PERFORMANCE
BULLETS - CENTERFIRE
The Basics:
All hunting bullets are meant to expand to cause damage to tissues and organs and to transfer catastrophic energy through the target.
Lead bullets fragment. Copper bullets do not.
Modern hunting bullets (whether lead or copper) will effectively kill at ethical ranges (more on this below).
LET’S GET IN THE WEEDS
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Monolithic, bonded, cup-and-core. What does it all mean?
The most important piece of gear in hunting is often the one we pay the least attention to, the bullet. All of your other pieces of gear—the gun, the scope, the camo, the knife—are all dependent on that small piece of metal. So what's the difference between the types of bullets mentioned above?
Monolithic bullets are created with one metal (mono meaning "one"), for big game hunting this is usually copper. Copper bullets are typically made on Computer Numerical Control (CNC) lathes. This ensures bullet consistency. Copper bullets retain ~85-100% of their weight upon impact.
Bonded bullets molecularly secure the bullet's lead core to its copper jacket. This process can vary between manufacturers from a soldering process, to an electrochemical process, to a top secret process. The idea is that bonded bullets prevent the jacket and core from separating on impact. Some brands do this better than others. Bonded bullets tend to retain ~76-90% of their weight.
Cup-and-core/non-bonded bullets are made by inserting or pouring lead into a thin copper jacket. These bullets are the least expensive to make. Cup-and-core bullets retain the least amount of weight, ~73-82%.
The weight loss in the bonded and cup-and-core bullets comes from shedding tiny lead fragments as the bullet passes through the animal. Though bonded bullets tend to fragment less than cup-and-core bullets, if your bullet contains lead, it will fragment.
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Important ballistic terminology:
Terminal ballistics - how a projectile behaves when it hits its target and transfers its kinetic energy to the target.
Ballistic coefficient (BC) - of a bullet is a measure of its ability to overcome air resistance in flight, i.e. the bullet’s speed.
Penetration - penetration refers to the wound channel created by the projectile.
Weight retention - how much weight the bullet retains after recovery. This influences a bullet's ability to penetrate.
Sectional density (SD) - the ratio of a bullet’s weight to its diameter.
Terminal sectional density (TSD) - its recovered weight divided by the square of its recovered diameter.
Cavitation - the formation of an empty space within a solid object or body. This can be permanent (bullet path) or temporary (hydrostatic shock).
Hydrostatic shock - the kinetic energy transferred as shock waves through flesh.
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For hunting, a higher BC has several benefits. First, a higher BC means the bullet will have a flatter flight, typically resulting in less critical effects from erroneous distance estimations. This could mean the difference between a clean kill and a wounded animal. Secondly, a bullet with a higher BC reaches the target faster and with more energy than one with a lower BC. Since the higher BC bullet reaches the target faster, it is also less affected by crosswinds. Finally, force = mass x acceleration. If your speed is faster, so is your force (i.e. knock-down power).
Remington reports that the ballistic coefficient of the Core-Lokt .270 REM 130gr bullet is 0.261. The ballistic coefficient of the Barnes TTSX .270 REM 130gr bullet is 0.392. So on paper, copper takes the cake. When tested in the field, the lead bullet was captured by just one water jug after passing through the ballistics gel, whereas the copper bullet went through three water jugs before being captured. This indicates that the copper bullet had much more energy upon impact and through the gel than its lead counterpart.
Penetration depth is extremely important in an ethical and efficient kill. In hunting, penetration refers to the wound channel. A longer wound channel means more damage to vital organs and greater blood loss. When comparing lead vs copper, both had similar penetration. The differences were in the expansion and weight retention.
Most modern bullets used for hunting are designed to expand (increase in diameter) on impact to inflict maximum wound damage. Though equivalent caliber copper and lead bullets expand to about the same diameter size, there are two notable differences. Fragmentation and weight retention.
Lead bullets can lose up to 40% of their mass in fragments upon impact, sending tiny metal fragments up to 18” from your bullet’s core wound channel. Without weight retention, the bullet may lack the necessary penetration to reach the vitals. For scavengers, like eagles, that feed on your gut pile, the tiny fragments are too small to be noticed and avoided. These fragments may also end up in our burger meat and even roasts that we bring home to family and friends.
On the other hand, copper bullets retain 95-100% of their weight. This means more weight and kinetic energy driving it through the animal on impact. When copper bullets expand, they do so in large pedals, resulting in a nice mushroom-like shape to the expanded bullet.
The second notable difference with penetration of copper vs. lead bullets: hydrostatic shock.
Hydrostatic shock refers to kinetic energy transferred as shock waves through flesh. Once a bullet penetrates the target, these shock waves travel through flesh to distant nerve centers, like the spine, and disrupt their ability to emit electrical impulses, which in turn results in loss of consciousness. Think about an MMA fighter being punched and immediately losing consciousness, this is hydrostatic shock. Hydrostatic shock paired with the large wound channel created by the expanding bullet helps produce ethical killing.
