215 Berger

[dfitz7604]

Hello all,

I have a 300prc that is mainly going to be used for larger game like elk, moose, and bear. I am looking hard at the 215 Berger as my bullet. I've read through many post and websites and they are either loved or hated.

I am looking for people who have first hand knowledge with them on large game. My question for y'all is if I end up a little forward and hit the shoulder, will the bullet break through it and make it to the vitals or separate on impact and not get inside the chest cavity?

Thank you in advance for any info.
Daniel

 

[highdrum]

Jeff Brozovich has killed, or witnessed probably 100 elk killed with the 215 Hyb. It's a good bullet. I've killed elk with 215 and 230 Bergers, solid performance on both. The PRC has plenty of freebore and will allow you to seat the bullet above the neck/shoulder junction to avoid any donut issues. I'd recommend using adg/gunwerks brass as it's very consistent and robust. H1000 and RL26 seem to be popular in that case. There is a 300prc group on Facebook with lots of info on handloads. I'd think 3000fps should be easily attainable from a 26" barrel.

 

[lancetkenyon]

215 Berger @ 3100 from a .300RUM. Bull elk, uphill, 432 yards, broke onside shoulder and a vertebrae. Stopped just under offside skin. Only one I have recovered. All the rest passed through after killing the bulls.

 

[TexSavage]

I have not had the opportunity to hunt elk, but on whitetail deer the 215 from 30 yards to 350 yards it is total death and devastation, .308 entry, baseball to tennis ball size exit, shredded lungs and hearts, through the front shoulder on 1 deer, the rest were high shoulder, autonomic plexus area, DRT right there. Front shoulder shot was DRT, 30 yard shot walked 7 feet. Wish I had a way to hunt elk, but right now I have no data or experience with the Berger 215s on them.

Big, big plus on Jeff B. and his extensive testing of the 215. In my opinion a must read for anyone wanting to really see how it performs on game from Lope's to Bulls. It's easily found on the LRH forums, last I checked it was a whole lotta pages with lots of info and pics.

I did kill an Oryx cow that was 500 lbs or slightly larger. First shot at 100 yards was right where I like it, guide said put another in her, I did as I was told but, it was totally unnecessary. Same kind of damage, one lung shredded, one lung ½ intact, heart was half gone and the other half had a massive tear and hole in it. Dropped and rolled down the backside of a small knoll.

Oh yeah, prairie dogs - Red Mist!!! A real gas to shoot.

Edit - Forgot, I'm shooting them out of a 300 WSM, 2810 MV, around half MOA at 550 yards.

 

[JoshHaker]

I shot an elk with this bullet in a .300 win. 175yds quartering towards me. I shot right in the point of the shoulder. Entrance was .308 once it penetrated a couple inches it opened up and made almost a fist sized wound channel. Did not recover the bullet and the elk went maybe 40yds and died quickly. Bullet did not exit.

I would make sure to check the tips with a needle or something to make sure they are clear of lead. I find maybe 4 of 50 to be unsatisfactory.

 

[highdrum]

I shot an elk with this bullet in a .300 win. 175yds quartering towards me. I shot right in the point of the shoulder. Entrance was .308 once it penetrated a couple inches it opened up and made almost a fist sized wound channel. Did not recover the bullet and the elk went maybe 40yds and died quickly. Bullet did not exit.

I would make sure to check the tips with a needle or something to make sure they are clear of lead. I find maybe 4 of 50 to be unsatisfactory.

As Josh says, clean tips with wire drill bit. I have rarely found lead, but more of a whiteish looking semi solid material. Do believe it's the polishing compound used by Berger to make em look nice and pretty. Plugged tips can prevent the bullet from expanding on game. It is a good idea to check this on all Berger bullets used for hunting.

 

[dfitz7604]

Thank you all for the time to reply. Good info to look into. I've never heard of Jeff, he seems to have quite a bit of knowledge of these bullets.

I didn't know Berger was making the 230. Is it just as good as the 215. Don't know if they changed the design or anything with it?

 

[Totoro]

My RBros 300PRC gets a steady diet of 230 Bergers.

Last season blacktail, hogs, 'lopes, mule deer all bang flop; shortest shot 209 and long 911.

The 215 is the standard LR 30cal killing pill.

 

[Tiny Tim]

Comparing the Berger 210 VLD to the 215 Hybrid

As you all know I am a huge fan of the 210 Berger VLD, and have been for years. The amount of elk and other game we have taken with this bullet is stunning, and have never tracked an animal. Last season my son "Young-Gun" wanted to test the 230 Hybrid OTM in his 300 win and we did. We really...

www.longrangehunting.com

Here's a link to the thread by Broz. Lots of great info!

 

[livetohunt]

I went from the 210 VLD to the 215 hybrid in my 300 win mag 2 years ago. I gained 50 FPS on the upper node. I had the 210 pencil thru 2 deer. The 215 has done great on 2 elk so far. Not exactly DRT, but stumbling a few yards and dead.

 

[Jeffrey Van Zandt]

Hello all,

I have a 300prc that is mainly going to be used for larger game like elk, moose, and bear. I am looking hard at the 215 Berger as my bullet. I've read through many post and websites and they are either loved or hated.

I am looking for people who have first hand knowledge with them on large game. My question for y'all is if I end up a little forward and hit the shoulder, will the bullet break through it and make it to the vitals or separate on impact and not get inside the chest cavity?

Thank you in advance for any info.
Daniel

I use them in my 300 win mag up here and have taken moose bears sheep and boo all one round kill and none have went more then 20 ft from being shot most have went down right in there tracks they work all I will use in my 300 and most game has been shot at long range 650-875 yards

 

[700Sendero]

No experience on anything larger than whitetail, but Ive killed a lot of whitetail from 25-551 yards with them. I killed a good sized doe @ 253 yards this year with my 300 RUM. She was almost facing me, bullet went in the center of her chest, and exited just in front of the hind quarter on the opposite side. Internal damage was...extensive. I wouldn't hesitate to use it on larger game.

 

[MTbackwoods]

Thank you all for the time to reply. Good info to look into. I've never heard of Jeff, he seems to have quite a bit of knowledge of these bullets.

I didn't know Berger was making the 230. Is it just as good as the 215. Don't know if they changed the design or anything with it?

Find a ballistic calculator and play with the two bullets. You would have to get the 230 screaming in order to beat the 215 in most cases. The extra weight and BC are usually trumped by the extra speed of the 215. So I would play with it and see which will work best for you

 

[Slick8]

This was on a cow elk last year at 180 yards wirh a MV of 2950 from a 30 nosler.

I'm trying the 230 this year as I've heard it has a slightly thicker jacket and may hold up a little better. It's running at 2950 and 1.2-1.5 at 300 yards.

Here's the 215.