Thread: what is the best 308 130GR pojectile for deer

Hi i am looking to reduce the recoil in my 308 because of injury to my shoulder I loaded up some 125 gr SSTs and shot 3 pigs the other day killed the pigs but fark what a mess shot 1 pig in the head from behind about 60m away blew half its head off second pig in the head side on its head was still intact but you could fold it in half third pig shot it in the shoulder running hard out about 100m away blew its front leg off so 2 shots to finish it off sorry no photos got to dark and my phone takes shit photos. very accurate load but to bloody explosive so if I used them for deer I would be very reluctant to shoot it unless I could neck shoot it.
so back to the drawing board your thoughts and wisdom on this would be appreciated

Interlocks are usually a good projectile and quite cheap.

Barnes TTSX 130gr

you want light recoil and minimal damage.....barnes and dont be scared to go even lighter. or slow your load down with what you have got. it sounds to me like they are doing what they are supposed to do , just you were up close so they were fast...had it been 200 yards away preformance would have been much less dramatic.
Ive used both speer 130grn hps and 125grn nosler ballistic tips but thats in 7.62x39mm so speed is down to about 2300fps and results were acceptable,very much so.

I shoot the Barnes 130 ttsx at just over 3k in my .308, which is a warm load in my short barrel. Somewhere around 2750-2800 it would be a very mild recoiling load. And they don’t blow massive holes.

Originally Posted by Micky Duck

you want light recoil and minimal damage.....barnes and dont be scared to go even lighter. or slow your load down with what you have got. it sounds to me like they are doing what they are supposed to do , just you were up close so they were fast...had it been 200 yards away preformance would have been much less dramatic.
Ive used both speer 130grn hps and 125grn nosler ballistic tips but thats in 7.62x39mm so speed is down to about 2300fps and results were acceptable,very much so.

I just ordered Speer 130s Hot Cor in 7mm for me 708 for sika.

As above the Barnes 130 TTSX would be cool, the barnes also make a 110gr .308 bullet which would perform well with low recoil with a mild/moderate load.

I used the 125 Nosler BT for a while with no complaints.

the Nosler 125gn Accubond could be worth a go. Are you running a suppressor on your 308 ? if not that would be better way to reduce felt recoil.

The best 130 grain for the 308 is the 165 Nosler BT

Either the Barnes or Accubond

I'll suggest the following: 125gr Nosler BT and or the 110gr Barnes TTSX.(I've used both in the past).

I prefer the 110gr Barnes as you do not put any lead into meat you might end up eating. And the trajectory at 3100+fps is fairly flat. The 110gr TTSX is basically the same lenth as a 150gr Sierra Gameking.

When I started hunting with the 110s fellow hunters warned that they might be on the light side - but the bullets have proofed themselfs - when using a conventional bullet you loose 50 to 70% of the bullets weight on impact, but with the Barnes you only loose about 2% or less.

I've hunted several of the larger African game species with the 110 TTSX's - with great success.

Originally Posted by chainsaw

the Nosler 125gn Accubond could be worth a go. Are you running a suppressor on your 308 ? if not that would be better way to reduce felt recoil.

I use a suppressor and it cut down recoil nicely with that 125GR SST load. I had them honking @3000 FPS with 44GR action rifle just too explosive and to much meat damage so looks like I will have to go, Barnes, or Hornady GMX or 125GR Accubond THANKS for your help guys

If you are only shooting relatively short range you could use 30-30 projectiles at 30-30 velocities.

I’ve decided on the 125gr accubond in my .308. Haven’t worked up a load yet though.