Cartridge carrying strategy

[hemiford]

For those whose carry extra cartridges in a rifle butt ammo carrier.....

Picture yourself in the field, set up, glassing, looking for your quarry, all ready.

You cannot know the range that your quarry will appear. You are far enough away
that you have time to use your range finder when something does wander in.
Now, you have a range.

Whatever your cartridge of choice, would it not be prudent to have in your ammo carrier
several different loadings with different bullets, bullets that you already know will perform
with known terminal ballistics at the given range ? This assumes that your chamber is empty,
and that once you measure your range, you can quickly chamber a round that has the "ideal"
bullet.

So instead of carrying 8 identical cartridges, you would have maybe 8 cartridges with
different bullets to pick from, maybe a couple doubled up, say 4 different loadings, 2 of each.

Is this a logical, or practical, strategy ?

 

[Mikecr]

What game requires different bullets at every different range?

 

[can1010]

dangerous game territory for sure. other than that to confusing for me remember the K.I.S.S. theory

 

[HARPERC]

....Is this a logical, or practical, strategy......

Not for me. I think there are a variety of good bullets capable of serving well through the ranges I'm prepared to shoot at. Complicating firing solutions by requiring multiple solutions, whether in your head, by card, or electronic device seems a poor use of time.

Game is only dangerous when it's close. A round on the butt stock is too slow, if it's not chambered, it probably isn't going to be much help.

 

[WildRose]

For those whose carry extra cartridges in a rifle butt ammo carrier.....

Picture yourself in the field, set up, glassing, looking for your quarry, all ready.

You cannot know the range that your quarry will appear. You are far enough away
that you have time to use your range finder when something does wander in.
Now, you have a range.

Whatever your cartridge of choice, would it not be prudent to have in your ammo carrier
several different loadings with different bullets, bullets that you already know will perform
with known terminal ballistics at the given range ? This assumes that your chamber is empty,
and that once you measure your range, you can quickly chamber a round that has the "ideal"
bullet.

So instead of carrying 8 identical cartridges, you would have maybe 8 cartridges with
different bullets to pick from, maybe a couple doubled up, say 4 different loadings, 2 of each.

Is this a logical, or practical, strategy ?

No, it's a logistical nightmare and has great potential for problems.

The only situation in which carrying different rounds/loads would even make sense to me is dangerous game up close or self defense against same.

In such a case not having the first round chambered and a magazine full at all times is a fool's errand.

Standard practice as taught to me in such a situation is solids for the first shot, maybe two followed up by expanding bullets.

At very close range the POI shift would be so minimal as to be negligible anyhow but even at 100 yards the shift can be pretty dramatic so not worth considering to me much past about 50-100yds at most.

In most cases you'd be far better off shooting a bullet you are comfortable with at any range you're willing to shoot and just perhaps adjusting point of aim based on range with bullets (most of them) that show significant terminal ballistic performance as velocity degrades.

 

[86alaskan]

Ok, I'll differ here. This missouri deer season is the example. My 2506 shoots 115NBT into about. 5moa, pretty good I'd say. The same rifle will also put 115TSX into 1moa with same point of impact. When I was hunting in the woods where shots were under 100yds 100%, I loaded the TSX because I didn't want to eat bullet fragments. I developed my dope around the nosler for long shots out to 500 or so. So. .. with close range high impact speed, I trust a mono to not ruin meat. But at longer range with time to set up, get out the more precise softer expanding lead core bullets.

 

[86alaskan]

And that worked well, my buck was shot at 45yds,and the barnes did very well without the excess meat damage I would've expected from the nosler.

 

[WildRose]

And that worked well, my buck was shot at 45yds,and the barnes did very well without the excess meat damage I would've expected from the nosler.

At close range that can and often does work but those are situations where you also have time to decide.

Choosing your POI based on the range and frangibility of the bullet also solves that problem.

You're a lucky man, it's a very rare thing to find two loads with two different bullets with so little difference in POI.

