358 Moose Bullet

[daisygordoninc]

I will be hunting moose this fall in BC. Is a 200gr Hornady FTX heavy enough for a moose. I killed a bear last summer with one shot with the same bullet, of course it did not weigh as much as a moose. What do you think, do I need a heavier bullet?

Gordon

[6pt-sika]

What cartridge ?

35 REM , 356 WIN , 358 WIN , 35 Whelen or 358 Norma Mag ?

[daisygordoninc]

A Winchester 356

[Tycer]

Moose worthy. Good hunting!
The 30-30 has probably killed more moose than any cartridge. The 356 with the 200 is a step up.

[CowboyTutt]

I would go 225 or 250 grain if it was me and pick a premium bullet. I use a 250 in my 358 Win (which is ballistically the same) BLR and the thump in the dirt on the other end at 100 yards is really noticeable. -Tutt

[6pt-sika]

I dunno if Winchester still loads them but when I had a couple Marlin 336ER's I got a couple boxes of factory Winchester with a 250 grain jacketed bullet . I think I would look for some of them over the Hornady 200 grain rubber nose bullet . I killed a deer with that rubber nosed bullet in a 35 REM factory load and it blew up pretty well on a 100 pound whitetail .

[iceman]

I would think penetration is most important. The FTX might expand too quickly for moose. I get good accuracy with 200 gr Hornady round nose. I have not tried the Speer 225 in my 356, but it might be a good compromise if it shoots well in your rifle.

[BigSky56]

Flex tips are meant for deer sized animals they have a reputation of blowing up have seen it with a 35 rem on elk, get the speer 220 FN or the hdy 250 RN for your rifle if you want a jacketed bullet, for cast get a Beartooth hard cast w gas check I have used them in 30&348 cal and they knock elk down. danny
http://beartoothbullets.com/bulletselect/index.htm

[FWiedner]

I don't believe I'd use the FTX for elk or moose, and I'd go with the heaviest soft-point bullet I could get.

[BenT]

Speer 220 gr HCFN (hot core flat point) would perform better than the FTX.

[TedH]

The Speer 220 would be my choice as well. I've used it on hogs, and it's a penetrating fool. Good expansion too.

[C. Cash]

I shoot the 356 Win.....am more of a shooter than a hunter. But my first reaction would be that Speer 220 as well. It was made for the 356 Win. and is made to hold together. I have used the Beartooth 210 gr. Cast on a hog and penetration was amazing. Look forward to your report!

[86er]

I had a 200 gr FTX from the 356 Win expand in a coyote at close range. I've also had them separate jacket and core and have bits and pieces in TX whitetail deer. They worked for those purposes but that makes me skeptical for use on moose. I like the 250 gr Nosler Partition but it is a pointy bullet that you might not want to use. The Speer 220 gr has a good reputation and I have had clients use a 200 gr Remington Core-Lokt in a 358 Win on moose and a 200 gr Hornady Flat Point out of a 356 Win on moose and the bullets held up and did their job.

[1886]

Another vote for the Speer 220. It is a tough bullet. Their 180gr version has an equally good reputation. You did not ask about the .35 Rem. but... I have heard of a number of Maine moose guides who use the .35 Rem with the Remington 200gr factory load. They report excellent results on moose. 1886.

[tman]

Either factory load is more than enough for the job. The .348 WCF was designed to kill everything in Alaska with the factory 200 grain bullet. Velocity wise, the .356 and .348 200 grain bullets shot out of 20" barrels are identical.

[daisygordoninc]

Sounds like the Speer 220 is the choice of many who have used it, I will look for it,
most places have it back ordered like lots of bullets we want these days. Thanks

[Marlin32]

I would second what 86er said although I have no experience with the .35 FTX, the .338FTX not, in my opinion, a good choice for elk or moose. WIth the .35 you have a chance to move up in sectional density with a larger bullet and in the 356 (something I am contemplating myself) the 220 speer I think would be tough to beat.

