interesting topic. one i've battled with myself over and over. i've shot several hundred of 110s, 125 tnt and 125 ph and the 130 hot cores. killed hogs and lost hogs with all of them. that happens with anything. wilson highly recommended the 130 hc and ironically one of my best one shot stop/kills on a herd was from that bullet. the 130 seems like one of the perfect hunting rounds for the hamr for those who like the weight retention and mushroom effect. and for good reason, they do a great job on standing game animals with minimal meat loss.

i love a bullet until i hit hogs and they don't go down, lol. then i change and start the love/hate process all over. i had settled on the 125 tnt and they are extremely destructive. perfect for hogs. but i've slowed them down with the new loading data and now i have talked myself into believing i need the 110s again. i think i read here that the 125 tnt can't be pushed quite as fast as the 125 pro hunter. i have a couple hundred of ph left over i'm shooting up until i get the 110's ready for battle. haven't got around to a new a music vid, but here are a few shots with the 125ph. yea.. hit'em in the right place and they all go down. but if you gut shoot one it's nice to have something explode in them so they slow down for another shot.

I hope to use a couple of different loads on deer this year to test, but it will obviously be a small sample size no matter how many I get.

The question of big and slow vs small and fast is a little different here given the same caliber and approximately the same bullet expansion.

I think this conversation is a little over my head, but I can tell you this from actual experience killing hogs (thousands) and deer (hundreds) with the HAM'R.

The 130gr HAM'R HOT-CORE, 135gr HAM'R BONDED, 135gr Hornady FTX, 150gr Hornady SST (#30303), 150gr Speer BTSP, 150gr Speer Gold Dot (BLK variant) and the 160gr Hornady FTX ALL kill hogs VERY well.

The 130gr HAM'R HOT-CORE, 135gr Hornady FTX, 150gr Hornady SST (#30303) and the Speer 150gr BTSP ALL kill deer VERY well.

Just pick one your barrel likes and go with it........

Personally I'm currently using the 160gr FTX on hogs and plan to use the 135gr FTX on deer this fall

I don't know about the statement of this being over your head, but everything else is great. :-) No doubt you have WAY MORE experience hunting with this cartridge than any of us here.

I noticed you started using the 130 hot-core and gradually shifted to trying heavier bullets. Do you see any difference at all in how the game reacts when shot with the lower range of 130-135 vs 150-160 or do they die just about as quick and as decisively?

Thanks for bringing the ham'r to market and for all your insight!

@Wilson Combat

Congratulations on the new 1:13 and Protector LW barrels!

I wonder why there is no variant of Protector LW in 1:13? That would be the best combination for western/mountain hunting where the weight and low temperatures are relevant.

Because we can't keep up right now, someday.......

Got it. Thanks.

BTW, from your experience, are there any advantages to using SOCOM instead of CFEBLK with Speer 150Gr BTSP (#2022) or Hornady 135Gr FTX (#3027) (in 16.2" barrel)?

With regards to the question about bullet weight vs damage, I think to get an answer we have to take things to an extreme. The original question was in regards to a .300 HAMR. To imagine real world results lets pick a different caliber. I will use one I am intimately familiar with and have loaded for many different rifles. 7mm Rem Mag. Imagine if you will a 7mm Rem Mag loaded with 120 grain projectiles vs 175 grain projectiles. Now, we're talking bonded core bullets so lets not forget that aspect. How will the bullet react to a deer at 100 yards? Well, the 120 grain bullet will be traveling significantly faster than the 175 grain bullet. Even though its a bonded bullet, in this scenario the velocity is so great that it may overcome the ability of the 120 grain bullet to hold together. It just doesn't have the sectional density to handle the velocity, and therefore energy, to stay together. More than likely the bullet would enter the animal, get about half way through and come apart. Now, the 175 grain bullet has a different problem. The 175 grain bullet is traveling much slower, probably around 2850fps. It has a much larger sectional density and has very little chance of coming apart. It will most likely expand as advertised and achieve a complete pass through. Which bullet will kill an animal most efficiently? I would say that we have other variables to consider. Yes, they are both bonded core bullets, but are the core and jacket made out of the same alloy? Probably not. The 120 grain bullet was most likely not designed to be pushed that fast. It was most likely designed to be shot out of a 7mm-08 or something similar at under 3000fps. We know the 7mm Rem Mag will exceed that number easily. The 175 grain bullet, on the other hand, was probably constructed with a harder core material and possibly a thicker jacket because it would be designed to work on thick skinned animals such as elk. So when you shoot it at a deer it may expand, but not fully. You may not get the knock down you were hoping for on a thin skinned animal. Knowing all of this, lets get back to the original scenario.

We're talking a 300 HAMR with either a 123g or a 150g bonded core bullet on a deer with a broadside shot. For the sake of argument I'm going to assume that both will fall withing the expansion range of the bullet. I would suggest finding out what that is and try avoiding the extreme end of that range in any scenario. Based on what we know by taking our thought process to an extreme, the 123 will penetrate less and come apart more than the 150. How much more depends on bullet construction of the specific bullet. At the velocities we're talking about and we have already assumed a bonded core bullet I wouldn't worry about a bullet blowing up. What I would worry about is not getting a complete pass through. The 150 will most likely go through. The 123 will probably go through most of the time, but maybe not always.

These are just my thoughts based on what I know about how bullets react in different scenarios. To be honest I wrestled with this very question when I first started testing my 300 HAMR. My ultimate decision was to go with the 135g HAMR bonded as it seems to be a nice middle ground for this caliber. It won't be very different from a 125 or a 150. Also, I know the bullet was constructed to function within the velocity range of the chosen cartridge so bullet construction isn't really a question. However, this is all just conjecture. How bullets perform surprise us all the time. I would never have thought a 150g BTSP would be a good choice for 300 HAMR. However, it seems to be working for Mr. Wilson just fine. Try both and tell us what happens.

Ideally, the more velocity you have in an equal caliber is going to give you advantages but also can create some disadvantages as well. But really isn’t that the whole concept of bullet creation/ design with any caliber?... Highest velocity possible with the highest penetration possible while expanding to the perfect amount at all distances, all climates, all scenarios in all weapon platforms ?.. The problem is some of those concepts work against each other and you’d have to defy physics to achieve them all. This is the struggle in all caliber design and ammunition choices. If I choose this bullet I get this advantage but I loose something over here on this end. That’s why a target shooter picks this bullet, hog hunter these bullets, deer hunter these bullets etc etc. no one choice for everything. No perfect bullet for everything. No perfect scenario for everything

New to the 300 HAM'R and have acquired brass, powder and dies and have been looking for loads to try and do not see the 125 grain SST mentioned anywhere. Is there a reason why? Is the bullet too long to get adequate velocity?