Hornady 139 SST

[jimbires]

139 SST fired from my 7mm-08 . quickload velocity of 2866FPS . it was in the jug that would be 20" - 24" of penetration , it did not damage the back of the jug at all . 88.68 retained weight , .520 max DIA . fired from 20 yards . I'm very impressed with this bullet . I always said how I thought these were a very frangible bullet , after seeing this I'm not so sure of that . they really seem to do a massive amount of damage to the whitetail deer I've shot with them , so I shied away from them . I think I'll be rethinking this . here are the pics .

 

[DrMike]

I shot a ton of Hornady 139 grain Interlocks from my 280 Rem; all worked great on deer. Interestingly enough, though I have a good supply of SSTs, I never used them. I kept grabbing something else. However, I am convinced they are a fine bullet that will serve well.

 

[JD338]

That would put a deer in the freezer pretty quick.

JD338

 

[SJB358]

That surprises me a little. Wasn't expecting it to look so tough. Good looking bullet for the speed.

 

[jimbires]

That surprises me a little. Wasn't expecting it to look so tough. Good looking bullet for the speed.

it surprised me a lot . if I had that loaded in a 7 rem mag case I would have thought I mixed up my bullets and it was a Interbond bullet . I know it's an SST because I have them loaded for my 7-08 , and the bullet has a cannular . this jug test really opened my eyes .

 

[SJB358]

Oh yeah, nothing to snivel about there. Seems to look pretty tough. May be something to folks saying Hornady toughened up there jackets on the SSTs a little.

 

[jimbires]

my reloading tag says I loaded these 9/17/04 .

 

[SJB358]

my reloading tag says I loaded these 9/17/04 .

Blows that theory out the window :lol:

 

[bobnob]

I've used the SSTs a lot. Keep impact speeds below about 2900fps and they'll not disappoint, if placed in the vitals.

 

[35 Whelen]

If there is a better bullet for deer, I need to see it. :|
I switched Over after nearly 30 years with great Nosler BT, which are a wonderful bullet,
But we have had exactly the same results, as Jimbires test indicates. He has hit the nail squarely on the head..with my own SST's experiences, we found out they are great on deer sized game, have a very high BC (485 in 139) for LR shooting, and best of all they still come "100 in a bag".......
I have watched hunters dispatch our Big Northern Whitetail with these bullets, from both 7mm/08 and
Rem Mags both, the 139 Superformance is advertised at
2950fps from the 708! A lot of these older bucks are over
300lbs on the hoof. Hit high shoulder with this load they
Drop instantly........... The bullet was designed for deer and the SST does that to perfection.
No amount of advertising, paid off gun writers, fake news
Or someone's personal favorite brand......can change that.

 

[Polaris]

I've had different experiences with the SST. Loaded them briefly in my .280 rem, 154gr. Accurate, yes. Flat shooting, yes. Tough, absolutely not. Had similar water results as you, but different results on live deer. I do still shoot them for a mid range hunting rifle match held at a local club each fall though. Can't complain about the ballistics.

One good sized buck, 200+ live weight ate 3 of them inside 100 yards, all vital chest cavity hits before dropping. The 3rd quartered through and dislocated the offside shoulder, putting him down briefly and allowing for one more in the brainstem. He was headed for the property line. No full exit hole, no pretty mushrooms recovered. All fragments. Did a lot of damage to the vitals, but filled the backstrap full of tiny lead and jacket fragments and bloodshot, even though bullet vectors were several inches off the backstrap.

Also shot a 2 1/2 year doe, dead broadside about 10% grade downhill. Low double lung at 45 yards, also no exit. Fragments in shoulders 6" off bullet vector. Both dead deer, but some difficulties from the butcher block to the grill.

I've switched to a more solid bullet and been quite happy with the results. Speer GS 145 in my .280, Speer 150 Hot Cor in my wife's .308.