One of the goals of an ethical hunter is to make sure that they are proficient with their weapon, that it is in good working order, and capable of using it accurately. A successful hunt will mean that a life will end. The result of that will mean many things for the hunter. Our quarry will usually provide food and more. But we must be respectful in how that life is taken. We must ensure that we do everything possible to take the life in as clean and swift of a manner as possible. The American Bison in an incredibly tough animal. In order to engage in an ethical harvest we selected a rifle caliber that we know has the capacity to take a Bison in a quick and clean manner. Many things factor into the end result and the initial decision is just that, a starting point. To make sure that this rifle is an ethical tool I have spent alot of time at the gun range making sure that it is accurate. Many hunters have years of practice in developing special ammunition or “loads” for their firearms. Each weapon seems to have its specific preferences, and it can take alot of work to find that perfect recipe. I am not a proficient reloader, so for this specific hunt I have needed to find an off the shelf ammunition that is accurate, and is strong enough to take a Bison. I started this process by using several free online tools to narrow down the search. Premium ammunition companies and other firearm industry groups have online tools that can help you out. To use these tools effectively you will need to know the caliber of your rifle, the length of the barrel, and the twist rate of the barrel. I used tools on the Federal and Hornady Ammunition sites. I also used the information gathered on several social media sites where I found groups dedicated to the specific rifle that we will be using for this hunt. Everything pointed me to the fact that this particular rifle may prefer one of the heavier grain of projectiles offered for this caliber (300 Winchester Magnum).
After doing my initial homework I purchased several different boxes of ammunition. “Grain weight” is something that everyone should be familiar with, but I won’t make any assumptions here. This is a reference to the actual weight of the bullet. Don’t just go buy the “biggest” or “heaviest” bullet made for your rifle. Buy a variety of weights and go shoot them. See which is most accurate. This is merely a starting point. I am very much a fan boy of Federal Ammunition. It has always worked well for me. So, at a local sporting goods retailer I purchased several different weights of ammunition from Federal at 180, 185, and 190 grains.
In the previous posts I discussed the buildup of the rifle system, the addition of the scope, recoil pad, and suppressor and the initial trips to the range. But, I didn’t discuss much about the ammunition. Right out of the gate, the rifle shot well, but in the first session with the suppressor it was clear that this system had a preference of heavier bullets. The most accurate ammunition that I was using was the Federal Gold Medal Match. This round is tipped with the Sierra 190g Match King. I am fond of the accuracy of the “Gold Medal Match” lineup from Federal. It has worked well in several of my rifles. However, the “Match King” is specifically designed for shooting paper and “match” accuracy. I now know that the rifle can shoot accurately, both with cold bore shots and hot groups. The question now is, “can I replicate that with a heavy game hunting round”?
