SmallCaliberCentral

First I want to say I am happy with the performance of the 40gr Nosler BT's I've been shootin' in my .204 for coyote; no splashes(gaping entrances if they enter at an angle but continue in to get the job done well :thumb:). I'm down to about 20 rounds and am getting ready to do some loadin'.
I saw that the BC of the 40gr VMAX's is .275 vs the .239 of the Noslers. I was thinking about trying some to see if the increase in BC results in better performance but I've heard that the jacket is thinner on VMAX's to make them more explosive on PD's and the like. If so they may not do as well on coyotes as the Noslers. I'm lookin' for first hand knowledge from someone that has used both and made this assessment already.
I have a box of about 80count 39gr Sierra BK's that I will swap for some of the VMAX's to see how they do on paper. I loaded some different loads with the BK's and had a load that shot well, but gave an occasional keyhole . (It wasn't too hot) I didn't want to go through the aches and pains to find out why when I had a better shooting Nosler load that never did it.
Any help will be much appreciated!
GAJoe

Silverfox has stated that he prefers the Noslers to the Sierras for PDs, claiming better aerial results with the NBTs. He's a thorough man when documenting his results, so I have no reason at all to doubt him. Given the "iffy" accuracy problems in a lot of rifles with the 40 Hornadys, I think I'd stick with the Noslers if they're working for you, the minimal help a little extra BC may get you might not be worth the accuracy "iffy-ness" of the VMaxes.

My own rifles gag on the 40 VM, but are marginally "okay" with the Noslers, but I won't be buying any more, of either, since my rifles shoot so much better with the lightweights, and PDs are about all I shoot with the .204s.

GAJoe--I have lost this post two times, so I'm hoping the third time is the charm!

Anyway, I concur with glenn asher's statement about the "iffy" accuracy of the 40 gr. V-Max. That was my experience out of my Savage 12VLP. I use the 39 gr. Sierra and the 40 gr. Nosler. This past winter, I used the 39 gr. Sierra as my coyote bullet too. It worked quite nicely--no surface splash wounds, coyotes "usually" dropped in their tracks or did a few death spins and fell over. The 39 gr. Sierra is a bit more accurate out of my rifle, but the load I have worked up for the 40 gr. Nosler BT gives me nearly the same accuracy and a bit better hang time and acrobatics out of my PD hits.

The load I have worked up for the Sierra gives me about 3,900 fps at the muzzle and the Nosler load runs out at about 3,870 fps at the muzzle. My point of impact with those two loads is almost identical so I don't have to worry much about point of aim if I switch between those two bullets.

I would suggest that you plug in the BCs, identical muzzle velocities and identical temperatures, barometric pressure, elevation, etc. for those two bullets into a ballistics calculator such as http://www.eskimo.com/~jbm/ballistics/traj/traj.html I think you'll find that there isn't enough difference in drop or wind deflection to matter much. If your 40 gr. Nosler accuracy is good, it may not be worth wasting the time and reloading supplies trying to find an accurate load for the 40 gr. V-Max.

Here's a three-photo sequence of some prairie dog acrobatics from a 100-yard shot out of my 12VLP with the 40 gr. Nosler BTs from July 2, 2007:







As much hang time as the prairie dog had and with all the "chunks" flying out, especially the big chunk flying out to the left, he came down almost exactly where his point of takeoff was from!!!

I'd probably stick with the 40 gr. Noslers if I were you unless you have an urge to use up more barrel life, powder, primers, etc. in a quest to find the magic load for the 40 gr. V-Max, that might not turn out anyway. However, you'll never know what "might have been" unless you try!!

Thanks for the responces guys. I think I'll stick with my Nosler load. (3850 fps)
GAJoe

I like the Noslers better than the Vmaxes, but I wonder how the Berger 40 grain bullets compare? The 35 grain Berger's are great. Food for thought.

If I was a betting man, I would have to bet that the 40 gr. Bergers "should" be more accurate than the 40 gr. V-Max. I like to hedge my bets when I can

Last time I looked it up (at least a year ago) the 39 Sierra had the highest BC, 40 Vmax was close behind and 40 Nosler lagged behind both. I couldn't find BC on Berger at the time.

40 Nosler is the most devastating in a prairie dog town hands down. They shoot fairly good groups in my rifles.
39 Sierras are the most accurate in all my rifles.
40 Vmax shoot very well in one of my four 204 Savages the others don't like them. They can really make a prairie dog fly.

The BC of the .204 Berger 40 gr. bullet is listed at .236. The 40 gr. Nosler is listed at .239, the 40 gr. V-Max lists at .275 and the 39 gr. Sierra comes in at .287. Remember these are numbers that are posted by the manufacturers of these bullets. I have no way of testing to see if those posted BCs are actual and factual at the velocities and distances I shoot at with my rifle.

The BC of the 40 gr. Berger and the 40 gr. Nosler are almost a dead heat. Certainly, I would like to shoot the bullet with the highest BC IF that bullet beats any close competitors in accuracy at distances of 100, 200, and 300 yards. I believe you can, with lots of practice, shoot those bullets with the lower BCs and consistently hit your target. Albeit, you'll have to compensate a bit more for drop and wind deflection, but if that load you have for the lower BC bullet is your most accurate shooting combination, I'd tend to go with accuracy and adjust for drop and wind deflection. JMHO Oh, I don't take many shots beyond 300 yards--once in awhile I'll try a few 325 to 400 yard shots, so the higher BC isn't as critical to me as it is to those looooong range shooters who are trying to connect on the 500, 1,000, 2,000 yard shots and beyond. I can't even see that far?!?!