Page 1 of 1
30 cal 125 tnt
Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2018 7:46 am
by mistit
Gday
Just wondering who has used these on game and if they expand quickly and kill well at 2-300 yds
I’ve heard even though they are called tnt,s they can be a bit hard in the jacket
Cheers
Re: 30 cal 125 tnt
Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2018 10:25 am
by trevort
Mark can’t say anything about the tnt but I saw a 125gn nbt from a 308 completely disintegrate a rabbit leaving nothing but skin once
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Re: 30 cal 125 tnt
Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2018 11:50 am
by mistit
Yeah Trev I’ve seen them do stacks of damage over the years but I have a barrel they I tried these things in the other day and they shoot very well and are cheap
Re: 30 cal 125 tnt
Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2018 8:41 pm
by Tony Z
Mistit i have used the 125 TNTs for years. In the early days of 30 BRs in Hunterclass matches these were a very good standby bullet. So they can be extremely accurate.
Here's the rub. In a BR barrel they can exceed 3000 fps in a 30 BR or 308 that uses 14 to 17 twist barrels. In 10 twist barrels they are nowhere near as accurate when pushed and can come apart if pushed too hard. They are rpm limited probably because of their hexagonal jacket. The only bullet on the market i know of to use this configuration to lock in the core.
So in a 10 twist 308, or in my 7.62x39s, they are great at killing hogs and do it very well at 200 yards where due to centrifugal force they really are explosive. At 300 they are dropping off the cliff and can be a bit ho hum in the way they kill. I have hit crows with them at 250 where it was like they swallowed a hand grenade without the pin. But others fly off only to drop out of the sky from blood loss from a bullet pass through. At around or under 200 yards they are fucking awsome.
There is one drawback i found through experience. Big boars, the really big stinkers with mud and an inch of gristle plate at the shoulder when hit at closer ranges leave terrible flesh wounds often with a lost hog. Head shoot those fuckers or shoot them in the Jatz crackers. That makes them squeal.
These days i prefer to head shoot everything like goats, dogs, deer and hogs to take out bullet dynamics and wounded animals. It's either a clean kill or a clean miss.
As far as killing ability goes, the 125 TNTs are very good within the normal range, but do have limitations. If you keep in mind what i have passed on, you will find them very good. In my experience i have found the 125 SST to be better on deer and bigger hogs and the Barnes 130 TSX the true bang flop bullet. But they are generally more expensive as you know.
Re: 30 cal 125 tnt
Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2018 7:09 am
by mistit
Tony your a legend that’s exactly the information I was hoping for
There clocking 3300 out of a 30 inch 13 twist
I did some water jug testing out to 350 and found exactly what you said past 250 I had complete pass through with no expansion
As you said head shoot or nut shoot bigger pigs
( I like how you put that and your dead right )
And that fixes them up at least long enough with a nut shot to hit them again
Will give them a run this week
Cheers tony
Re: 30 cal 125 tnt
Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2018 8:03 am
by mistit
Just stuffing around but what I thought might try and aid the expansion with a little loss in bc and weight 2 grains from what I've weighed
I set up the trimmer with a 3.5 mm drill bit and did 50
Will see how it goes as far as accurate and expansion on Tuesday
The gun managed a 2 / 5 shot groups just over the inch at 337 the other day in original form so even if they open up 1/2 inch -3/4 inch more it won't bother me
Re: 30 cal 125 tnt
Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2018 8:26 am
by Camel
I used to do that with cast projectiles for my 444 Marlin, it certainly aided expansion at full speed.