When it comes down to it, modern hunting bullets (whether lead or copper) will effectively kill at ethical ranges. Most commercial copper bullets have limited expansion past 500-600 yards. This is important to note depending on your hunting style. There are bullet manufacturers who are coming out with fantastic long-range options (700-1,000 yards).
Match your tool to your job. Know how your bullets perform before you take them into the field.
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Less meat loss
90-99% weight retention
Lighter, faster, flatter flying bullets
Ensure non-target species are not unintentionally ingesting lead
Ability to pierce through tough hides like boar, bear, and moose
Reliably lethal when shot opportunity is not ideal
Feel confident that the bounty you are sharing with your family and friends is lead-free
SHOT
Lead-free shot? Tell me more…
Many hunters have been skeptical about the effectiveness of lead-free shot for hunting/shooting purposes and compliance, when measured, is often poor. However, where field trials comparing lead and steel shot have been conducted, no differences were found in a number of measures, including the number of birds killed per shot or wounded per shot (read the study here).
All shotguns can shoot lead-free alternatives to lead, but certain shotguns can only shoot certain alternatives, and it’s important to know which works with your firearm. Shotguns with a “lead only” barrel CANNOT shoot steel shot loads. They can, however, shoot bismuth and copper-plated bismuth. So, if your grandparent gifted you their vintage “lead only” shotgun you can still hunt lead-free! If you are ever unsure about the safety of lead-free ammunition in a particular shotgun, contact the manufacturer or a gunsmith.
LEAD-FREE SHOT ALTERNATIVES
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Steel is less dense than lead, so to use it most effectively you need to go up by at least two shot sizes.
For example, if you would use a lead #5 for shooting ducks, you should use a steel #3. Current guidance when using standard steel shot is to shoot no tighter than half choke. Using tighter than half choke risks damaging the barrel. Modified and Improved Cylinder chokes are the most recommended choke constrictions when hunting upland game with lead-free ammunition.
Many older shotguns cannot shoot steel!
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Bismuth is as soft as lead, but 86% as dense, so it is advised that you increase your shot size by at least one. Due to its softness, bismuth tends to pattern much the same as lead and therefore no action is needed when choosing choke constrictions.
Many manufacturers now make copper-plated LEAD. These are NOT lead-free! The only manufacturer making copper-plated bismuth is Boss Shotshells
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Tungsten is more dense than lead, because of this, loads can be smaller than lead shot. Please check your state’s turkey hunting regulations for minimum and maximum shot size restrictions. Tungsten is often more expensive than lead, steel, and bismuth ammunition.
Tungsten is a great alternative for turkey, predator, and pig hunters because these game animals often offer limited shooting opportunities, making the price a little easier to swallow compared to using tungsten for upland or waterfowl hunting.
TACKLE
Why lead-free tackle?
Lead-free tackle alternatives have several performance advantages for the serious anglers.
Though lead-free alternatives can be more expensive, you’ll catch more fish and have more fun when you use quality materials.
If you lose your tackle, you know you’re leaving the waterway lead-free for future generations.
LEAD-FREE FOR ALL FISHING
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Today you can find a vast array of inexpensive alternatives to lead tackle that offer technical benefits to the angler while keeping our waterways lead-free.
Many nontoxic materials such as steel, brass and bismuth are harder than lead and are less likely to get hung up on rocks. Some materials are denser than lead, like tungsten, which gives tackle a smaller profile. Zinc can have better details because of how it’s molded.
Lead-free tackle also makes a real racket underwater, a huge benefit to anglers. Fish pick up sound vibrations through their lateral line, and use them to locate prey, so a product whose sound travels a long distance when bounced off the bottom is a sure-fire fish attractant.
Tungsten is 30% smaller than lead. This means a ⅛ oz lead jig head is 30% larger than a ⅛ oz tungsten jig head. Smaller lures will yield more success in heavily pressured fishing areas. Tungsten will get to the bottom first. In a river, a 1/4 oz tungsten jig will have 30% less resistance in moving water. Same for casting in windy conditions, smaller profile means less wind resistance in casting.
Find a superior product. Catch more fish. Have more fun on the water. Fishing is 100% about confidence. Confidence comes from what’s on the end of your line!
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Many streamers and nymphs are tied using lead wire to help them sink fast and reach the desired water column.
The only surefire way to know your flies are lead-free is to tie them yourself!
Retailers such as Orvis only sell flies tied with lead-free wire. Other commercial fly manufacturers like Umpqua only tie some of their flies with lead-free wire. Most local fly shops carry lead-free wire. This wire is made from soft tin and comes in the same diameters, and properties that you are used to with lead, just a bit less weight added to the fly per diameter. To add the same amount of weight you can add a few more wraps of wire.
Other lead-free items you can find in the fly shop include tungsten beads, lead-free split shot, and tungsten putty.
