would this be a to big of a méplat

[canuck4570]

https://accuratemolds.com/img/bullets/detail/31-200W-D.png

anyone use this bullet for hunting

would like to hunt moose

[versa-06]

Hello canuck4570; A big meplat is always nice, & that boolit looks like a real performer. What do you intend to shoot this boolit out of? Twist rate & throat depth will be a factor with the design of that boolit. Looking forward to hearing about your bang stick.

[725]

That would be a good one for it. Good weight, nice me plat, as long as it's accurate, I'd go forth with confidence.

[canuck4570]

Hello canuck4570; A big meplat is always nice, & that boolit looks like a real performer. What do you intend to shoot this boolit out of? Twist rate & throat depth will be a factor with the design of that boolit. Looking forward to hearing about your bang stick.

Sako 85 carbon light. 1/11 twist

this rifle shoot Sierra 200 gr. under a inch at 200 yards

the front band just touches very lightly the start of the rifling in other words fits the throat great

this rifle shout my Saeco 305. 200 gr as accurate as my Sierre 200 gr.

this is with alliant 2400 17 gr. at 200 yard with a Swarovski z8 2x16

yes hard to believe but that's what it is

[Winger Ed.]

Looks like a winner.

With the normal range and animal considerations, I'd use it.

[canuck4570]

has far has feeding
I modified a saeko 305 to have a .220 méplat and the front band in front of the casing and it feeds very smoothly

[sigep1764]

What caliber? 06, 308???

[seetrout]

If it feeds and is accurate there is no such thing as too large a meplat.

You still don't mention the cartridge, but a 200gr slug over 17gr of 2400 in anything "post 1898 full size military" you're probably in the 1400 to 1500 fps category. It looks like you're loading straight out of this thread. https://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?13425-Cast-Bullet-Loads-for-Military-Rifles-Article

My personal opinion is it's too light of a load for game bigger than mule deer/black bear, especially at range. Bigger meplat also means faster deceleration and you're not starting out very fast to begin with. I'm sure you COULD kill a moose with it at 200yds. The Jordan buck was killed with a .25-20 after all. I own a .25-20. I will not hunt deer with it.

In a .308 win or larger case you should be able to get 2K fps or better with modest pressure using RL7 or slower burning powders. I would look at H335, 4895, Varget, Ramshot, 748, N135, BL-C(2).

For reference. I can drive a 180gr RCBS FNGC sized @ .310 (I bought these, unknown alloy) to over 1900fps and the NOE 165RFGC, 50/50 WW/pure + 1% tin, sized to .3095 and lubed with 45-45-10 to well over 2K fps, with no leading, out of an early 70's M94 winchester .30-30 using H335 under both slugs.

Just looked up the Sako 85 Carbon Light. 308 win, .260 rem and 7mm-08 so .308 it is. Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook #4 says .308 starting load for a 200gr with 2400 is 18gr for 1638fps. If you want to go slow for moose, get a .45-70 and trapdoor loads......405gr 40-1 slugs @ 1350fps. If you can afford that Sako, you can afford to buy another rifle.

[Bad Ass Wallace]

What is this fascination with "meplat"? For a hunting boolit the composition of the alloy is the most important factor. The pic of all these "boolits" are cast of just 4% tin and driven in the range 1200 - 1400fps. All were recovered from game and expanasion was perfect.

If you had a spire point boolit (zero meplat) that was accurate and of the correct alloy, it would kill game just as well as a flat nose. The main difference would be the ballistric coefficient of the different boolits.

https://i.imgur.com/cArT9w1.jpg

[MichaelR]

The rule of thumb is, meplat can not be bigger than 70% of the bullet diameter or you will experience stability problems at longer ranges.

[canuck4570]

16 gr. of 2400 is a practice load

I will load as fast has I can with slow powder

yes its near 70% but all are shots at moose has ben 50 to 170 yards 170 was the farthest one in 25 years

[missionary5155]

Under 100 yards (which is far beyond my river bottom vision) I would fire that big flat nose at anything I deemed needed to be thwaped with authority.
Soft slugs are fine if you do not want an exit hole. But I want one as looking for downed critters in thick brush with no blood trail has long been found to be not much fun. That big flat should slam right on out the far side leaving a well defined trail.

[canuck4570]

I have a 458 and a 4570 and mushroom bullet like above is what I had but at 74 years getting rattle by such recoil is to much....

[GARD72977]

That boolit has too much unsupported nose. I dont believe it would be accurrate.

[canuck4570]

whit the front band up to the rifling in the throat and .250 of bore riding that should be great
I order the riding nose over size and size them down with a modified lube sizing die to accept different neck sizing ring from Redding I have .299 .300 and .301
in my sako the .299 is perfect just snug without disturbing feeding

[PositiveCaster]

What is this fascination with "meplat"? For a hunting boolit the composition of the alloy is the most important factor….

Had you actually used a bullet with a generous meplat on game, you’d not have asked the question….



.

[canuck4570]

yes I have its a mold from mountain mold. a 550 gr. with a .380 me plat
it was a moose at a bit over 200 yards bullet entered just front of the rear ham and stoped at the opposite shoulder and everybody in the groupe was surprised at the penetration
at the hit he just went down
second was with my 4570 with a 475 gr. with a .350 me plat hit the dear in the front wen cleaning him he had a second ass hole and on the way there it pulverized about 12 inches of spine

so yes I have shot game with large me plat and all were accurate up to 200 yards can not say further than that our range is 200 and I keep my shot below 200
https://imgur.com/c5NeESG
https://imgur.com/c3uwPc4

since I have only experience with 45 caliber cast bullet
I am asking about 30 caliber may be not the same and there's is thing I should know before starting to hunt with large me plat in .308

[444ttd]

my 30-40 krag with 165gr ranch dogs have killed about 13-14 deer. i and my oldest son shoot them behind the shoulder and every one them was dead right there(drt). the range to the deer was about 20 yards and all the way to 173 yards(my son). the boolit alloy is 10 coww/smidge of tin (12bhn+/-).

[GARD72977]

whit the front band up to the rifling in the throat and .250 of bore riding that should be great
I order the riding nose over size and size them down with a modified lube sizing die to accept different neck sizing ring from Redding I have .299 .300 and .301
in my sako the .299 is perfect just snug without disturbing feeding

Sorry it was early! I didnt notice how much bore ridding length there was

[canuck4570]

no probleme gard72977

[versa-06]

Good Thread, Lots of good input. Hearing personal experiences of "actual & factual" experiences is great! The rest are just stories. Truth Nut

[canuck4570]

The rule of thumb is, meplat can not be bigger than 70% of the bullet diameter or you will experience stability problems at longer ranges.
when you say at longer yards is it over 100 200 or more

[GregLaROCHE]

What size is your bore? Do you have really deep groves? Those driving bands took pretty big compared to the .303 diameter of the boolit.

[canuck4570]

What size is your bore? Do you have really deep groves? Those driving bands took pretty big compared to the .303 diameter of the boolit.
exactly .300 lots of lube and big bands for good grip
on my Saeco mold same thing and I am able to push them past 2200 fps with good accuracy

[GregLaROCHE]

exactly .300 lots of lube and big bands for good grip
on my Saeco mold same thing and I am able to push them past 2200 fps with good accuracy

That’s interesting.

[GLynn41]

I would say no--but wont know till you try