The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - Why do they make heavy weight hollowpoints?

mordis · January 5, 2013, 08:20 PM

This question confounds me to no end. For example most major ammo companies make 180grain hollow points in .357, and 300gr hollow points in .429. I have always read and been told that, shooting humans and anything up to deer level you want hollow points, but anything above deers requires hardcast.

Im not the only one that gets confused about this. Their are numerous threads by people wanting bear defense loads. They see 44mag hollow points in 240gr and up and think its a .44 it will be just fine for bear. Yet i keep hearing anything bigger then a deer requires hardcast for full through and through penetration.

This is becoming a issue for me now. The place i vacation has black bears and they get up to decent size. For now i have been carrying my hand loaded copy of https://www.buffalobore.com/index.ph...t_detail&p=288 My ammo clocks a little slower then theirs do. Im running right around 950fps.

So for calibers like the .44 magnum(specifically) what is the truth behind the ammo? Do hollowpoints in .44 work on bears? I thought that .44mag hollowpoints were made tougher?

I would love a good education on this, im tired of guessing and wondering and not knowing the full story.

So my question is this, if hollowpoints have no place on bears, why do they continue to make heavy weight hollowpoints(and JSP for that matter) in calibers most common people feel are bear suitable?

January 5, 2013, 08:20 PM	#1
mordis Senior Member Join Date: April 4, 2005 Location: NE Indiana Posts: 560	Why do they make heavy weight hollowpoints? This question confounds me to no end. For example most major ammo companies make 180grain hollow points in .357, and 300gr hollow points in .429. I have always read and been told that, shooting humans and anything up to deer level you want hollow points, but anything above deers requires hardcast. Im not the only one that gets confused about this. Their are numerous threads by people wanting bear defense loads. They see 44mag hollow points in 240gr and up and think its a .44 it will be just fine for bear. Yet i keep hearing anything bigger then a deer requires hardcast for full through and through penetration. This is becoming a issue for me now. The place i vacation has black bears and they get up to decent size. For now i have been carrying my hand loaded copy of https://www.buffalobore.com/index.ph...t_detail&p=288 My ammo clocks a little slower then theirs do. Im running right around 950fps. So for calibers like the .44 magnum(specifically) what is the truth behind the ammo? Do hollowpoints in .44 work on bears? I thought that .44mag hollowpoints were made tougher? I would love a good education on this, im tired of guessing and wondering and not knowing the full story. So my question is this, if hollowpoints have no place on bears, why do they continue to make heavy weight hollowpoints(and JSP for that matter) in calibers most common people feel are bear suitable?