Hornady SST & Interbond interchangeability

[Anthrops]

Hi all,

I'm a new member and had a question about bullet interchangeability between the Hornady SST and the Interbond. Specifically the .30cal 165 grain version. I had read that people have had success doing their load development with the cheaper SST's and then hunting with Interbonds after a quick zero confirmation due to how similar of a BC they have. Graf's has some interbonds available and I'd like to confirm whether this is a viable way to same some money on load development with SST's but yet hunt with a bonded bullet.

Current loads are based on Partitions, but considering they've been extremely difficult to find and expensive, we're looking at options to switching and would like to try out bonded bullets. The Rifles are a couple of .300 win mags, a 30-06 and a 308 Norma Mag. Any feedback from people who have actually tried this would be welcome!

If others are aware of any other cheap + premium bullets that have similar enough shapes & BC's that their loads work almost interchangeably? Or am I dreaming of a scenario that is unlikely to happen?

 

[Hunterjones]

I have not shot a ton of these Bullets but do specifically recall having wanted to do the same thing as you are, substituting 30/165 SST's for Interbonds and vice versa and I just don't recall ever getting the Interbonds to shoot as well as the SST's……

 

[B-LOT Banga]

I did exactly what you're asking. Now I didn't put numbers in a computer or shoot 1,000 yds with it.

But I did use it on my third trip to NZ with a 30-06. I shot and played with loads for 4 months and in all of my shots and experiences I've found that it shot within the same FPS range and grouped so well I can grab any 5 and make the same 3/4" group. Now my reason was to shoot bull tahr and stag with the inter bond and SST for everything else. I never had a problem. This is the exact same as the Nosler ballistic tips and Accubond they both shoot the same groups but perform differently on game. Good luck!!

 

[B-LOT Banga]

@Anthrops I might have a few 165 gr interbonds and i definitely have 165 SST laying around. I can send you some to try, I made this exact load for his 300 wsm and I don't know if I gave him my leftover inter one, they're very expensive. Either way PM me your address and I will send you what I have.

PS if I was you and you're set on doing this just buy it. Nowadays if you blink it's gone!

 

[Anthrops]

@B-LOT Banga Thanks for the advice. This is the confirmation I was looking for. I've put in my order at Grafs. SST's were on sale at Optic's planet for .37 cents each so I picked them up as well. Hopefully it'll work the same in our rifles and can give us a chance to practice for cheap and upgrade to a less fragmenting bullet when hunting, but we'll see. No need to send me what you have, but I would be curious to know what powder you found to work best in your WSM?

 

[B-LOT Banga]

300 wsm
64.2 gr W760
2.820" COAL
3140 FPS
REM 9-1/2M primers
1" @ 200 yds 5 shot group
Browning xbolt stainless stalker 26" barrel
Nightforce SHV 5-20
20 MOA rail with MED Seekins rings

 

[Anthrops]

@B-LOT Banga Thanks for sharing this info. It's good to see you find a nice shooting load without having to go up to a max charge. I was curious if you remember how the terminal performance was on the internbond on your hunt? Did you see a significant difference in how the game reacted or the internal damage versus using the SST? Did you get full pass throughs or were you able to recover any?

 

[Darkker]

Hi all,

I'm a new member and had a question about bullet interchangeability between the Hornady SST and the Interbond. Specifically the .30cal 165 grain version. I had read that people have had success doing their load development with the cheaper SST's and then hunting with Interbonds after a quick zero confirmation due to how similar of a BC they have.

Your rifle may or may not like them, but as far as pressures go; there won't be any significant difference based on my testing with a PT.

Cheers

 

[B-LOT Banga]

@Anthrops I used a 30-06 in NZ. All of my animals dropped with one shot except my stag that I double tapped "just in case". He slowly walked backwards for 3-4 steps then rolled over. I didn't find any interbonds and I only found two SST's that made it almost the length of my chamois and arapawa rams. Both bullets did perfect and that's what my guide recommended besides Nosler accubond and ballistic tips. The all time legendary bullet in NZ is the AMAX, especially the 7mm 162 gr which is considered the holy grail.

 

[birddog 68]

I tried this with a 7-08 shooting the 139 grain and found that I had to tinker with the seating depth of the interbond and the poi was 3" different at 100 yards.
Interbond works wonderfully on any critters.

 

[baldhunter]

I've had good luck with 165gr Interbonds.It's been a while since I used them,but I still have several hundred.Looking back,I remember having some SST's in the same weight.If I remember right,they grouped close to the Interbonds.I've had some rifles shoot them well and others didn't.I think finding the right seating depth may be the key.I looked back at a target and it looks like they shot better seated deeper.Looking at this target,my OAL was 3.398 with the Interbond.That same rifle shoots Nosler Ballistic Tips and Accubonds really well with OAL around 3.500.So,just like any bullet,you just never know until you try.My 308 Win liked the bullet too,but that rifle always seemed to like everything anyway.So play with seating depth and even back down a grain if you have to and find out what works.

 

[Anthrops]

Thanks @baldhunter for sharing that load advice and your targets! Couple of questions for you. Was that IMR or H4350 in your load? My uncle has a Rem 700 long range model we plan to use these in as well.

Have you experimented with different neck tensions in your .300? I've read they sometimes like a little more tension than the standard bushing applies, but not had the chance to do my own testing yet.

 

[baldhunter]

Thanks @baldhunter for sharing that load advice and your targets! Couple of questions for you. Was that IMR or H4350 in your load? My uncle has a Rem 700 long range model we plan to use these in as well.

Have you experimented with different neck tensions in your .300? I've read they sometimes like a little more tension than the standard bushing applies, but not had the chance to do my own testing yet.

That was IMR4350 powder I was using with the 300 Win Mag.I never messed with the neck tension,just full length resized Winchester brass,WLRM primers,RCBS or Lee dies.

 

[LVJ76]

For me it didn't work at all. Been using the 139gr SST with IMR-4064 in two 7mm-08's, and they both dislike the Interbond. They did not shoot well at all, and I tried several powders including the same SST load and it was a no go.