Woodleigh Bullets

[Old Rooster]

Has anyone used the Woodleigh bullets?
There were accuracy issues many years ago but I was told that has changed and Woodleigh's are the most reliable expansion bullets on the market.
Any experience with them?
Old Rooster

 

[RCMSTER]

I can't speak to the expansion of woodleigh's, but I've got a load worked up for my 338 marlin lever action using 200 grain woodleighs. I'm getting 3 shots under an inch at a hundred. I'm using 42.0 grains of Rel 15. It isn't a hot rod load by any stretch, but for the 338 marlin's practical range, I'm sure it will be fine. I take it, a long with one of my bolt guns to Louisiana deer hunting every year, but so far I've never had it in my hands when a deer has showed up. Seems as luck would have it, I've always had whichever bolt I took along with me.

 

[Hand Skills]

Haven't hunted with woodleigh's personally. I know a couple of guys who swear by them - one I hunt with quite regularly. I would describe the performance on several deer and moose of his as above average. Consistent would tracts and good penetration. Not built for long range, though... The original bonded bullet IIRC!

 

[HARPERC]

Never used them, but tend to think of them as heavy for caliber, soft lead and copper, best use short to medium range, moderate velocity bullets.

That's a pretty narrow view, as their product line has expanded greatly, and includes turned brass bullets with decent ballistic shape as well.

It might help someone get you an answer, if you narrowed the question to specific bullet type, and intended use.

 

[Old Rooster]

Guys that is what I always thought.
2 seasons ago I helped a gentleman older than me pull a cow elk out of a brush pile that he shot at a fairly long distance.I guess she was trying to hide in her last couple of seconds left.I asked if it went through both sides and he replied "Woodleigh's always leaves an nice exit".He was right!
I always thought of them as African game bullets but he swears by them.
Just wondering how many folks use this grand old bullet.
Thanks for the replies guys.
Old Rooster

 

[Greyfox]

My only experience with them has been with the big bore dangerous game rifles. Their performance for this purpose, IMO, is second to none. Shown is a ,458 caliber, 480gr Woodleigh SP hand load at 2150 FPS from a 450 Nitro Express. It entered from the front chest of an an African Lion I shot at 21 yards and was recovered at 90% weight retention under the hide of its rear end. Interestingly, the bullet shape/ogive of the Woodleigh matched the old Kynocks shape, enabling them to shoot accurately and to the regulation in my 1904 H&H Express Double Rifle. The modern 500gr bullets(Hornady, etc) would not shoot well on my rifle. Federal used to offer(and may still), Premium Ammo in 416 Rigby loaded with 400gr Woodleigh SP. They were exceptionally accurate in my Ruger Safari Grade with sub .5MOA 3 shot groups.

 

[Old Rooster]

That's impressive Greyfox.I used to work at Lion Country Safari and have seen very reliable expansion of Woodleigh's,yours is impressive! The animals I have seen shot with 458 win mag went through and we didn't find the spent bullets.
HARPERC I was asking about elk and deer bullets here in the mountains of Montana.
I know we have plenty of great bullets and I would most likely try Hammers bullets but this older hunter said he has used Woodleigh's for more than 30 years and have made shots from 6 feet to 300 yards from a 300 H&H mag and never found a bullet and always got his elk and deer every year so there must be something grand about this old bullet maker.
I was thinking of Pointed soft nose bullets for elk and deer at 300 yards and beyond.
Old Rooster

 

[geesal]

Use the .287 dia(275 h&h magnum) 160gr bullet in my 1901 7x57mauser(barrel slugged at .288). Have shot 2 deer, farthest at about 70yds. Exit wounds in both and both dropped in their tracks. Was using 35.5 gr of imr4320, estimate about 2400 fps velocity.

 

[2ndson]

I have two-three boxes of them laying around in 7mm, only they are the 160 gr. PP I was going to use in my 280 AI.

 

[geesal]

Load the 160 for my 280AI, 55.5 grains of H4831sc, never shot anything yet with it.

 

[.300 Dakota]

I have used and continue to use them extensively. Most of my experience is target shooting because if I have a finicky rifle that won't group with anything else, it will group with these. I can tell you that the 6.5mm 160gr in a Creedmoor is a BAD MACHINE on large hogs! The only one I recovered went through the skull between the eyes of a 300lb Russian boar looking dead on (about to charge), traveled several inches straight down the spinal column and lodged there. Expansion was perfect. Some will frown on this technique, but it is hands down the way to load these for top (hole within a hole) accuracy: Seat them out far enough to JUST TOUCH the lands! Do not jam them in, and don't stop just short! Seating depth needs to be pretty much exactly 0.000".

The only problem I have with them is I can't find any!!! Good BC for a protected point bullet (.509 in 160gr 6.5), inexpensive for a premium bullet (or they were last time I found any to buy over a year ago), one of the top 2 or 3 bullets I've ran across for accuracy and performance in all of the following calibers: 6.5mm, 7mm, .30, and 8mm. If they made them in 6mm, I'd buy a .243 and never worry about another rifle!

I really can't find enough good things to say about them. They have been my best kept secret for a few years now. I believe the shape and the way they expand creates a broad hydraulic shockwave of trauma to put animals down fast. They aren't weight sorted as well as Berger. More like Speer, so you may have a grain or most of a grain of variation within a box. I simply buy a couple boxes and sort them into like weights (as with all my other bullets). If you buy this bullet and learn to seat it where it likes to be seated, I don't think you'll ever want to hunt with anything else!

 

[.300 Dakota]

I don't have the photo, but 57.0 grains of N160 with a CCI 200 primer and COAL of 3.468" in my Criterion match barrel (seated to just touch lands) in a .280 AI looked just about exactly like this with a 175 grain Weldcore. That load was absolute max, so I'd recommend starting 3 or 4 grains less for sure!

Likewise a custom .284 Win Match with McGowen barrel flung the 175 Weldcores 100 ft/s faster than the .280 AI with 57.0 grains of Reloader 23 into the same itty bitty cluster. Used Federal Match 215 (Magnum) primers in this load. Again, this was absolute max in a Match chamber, so I'd advise starting about 54 grains with a standard primer. COAL here was 3.250", which again, just exactly touched the lands.

 

[.300 Dakota]

My only experience with them has been with the big bore dangerous game rifles. Their performance for this purpose, IMO, is second to none. Shown is a ,458 caliber, 480gr Woodleigh SP hand load at 2150 FPS from a 450 Nitro Express. It entered from the front chest of an an African Lion I shot at 21 yards and was recovered at 90% weight retention under the hide of its rear end. Interestingly, the bullet shape/ogive of the Woodleigh matched the old Kynocks shape, enabling them to shoot accurately and to the regulation in my 1904 H&H Express Double Rifle. The modern 500gr bullets(Hornady, etc) would not shoot well on my rifle. Federal used to offer(and may still), Premium Ammo in 416 Rigby loaded with 400gr Woodleigh SP. They were exceptionally accurate in my Ruger Safari Grade with sub .5MOA 3 shot groups.
View attachment 121053

I haven't shot an animal with it, but the 180 grain WW in my Browning X-Bolt safari .300 H&H shoots a ragged hole @100yds. Velocity was averaging 3090 ft/s with low ES. Again, seated to exactly touch the lands (absolute max COAL).

21 yards from a lion... man you really did bet your life on these!! Very impressive!

 

[Zen Archery]

I've had no issues with accuracy. Running the 160 RNPP out of my 6.5. Absolute hog destroyer.