Berger Bullets

[Hilltop123]

Anyone wack any big game with one? How was the preformance? They shoot real good in my gun, but I have yet to shoot anything bigger than a coyote, as of yet.

[carpsniperg2]

There is a few people on here that run them. I have been around them a little. They seem to do pretty good. Myself and other have noticed that in some guns they are hard to get to shoot moa at 100 yards. But they hold there group size down range better them must bullets. That also because of the higher B.C. on there bullets. I have thought about playing with them. But have yet to handload any myself. You might try a search i know they have been talked about on here a few times.

[MDGrand]

I shoot Bergers.

I have yet to see what it can do to an animal, but if you have ever seen The Best of the West show on Oudoor channel, you will see that they do the job quite well. What is unique about this bullet is that:

1. It has a delayed expansion effect when hitting an animal.. it will penetrate about 2-3 inches inside an animal and then blow up, unlike a ballistic tip that blows up on impact. This can make for devastating and instant kills

2. The BC on this bullet can be SUPER high. In certain calibers and at higher weights it can be in the 6s! In fact for my 300 RUM, the 210 Grain Berger VLD has a BC of 0.63.. that is awesome. The 7mm which is kind of their flag ship caliber has a 180 grain bullet that is almost in the 7s.

Things to remember in this bullet though:

It still has a ballistic tip effect, so I wouldnt use it for Brown bear or animals with REALLY thick hide.

This bullet is finicky and wont shoot in all rifles. Because of the super long secant ogive and large boat tail, it wants to be seated really close to the lands or rifling of the bullet, even so in some rifles it is not accurate. For example, in my 300 Weatherby, I cant get any more than 3" groups at 100 yards. In my 300 RUM, I get under 1". This is probably due to the massive free bore most weatherbys are known for but you might want to keep that in mind.

It is not a bullet that should be shot over 3100 fps.. from what I have read from others it does not hold up well at lighter grains going super fast, hence maybe why their bullets come in more heavier grain than a typical round.. i.e. they dont have a 180 30 cal.. they have a 185, 195, 210.

Good luck!

[longrange7mm]

I have shot some game with berger bullets. They are awesome if your gun likes them! I Shoot the 115 gr VLD -2506, 140 gr VLD -264 win, 180 gr VLD - 7RUM, and 300 gr Hybrid - 338RUM. I have made shots as close as 40 yards on my BT this year with my 2506 "oneshot drop" to 842 on a cow elk last year with the 2506 "one shot drop"  I havent had anything I shot with them take more then 3 steps " one doe with the 140 gr went 5 feet" They are not meat saver bullets If you hit the shoulders they are done! Got to make sure that the does are head, neck or center body cavity shots  I included a pic of the only berger I have recovered it was out of my BT this year the other is why they are not meat bullets that was 736 yards on a wt buck

[GregMcFadden]

If you try them, you should see berger's note about seating depths ...  the gist of it is that the bullet will have a spot about .030-.040 wide that it is happy in, and that can be anywhere from seated into the lands all the way back to a .150 jump.   Seated to the lands is sufficient for me but I am awfully tempted to try moving it around to tighten it up.

ahh, finally found the link....
http://www.bergerbullets.com/Information/Lines%20and%20Designs.html

-Greg

[time2hunt]

Been shooting them for about 2 years in my 7mm mag and the 168 grain once I found my sweet load they have preformed perfectly shot two deer over 350 yard one shot kill never took a step and shot my oregon bull at 435 he never knew what hit him It does take some time and reading up on them to get the performance you want. Just a side note they don't shoot worth a sh*t out of my dad ruger m77 7mm don't know why.

[Hilltop123]

I have already worked up a load, than my 7mm really likes. It's amazing what some stock work and trigger job can do. Was really wondering about terminal performance, with this bullet? Not the high shoulder (spine) shots, they take on Best of the West, but a honest heart/lung shot, without hitting major bone. Is it just a hole puncher, or a scrambler? I know what Best of the West says in it's video's, was just interested in some hands on experience, from some folks not trying to sell something.
 
longrange7mm: Thanks for the pic's, they are helpful. I'm sure that's the exit wound in the pic, but just checking. What major bone structure did that take out?

[longrange7mm]

Time2hunt I had a 7mm ruger that didnt like them either  The gun was brutal to shoot anyway so i traded it off.
Hilltop yes thats offside shoulder it crushed both shoulders and spine. Like I said I make neck, head or center body shots on does to save meat on does. If you dont hit bone its a hole poker I hate to admit that but they are this was the doe that took 5 steps lol 711 yds with the 140 gr

[Hilltop123]

Thanks Longrange7mm, your first hand information and photo, confirm my speculations on this bullet. Still going to use it, until I see a reason not to.

[high country]

warning, take shots that can put a path into the boiler room without big bones ie; humerous, femur and keep the angles where the bullet can be in there within about 6" and they are devastating. if you fail to heed the warning, you stand the chance of utter dissapointment. they are not a tough hold together and penetrate type bullet, but rather a penetrate a few inches and expand violently.

[bearpaw]

We have seen several animals shot with burgers. They have excellent ballistic coefficients and shoot well, but we haven't been overly impressed by bullet performance in that they don't hold together as well as some other bullets.

[Hilltop123]

Thanks to all that commented, it was nice to get concise, uncluttered information on a product. I just wanted to be fully aware of what this bullet wasn't. I think if more folks researched products, to find out what it will do and not do, people would be much happier with purchases and endeavors. 

[elkspert]

I shoot them out of my 7mm Dakota. Really couldn't get the 180's to group that well but I didn't spend alot of time with them. Started shooting the 168's and they shoot awesome. It will shoot 1/2 moa all day. I have had the gun for 2 years now and taken a bull at 465 yards, a mulie buck at 300 and this years Arizona bull at 113 yards. Not one of them took another step after the shot. So far I have know complaints about them. I think it has alot to do with shot placement.