180gr core lokt vs 165gr sst

[Der Aulte Jaeger]

The Core Lokt and the SST are virtually the same bullet as far as construction goes as both are cup and core, not bonded and Hornady added a protective plastic tip. Hornady uses a protruding ring midways down the cup for the lock and Remington thickens the inner wall of the cup about midways accomplishing the same thing. Remingtons straight walled cup near the bottom is better as the Hornady cup pinches in at the bottom making it easier for the core to squirt out once the interlock featured is destroyed with a hard hit. Essentially at this point they are very close to equal. Remington gets the nod for age while Hornady gets my nod for the protective plastic tip.

For Elk I'd go with the heavier bullet and the secret isn't velocity or energy but pure physics and the quantity known as momentum! Higher velocities and energy and a bullets construction often combine to limit penetration. A nice expansive wound channel is great but I prefer a bullet that exits smartly so blood can leak out. Momentum does that for you and it's not just initial momentum but the remaining momentum as the bullet goes through the animal shedding lead as well as its ability to keep going. Add velocity and most any bullet deforms more and penetration is reduced! So you see it's this combo of Momentum and deformation that determines penetration. Tests show that max penetration, with a bullet similar to either of the above, is most generally found right at 1900 ft per sec. Trouble is, it doesn't expand, and it drills a nice hole but no shrapnel, or splash! Put it right through the heart and the animal dies in seconds, but miss a few inches and it take a bit to bleed itself into unconsciousness. Both bullets are designed for the 2000-3000 range of velocities if I recall right. Near that upper end, more explosiveness and less penetration and vice versa.

Bullets work best when they combine a bit of explosiveness with penetration so I like my impact velocities to be in that mid 2500 region with this type of bullet. Both will do the job adequately but I give a slight edge to the heavy bullet due to it's better momenturm and would do the same it we were comparing a180 gn SST to a 165 gn Core Lokt!

[o_O]

Great replies, thanks.

I've sighted in for the 180 Core-Lokt. It seems to be the opinion of most that the Core-Lokt will do just fine, so as they are half the price it allowed me to shoot twice as much for the same cost. That, and the limb saver, let me put a lot of rounds down range at the weekend and I'm happy with my set up. The 180 core-Lokt are also sold at lots of places so should I need to stock up while away from home I can do so more easily. Just seemed like the smarter choice.

I'll revisit my options through the year.

[BIG R]

Like KillerBee said buy a well constructed bullet,I myself like Barnes.I have killed plenty of deer and elk with my 7 mag shooting a 150 gr Barnes and hace never had an issue. SHOT PLACEMENT IS KEY.

[TheGreatwhitehunter]

Barnes Tipped Tripple shocks or the Hornady Interbond are good bullets, a well constructed bullet is key.

[NotEnufTags]

Sounds like you decided to go with the 180gr corelokt. I haven't shot the 165 sst but I took my bull elk this year with the 180 gr corelokt. I shot the bull at 306 yards. The first shot hit a little back - not in the vitals as he had started to run. It did stop him in his tracks. The second shot took out the lungs. I'm sure it would have been the end of him but he stood there staggering back and forth and then steadied a little so I put a thrid shot in the the heart which sent him to the ground hard.

I chose 180 gr corelokts for the reasons you mentioned. You can get them anywhere and less expensive. I practiced more because I didn't feel like I was breaking the bank. Practice is a good thing if you might be shooting 300+ yards. I've killed five other deer with the corelokts but they were 150 gr. Good bullet if you ask me.

[o_O]

Thanks for your reply and congratulations on your bull elk. You posting any pictures? I feel pretty good about my decision to go with the Core-Lokts. A comment about them being the leading bullet back in the day swayed me. While newer bullets are undoubtedly an improvement on older designs it's easy to get caught up in the hype of trends and marketing. Like it says on the box. Core-Lokts have taken more big game than any other bullet. Sounds good enough to me!

I'm totally looking forward to getting to the hills on Friday.

[NotEnufTags]

[quote="o_O"]Thanks for your reply and congratulations on your bull elk. You posting any pictures? quote]

The pics are posted in a thread titled "My First Elk - 2010"

Here's the link

http://www.muleymadness.com/forum/viewt ... =4&t=11272

[o_O]

Cool, just read the thread. Sounds like a great time with a great result.