168 gr sierra matchking BTHP bullet for hunting deer and antelope ?

[castnblast75]

Hello All, Was wondering if I could use federal premium 308 168 gr sierra matchking BTHP bullets for my upcoming antelope hunt this fall or are they strictly a target bullet ? They shoot incredibly well out of my Ruger american 308 and was hoping to take antelope or whitetails with it. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Jim

 

[N2TRKYS]

I wouldn't recommend it and neither does Sierra.

 

[sbhooper]

They are called "match kings" for a reason. I would not shoot them at anything but varmints. Your hunt, your money, but they are not what I would use.

 

[mtmuley]

Match Kings were the go-to bullets of the LR crowd years ago. Probly work ok out a ways, but I wouldn't trust them up close. Lots better choices out there. mtmuley

 

[1_pointer]

I'd have no problem using them on pronghorn. Just keep it off the shoulders as it will probably make a bit of a mess of them. I've now killed 6 and seen 2 more killed with 139gr "target" bullets out of my 260 Rem. Full penetration every time and dead pronghorns every time.

 

[Gut Shot]

Federal's product #P308C is loaded with a 165gr Sierra BTHP Gameking bullet. This load will give better results on game. Note that even though the bullet is similar in weight and shape the ogive is different as is the ballistic coefficient.

 

[Southwind]

I have a friend that swears by them for deer and has been using them for thirty years. They are very thin jacketed and very fragment-able and NOT my kind of hunting bullet but I find it hard to argue with the results he has had. They will very accurately poke a hole in something but lacks the terminal performance I look for. As they say though "dead is dead"

I use the Barnes 168 grain tsx which with the exception of the rings are a very similar design geometrically.

 

[castnblast75]

Hello All, Thanks for all the great feedback. the fed prem 308 168 gr bthp shoot at 2600 fps. and I'm getting dime size groups out to 135 yds. So, I think I'll take it the 1st day of my wyo antelope hunt. With that being said I'm hoping to get that long range shooting opportunity that intrigues me. Will let you know how i made out. Thanks, Jim

 

[Southwind]

Hello All, Thanks for all the great feedback. the fed prem 308 168 gr bthp shoot at 2600 fps. and I'm getting dime size groups out to 135 yds. So, I think I'll take it the 1st day of my wyo antelope hunt. With that being said I'm hoping to get that long range shooting opportunity that intrigues me. Will let you know how i made out. Thanks, Jim

You will be fine, let us know how you do.

 

[castnblast75]

My almost unsuccessful unit 75 antelope hunt !

Hello All, Just to update everyone on my unit successful 75 Wyoming antelope hunt. Turns out I did'nt use my 308 to kill it. We hunted the last week of the season and the antelope where ultra spooky and way, way yonder. So, taking the above advice. I decided to take my tica 300 win mag and proceeded to miss 3 different antelope at ranges between 290 and 350+ yds. I consider myself a pretty good shot, shooting woodchucks with my deer rifle in the summer and smoked 2 whitetails at 192 yds (DRT) in South Carolina this year. No excuses here, but I'm baffled with those misses as were the people I was hunting with. I'm hoping when I do go the range that my rifle will be off (lol). I actually had to borrow my brothers rifle to make my kill the last day, the last hour of the day of my hunt at 300 yds. I was almost that 1 or 2 pct of unsuccessful antelope hunters in Wyoming. Well there you have it. Will try to figure out how to post a picture. Thanks for the feedback and have a safe and successful season. JR

 

[Gr8bawana]

Did you use a rangefinder? I find people tent to overestimate the range on antelope because they are so small and the open country they inhabit doesn't have a lot of stuff to help with guessing the range without a rangefinder. Maybe you were just excited, I always say if I stop getting excited when hunting it's time to stop hunting.

 

[1_pointer]

Congrats on filling your tag. That 308 would have been more than enough at those distances. That said, I've seen first time pronghorn hunters have a tough time with the shooting part, especially those coming from a woods hunting background.