Originally Posted By: Rock KnockerI would like to see some ballistic comparisons for 45gr, 53gr and 62gr. From a 100 yard zero my 16" is only dropping 8.5" with 53gr TSX at 300 yards, I've got them shooting with a stiff load of H322 and that gets them moving out of the BHW barrel.
One thing is for certain. TSX/TTSX require a minumum impact velocity of 1800-2200 fps for proper expansion of the HP. It depends on the bullet, you have to look it up.
A heavier bullet that starts off slower will reach it's critical minimum impact velocity at a closer distance than a lighter faster bullet.
Assuming excellent penetration and 99% weight retention in TSX/TTSX bullets, a heavier bullet will reduce your effective range due to the lower velocity. How much of a reduction? Somebody can probably do the math. Probably not a big difference between 45gr vs 53gr, but I'd expect a bigger difference between 45gr vs 62gr or 70gr.
For some reason, a lot of hunters gravitate towards the heavier copper bullets, I think because they don't understand the advantages of a light-for-caliber solid copper bullet (TSX/TTSX). The "tactical" crowd loves the idea of heavy bullets for "long range".