Hornady .338 Interbond V's SST

Topshot

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 3, 2008
Messages
1,085
Which is the best projectile for long range hunting out of these two out of a .338WM?

A. The Hornady .338 cal 225 grain Interbond at a listed B.C. of .430.

B. The Hornady .338 cal 225 grain SST at a listed B.C. of .515


I find it interesting that the smooth sided Interbond has a lower B.C. than the SST which has a canlure on it bearing surface. I would have thought that it would be the other way around? I wonder if Hornady has published this incorrectly?

The SST is cheaper and is listed as having a higher B.C. any one use them?
 
I think the answer lies in "how far is long range"? I would use the interbond out to maybe 500 yds. and the sst at longer ranges. I'm not as familiar with the interbond, but the likely reason for lower B.C. is one or both of these two things. A different ogive and or
jacket thickness. All else being equal, a thicker jacket will lower B.C. because copper is less dense than lead. Also, a lower density "lead allow" core can lower B.C. for the same reason. (this would be as opposed to a pure lead core)....Rich
p.s. remember the formula for b.c. It's a combination of sectional density and bullet shape. Hope this helps.
 
Since the 7mm Interbonds have crooked plastic tips and pattern like buckshot out of my 7mm RMs, I'd use the SSTs, if those two Hornady bullets are your only options.
 
Also look at the 210 swift scirocco .507 BC. My 338 win mag shoots this one very well without a brake. Any heavier bullet and it kicks to much for me without a brake.
 
I use the 139 SST out of my 7 mag, and the 225 SST out of my .338 win. The SST out of either gun will kill the crap out of anything you hit right. On the Texas sized deer I shot this year with a double lung and heart shot, the lungs were liquid and I noticed capillaries in the deers head were ruptured from the hydrostatic shock. That puts the animal down right now. Also the exit wound was only about big enough to get 3 fingers through. The only damage to the animal that I didnt intend was a broken rib on the exit wound. As far as accuracy; I get MOA out to 800 yards.
 
I am looking in Hornady book #8. In the front of book where they have all the bullets listed it says b.c. .430, but if you go a specific cartridge it shows a b.c. of .515, also website shows b.c. of .515. Must be misprint in front of book.
 
i think you'll find this is why the highest BC bullets have a secant ogive instead of tangent. they actually push the air off the side(bearing surface) of the bullet and then it comes back against the boat tail which helps it go through the air easier. i don't think the variences in the baring surfaces makes much difference in BC. maybe Bryan or one of the knowledgable bullet makers will chime in on this.
 
I am looking in Hornady book #8. In the front of book where they have all the bullets listed it says b.c. .430, but if you go a specific cartridge it shows a b.c. of .515, also website shows b.c. of .515. Must be misprint in front of book.
375fan,
I think that you are right. I have just completed extensive testing of both bullets and the 225 grain Interbond actually shoots slightly flatter than the 225 grain SST out to 1000 yards out of my .338 RUM with the same load and sighting at 100 yards.
Here is a couple of pictures of expansion tests that I did at 1000 yards.
First photo is the SST and the second photo is the Interbond at varying impact velocities.
I would stay above an impact velocity of 1500 fps with both projectiles.
I found that the Interbond had better accuracy at 1000 yards than the SST.
The SST also showed instability at low velocity, while the Interbond did not.


mypic57.jpg



mypic56.jpg
 
Last edited:
Topshot,
What are you firing bullets into for expansion test and be able to retrieve them? Are you using ballistic gell?

Jeff
 
375fan,

Its been very wet down here lately with floods etc, so the test medium has been plain old soft mud clay.

It seems to work OK when wet, not so good when dry.
 
Warning! This thread is more than 14 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.
Top