring down. I sincerely hope you don't regret leaving your Hammers home.
I switched to Hammers over heavier Bergers in my 28 because I had nightmares about a blow up on a shoulder for my LE elk hunt. In the end I'm glad I went with them because I Hammered my bull with as advertised bullet performance.
I'm sure you will find a way to make it happen and we will all wait for your report.
Best of luck
 
My experience is Billies are tough to bring down. I sincerely hope you don't regret leaving your Hammers home.
I switched to Hammers over heavier Bergers in my 28 because I had nightmares about a blow up on a shoulder for my LE elk hunt. In the end I'm glad I went with them because I Hammered my bull with as advertised bullet performance.
I'm sure you will find a way to make it happen and we will all wait for your report.
Best of luck
littlebig, are you really going to leave us hanging without a pic of your Hammered bull?
 
Billies are tough. They can really soak up a hard hit. I used ballistic silvertips on my billy . I use them from deer to elk and so far no issues
 
littlebig, are you really going to leave us hanging without a pic of your Hammered bull?
Just for you Tikka

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I could not find a box of my usual Bergers so I called up Steve at Hammer bullets and had an amazing conversation. He suggested I try the 124 grain Hammer Hunters for my 6.5 Creed and right at 40.0 grains of Varget, I am able to push it to 2918 fps with no pressure signs at all in my Tikka Superlite (24" barrel)

It shoots sub-half MOA at 200 yards so I am very happy. Hopefully in a few days I will know how well it performs but there's enough evidence and testimonials to know if it fails, it's likely something I did (or didn't do). :)
 
I could not find a box of my usual Bergers so I called up Steve at Hammer bullets and had an amazing conversation. He suggested I try the 124 grain Hammer Hunters for my 6.5 Creed and right at 40.0 grains of Varget, I am able to push it to 2918 fps with no pressure signs at all in my Tikka Superlite (24" barrel)

It shoots sub-half MOA at 200 yards so I am very happy. Hopefully in a few days I will know how well it performs but there's enough evidence and testimonials to know if it fails, it's likely something I did (or didn't do). :)
He really likes to convert Berger shooters. mtmuley
 
I never heard of the Hammer Bullets until now. I just ordered 1500 bullets of a few makes and grains for my K Hornet and 223 bolt from Midway and had few options because Sierra and Berger were less available. It looks like Sierra is way behind on their 52 grain HPBT match that I love, so I went with Speer of the same specs. I just looked at Hammer’s website and saw that I can order sample packs of whatever. That’s a great idea. I will get that going today.
 
He really likes to convert Berger shooters. mtmuley
It's refreshing to be able pick up a phone and speak to the actual person who built the product. He speaks with a lot of passion and you can see it reflected in the projectiles. Very consistent
 
I just looked at Hammer’s website and saw that I can order sample packs of whatever. That’s a great idea. I will get that going today.
Check out their forums, or better yet, give Steve or Brian a call. They can get you started on a load. The general consensus is that their bullets are insensitive to jump. Load it to mag length and find an accuracy/velocity node and you're done.

I started off jumping .020" from the lands and never moved. 9 shots and I was done with load development.
 
It's refreshing to be able pick up a phone and speak to the actual person who built the product. He speaks with a lot of passion and you can see it reflected in the projectiles. Very consistent
Yep. He likes what he does and him and Brian have worked hard. Steve and I have been friends for 40 years or so. I am really happy for those guys. mtmuley
 
Yep. He likes what he does and him and Brian have worked hard. Steve and I have been friends for 40 years or so. I am really happy for those guys. mtmuley
That's awesome. Appears to be no shortage of folks who can vouch for the both of them.

Hopefully I can add to their success stories :)
 
That's awesome. Appears to be no shortage of folks who can vouch for the both of them.

Hopefully I can add to their success stories :)
Sometimes people give me grief about promoting Hammers because Steve is my best friends. But, If I told him I did not like his bullets and wouldn't shoot them, we'd still be best friends. mtmuley
 
Besides being an incredible product, Hammer's business model makes every customer feel like Steve/Brian are their best friends. (no offense mtmuley...I believe you guys are friends ;))
Just sit down and order bullets and have them show up at your door. lf you call they are great to answer questions, change orders, swap products, etc.
Absolutely a top shelf group!
 
Besides being an incredible product, Hammer's business model makes every customer feel like Steve/Brian are their best friends. (no offense mtmuley...I believe you guys are friends ;))
Just sit down and order bullets and have them show up at your door. lf you call they are great to answer questions, change orders, swap products, etc.
Absolutely a top shelf group!
Yep, you nailed it. Top shelf. And Steve and I went to school together. There are stories. mtmuley
 
SST bullets get an awful bad wrap from some people.
I have used them for deer for years and have nothing to complain about.
They almost always go straight down.
Not a performer past 400yrds. though.
 
Welp I had all intentions of using my 6.5-06 with the SSTs. We got a good blast of wind and snow here in SE WY. My dad had scouted after shooting his last week and he had a few good Billy's picked out. They were hanging around a wide open flat and with probably 30 -40 mph winds and knew it was going to have to be a longer shot than I wanted to take. So assuming a less than ideal situation, I took my Win mag with 190 gr VLDs just in case I had to reach out past 300 yards in wind.

As luck would have it, we spotted them about 500 yards away in the bottom bedded down. I thought I could close the distance some by circling and coming to the next point over looking the meadow they were in. I crawled behind a rock pile above them and ranged the group at 325 yards. So we laid on our bellies for an hour in the snow before finally they started to get up and feed. When the biggest of the group stepped away from the others and provided a clear shot, I let it fly. He hit the ground like he got hit in the head with a sledgehammer. Hit him right through the shoulders.

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Moral of the story, there's no such thing as too much gun ?
 

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