Berger match vs hunting

[James 1]

Not looking for an ethical debate here.

I understand that Berger match bullets have a thicker copper coat vs hunting bullet. 3 to 5 thou?
Wouldn't these match bullets be better for hunting big game?
IE: Elk and Moose etc.

[Jeron Kahyar]

The profile of the jacket plays a large roll in the expansion of a bullet as well. Not to familiar with the Berger bullets but I believe they are designed to fragment inside of the animal. This may explain why the jacket is thinner than you would typically see.

Long story short somebody far smarter than me designed the Projectiles i would use them for their intended purpose.

[James 1]

Long story short somebody far smarter than me designed the Projectiles i would use them for their intended purpose.[/QUOTE]

You definitely trump me on this one
BUT I am the kind of person that has to question everything.
On a bigger animal penetration would be a little deeper before expansion.

[260 Rem]

It is my understanding that the thicker jacket on the target bullet holds the bullet together, and given the reduced opportunity for expansion...makes it a poor choice for game. However, velocity can also determine terminal performance, and in fact, some get decent kill results with the target bullets.

[Curly Bill]

To me the logic seems sound. That the bullet would penetrate deeper before fragmenting, when the only difference between the two bullets in question is jacket thickness.

https://youtu.be/ogiLSyMGOzw

[mcreg]

my experience with Berger bullets has been mixed. I found them to be a very accurate bullet, HOWEVER, they are one of the worst preforming hunting bullets I have ever used? They don't expand they blow-up! Thus penetration is
at best extremely poor - due to almost zero weight retention.
Would use them for paper target but stick to NP or TBBC for hunting.
my experience has been with .243/7mm/.30 cal only.

[Curly Bill]

Originally Posted by mcreg

my experience with Berger bullets has been mixed. I found them to be a very accurate bullet, HOWEVER, they are one of the worst preforming hunting bullets I have ever used? They don't expand they blow-up! Thus penetration is
at best extremely poor - due to almost zero weight retention.
Would use them for paper target but stick to NP or TBBC for hunting.
my experience has been with .243/7mm/.30 cal only.

This is their intended purpose. To penetrate then shed all weight.

[260 Rem]

I shot a husky mule buck ...200 yds...Berger 130 VLD (H) leaving the muzzle at 2850fps. Bang/flop kill with bullet fragmenting in the chest cavity. I would use it for deer again, but would not use it for moose/elk sized animals.

[Beeman3]

The only bullet I shoot out of my 300 Win Mag is the 215 Berger. Simply an amazing bullet. I have never shot anything under 500 yds with this bullet however. But deer at 500 to my farthest at 734 yds were all gang flop. Never took a step and always a pass through. I also shoot the 130 hunting in my 6.5x47 but no game harvested with it so far. Used to shoot a 140 out of a 7 WSM. Was my tree stand gun. These were very explosive at close range. But never lost a deer with shots from 30-60 Yds. Nothing ever went more than 20 yds. I like them but do feel they are better for long range. I will continue using them in most of my rifles. The Berger hybrids are very easy to develop loads for as well. 30 thou off has worked very good for me.

[HIGHLANDER HUNTING]

Originally Posted by mcreg

my experience with Berger bullets has been mixed. I found them to be a very accurate bullet, HOWEVER, they are one of the worst preforming hunting bullets I have ever used? They don't expand they blow-up! Thus penetration is
at best extremely poor - due to almost zero weight retention.
Would use them for paper target but stick to NP or TBBC for hunting.
my experience has been with .243/7mm/.30 cal only.

I was looking on my phone for a picture to share, but must have deleted it. I'll explain instead.
It's a hole the size of a baseball on the exit side of a Blackbear's chest. Made by a 7mm Rem mag shooting a 168 grain Berger Hunter. So, Bergers can make a decent exit wound.
Really wish I hadn't trashed the picture. But a bear without skin looks kinda like a dead guy!

Cheers
John
www.highlanderhunting.podbean.com

[elkdump]

Originally Posted by 260 Rem

I shot a husky mule buck ...200 yds...Berger 130 VLD (H) leaving the muzzle at 2850fps. Bang/flop kill with bullet fragmenting in the chest cavity. I would use it for deer again, but would not use it for moose/elk sized animals.

I've killed mature elk at the same distance using 140 gr VLD , from a 6.5x55 Swede,

Great bullets

[HIGHLANDER HUNTING]

Originally Posted by mcreg

my experience with Berger bullets has been mixed. I found them to be a very accurate bullet, HOWEVER, they are one of the worst preforming hunting bullets I have ever used? They don't expand they blow-up! Thus penetration is
at best extremely poor - due to almost zero weight retention.
Would use them for paper target but stick to NP or TBBC for hunting.
my experience has been with .243/7mm/.30 cal only.

All we use are Berger's, and have had excellent results..... the perform as advertised, they go in 3-5" then fragment so they wound radially to increase damage, and get hydrostatic shock.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=pDoTOoCR2_A