Nosler accubond

[WildRose]

If someone hunts in the thick woods of the east coast, they can expect lots of brush, and have to choose shots very carefully but will almost never have a shot where a deer is 100% in the clear. If you do not, then you have no idea what you are commenting on. So thanks for critiquing my post with a very know-it-all response which has no bearing on what I said.
For any normal people out there who want to discuss rather than just slam other posters in order to try to make themselves look smart, Nosler Ballistic Tips are especially notorious. They have a long history of being extremely frangible. You will find hundreds of threads across the internet to this effect. This is why I switched almost completely to the accubonds, which shoot very well. But for a nearly perfect shot, The performance of the accubond was not that great.

If shooting through brush is the norm rather than the exception high velocity small diameter bullets are not the right choice.

Something like a 30-06, 444, .338 Marlin, 45-70 loaded with flat nosed heavy jacketed HP's or flat points, one of the mono's like the Peregrine Bushmaster, or shotgun slugs would be a much better choice.

Small bullets defelect and shell out very easily with impacts in access of 2600fps.

In my part of Texas shooting though lots of heavy brush is the norm unless you're hunting wheat fields so you have to be very careful to pick your shots and put them through keyholes, pass on them, or be shooting something much more appropriate for brush hunting like those rounds listed above.

 

[Riflehunter1776]

You got exactly the performance to be expected with the NBT. By design they are pretty well flying bombs that have extreme expansion in the first 2" of penetration basically shelling out.

I'd prefer to see a bullet track and exit cleanly but in the case of the accubond striking ribs at an angle with a crossing shot a deflection is to be expected.

Ran 200yds? I've seen bucks run that far or farther with a golf ball sized hole through the heart and a shredded lung.

Unless you interrupt the CNS with a brain or spine shot animals rarely drop dead in their tracks.

The first response to major trauma is a massive dump of adrenaline, testosterone, and other hormones that do amazing things.

yes, there is good and bad with the BT's. a ballistic tip at long distance is a good thing because it will still expand even at lower velocities. But at close range with velocity, you're right, they'll act like a varmint grenade. They are a terrible choice for brush. From the late 80's until 2006, I used BT's exclusively. The woods I hunted in back then were mature hardwood forest with limited scrub, and every year they performed like magic. I was sold on them. Bang-flop year after year with an occasional short run. Then, around 2002, my main in-state area was timbered and became very thick. I started to notice that things were going wrong. In '04 (All my buck are dated on the back of the plaques along with relevant notes), for my PA buck, my butcher said "did you know your bullet was already opening up when it hit him?" So, 2+2, I began to realize that the inexplicable problems in the thick brush had a simple explanation. I switched to Accubonds, and even back then I had a couple of long runners. One in particular was in 08, a 300WM /150 at relatively close range which went across 2 neighboring properties. Cut open, it was hit right through the vitals, but it penciled in and penciled out and the deer ran. So I switched to Barnes X bullets in PA, and never had another issue again with brush (remember, I'm not talking about shooting through tree trunks, it's brambles or twigs often not evident in the scope) nor did I have problems with bullet underperformance. The biggest issue with the Barnes was that they just didnt seem to group as well for me over 300 yards.

2011, new rifle that liked BT's......2 more 'issues' that year in brush. This year, a primary rifle was drenched in a downpour and had to be taken apart and cleaned, but we were hunting the next morning and no time to re-sight. So we took a beanfield rifle that was sighted for BT's. There again, another issue when it had to shoot a deer on the edge of brush.

So yes, in 30 years of hunting with Nosler Ballistic tips, accubonds, and Barnes x bullets, both in my own state and a half dozen other states I have taken hunting trips to, that is my experience, and the experience of my kids, proved out with a ton of antler on the walls. BT's are accurate and awesome in the great wide open. Barnes bullets have never failed me and always hit hard but just dont group as well for me at long range in my rifles. And Accubonds are very accurate, but I've had runners with them. So I have different rifles/loads for different conditions. I picked up some bergers this year to try out, but never got the chance to work up anything. Next year.

 

[Riflehunter1776]

I wasn't slamming you at all. Don't be so sensitive. I hunt brush every season. We have buck brush here and actually hunt with little terriers to push deer and do drives to get our deer out of the brush. But I would never blame a bullet for missing deer because I shot a branch. I'm not putting you down, stuff happens I get it. It's hard hitting those bucks bouncing around the thick stuff and your son made a heck of shot hitting that whitetail at 400 yards on the run. Congratulations. I've probably killed 60 to 80 deer with an Accubond bullet. 99% have been perfect results. Try em a little longer and see if you still have bad results. I think you will find them to be a pretty solid performer over time. Sorry if I came off like a richard. Happy hunting!

Thanks. Yes, my teenage daughter made a heck of a shot on that deer. For such a small buck, she certainly earned it. It could be luck, but that's the second one I've seen her shoot at intermediate range at full run. She does even better when they're standing still at close range, like the one we had the BT failure on. Heck, I remember one time a nice 10 pt was standing with only his head and neck visible above the briars. I told her to put the shot right in the middle of the white patch on the neck, and she did. DRT. That was a Barnes.

