Double Shovel
Beginner
- Oct 28, 2008
- 12
- 0
Greetings all, Great Forum! First post here - hopefully the photos make the post.
I live in Alaska and have been a Nosler fan since I started hand loading about 10 years ago while in High School. The Partition has always been my go-to bullet.
Last winter my family and I (4 total) planned a Caribou hunt in NW Alaska with the unlikely possibility of Moose and Griz too. I was thrilled to be in charge of the ammunition! After doing some homework, I decided the AccuBond would be the bullet for the hunt. Throughout the winter I loaded and tested different combos, finally settling on four loads that I considered superb for the task at hand, all shot under an inch at 100 yd. The loads were as follows;
1) 338 Win Mag, 225 gr AB, 2850 FPS MV
2) 300 WSM, 200 gr AB, 2775 fps MV
3) 270 Win, 140 gr AB, 2850 fps MV
4) 7mm-08, 140 gr AB, 2775 fps MV
Our hunt turned out to be Fantastic! My wife drew first blood with her 270 Win on a nice bull at 175 yds, one shot through the lungs, complete pass through. I added to the excitement by dropping another bull from this herd with my 338 Win Mag, two shots - first shot too far back, second shot took front shoulder,heart, and lungs.
The second shot from the 338 was impressive. As my wife's caribou was waiting to expire (still on its feet but not moving), the bull I shot walked in front of it just as I squeezed the trigger. The bullet completely penetrated bull #1 and came to rest in the off side hide of my wife's bull (see photo). Nice mushroom and 71% weight retention.
The 338 did it again on a bull moose (found in unlikely high country) at 200 yards. First shot in the lungs, mushroom in off side hide, 72% weight retention. Insurance shot #2, a bit high with some lung and lower spine, off side hide and 52% weight retention. This moose traveled 3 steps before expiring.
My brother scored with the 7mm-08 on a nice caribou as well. One shot, 225 yards through the shoulders and spine, complete pass through. Instant lights out for that fine bull.
My father did not get to test his 300 WSM as we kept him busy hauling meat an antlers for most of the trip :grin: . He's almost 60 yrs old and stays in great shape to be able to cover the tundra/muskeg.
In summary, I was very pleased with the overall AccuBond performance. No animal traveled over 20 yards after being hit. Shot placement is still very important. I wouldn't hesitate to use them again for similar hunts. I've got recovered Partitions from various critters at my reloading bench (30 cal and 338 cal, deer, elk, and gizzly) and would have to say that these Accubonds performed similar with regard to penetration and weight retention. We did not hit any really heavy bone with these bullets so I cannot say what would happen there. Thanks Nosler for building a quality product.
Enjoy the Pics (if they come through, I followed POP's instructions :shock: )
I live in Alaska and have been a Nosler fan since I started hand loading about 10 years ago while in High School. The Partition has always been my go-to bullet.
Last winter my family and I (4 total) planned a Caribou hunt in NW Alaska with the unlikely possibility of Moose and Griz too. I was thrilled to be in charge of the ammunition! After doing some homework, I decided the AccuBond would be the bullet for the hunt. Throughout the winter I loaded and tested different combos, finally settling on four loads that I considered superb for the task at hand, all shot under an inch at 100 yd. The loads were as follows;
1) 338 Win Mag, 225 gr AB, 2850 FPS MV
2) 300 WSM, 200 gr AB, 2775 fps MV
3) 270 Win, 140 gr AB, 2850 fps MV
4) 7mm-08, 140 gr AB, 2775 fps MV
Our hunt turned out to be Fantastic! My wife drew first blood with her 270 Win on a nice bull at 175 yds, one shot through the lungs, complete pass through. I added to the excitement by dropping another bull from this herd with my 338 Win Mag, two shots - first shot too far back, second shot took front shoulder,heart, and lungs.
The second shot from the 338 was impressive. As my wife's caribou was waiting to expire (still on its feet but not moving), the bull I shot walked in front of it just as I squeezed the trigger. The bullet completely penetrated bull #1 and came to rest in the off side hide of my wife's bull (see photo). Nice mushroom and 71% weight retention.
The 338 did it again on a bull moose (found in unlikely high country) at 200 yards. First shot in the lungs, mushroom in off side hide, 72% weight retention. Insurance shot #2, a bit high with some lung and lower spine, off side hide and 52% weight retention. This moose traveled 3 steps before expiring.
My brother scored with the 7mm-08 on a nice caribou as well. One shot, 225 yards through the shoulders and spine, complete pass through. Instant lights out for that fine bull.
My father did not get to test his 300 WSM as we kept him busy hauling meat an antlers for most of the trip :grin: . He's almost 60 yrs old and stays in great shape to be able to cover the tundra/muskeg.
In summary, I was very pleased with the overall AccuBond performance. No animal traveled over 20 yards after being hit. Shot placement is still very important. I wouldn't hesitate to use them again for similar hunts. I've got recovered Partitions from various critters at my reloading bench (30 cal and 338 cal, deer, elk, and gizzly) and would have to say that these Accubonds performed similar with regard to penetration and weight retention. We did not hit any really heavy bone with these bullets so I cannot say what would happen there. Thanks Nosler for building a quality product.
Enjoy the Pics (if they come through, I followed POP's instructions :shock: )
