In 2003 I hunted with Dave Hayter, owner of Redkat Safaris on Florida Nature Reserve located in the district of Dewetsdorp, Free State Province. The nature reserve was teeming with game, but the herd of red hartebeest impressed me most. The herd consisted of approximately 120 animals, with a number of big, mature bulls. I booked a hunt for the next year with the intention of hunting a red hartebeest bull.
For many years, the Nosler Partition bullet set the standard against which the performance of other bullets was measured. The Partition bullet looks like a conventional jacketed soft point bullet. However, if the bullet is sectioned along its length, it can be seen that the lead is separated by the integral jacket into a front and rear lead core. The integral jacket or the partition prevents further expansion, keeping the rear lead core intact to ensure penetration to the vitals of an animal. I decided on the 260 gr. Partition bullet in .375 H & H Magnum for the hunt.
The aim of the handloading project was to achieve acceptable accuracy, 1 Minute of angle (1 MOA, or a 1 inch = 25, 4 mm group) in my book, and a flat trajectory for longer distance shooting. Components were Winchester cases, CCI 250 primers and S 335 Somchem propellant. The 260 gr. Partition bullet has a crimping groove, and at a Catrtridge Overall Length (COL) of 90,8 mm the case can be crimped into the groove. This I did with the Lee Factory Crimp Die.
I worked the load up from 64 gr. S 335 with 1 gr. increments to 70 gr. Muzzle velocity was measured with a Chrony. The 64 gr. load was good for 2500 fps, 67 gr. for 2600 fps and 70 gr. for 2700 fps. While the 70 gr. load yielded a 28.5 mm group, slightly over 1MOA, I decided that it was good enough for a heart / lung shot since I wanted the higher velocity for a flatter trajectory. With the scope zeroed at 100 meters, I established that bullet drop was 5 inches at 200 meters. Thus compensation for bullet drop out to 200 meters did not present too much of a problem. The 70 gr. group is shown below:
The hunt took place in July 2004. Dave pointed out a bull to me, and we followed this bull. The shot was taken at 160 meters as measured by Dave with his range finder. The bull was facing me, slightly quartering. After the shot the bull ran a short distance but did not get far. The bull?s horns measured a tad over 23 inches, indicating that it should make the Rowland Ward minimum of 23 inches after the green period expired. The measurement of the taxidermist was 23 1/8, and I received the Rowland Ward certificate in the post.
Note the slight bulge in the bull?s stomach in the photo below, just to the right of the hoof of the hind leg. This were the bullet was recovered, after passing through the chest and the stomach contents to stop under the skin.
The Rowland Ward certificate:
The next photo shows the recovered bullet, an unfired bullet and a loaded cartridge between the new Nosler box on the left and the old box Nosler box on the right, on top of Nosler Loading Manuals 3 and 5 :
The recovered bullet weighed 159 gr. That is 61 % of the original weight. This is less than the typical retained weight of copper bullets like the Barnes X, which in some instances can even be 100 %. My experience with the Nosler Bullet is that while the front lead core is lost during expansion, the partition stops further expansion and ensures sufficient penetration. If the shot is placed right, a one shot kill is the result.
The higher price of the Partition bullet, when compared to the cheaper price of a conventional jacketed soft point bullet, is well worth it in my opinion. The hunter knows that he is shooting a good quality bullet. Bullet break up, resulting in a wounded and possible lost animal is unlikely. I am prepared to pay a premium for this peace of mind when hunting.
Ek wens meer jagters wil hul ervaring met "bullet performance" deel, ons almal kan weer iets daaruit leer en dan ons eie keuses maak. Vanuit 'n statistiese oogpunt is een gebeurtenis nie van veel waarde nie. As ons 'n duisend of meer Nosler Partitions, Barnes X'e ens. se "retained weight" kon weeg, kon ons 'n gemiddeld bepaal. Dit sou meer gewig dra, statisties gesproke.
