Copper Monolithic Testing

Posted by: OXN

Copper Monolithic Testing - 03/13/20 08:48 PM

I've switched to shooting copper over the past few years for a bunch of reasons, ranging from not wanting to eat lead in animals I harvest to helping keep lead from being concentrated in the food sources of raptors. As everyone knows, copper performs differently in the world of terminal ballistics than do lead cup-and-cores. So, with an upcoming Texas Nilgai hunt on the horizon, I decided to do some of my own ballistic testing to make sure things downrange were actually going the way I wanted. Basically, I lined up a bunch of water jugs and hit them from 100 yards with a few different calibers. I mentioned to a few other forum members that I'd share, so here are the results.

First up was a Hornady GMX 165 grain from a 20" Howa 1500 in .308 Win. Impact velocity around 2350.



Hornady GMX 80 grain out of a 20" Howa Alpine in .243 Winchester, impact velocity ~2900:



And, Barnes TSX 168 grain out of a 24" Winchester Model 70 in .30-06:



All three of the rounds tested retained over 95% of their weight. The TSX did lose one petal, but it was in the bottom of the 5th gallon jug, the far side of which stopped the projectile. It also showed the most aggressive expansion, and I recovered one more TSX from the backstop I was shooting against that looked virtually identical. The GMXs both produced mushrooms that looked like something out of a magazine. I don't know that there's much value to including pictures of the jugs themselves, but all of them were completely vaporized.



This test was a big confidence builder. In addition to being extremely accurate and consistent, all three of the rounds tested delivered excellent expansion, penetration and transfer of energy. I'll try to find time in the future to test a few more loads.
Posted by: the cwa

Re: Copper Monolithic Testing - 03/15/20 01:04 AM

Thanks for posting this OXN. That 30-06 looks wicked nasty. I'd like to see how it performs during a hunt.
Posted by: OXN

Re: Copper Monolithic Testing - 03/18/20 04:15 PM

Originally Posted By: the cwa
Thanks for posting this OXN. That 30-06 looks wicked nasty. I'd like to see how it performs during a hunt.


Funny you should ask. Nilgai are about the ultimate proving ground for bullets- large, extremely tough animals with thick bone structure. The .30-06 put mine down just fine. Will supply pictures shortly.
Posted by: Ali

Re: Copper Monolithic Testing - 03/19/20 03:54 PM

Thanks for posting this! I was looking at these partly because the length is almost even with the old 30 cal m2ap projectiles. Bearing surface is a little different though. And I was kicking around the idea for 308 and 30-06 so thank you.
Posted by: OXN

Re: Copper Monolithic Testing - 03/24/20 06:35 PM

So here's the proof in the pudding:





Nilgai are definitely the toughest animals on the continent of North America to kill quickly, even moreso than Muskox or Bison. The guides in Texas all say they've seen them hit with .338 Win Mags and run off, never to be found. My '06 with the above 168 gr. TSX load put mine down in about 50 yards. I've already used copper monos with zero failures on Whitetail, Blacktail, Pronghorn and Caribou, but this Nilgai was the ultimate litmus test. If anyone wants to trade for some Nilgai steaks, shoot me a PM! We've got a bunch.
Posted by: Ali

Re: Copper Monolithic Testing - 03/26/20 10:13 AM

mu'fuggin 30-06

:-)
Posted by: the cwa

Re: Copper Monolithic Testing - 03/26/20 11:25 PM

Congratulations on a successful hunt, that Nilgai looks like one tough mudda too.

Thanks again for posting this, very good info.
Posted by: OXN

Re: Copper Monolithic Testing - 03/28/20 11:58 AM

Glad you guys enjoyed. All about spreading the word about copper monos- there is really no downside to using them when done correctly.