Bullets

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      Component bullet heads for centrefire reloading, from Hornady, Sierra and Nosler. These are projectiles only — no primer, case or powder — so they are not controlled ammunition, but everything downstream of them is.

      Choosing a head

      Work back from the job. Match heads — Sierra MatchKing, the HPBT designs — are built for group size on paper and are not intended for game; they are not reliable expanders at hunting velocities. Hunting heads split roughly into bonded or controlled-expansion designs for larger deer where penetration matters, and rapid-expansion designs such as Nosler Ballistic Tip for foxes and smaller quarry. Lead-free heads — Nosler E-Tip and similar monolithic designs — are longer for their weight than a lead-cored equivalent, so they take up more case capacity and often need a faster twist to stabilise. Check your barrel twist rate before buying a heavy monolithic.

      Match the bullet diameter to your chambering, not the cartridge name: .243 Win and 6mm Creedmoor both take .243in heads, while .308 Win, .30-06 and .300 Win Mag all take .308in.

      Before you load

      Always start from current published load data for the exact head, powder and case you are using, and work up. Data does not transfer between bullets of the same weight from different makers, and seating depth changes pressure. If you are switching to a monolithic head, treat it as a fresh workup rather than a substitution.

      Related: Powder · Brass · Dies & Presses · All reloading

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