Cheap bullet heads

[Miseryguts]

Hi, any one had any experience of using the cheap bullet heads sold under the PPU brand? My usage is only for plinking at paper and gongs to 200/300 yards - not 1000yard matches or 400 yard crows!

Thanks

[MrCetrizine]

I'll spare you the debate on "heads"

 

I've found their rifle bullets to be very sub standard. OK for plinking but unlikely to put two in the same hole.

 

Their handgun bullets however, especially 158gn .38/.357 FMJ are stunningly accurate.

[DW58]

I'll spare you the debate on "heads"

 

Hallelujah!

[gbal]

Hallelujah!

 

and the full chorus....:-)

[phaedra1106uk]

Privi (PPU NNY) 308 168gr "Match" bullets are OK, just that, OK., I can get Nosler Custom Competition for the same price (or better depending on the €) shipped to my door from Germany.

 

I've not found any of their other target bullets to be much use. The .30 174 & 175gr were truly awful, large variations in both weight and length, the 139gr 6.5mm (even after adjusting seating depth and charge weights) would only give me 2MOA at 100m out of both my Ruger RPR in 6.5C and my Tikka T3 in 260Rem.

[banus02]

I think with most bullets you get what you pay for,buy some loaded cartridges with the bullet you want fitted and give them a try I found that ppu in my rifles group about an 1inch at 100 but open up at 200. but good enough for stalking.i have found sako and rws to be very good but cost a lot more

[gbal]

I think with most bullets you get what you pay for,buy some loaded cartriges with the bullet you want fitted and give them a try I found that ppu in my rifles group about an 1inch at 100 but open up at 200. but good enough for stalking.i have found sako and rws to be very good but cost a lot more

As ever-really it's a no brainer.The probability is that your are just more likely to lose a beast due to unsatisfactory bullet performance (not accuracy,more terminal performance) with cheaper bullets. Cost differential compared to premium ammo is ...50p a round...£1 ..?

So simply ask how much you pay for a deer on the hoof (ie to shoot it ) and how much the carcass is worth to you.

Now does 50p or so seem like much of an increased insurance -even if you are shooting way more than the norm (single figures p/a). Norma know what they are about,and what you should be about -and it isn't a risky 'save 50p' on a £100 investment.

 

Did I mention ethics-or satisfaction--do I need to? Is it not transparenly self evident,that self interest on any criterion means use the best ammo?

 

good shooting

 

gbal

[phaedra1106uk]

He's only shooting paper and gongs.

[gbal]

He's only shooting paper and gongs.[/quote

 

OK,the OP was-banus had opened it to stalking-but if you don't mind keyholes etc in your target etc,anything will do...

for targets only,and gongs...there may well be an acceptable trade off between precision and cost.

 

I was going to ask about the Nosler Competition range from that perspective-as reliably superior bullets from Berger nudge above 50p a pop,and Ridleeshope isn't Bisley (better maybe!)-do you find the Nosler Customs OK-it's an impressive name -compared to Nosler "economy'-if indeed they are-but I want to be fair,rather than just save a good few pennies per plink...223,6mm,7mm,308...thanks.

 

g

[phaedra1106uk]

I, and the other shooters I know who've tried them find them very good indeed.

 

Here's a quote from a fellow shooter regarding the .30 155s "These bullets share near-identical ballistics with the Sierra Match King (Litz measured BC) and are similarly length-tolerant, but are generally reckoned to be more consistent in weight, dimensions, jacket thickness etc."

 

I primarily use the 30 168s and 6.5 140s as the vast majority of my shooting has been under 500m, however, now I have my new shooting bench I may be tempted to push things a bit further. Both the aforementioned bullets will give 1/2MOA in my 308 Steyr SSG-04, 260 Rem Tikka T3 and the 6.5 Creedmoor Ruger RPR if I do my part. I got the same results in my Howa 308 when I had it and my friend has just loaded his first reloads using them for his Howa and is over the moon with them.

 

I'm at Ponteland tomorrow with the 3 Counties and hopefully the 23rd with Tyne Valley if you're there?, if not the next Otterburn is Nov. 13th, I can let you have some to play with, just let me know if you want .30, 6.5 or both

[Brillo]

FWIW, I mate of mine said to me when I started F TR shooting (at club level) "Unless you use bullet x you're always going to be shooting for a bottom place because that's the bullet all the top guys use. If you are use bullet y you'll be competing for a place in the bottom quartile,"

 

He's right. There's no point in going for cheap bullets because they will never indicate how good or bad you are. At best they we keep you mediocre.

