Best 358Win White Tail Bullet

tjen

Handloader
Apr 25, 2007
704
1
I have been thinking about the Rem 200gr PSP CoreLokt, Speer 220gr Hot Core, and now the Hornady Flex-Tip 200gr.
 
I used the 225 sierra BT on antelope and it worked great

BTW I have a bunch of 358 bullets I am not using. I'll make you a great price if you want PM ME ifinterested
 
I would think, in the end, any would work well. I like 225's, but that's for elk. Wouldn't change for deer.
 
I picked up a bunch of 200gr RN from midway bulk packaging. They sure work good on deer, the 200gr BT should warrant a look


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The 200 gr AB would be tough to beat. I shot quite a few WT deer with the 225 gr PT out
of my 35 Whelan with excellent results. Another good choice is the Hornady 200 gr Spire Point.

JD338
 
Have been having great luck with the 200 gr Sierra Gamekings. Sub-.5" groups at 100 and drops hogs, axis and whitetail like the hammer of God.
 
I have shot three bucks with my 358win. One with the 225gr Hawk RT that was very impressive, not the best accuracy and velocity was 2380fps. And two with the 200gr Spire Point that I was not impressed with. My 35rem with the 200gr CLRN at 2188fps seems to be a better match and more impressive that the spire points from my 358win at 2480fps.

I have a batch of 225gr partitions loaded at 2450fps that have yet to find a deer. The PT is my pick for the 358win but would love a cheaper bullet just for white tail. I have the 225gr GK's they shoot the same as the PT's at 2450fps. I should say I have a REM 700 so I do not think any of the AB's will fit in its magazine.

Just looking for a cheaper bullet that would match the 358win as well as the 200gr CLRN does the 35rem for white deer.
 
Seems like you've got it with the 225 Sierra. I've shot a few deer with the 225 Sierra, 220 Speer and 225 PT. as your rifle does, mine shoots the Sierra to the same spot with the same load. Plus if you did mix them up I think the Sierra would be fine at 358 speeds. Maybe not so hot at Newton speeds.

I think the Sierras are going to be about as good as it gets for a lesser expensive alternative.

I do love the 225 PT. it wallops deer HARD. BLOOD TRAILS are wide, colorful and usually short.
 
I've used the 220 gr Speer Hot-Cor bullet at over 2400 fps for years on bear, elk and moose and it has performed very well. In my older BLR it shoots tighter groups (sub-MOA) than the 225 gr PT (just over MOA). My other BLR really likes the 200 gr TSX's at 2476 (just a hair over 1/2 MOA), and the 225 gr TSX's at 2220 fps (1/3 MOA).

I agree with SJB358, that your load with the SGK's will do just fine and give you the results that you are looking for.
 
Thanks every one. The reviews on MidwayUSA of the FTX in the 358win is plain great. For white tail it or the 220gr speer at 358win velocities should expand fast to see great resualts. Hunting any thing else the PT will be my bullet.

From looking at bullets pulled from my sand bank back stop the GS is the only bullet that looks like the core force it way out of the jacket with no expantion of either. Most likely from stopping too fast with no mechanicl way to hold the core. The rest ( ST,PSPCL,CLRN,SP,PT,HAWK RT) all mushroom.
 
The Sierra 225 gr Game King is a good deer bullet. In my 35 Whelen, they shot very well and to the same POI as the 225 gr PT.

JD338
 
HeathSexton":3h9k7q9w said:

Greg Storey has extensive experience with a variety of bullets under both range and field conditions. His assessments are worth reading. He is using either a 350 Norma Magnum or a 350 Remington Magnum, however, so you must make allowance if you wish to extrapolate his findings to the 358 Winchester. I note that he continues to add to his results.
 
