Thread: .300 aac blackout projectiles for deer?

For any 300 blk shooters out there, keen for some feedback on these supers on deer:

- Barnes 110gr TAC-TX
- Lehigh 110gr Controlled Chaos

Guys in the States seem pretty confident knocking over whitetail with both of these out to about 200y. Any kiwis had a go on reds with them? How'd it pan out?

Thanks in advance

you must have deep pockets...
in my 7.62x39mm I have had great results with 125grn nosler ballistic tips (you can buy 2nds for $30odd off trademe)
the speer 130grn hp is another well worth trying as it opens fast and does heap of damage.
killed 2 yearling reds with consecutive shots with 125grn sierra hp 30/30 pills from same cartridge at close range in deep bush.
different cartridge but similar velocity...the nosler would be my first choice to try,hope that helps.

Barnes work well,They help feeding issues in the ar platform as they put the overall length similar to 223.Shot a few reds and whitetail none have stood up.Not the controlled chaos but have used the lehigh subs and they work well same as above.

Both are expensive thogh

I have found the barnes good, and lehighs subsonic pills have been my go to as well.

Im not cost sensitive when it comes to deer hunting ammo though- I dont see much difference in the big picture between $1 and $5 a round given all the other costs of hunting and how few I actully throw at animals. Range ammo is another story! if I was culling I would probably feel different

Thanks guys, what kind of ranges have you shot deer with 300blk (or 7.62x39) supers/ high velocity rounds? Can you get much past 100m?

Pretty sure @tikka does a fair bit of hunting with 300 Blackout

Originally Posted by OWS

Thanks guys, what kind of ranges have you shot deer with 300blk (or 7.62x39) supers/ high velocity rounds? Can you get much past 100m?

aprox 130m would be my longest deer with a 300blk, but would be happy to go longer with a clear shot on a good angle. If your woried you could check the min speed the pill you end up with will expand at and work out its theretical efective range from that. Have done goats well past 200 with no issues.

If your woried about regular long shots it may be worth thinking of a bigger round, 300blk only makes sence to me if either very short barrels or subsonic abillity is important


edit: I want to be clear that I could count on my fingers the number of deer I have shot with 300blk-there are much more experianced members. I mostly use it for subsonic goat control out of a AR

Unless you are running an AR15 platform the 300 BLK is a waste of money you will get better performance out of a standard .308 Win
you can load sub sonic to full house loads with ease, most bolt action 300BLK's are built on the stand short action as the bigger .308

Unless you are running an AR15 platform the 300 BLK is a waste of money you will get better performance out of a standard .308 Win
you can load sub sonic to full house loads with ease, most bolt action 300BLK's are built on the stand short action as the bigger .308

Goats to 450m with 110vmax

I have personal limit of 150 with the x39mm as it just doesnt have the legs past that...accuracy isnt an issue if limited to that range.
for me I would stalk closer or pass up shot rather that hit and risk wounding due to lack of power left to do the job.

Originally Posted by OWS

For any 300 blk shooters out there, keen for some feedback on these supers on deer:

- Barnes 110gr TAC-TX
- Lehigh 110gr Controlled Chaos

Guys in the States seem pretty confident knocking over whitetail with both of these out to about 200y. Any kiwis had a go on reds with them? How'd it pan out?

Thanks in advance

Never used the Barnes or the Lehigh 110gr CC, had good results with Nosler 125gr BT's and Hornady 125gr SST's, maximum distance shot out to 300m 30 degree downhill on deer with a well rested prone shot and with the help of a ballistic app and rangefinder. Most 110gr-135gr varmint type projectiles will work at blackout speeds within 160m-200m on deer. I mostly use the supers on goats with the odd deer and pig, subs for deer with the help of the dog. If I was solely hunting deer with supers then I would use the Barnse 110gr TAC-TX for the extra penetration at distance.
My rig is a precision 12" bolt action and do 99% of my hunting with it, OWS what rig are you using?

Thanks Tikka, everyone, for your responses.

Tikka - My rig will be a converted Tikka T3 Lite in .223. Going to get Deadeye Dicks in Levin to do it for me. I'm just doing some research on projectile options to make sure it will suit my needs before taking the financial plunge. I'm mostly NI bush hunting over a dog, unlikely that I'll get many 200m shots in the type of spots I go, so I think this will be a good set up for me.

What are the advantages of a 12" barrel? Just easier and lighter to cart around through the bush? I was thinking of staying at 18" for starters to get the best velocity out of the supers, with the option of trimming later. Any thoughts?

What suppressor do you have on yours?

Originally Posted by OWS

Thanks Tikka, everyone, for your responses.

Tikka - My rig will be a converted Tikka T3 Lite in .223. Going to get Deadeye Dicks in Levin to do it for me. I'm just doing some research on projectile options to make sure it will suit my needs before taking the financial plunge. I'm mostly NI bush hunting over a dog, unlikely that I'll get many 200m shots in the type of spots I go, so I think this will be a good set up for me.

What are the advantages of a 12" barrel? Just easier and lighter to cart around through the bush? I was thinking of staying at 18" for starters to get the best velocity out of the supers, with the option of trimming later. Any thoughts?

What suppressor do you have on yours?

Really don't think you'll see any appreciable velocity gains by staying with the longer barrel. The 300 was designed for short barrels. Go as short as legal I reckon. Make it light fast and handy.

My ar15 has a 12.5 inch Barrel and is about 15mm over minimum legal length. I use it for NI bush hunting and can't think of any situation where having an extra 50-100 fps would make any difference to what I'm shooting. If there's slips or big gullies i just tale a bigger gun