7mm08 120 gr nosler B-Tip live game test.

[swamphonkey]

Ok. First This little bullet has me kinda on the fence.
The hunting has been slow the last week or 10 days.
But I did manage to have a few lucky test subjects.
First pig was about 60 yards out. I shot from the boat so I hit a little high pig dropped at shot never moved. Small sow about 75 lbs. High shoulder. The little pill destroyed everything within 10" of hole. Pass through.
Next hog about 100 yards out a fair size boar under 250lbs but close. Hit behind shoulder hog was almost perfect broadside bullet didn't pass through but hog only went 5 yards everything inside was gone!. I really prefer a pass through for tracking in our woods. But dead is dead as long as its close.
This morning I look out side and a doe was trying to walk on her front legs she was crippled up in the back just barely hopping on her back legs. She was facing straight on by time I got on her so I put it right between the eyes. At the shot drop. As I was walking up to her she sat up! The whole front of her face gone. I put another in her fast to put her down. That has me kinda questioning them. If they did that on a big bucks rib or shoulder he could get gone fast.
So far the best unbonded, Non mono Bullet Ive found in 7mm has been the regular old Speer hot core. Thats been the olney bullet Ive not had any fail.
Now Im sure we have a bunch of guys huffing and puffing saying well I used this or that and I got perfect performance. Thats great. But understand We shoot ALOT of game. Not one or two a year. If I olney shot a couple a year I would think anything would be fine. What I did was try to test these pills under Murphy's law. Because thats how it is most of the time.
Now the Rut has started I have loaded my 120 gr TTSX back in my 708 and will use them in it from now on. Because regardless of what bullet makers want us to believe no matter how far they have come no matter if it is under 3,000fps a CnC slug can and will explode if Murphy's in the woods that day. Now You 30 cal guys yeah I know a 180 gr corlock from a 308 or a -06 is big medicine. Thats apples to oranges. Im showing the smaller cal performance. Last year I did 6mm. And the fact for ME is in 6mm it is Mono or Bonded or nothing.and Im thinking 7mm is going to be very much the same for that piece of mind. Good luck ,God bless.
And Go huntin. Come on down to the big swamp and come hunt with us yall. Cant beat the hog hunting and we are Cheap!

[toddcdozer]

Increase the weight to 160 and it will work fine. Short for caliber stuff is the province of bonded, partitioned or other SPECIAL bullets.

[swamphonkey]

Yes but useing 160gr pills in a 708 is really defeating the purpose of having a shortaction light wt hunting rig that shoots laser beam flat. A 160 gr might as well just tote a 30/30 then because over 200 you better have a range finder
And its very hard to tell the differences between 250 and 300 along those marshes and bayou. I'll just use the little Ttsx from now on Ive seen all I need out of 7mm CnC bullets. And Ive given a honest report of the performance I got. I don't load like a speed freak most are under 1 grain under max. And if they can't hold at 100 yards on our little southern bucks(well under 200) I would be frightened to use one on a elk or a big Mid western stud whitetail. The Main reason I tested the 154 gr interlocks is because I was recommended to use those for Elk in my Wifes 7mm08 for her elk hunt. Well rest assured that aint going down. And no matter what someone puts online Im testing my gear first before I let her fire off a 5,000$ bullet for nothing.Because if you shoot you pay where we go.

[Haiku_Rodney]

I use the Sierra SPBT in 140 grain. Have shot many Axis Deer and hogs with it. Works well for me.

[swamphonkey]

Never tried it. Im glad it does. Like I said the hotcore has been a good tuff bullet. But for the most part the smaller cal rifle bullets Ive used on game have really needed the bonded or mono bullets to give Me what I think is needed to have confidence in my load. I need a pass through or I feel unsure about the bullet. Because unless its a DRT you might never find it if you dont have two holes. But understand Im just telling folks what we are getting out of the bullets tested. Im sure if I strictly shot behind the shoulder any bullet in 7mm would perform fine on deer. But as we all know thats not how things go always.

[snowgetter1]

When I first had my 30 Bellm, 7mm BR necked up to 30 and shortened to be Illinois legal, I used 125 BT. Running at 2550 fps the first deer a big buck was shot at 40 yards. It fell over dead so I thought. Shot a doe about 20 minutes later at 200 yards and it dropped like rock. Then it jumped up and started to hobble away. Hit was on left shoulder and blew up on bone. Second shot at 225 dropped and jumped up again. Hit was in rear lungs and did not pass through. After this the first buck I shot suddenly stood up. A second shot in lungs did not go threw at about 50 yards. It ran off. Found it dead about 200 yards away. Found the doe about 100 yards away still trying to run and finished it with the 44 mag.
The bullets recovered were just the jacket and pieces of the jacket. After that I switched to 150 gr Sierra pro hunters. Haven't had a problem since and always have had pass threw on about 12 deer shot.

This all equals no more BT for me.

[ttexastom]

Thanks for the info, hogs can challenge a bullet. The heavier hogs are more interesting. They can be tough customers.

[s3silver]

Another nice report! Thanks.