If you change bullet weight w/ the 358 I can assure you that you will have to rezero. You won't see "explosive" expansion at 358 speeds w/ any weight bullet w/ the exception of 357 pistol bullets. RN/FN cup & core bullets designed for the 35Rem will give you the most rapid expansion. Bullets not loaded in 35Rem factory ammo are typically designed for Whelen velocities. Like others here I settled on 225gr as the best option in regards to velocity and trajectory. You won't gain any reach with 200s as you don't get enough more velocity to overcome the loss of BC. I use the same load w/ Sierras & Partitions and they group together out to 200yds in both my 358s. For whitetails I use the Sierras. I have recovered exactly one bullet from game shot w/ the 358. A moose shot in the chest at about 20yds. That bullet buckled the bull and weighed 125gr recovered. That was a Partition and it was lodged in the offside hip. No deer has ever stopped the Sierra. Having said all that, when I originally started loading the 358 I tried some 200gr Hornady SPs and they worked well on deer. The POI at 100yds was 2.5"-3" lower than the 225gr load. I haven't tried any 200gr BTs or ABs as I settled on 225s. Length may be an issue w/ those bullets depending on your rifle. Good Luck.
 
I shoot the 200gr Hornady SP with H4895 and the 220 Speer with 3031 from my .358 Win. The Speers strike around 1" higher at 100yds so I got lucky and don't have to fiddle with the zero.
 
I read somewhere that the Speer 220 HC was about perfect for the 358. Of course, on deer, just about anything you use will do from any angle at 358 velocities. I've never been one to download any cartridge, upload yes ha, but never to make it a lesser cartridge just to save a few pounds of meat ( which I have never seen my Whelen A.I. ruin anyhow! I got rid of my BLR as I do everything a 35 does with my Whelen AI, but I swear, if I had gotten one in 358 as a teen in SE Texas ( deer/hogs) I would still have/use it today! What a thumper! have a ball. Oh yea, before I forget, I also loaded the 225 Sierra and it was a tack driver in that 358.
 
The only downside to to the 220gr Speer is its relatively low BC, and that only has any real effect beyond 200yds. In my way of thinking it's not the trajectory that is the real issue but the impact velocity and to a lesser degree TOF. I like a minimum of 1800fps to ensure reliable expansion with any of the available conventional bullets. For those of us that want to maximize the usefulness (range) of the 358 there are better choices. Compared to more popular cartridges w/ a higher muzzle velocity, the 358 is much more of a balancing act between achievable velocity, bullet weight and BC. With a 30-06 or similar I wouldn't worry about 100fps of muzzle velocity or 50-60yds of useable range as where it would become an issue is out past 500yds. With the 358 it's a difference between a 250yd gun or a 300yd gun.
 
I all ready had a 270win, 35rem, and a 35whelen. I set out to spec what rifle / cartridge would do 95% of all my Mchigan big game hunting. In short the largest bore that would give me a 250 yard usefull range and 2500 fps seemed to be the velocity needed to do that. Wala its the 358win, so I had one built on a rem 700 short action (Shilen #3 at 20.5" 1:14). A few years later Ruger offered them in 358win and 338 fed.

The real fix is to have +P loading data for the 358win which would boost the velocity 100 to 200fps. The other is bullets oridginaly design for the 35rem. Many use the 200gr CLRN at 2500fps, 356win guys swear by the 220gr speer, and now the 200gr FXT is proving to work in the 358win. Again just looking at it for deer sized gamel. For bear/elk/moose in the 358win the 225gr PT is KING. But +P data of say 2570fps would sure help with 300 yard shots.
 
I've shot the 225 PT with W748 at 2450 for a few years. It has more than enough stomp to take any deer, elk, moose or bear at 300 yards. Pretty accurate as well. Took a lot of firing to get the trigger loosened up some but it is plenty serviceable for hunting now.
 
"The real fix is to have +P loading data for the 358win which would boost the velocity 100 to 200fps. The other is bullets oridginaly design for the 35rem. Many use the 200gr CLRN at 2500fps, 356win guys swear by the 220gr speer, and now the 200gr FXT is proving to work in the 358win. Again just looking at it for deer sized gamel. For bear/elk/moose in the 358win the 225gr PT is KING. But +P data of say 2570fps would sure help with 300 yard shots."

The reason 356 guys swear by the Speer is that they have to use FPs or single load. The 35Rem runs out of power to push heavier bullets to useable velocity. In the 358, 200gr bullets, even the FTX don't have enough BC and don't gain enough velocity over the 225s to make them as good, say nothing about "better" choices over the 225s. The 225 Sierra will kill deer as well or better than any 200gr offering. The "+P" performance is on the reload bench. The limits of which are determined by case capacity and bullet weight. If you want to turn a 358 into a 356 or 35Rem that's up to you but that doesn't make it "better" on deer. You just give up reach and gain nothing in return.
 
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