[t.r.]

I suggest Speer flat nose Hot Core bullet weighing 225 grains.

TR

[Canuck Bob]

I'm of the opinion that the FTX is a dandy deer bullet. If I was shooting a moose the Speer bullet would be my choice or a sturdy 250 grain factory load if you don't reload. 86 did a great report on the Speer bullet performance for the 30-30. Speer seems focused on a stout deep penetrating design for their lever bullets which describes a moose bullet.

It seems choice for factory ammo is limited. I found only 200 gr Winchester Power Point.

[CowboyTutt]

This comes out of the Barnes manual for the 358 Winchester but would easily apply to the 356 I think as ballistics are very close. A Barnes 225 grain bullet might be an excellent choice (Hey, its a Barnes bullet for Crimini! ) A 225 at 2400 would pack a nasty wallop for sure. -Tutt

Many a gun writer has agonized
over this cartridge and pondered the
mystery of why it failed to gain the
degree of acceptance it deserves. I’ll
make no attempt here to offer what
those esteemed scribes failed to
provide and let it suffice to say that I
don’t know either.
I do know that this smallish,
singularly unimpressive case is
perhaps the most efficient producer
of “wallop” per grain of powder ever
offered in a short-action, general
purpose hunting round. For me, the .358 Winchester has proven to be
an impressive killer, and loaded with X-Bullets, it achieves yet
another threshold of lethality. Game reaction to well-placed shots
with this cartridge/bullet combination is noticeably greater than that
of smaller calibers on this or the parent .308 Winchester case length.
This loading is an eminently effective melding of case efficiency,
frontal area and bullet technology. For our wooded and semi-open
timber hunting or for wandering the African bushveld, the .358
Winchester makes for a wonderfully trim carrying rifle of great
power and surprisingly good ranging ability.
My Browning BLR likes 47 grains of IMR 4895 with the 225- grain
X-Bullets for 2,400 fps. Should you encounter someone in the field
carrying a .358, you might listen up — he’s likely to be a real hunter.
— Nick Caico
bigbores.com

[J35]

[quote="CowboyTutt"]This comes out of the Barnes manual for the 358 Winchester but would easily apply to the 356 I think as ballistics are very close. A Barnes 225 grain bullet might be an excellent choice (Hey, its a Barnes bullet for Crimini! ) A 225 at 2400 would pack a nasty wallop for sure. -Tutt

With the original AA2015 BR late 80's early 90's production I could safely get 2580fps with the 225 Sierra using a book load out of my BLR.

When that lot of powder was gone off the market, they came out with 2015 XMR, and it was a dog in my rifle as far as FPS were concerned with the 225 Sierra.

------------J

[CowboyTutt]

Powder choice can make a difference. Looks like Varget or IMR 3031 (two of my favorite powders) would be better than XMR. Also, the data on Norma 201 looks very promising as well. Norma makes good stuff. From the Barnes manual:

http://www.barnesbullets.com/copper_man ... hester.pdf

-Tutt

[Tactical Lever]

Those FTX bullets seem to be pretty fragile, as some of the other posters have said, I would probably lean towards the flatnose Speer 220 gr.

If you have trouble finding those there should be a number of decent offerings that will work. Even the lighter 200 would be ok, no need for premium bullets at .356 velocities.

[FWiedner]

I load the Speer 220gr for my .356.

Using the 220gr and 47.1gr of W748 I'm sending them down-range at about 2300fps MV. At 100yds they're still moving more than 2000 fps and carrying 1996 ftlbs of energy.

The factory 250gr has a MV about 2060fps, 1830 at 100yds with 1861 ftlbs of energy.

Both of these out of a 20" barrel.

Never shot a moose, but either one of these puts an elk down without a problem.

[Malamute]

I recall comments on the Alasaka outdoors forum regarding the 358 cartridge and I believe the Speer 220 gr bullet having a good reputation for whatever it was used for within reason (don't think it was held forth as an alder brush gun for wounded big bears).