 

[bigngreen]

This is not that difficult, though I try to avoid it I hunt from 0 yards to as far as conditions will allow and not always am I shooting bullets that will cover the entire spectrum. I currently carry a 28 Nosler that I push 195s in hard and I've seen excellent performance from them but also know they open aggressively so I run 177 gr Hammers also.
I load the chamber and mag with the Hammer loads when stalking or in thicker stuff, this load is capable of 1000+ yards but I set it up for 600 on a turret for close to med range, rifle is zeroed for this load.
The Berger load will be put in the chamber when needed, it'll be ranges I'm dialing using a ballistic solution so I've tuned the solution to where this bullet lands based off the Hammer zero, so it's like 2 up and .75 right for the zero point from the aim point. The app handles it all and I dial what shows so there is no issues with two different zero points.
I would not run more than two bullets and I'm careful about fouling but it's a useful tool that I'll probably use more in the future.

 

[86alaskan]

I'm aware, this gun shoots lots of different bullets to a very similar POI. I had been using the berger 115gr, and definitely didn't want to drive one of those into the shoulder of a deer at close range, that's what the barnes is for. I guess with the right bullets you'd be good at both, but I think you'd still be compromising a certain amount at either longer or close range. I figure a good solid mono for up to 300yds, then a nice berger vld or something for farther out. I know we've all seen pictures of a vld close impact at high speed on something solid.... effective, but not pretty and kinda wasteful.

 

[bigngreen]

I've shot some game with some Berger's that were no more meat loss than a mono and I wouldn't bother with two loads, it just depends on the individual case and particular bullet.
Loss of game is the max waste so I error on dead and easy to find vs a couple pounds of meat!

 

[86alaskan]

Fair enough, I'd hate to take a shot and lose the game as well. I guess when the closer shots present themselves I err to the side of the central nervous system anyway, so I guess the bullet choice doesn't matter as much. I use different bullets because I had a couple caribou disintegrate the ELD-X out of my 260. They were dead, but the fragmentation from that bullet even at longer range made me think twice about how it would perform at close range and full steam. I still chew pieces of that bulelt from time to time.

 

[WildRose]

Fair enough, I'd hate to take a shot and lose the game as well. I guess when the closer shots present themselves I err to the side of the central nervous system anyway, so I guess the bullet choice doesn't matter as much. I use different bullets because I had a couple caribou disintegrate the ELD-X out of my 260. They were dead, but the fragmentation from that bullet even at longer range made me think twice about how it would perform at close range and full steam. I still chew pieces of that bulelt from time to time.

The needs for different game based on body density, hair, armor, "toughness" along with the differences in terminal performance based on high/low energy impacts make that "perfect bullet" for everything and every range and situation the great white whale of bullet manufacturing.

The solution for me was to find bullets that just won't disintegrate but still consistently expand and hold together at any range I'm shooting.

I then simply adjust my POA understanding the predictable terminal performance.

I'll take a well placed shot with a golf ball sized exit every time even if I know that in some circumstances I'm going to have to walk a little further to find them laying stone dead.

I'm like you, wasted meat and gaping holes is a stomach turner for me.

I shot the .260's almost exclusive for a couple of years on dozens and dozens of animals trying to wrap my head around the bullet selection/placement issue and then moved on up to the higher energy rounds to see if the theory held true. Fortunately it's working out pretty well for me.

 

[Pdvdh]

Two bullets and loads work well and are manageable.

One stout controlled expansion bullet for closer range high velocity impacts to avoid the inevitable meat shredding resulting from the shrapnelling frangible bullets. Accuracy of this bullet is not terribly critical in my experience. Check it, but most any and every bullet will be accurate enough for solid 400yd hits on large game, in an otherwise accurate rifle.
The second bullet used for longer ranges must be accurate and maintain sufficient expansion velocity at the longest ranges engaged. These bullets MUST expand at their lowered impact velocities.

Any more than two bullets per rifle on a hunt is overly complicated and unnecessary.