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BARNES TTSX
A NEW ERA HAS BEGUN
There are new products coming out every day and many astute hunters question the hype surrounding yet another product. Sometimes a product is worthy of a special mention and this is one of those products. Make no mistake there are significant performance improvements over conventional type and older Barnes bullets. The TTSX projectile has lifted the bar to another level and has become my No 1 projectile choice. This bullet is a serious contender to be “numero uno” on big sambar. There are also several premium factory ammunition brands now appearing utilising this projectile for those of you that don’t reload.
The Barnes TTSX bullet has received a modern polymer tip and a larger cavity to ensure better reliable expansion. Upon impact the four petals open and create massive hydraulic shock and penetrate deeply. These new features increase the ballistic coefficient and ensure uniform expansion. They are an all copper boat tail bullet which makes them quite different to traditional style bullets. The team at Barnes Bullets have every right to be proud of this new bullet and it is distributed around Australia by Nioa one of the larger firearm importers. Having used the older TSX projectile for a number of years I felt some improvement was necessary. I found the faster the old TSX were driven the better the results. Have no fear in shooting these new TTSX bullets at various velocities as they will not pull up short in an attempt to reach vital organs. Even when using magnum type rifles, penetration is not compromised and that bullet will go through and create a good exit wound with side on impacts. If you do your job these Bad Boys won’t let you down.
Believe me, when I say they have been proven in the field and they have accounted for several good stags in recent times. There was no argument on any of these sasquatches of the high country. I have witnessed the trauma that this projectile creates and my recent 233 metre shot at a nice even 12 point Red was a fair test. The 168 gn TTSX driven hard at 3140 fps from my 300 win mag was simply devastating. After breaking both shoulders a good exit wound was evident and was peppered by bone fragments. There was over a metre of blood and lung spray on the ground opposite the impact site. Is this what you call top performance? I have never witnessed this level of performance before with other brands of projectiles. When firing Barnes bullets a few hunting buddies have heard me say, “ the animal is dead but it just doesn’t know it yet.” and this is a pretty good analogy. Don’t always expect the bang flop type result as this bullet isn’t designed that way.
Good hunters in recent months have lost stags using older style projectiles. Yep, they work and have done so for many years but sometimes things don’t go to plan. If there is something better on the market to give you the edge why not use it? Those of you that have experienced failure know what I am taking about. Should the time come for a follow up be assured there may be a drop or two of blood to track! This is a real problem when using conventional bullets after being trapped in the off side or just under the skin. Deflate those lungs rapidly, combine it with massive trauma and that stag won’t be far away! I’m always looking for the edge and if you have ticked all the boxes this bullet won’t let you down. Total penetration with an exit wound isn’t a bad thing on our larger tougher species.
I won’t start the old argument what calibre is best for big deer but its hard to go past a WSM or Win mag as an all rounder. If using a 180gn projectile in your trusty old 30/06 you can feel confident in using a lesser 168 or 150 gn TTSX. Roy Weatherby had it right, velocity increases trauma and shock, keep this in mind and don’t be afraid of dropping projectile weights with the TSX or newer TTSX as they penetrate very deep. In fact I haven’t had a documented recovery yet.
The most common bullet diameters are now available in the TTSX format and the range is always growing.
.30 cal TTSX weights and ballistic coefficients.
Diameter Weight Description S.D. B.C. CAT#
NEW .308" 130 gr Tipped TSX BT .196 .350 30873
NEW .308" 150 gr Tipped TSX BT .226 .420 30875
NEW .308" 168 gr Tipped TSX BT .253 .470 30878
NEW .308" 180 gr Tipped TSX BT .271 .484 *30879
The newer TTSX and TSX projectiles have shown excellent accuracy in all of my guns and groups of 1 inch at 200 metres aren’t uncommon from my sporting weight rifles.
Sako 75 Finlight 30/06 grouping at 200 metres with a slight cross wind.
The keen reloader will experience less pressure for a given load due to the 3 rings on the projectile that form the reduced bearing surface. Follow the instructions in the box and seat them around 40 thou’ off the lands for best results. Fouling has not been an issue with these new Barnes and its no more or less than any other type of projectile I use. For best results follow the instructions in the box, that means commence using these TTSX in a clean barrel as the copper bullet has different needs. The 30 cal 150gn TTSx have just arrived into the country and I’m looking forward in giving that old Sako Finlight 30/06 of mine some extra performance. No, the Barnes TTSX aren’t the cheapest projectile on the shelf but a quality product will always cost more. Consider the cost of a projectile, it forms only a small part in the hunting equation but it’s possibly the most important.
Good hunting
Herb Lonsing
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