 

[Raudy707]

My daughter is the same way. She's a better shot than her brother. You say put it on the pocket and squeeze it off and bang she does it. One shot, end of hunt. She shoots 140 Accubonds out of her little Micro hunter Browning X bolt 7mm-08. She killed this mule deer last year at a pace or two under 350 yds. I don't think girls get so amped up and can focus where the boys just hammer the trigger and raise up to see if they hit it. Good times!

 

[jasonprox700]

I took three more deer this year with my 308 and 150gr NAB's.

The first took the top of the heart off at 150 yards. The shot was quartering away, bullet entered and caught ribs and made a softball size hole going in, but the bullet exiting only made a half dollar size hole. She ran about a hundred yards with what looked like buckets of blood on each side of the trail she ran down.

Second was around 75 yards. Broadside shot, took off the bottom of the heart, standard half dollar entry and exit. She made it about 40-50 yards with lots of blood.

3rd was facing me at about 75 yards. Bullet entered the neck and passed into the upper chest region. It took out the spine and turned the front of the lungs into mush. Bang flop. Bullet was perfectly mushroomed and weighed 120.2 grains.

This has been the typical performance I've seen from the Accubonds in multiple calibers I've taken animals with.

I get fantastic results with them and they shoot great, so I'll continue using them.

 

[WildRose]

Even if the bullet failed somehow to get properly bonded,I'd have a hard time believing the Accubond would explode on impact like that.They are designed to shed some weight,but they do have a heavy jacket design and they shouldn't give you that kind of entrance wound.The Ballistic Tips basically have the same jacket,just not bonded.I have used both in my 7mag and the Accubond in the 7STW.I get a tad wider wound channel with a 150gr NBT than I do with the 160gr AB and I'm running them between 3100-3200fps and I have yet to recover one,even then I haven't had what I'd considered excessive damage with either bullet.These pictures are from a deer I shot with a 150gr NBT.The ones I've shot with the 160gr AB tend to look about the same.View attachment 159663 View attachment 159667 View attachment 159668

yes, there is good and bad with the BT's. a ballistic tip at long distance is a good thing because it will still expand even at lower velocities. But at close range with velocity, you're right, they'll act like a varmint grenade. They are a terrible choice for brush. From the late 80's until 2006, I used BT's exclusively. The woods I hunted in back then were mature hardwood forest with limited scrub, and every year they performed like magic. I was sold on them. Bang-flop year after year with an occasional short run. Then, around 2002, my main in-state area was timbered and became very thick. I started to notice that things were going wrong. In '04 (All my buck are dated on the back of the plaques along with relevant notes), for my PA buck, my butcher said "did you know your bullet was already opening up when it hit him?" So, 2+2, I began to realize that the inexplicable problems in the thick brush had a simple explanation. I switched to Accubonds, and even back then I had a couple of long runners. One in particular was in 08, a 300WM /150 at relatively close range which went across 2 neighboring properties. Cut open, it was hit right through the vitals, but it penciled in and penciled out and the deer ran. So I switched to Barnes X bullets in PA, and never had another issue again with brush (remember, I'm not talking about shooting through tree trunks, it's brambles or twigs often not evident in the scope) nor did I have problems with bullet underperformance. The biggest issue with the Barnes was that they just didnt seem to group as well for me over 300 yards.

2011, new rifle that liked BT's......2 more 'issues' that year in brush. This year, a primary rifle was drenched in a downpour and had to be taken apart and cleaned, but we were hunting the next morning and no time to re-sight. So we took a beanfield rifle that was sighted for BT's. There again, another issue when it had to shoot a deer on the edge of brush.

So yes, in 30 years of hunting with Nosler Ballistic tips, accubonds, and Barnes x bullets, both in my own state and a half dozen other states I have taken hunting trips to, that is my experience, and the experience of my kids, proved out with a ton of antler on the walls. BT's are accurate and awesome in the great wide open. Barnes bullets have never failed me and always hit hard but just dont group as well for me at long range in my rifles. And Accubonds are very accurate, but I've had runners with them. So I have different rifles/loads for different conditions. I picked up some bergers this year to try out, but never got the chance to work up anything. Next year.

Try the Peregrines and all your issues will be resolved.

Remember though even a twig half the size of a pencil is enough to deflect any bullet or even get it to tumbling which makes everything that happens from impact (assuming it makes an impact) completely unpredictable.

I would never shoot the Berger's anywhere they might even skim through grass. Our CRP can easily be shoulder tall or taller on wet years and I've had the Berger's simply vaporize before ever getting to the deer in tall grass.

I shoot very high velocity rifles as well, .364wm, 6.5 LRM, 7mm STW, 300 RUM, and 375 Ruger so I need bullets I can count on to "get there" and I'm a freak about terminal performance as well. I want to know every time I pull the trigger where it will hit, where it will exit, I want a caliber size or smaller entry wound and an exit no bigger than a golf ball.