 

Buy cheap, buy twice.

[Andrew]

I, and the other shooters I know who've tried them find them very good indeed.

 

Here's a quote from a fellow shooter regarding the .30 155s "These bullets share near-identical ballistics with the Sierra Match King (Litz measured BC) and are similarly length-tolerant, but are generally reckoned to be more consistent in weight, dimensions, jacket thickness etc."

 

I primarily use the 30 168s and 6.5 140s as the vast majority of my shooting has been under 500m, however, now I have my new shooting bench I may be tempted to push things a bit further. Both the aforementioned bullets will give 1/2MOA in my 308 Steyr SSG-04, 260 Rem Tikka T3 and the 6.5 Creedmoor Ruger RPR if I do my part. I got the same results in my Howa 308 when I had it and my friend has just loaded his first reloads using them for his Howa and is over the moon with them.

 

I'm at Ponteland tomorrow with the 3 Counties and hopefully the 23rd with Tyne Valley if you're there?, if not the next Otterburn is Nov. 13th, I can let you have some to play with, just let me know if you want .30, 6.5 or both

I have found these bullets to be very good. I especially like the 120 grain, 6.5mm BTHP. They shoot in the twos and threes from my 6.5x55 FN. I have used the 168 Sierra MK clone from my Savage with good results, and I have taken several deer with 6.5 x 140 grain SP, the 7mm version of the same, and the 165 grain version in 30 caliber. I haven't shot the 9.3mm x 289 grain at game but with open sights I have shot under 2MOA at 100 yards using them in my 9.3x57. (One hole at 50 yards.) In every case, the PPU bullets were all sub MOA from stock rifles. I have sectioned some of these bullets and found the jackets to be heavier than comparable US offerings.~Andrew

[Dalua]

He's right. There's no point in going for cheap bullets because they will never indicate how good or bad you are. At best they we keep you mediocre.

 

Buy cheap, buy twice.

'Buy cheap, buy twice' might actually be quite useful for shooting consumables, since if you can buy twice for the same money that means more shooting: and more shooting means more practice - and practice is good.

 

If the cheap bullets are still adequate to hit the gongs and paper at 300yds, and the cheapness allows extra practice at actually shooting, then they sound like quite a good idea to me!

[Shuggy]

Anyone tried Sellier & Bellot? £18 a 100 for 0.308 FMJ.

[dannywayoflife]

Not that bullet. I used the 140 6.5 FMJ in my old sweede they shot 1moa and were CHEAP

[MrCetrizine]

I use S&B 180gn .311 FMJ in my Enfield with good results.

[deadcenter]

Used the S&B 180's in my Nagant out to 500 yards with good results. Won me a few comps actually.

 

Have tried the PPU .223 69gr HPBT match side by side with SMKs at 100 yards as well. Couldn't see a great deal of difference, sub MOA. Couldn't say about longer range yet, intend to try them out to 500 and see.

 

Went with a bunch of these based on the price because, as stated above, is good for practice if you get through a few rounds. My Daughter with my .223 Remmy for example, Like feeding cherries to a donkey :-) . She loves it, recoil doesn't distract her from what she's doing and she's really getting quite good now. Lots of practice.

 

Having said the above, for competitions using rifles that warrant the the accuracy that the top end bullets give, I only use the more expensive makes.

 

Looking at the price rises lately, it's getting painful for some folks to keep shooting. The financial gain from home loads verses factory is becoming small.

 

I agree that if you want compete with the best, you have to use the best also. BUT...... you don't have to shoot the expensive stuff to practice for being the best.

[deadcenter]

Just measured some side by side groups I did a few weeks ago with the .223.

 

100 yards, all loaded with N140, 24 grains. 2.26 col, shot with Remy 700, shilen 26" barrel, 3-9x scope.

 

SMK 69 gr - .51 inch,

PPU 69 gr - .47 inch,

Berger 70 gr VLD - .61

 

5 shot groups.

 

Wasn't intending anything in depth, just loaded different bullets with same powder charge just to see how they compared.

The 24gr load is what I settled on ages ago with the SMKs and is what I usually shoot.