sierra or hornadys?

T

tdoyka

New member
i have a 1898 springfield armory in 30-40 krag(hehehe i can't believe i got one:D ). i was looking online and i decided to go with the 220gr round nose. since the krag was loaded with 220gr, way back in the day :), i figured why not. i will use it for black bear/deer and i will use the open sights. i'll try to keep it around 3" moa. the range will be 100yds (my eyes still work;) )and realistically around 40-50yds. i have never tried a round nose from seirra, but i used a lot of 150gr hornadys.

so i guess i'll leave it up to you... 220gr rn seirra or 220gr rn hornady?

thanks!!!
 
I am not familiar with either bullet, but hornanday is usually around the same cost per box as sierra, except there is 100 in a box of HRN rather than 50. if your only trying for 3" at 100yards, go with the cheaper, they both make fantastic bullets
 
Just my opinion but 220 grain bullets are a poor choice for medium sized game especially at the limited velocities that the Krag is capable of. Load some for nostalgic look and shoot them at targets but use 150 pointy bullets for deer.
I had a customer who demanded 220 grain 30/06 ammo because that's all "he ever used" for deer and that's what his old Model 70 was "sighted for". He had a local reputation for shooting lots of deer he never recovered.
 
Don't much matter when the difference is between Hornady and Sierra, especially in a hunting bullet. I've had good luck with both of them.
 
Just my opinion but 220 grain bullets are a poor choice for medium sized game especially at the limited velocities that the Krag is capable of.
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Odd, since the 220 Krag bullet was used to take every known animal on earth. Young used that bullet as back up for grizzly/brown bear hunting (Alaska-Yukon Trophy's Won and Lost).

The 220 gr. bullet at 1900-2000 fps mv is quite capable at the yardage the OP mentioned and beyond.

As to the OP's I use the Hornady 220 gr RN bullet. Not saying there is anything wrong with the sierra but if I remember right the Hornady was cheaper. It is accurate in my '98 version of the U.S Model Krag.

And congrats on your Krag addition. You'll love it, I doubt you'll find a smoother action. Fun in rapid fire. I used mine in three gun matches.

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Probable accuracy? Six of one, half-dozen of the other. Me being a cheapskate, I vote for the less expensive brand. :)
 
"Odd, since the 220 Krag bullet was used to take every known animal on earth."
Duly noted, BUT, that was before those 220 grain bullets were "toughened up" in the face of numerous 300 magnums. In addition, we have no idea of the ability of the OP to follow up(blood trail) animals that had a 30 caliber hole drilled through some unknown portion of their anatomy because those tough bullets didn't expand.
I'm not denying the usefulness of the 30-40 or the original ammo, just giving my opinion on the most effective option.
 
no experience with either of your options but personal experience in general with sierra and hornady bullets is that sierra's tend to shoot more accurately, but hornadies have better weight retention and expansion...given that you're hunting medium game and you are using 220 grainers... weight retention and expansion aren't a huge deal so I'd say go with sierra based purely on generalities and second hand observations.
 
I've shot both bullets in a Browning 1895 replica in 30-06. Due to the somewhat nasty kick from that rifle the bullets are loaded to 30-40 Krag velocities. Accuracy has been good with either bullet but the Sierra gave the best accuracy from my rifle. I've shot lots of game with various Sierra bullets and some with Hornady's and the Sierras have usually been the most accurate and and the of the softer construction as well which should bode well in the 30-40. As others have said, shoot the one that's most accurate in your rifle. BTW, the last time I bought 220 gr. Sierras they were still 100 to the box. That was less that a year ago FWIW.
I can understand wanting to try the original style bullet in your rifle if for nothing else to how those old timers did things. I occasionally hunt with a 7x57 and the original 175 gr. round nose bullets at 2300 FPS just as Bell and others hunting in Africa. Put one of those bullets in the right place and you have liver in the pan. Too bad Sierra discontinued their 170 gr. rounds nose. That was one hell of a deer killing bullet. Quite a lot of African game dropped to the 7x57 and 173 gr. bullets with soft or full metal jacket rounds for the big and nasty.
Paul B.
 
maybe i go with the 180gr hornady sst. 180gr round noses are few and far between. and since i'm sighting the krag in at 100yds:) and the deer/black bear will come to 40-50 yds(i really hope for that:D) i think i will be ok.
 
If your shots are likely to be inside of 100 yards, odds are that most any weight of bullet that's a common "deer bullet" will work just fine. 150/165/180: Bound to be within two MOA from the bench.
 
