Hornady SST for elk

[elk killer wannabe]

Has anyone ever used the 180 gr Hornady SST (super shock tip) bullets for elk? I have been shooting them in my 300 win mag and have been happy with the accuracy of them. I have seen some reviews of them that say they work well for big game. Does anyone out there have any first hand experience with them on elk or any other large game? Thanks.

EKW

[grayling]

I have never used them but have hunted with several different people that all enjoyed the bullets performance. I don't use them because my .300 and .338 are particular to Federal & Trophy Bonded.

If your weapon shoots them well use them. I witnessed three different one shot kills on a caribou, moose, and interior grizzly; none of which traveled more than 50 yards.

Good luck,

Grayling

[Todd G.]

I have used the 180 grain SSTs in my .30-06 with good success. I have not used them in my .300 since it seems to like 190 grain BTSPs.

In my opinion, if they shoot well in your rifle, you shouldn't have a problem dropping an elk.

[elk killer wannabe]

Thanks guys. That's good to know. Now I just have to make sure I can control the "bull fever" if I get the chance.

EKW

[Wild Spirit Man]

I switched from Nosler partition 180 grain bullets in my Ruger 77 .300 win. mag to Hornady SST 180 grain bullets. My groups improved greatly, and I have made two, one shot kills on elk, with the SST bullets. Both dropped almost instantly. I couldn't be happier. Better groups and one shot kills are all you can ask for from a bullet.

[bearbacker]

Guys, what kind of terminal performance did you get with the SSTs? I picked up two boxes of Light Magnum Hornady SST loads that had been marked down. Word there was that when you drive them really fast (3100+ fps in the 270 Win in this case) they were very likely to expand violently with minimal penetration. By minimal penetration, I mean it turns heart and lungs to jello but the bullet doesn't exit on a white tail deer. This kind of fits with the neme, too. Super Shock Tip certainly implies violent expansion. Supposedly down at "normal" (what is that, anyway?) velocities they would penetrate better.

If that is the case, they should be really great coyote loads because they shoot in the same group as my Hornady Interlocks. The above report would give me pause, however, at the thought of using them on elk.

Maybe they would be super from a 308, but would explode at 300 mag velocity? I do understand the challenges in making the same bullet work well in both rifles.

So what have you heard, and what have your experiences been?

[rooster52]

I have not shot an elk with the SST but from what I seen them do on deer and antelope ,I would not be afraid to use them.Shot several Antelope and Mule deer with SST bullets and alway did the job.I personally never had problems with them comming apart on impact.They do have rapid expansion but they copy the inter lock in the fact they have the inner locking ring to help in holding the bullet together.A 180 grain SST should put the hurt on an elk.
When talking big game I still go for the big game bullet that shoots the best from my rifle.

[ron]

My 300 WSM groups pretty much the same with 180 SST's and Interbonds. With the Interbond available, I would (did) just use it on my bull back in September. Terminal performance at 330 yards. If you go to the Hornady website, you will see several postings of people using the SST's on large game. For the small amount of different $'s, I would use the Interbonds on elk and save the SST's for deer and antelope. All that being said, the SST's would probably work fine for elk also but why chance it?

[wranglerdude]

Give Hornady a call at 1-800-338-3220. Ask one of the tech reps about bullet selection. I've called them several times with questions and they have always been very helpful and knowledgeable. My opinion is that the SST is softer than the regular Interlock. I wouldn't choose it for elk. Let us know what Hornady says.