When the great shortage of Interbonds hit I experimented with the Accubond which was almost as good, the Accubond LR which isn't, then the Hornady ELD-X, too likely to over expand at sub 400yds ranges, and the Swift Sirocco II, too soft at any speed.

I got desperate in 2015 on my trip to Africa and tried the Peregrines and nothing comes close for the combination of consistency, ease of loading, and accuracy for me in everything from the .260's through the .375's.

 

[WildRose]

I took three more deer this year with my 308 and 150gr NAB's.

The first took the top of the heart off at 150 yards. The shot was quartering away, bullet entered and caught ribs and made a softball size hole going in, but the bullet exiting only made a half dollar size hole. She ran about a hundred yards with what looked like buckets of blood on each side of the trail she ran down.

Second was around 75 yards. Broadside shot, took off the bottom of the heart, standard half dollar entry and exit. She made it about 40-50 yards with lots of blood.

3rd was facing me at about 75 yards. Bullet entered the neck and passed into the upper chest region. It took out the spine and turned the front of the lungs into mush. Bang flop. Bullet was perfectly mushroomed and weighed 120.2 grains.

This has been the typical performance I've seen from the Accubonds in multiple calibers I've taken animals with.

I get fantastic results with them and they shoot great, so I'll continue using them.

I'd blame that grossly oversized entry wound on exploding ribs. We tend to forget that bone becomes flying fragments as well when hit by high velocity bullets, especially heavy bone like the femurs, hips, shoulders and especially vertebrae which tend to shatter in all directions when hit right.

I've done base of the skull shots on dozens, maybe hundreds of does with all sorts of bullets and almost all of the conventional lead core, including bonded, bullet hits there has resulted in near complete decapitations.

 

[jasonprox700]

That's what I blamed the hole on too, especially after seeing the exit.

I've only recovered a handful of Accubonds, but they've been picture perfect mushrooms (280, 308, and 338 WM). For thinner skinned game, I feel they're tough to beat.

 

[WildRose]

That's what I blamed the hole on too, especially after seeing the exit.

I've only recovered a handful of Accubonds, but they've been picture perfect mushrooms (280, 308, and 338 WM). For thinner skinned game, I feel they're tough to beat.

With a few exceptions I was generally pleased with them as well.

Between the Interbond and Accubond though I lean towards the Even though I wish they'd make them in some heavier for caliber bullets than they do.

Next to the Peregrines, for Mono's I have had great luck with the Barnes LRX, for conventional/bonded Interbond and Accubond in that order.

 

[Flare]

I'm shooting a 700 Remington 24" factory barrel in 7Stw with a 160 Nosler accubond @2974 fps I shot an 5 pt bull last weekend over in Idaho my question is any of you have problems with accubonds disintegrating on impact. The shot was 60ish yrds

I shot an elk at less thAn 50 yards with a 7 mag bullets going close to 3000 FPS Straight pass through and dead elk I've had no issues

Corey

 

[WildRose]

I shot an elk at less thAn 50 yards with a 7 mag bullets going close to 3000 FPS Straight pass through and dead elk I've had no issues

Corey

Just out of curiosity, where was the impact/exit and how much damage?

I've never seen an Accubond break up unless it struck something before hitting the animal.

I did however get reminded just how tough the Interbond is this week when I lined up three hogs at about 200yds shooting the 7mm STW. Impact velocity had to be over 3000fps at the point it hit the first pig.

Clean pass through ribcage on the first, same on the second, third was a huge old sow hit low in the throat at an angle. Bullet recovered low in the off shoulder.

First two hit were both around 150-170lbs.

I was impressed. I've shot many doubles in the past but having killed more than a hundred a year for several decades that triple was a first with any bullet, any cartridge.

 

[Flare]

Just out of curiosity, where was the impact/exit and how much damage?

I've never seen an Accubond break up unless it struck something before hitting the animal.

I did however get reminded just how tough the Interbond is this week when I lined up three hogs at about 200yds shooting the 7mm STW. Impact velocity had to be over 3000fps at the point it hit the first pig.

Clean pass through ribcage on the first, same on the second, third was a huge old sow hit low in the throat at an angle. Bullet recovered low in the off shoulder.

First two hit were both around 150-170lbs.

I was impressed. I've shot many doubles in the past but having killed more than a hundred a year for several decades that triple was a first with any bullet, any cartridge.

So I hit my elk right behind the shoulder in the crease He ran about 10 yards and went down Nickel size exit I did the gutless method so no idea on internal damage I only know he died very quickly


Corey

 

[WildRose]

So I hit my elk right behind the shoulder in the crease He ran about 10 yards and went down Nickel size exit I did the gutless method so no idea on internal damage I only know he died very quickly


Corey

Punching through nothing but ribs that's what I'd expect. Congrats.

 

[Flare]

Punching through nothing but ribs that's what I'd expect. Congrats.

No doubt Killed him quick I heard him take his last breath

corey