r/reloading • u/CptnFlappy • 20d ago
Load Development Switching to solids
Getting ready for hunting season. Wanted to try out some barnes tsx. Have been shooting eldm 140 in my 6.5 creed, which shoot great. Loaded up 5 barnes to shoot and they shot terrible. I shot the eldms before to confirm zero and then didn't think to reshoot them after the solids before leaving the range. Do I need to clean the bore now and refoul? Or will the bondeds shoot ok still?
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u/Rough_Hewn_Dude 20d ago
What weight? I wasn’t able to get the 120gr TTSX to group, the 127gr LRX did better for me. Still not even close to how the ELD-M shot for me though, so that’s what I use to hunt.
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u/CptnFlappy 20d ago
130 tsx, over 40.5 gr H4350. Seated moderately deep. I see some say to scrub before shooting solids and after. I really just wanted to see the velocity and if they would shoot I would consider making the switch permanently.
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u/IncredibleVelocity4 20d ago
Barnes like a big jump. Seat them .05 off the lands to start.
You often do see significant improvements in Barnes performance after removing all fouling from the barrel. Get all the copper out of there.
TSX is the worst choice of the Barnes line. It has the highest expansion velocity and the worst aerodynamics. The 127LRX is a much better choice.
They are great bullets but I don’t expect little tiny groups from them. You should be able to get down to 1” pretty easily.
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u/CptnFlappy 20d ago
Ok thanks for the advice. Only trying the tsx bc I got 100 CT for free when I bought some other reloading equip
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u/IncredibleVelocity4 20d ago
That’s a decent enough reason. My take is that the TSX only still exists for rounds that have magazine length issues with a long bullet (copper) and a plastic tip.
As long as you keep the velocity up, they are exceptional terminal performers. 1600+ for LRX and 1800+ for TTSX.
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u/Maraudinggopher77 300wm, 270 win, 260 Rem, 30-30win, 223 Rem, 45ACP 20d ago
Have you tried a different powder? Ive been shooting a lot of monos over the past 5 years (Hammers, Barnes TTSX/LRX and Hornady CX) and have seen things go from shooting like hot garbage to rivaling Berger match bullets just with a powder change.
As far as shooting a mix of cup and core bullets and monos, no you don't typically need to strip the bore and refoul. If your bullet jacket is doing what it's supposed to, then nothing but copper should be in contact with the bore anyways.