I'm just going to put this right here so you can read reviews of this NON-bonded bullet as well after you read the link I posted above:

Sierra 180 .30 Caliber


Nobody is making this stuff up guys. Y'all are just victims of Al Gore's Internet.

I know you already know this Goat, but there was a reason John Nosler invented the partition bullet. Driving standard cup and core bullets at magnum velocities can, but not always, cause core/jacket separation. I use a 180 gr Sierra in one of my 300 win mag rifles, and it kills like a lightning bolt, but I would have concerns if the only shot I had on a big bodied deer was the shoulder at 20 yards. Unlikely that would happen, and I would probably take the shot. But there's also the chance that bullet could blow up on impact. I've read the Midway reviews, and I've also read many other posts about jacket/core separation with Sierra GK bullets, especially at high velocities and fast twist barrels.

I use Federal Premium 150 grain ballistic tips in my .30-06 and haven`t lost a single deer with them. I have had a few fragment on direct shoulder shots and I can only remember a few that didn't exit but those were hard quartering shots and I probably could have done a better job at shot placement. Majority of them the time the deer is DRT with a big exit hole.

No way you are going to get core separation with a 180 - 300 Win Mag on a Whitetail at 20 yards and it "blow up" on the shoulder and you don't kill the deer. Likely where it is standing.

NO HOW. NO WAY. That ain't happening. You can shoot through steel plate like it ain't even there but not a deer's shoulder blade?

The reason Nosler invented the partition was to shoot at larger game not Whitetails. He shot a Moose which is one of the largest land animals in North America with potential for bulls to weigh in excess of 1600lbs. He didn't kill it so he set out to design a bullet that would overcome heavy bone and muscle tissue. Moose, Bears, etc. NOT Whitetails.

Other bonded bullets didn't even come about until the 1960's and I was wrong about Speer in my earlier post... They introduced the Grand Slam in the mid 1970's.

Bonded bullets have their place. I shoot them all the time. But they are not necessary for a whitetail deer in any caliber save maybe a .257 Wby. If you are shooting a bullet 3200 fps and you want to shoot a bonded bullet just to be on the safe side - I can't argue with that. I do that myself. I shoot a lot of Accubonds. So I'm on board with bonded bullets they have their place. What bothers me is that the internet has created some sort of alternate universe where you need bonded bullets for deer. You do not. You really don't even need them for Elk but I would recommend one regardless there.

I just don't understand where this notion came from that you have to shoot a bonded bullet at a deer every time this subject comes up. Post after post stating your bullet is going to "blow up" if you don't shoot a Barnes or an Accubond or something. That is totally false.

People are just repeating what they read on another forum. They read it on 24hourcampfire the same question comes up over here and someone that read it repeats it as fact. That's how this gets started. And the bullets that "blow up" in mid air has spiraled out of control as a conversation piece on the internet.

That's all. I ain't mad about it I just think it is stupid.

Happened to me with a 270 wsm Winchester silvertips that went through some needles about 15 or so yrs ago. Pine needles - not a limb.
I didn’t read all the above post but I’m guessing it was heavily debated.
I believe what I saw because I was there.

I have absolutely shot them square in the shoulder with a 270 and had them "blow up".

PS Mr Goatkiller, ur post makes complete sense after reading it, and always regarded your post as knowledgeable.

I like Nosler partitions and have killed some deer with them nicely.

I believe in my case, the speed of a fairly new wsm caliber combined with some light pine needles caused the silver tip to fragment prior to reaching the target.
I guess blow up, is slang or paraphrasing, and don’t necessarily call it blowing up, but none the less, don’t use them (silvertips) anymore for that reason.

i had a similiar experience with the winchester ballistic silvertips. i shot a small buck in the throat patch at under 20 yards the bullet and his throat exploded but there was no exit

I know some of you won’t let facts get in the way of a good story but.....I shot a factory loaded 243 80gr Barnes TTSX (which we all can agree will kill any whitetail in N.A.) and a factory loaded Nosler 125gr 308 ballistic tip into water jugs at 40 yards. Both were fired from 20” barrels and the results were surprising. The Barnes was laying on the ground between the 3rd and 4th jig, it dented the 4th jug but didn’t penetrate it. The ballistic tip was inside the 4th jug. This was with a 125gr 308 ballistic tip. It stands to reason that a 150 gr or a 165 gr would penetrate even better. Today’s ballistic tips aren’t the same as the first generation ones. I’ll try to find pics of the bullets.

Not comparing apples to apples here. You are comparing a 243 to a 308. And 45 grain difference in bullets to boot

I think you are missing the point. Nobody will argue that an 80 gr Barnes TTSX lacks the penetration needed to kill a deer yet a 125gr 308 ballistic tip will out penetrate it and a heavier ballistic tip will penetrate even better.

You are also discounting sectional density in regards to penetration.

All of these except the Fusion were shot into water filled milk jugs at 40 yards. The fusion was under the offside hide of a 180# buck quartering away at 220 yards.

The 223 50gr Barnes is pretty impressive!

Yes, misunderstood what you were saying. But i still want a solid bullet. Want to make sure I have two holes so I can blood trail if they don’t drop where they stand(which is how I try to make it happen)

I shoot 150 grain win ballistic silver tips out of my 300 wsm. I've never had issues killing deer. They are drt most of the time but will occasionally run 20-30 yards. I've shot them from 10 - 600 yards. Don't have a exit about 50% of the time.

Just bought a new rifle and gunsmith is building a load for it. He swears by the sst. It too is a 300 win mag. Guess I'll try them

I don't care for them. If you don't drive them too fast and keep your shots broadside and behind a deer"s shoulder you probably won't have a problem. The smaller the caliber and the lighter the bullet the more I don't care for them. I have seen too many examples of poor penetration first hand. Seen a small buck shot broadside at less than 50 yards with a 300 WSM and a 150 gr ballistic tip. It didn't exit. Looked like a fragmentation grenade went off inside him. I just wouldn't trust them on a shot where I had to get through tough bone to get to the vitals like a quartering to shoulder shot. When I carry a bow into the woods I am content to wait for a specific shot angle and if I don't get it then so be it. That's just part of the challenge of bow hunting. But I don't like to have to be so picky when I take a rifle with me. Of course the tips of them are pretty colors sometimes if that sort of thing appeals to you.

I have blown apart a 200 gr 338 cal from a 338 win mag on a bucks shoulder at twenty yards. Found cup of the bullet in the shoulder and I still have it if you want to see it. I've also shattered a 165 gr SST from a 308 on a hard quartering shot at 100 yards. Nothing but fragments of that bullet.

I don't think the 100 gr 25 cal partition was designed for large heavy game, it is for deer or game of that size and it does a great job. Same goes for the 243, 264 and the lighter weight 284 and 308 caliber partition bullets. The front portion of the bullet has a relatively thin jacket that readily opens even at moderate velocities but the rear core will hold together at very high velocoties. No, they are not necessary for deer size game, but they will ALWAYS work.

I'm not trying to advocate that everyone go out and buy partitions. I have about 15 rifles I use and enjoy.variety. I shoot partitions, Accubonds, ballistic tips, sierra game kings, Hornady SST's, AMAX, and round nose interlocks. They all work and kill deer quick, and some of them will kill critters a lot larger than deer. Shot a deer yesterday morning at 25 yards with a 200 gr SST from a 338-06 AI. Exit hole in the rib cage was about the size of a grapefruit. She kicked once.