Just my opinion but 220 grain bullets are a poor choice for medium sized game especially at the limited velocities that the Krag is capable of. Load some for nostalgic look and shoot them at targets but use 150 pointy bullets for deer.
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Duly noted, BUT, that was before those 220 grain bullets were "toughened up" in the face of numerous 300 magnums.
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The Hornady 220 gr RN is perfectly suited to .30-40 Krag velocities. It is not a "magnum" bullet. Hornady rates the bullet for 1,600 to 3,100 fps, and actually recommends reduced loads in 'magnum' type cartridges, to hold velocity under 2,800 fps for the 220 RN.

In addition... Round Nose bullets, all else being equal, expand more reliably than other soft point designs.

An idiot hunter that happens to make poor shots with 220 RNs does not mean that the bullet is a poor choice. I could say exactly the same thing about the idiots that got .50 BMG "banned" in Idaho. They were using a great bullet. ...But it was the poorly-placed, 1,000+ yard shots on an entire herd of elk that got the political ball rolling.

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I don't think I ever tried the Sierra 220 RNs.
I did run about 300 of the Hornady 220s through my Krag, though. Good bullet. ...And, contrary to some opinions, it was even designed with the .30-40 Krag in mind. ;)


If you have difficulty tracking down any of the Hornady 220 RNs, I still have 200-300 on hand, and I don't use them in anything any more. I'd make you a good deal on them (all, or some). ...Just send me a PM.
 
Just my opinion but 220 grain bullets are a poor choice for medium sized game especially at the limited velocities that the Krag is capable of. Load some for nostalgic look and shoot them at targets but use 150 pointy bullets for deer.
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I'm sorry, but I will whole heartedly disagree with this statement. 30-30 is still perhaps the most popular medium game cartridge in the US and it's standard load is 170gr round nose or flat point bullets which average 2100 FPS. a 220gr round nose traveling from a 30-40 would only be about 150 FPS slower but with an extra 50 grains, the projectile will pack a lot more punch. we are also talking about medium game. deer are routinely taken all over this great nation with 223/5.56 which have a maximum expansion that is nearly the same size as the unexpanded diameter of a 30 cal bullet. you don't need a lot of expansion when hunting deer and such.

Duly noted, BUT, that was before those 220 grain bullets were "toughened up" in the face of numerous 300 magnums.
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also none of those round nose bullets have been toughened up for magnum cartridges, nobody buys a gun that shoots a 30 caliber bullet over 3100 FPS just so they can load a bullet with a terrible ballistic coefficient into it. you buy a magnum so that you are effective at long range, not close range, if you can't kill any deer in north america within 100 yards with a 300 win mag or larger, then you shouldn't be hunting with a magnum in the first place. magnums drove the development of BONDED BULLETS, such as the speer deep curl, nosler accubond, and hornady interbond, usually in the 180gr range so as not to hobble the cartridges maximum potential. heavier, round nosed bullets have changed very little in the last several decades. I am not aware of a single factory loadout with magnums in which a heavy 220gr round nose is an option(not to say they don't exist).
 
"Just my opinion but 220 grain bullets are a poor choice for medium sized game especially at the limited velocities that the Krag is capable of. Load some for nostalgic look and shoot them at targets but use 150 pointy bullets for deer.
I had a customer who demanded 220 grain 30/06 ammo because that's all "he ever used" for deer and that's what his old Model 70 was "sighted for". He had a local reputation for shooting lots of deer he never recovered."

I'll grant you there may be better bullets for medium sized game but the 220's will work with proper shot placement and that goes for the 150 gr. pointy bullets too. I quit using 150 gr. pointy bullets years ago, around 1970 IIRC because they tore up too much tasty meat if something like the shoulder was hit. Even a hit on a rib sometimes created a very nasty wound. I went to 165 gr. bullets in the .308 and 180 gr. for the 30-06. I shoot a 200 gr. bullet in my .300 Win. Mag. Results have been more than satisfactory. Funy thing. One of the writers in one of the gun rags once said, "The 30-40 Krag with it's 220 gr. bullet was a better set up for elk than the 30-06 with any bullet. :eek: This was in the early days of jacketed bullets and bullet construction was not what it is today. The 30-06 pushed bullets of the day way too fast. fancy that. :rolleyes:
Paul B.
 
well i made the choice, 220gr hornady round nose. i'll try these this year and next year i'll try cast bullets.:D
 
I think you made a good choice. I'm expecting the 220's will work as good or better than anything else,......especially since it's getting harder and harder to find real Silvertips these days.....;)
 
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