This PSP has Knock Down Power
Written: Feb 25 '08
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Accurate, Weight Retention, Controlled Expansion, Available, Affordable.
Cons: This is a practical hunting round.
The Bottom Line: This is the most popular ammo in the world. I dare say this load is responsible for the demise of more deer than any other load.
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| smallmouth's Full Review: 30 06Sp 180gr Psp CoreLokt/20 |
This is the working man’s hunting round. Remington has put together a solid and reliable round with the Core Lokt bullet. Hunters and shooters have been trusting it for decades, myself included. Some of the things I look for from a bullet for hunting purposes are, controlled expansion, knock down power, weight retention and accuracy. The Core Lokt bullets feature all of this while being affordable and available. My guess is that it is the most popular hunting bullet in the world. If you are reading this as a consumer you probably already have a 30-06 and are looking at various ammo. I won’t go into why I think the 30-06 is the best all around hunting caliber in North America but I will elaborate on why I like the Core Lokt ammo and what I use this specific load for.
----------------------- Reliable: ----------------------
I have never shot a more reliable round than the Core Lokt. As a practical shooter and hunter I can’t really ask for anything more from a box of bullets. I love to shoot whether I am hunting or just punching holes in paper. I can’t tell you what the shelf life of these bullets is because I never really keep them on the shelf for more than a year. When I stock up I buy a dozen or so boxes and it seems like I go through them in no time. The bullets that I have had for over a year work just fine and I have had no problems with accuracy or ignition. I have used Core Lokt bullets in extreme cold, wet, hot, and dry conditions and have not had any problems with them in any circumstance. I would love to know if you have had any problems with them as I have never heard of anyone with a bad experience with this load.
----------------------- Performance and Accuracy: ----------------------
You have to understand right away that when I talk about accuracy I am doing so as a practical hunter and outdoorsman, not as a match competitor. I do not know how these would stack up for a serious competitive shooter, only for a serious hunter. When I am punching paper it is for a couple of different reasons, for practice, sighting in, or for fun. I love shooting. When I do sight in one of my 30-06's with this ammo and a scope and zero it at 200 yards, I have gotten quite a few sub-inch three shot patterns. There are so many variables involved when talking about accuracy and you also have to look at what you will be using the bullet for. You are not punching paper or little X’s out in the field. I have found the Core Lokt bullets to be as accurate as I can be. Any shots outside of a 1 inch circle at 100-200 yards has to do with my shooting, not the round. Certain ammo can be more or less accurate out of certain firearm and they should be tested and sighted in for each gun and for each different load before field usage. As far as performance goes, I have had no problems with this load and it has performed exactly the same every time. It has been accurate, provided a good entry hole and sometimes even an exit hole, and has enabled me to make quick and precise kills of large game. As far as recoil goes, it is as to be expected, it gives a solid 30-06 punch to the shoulder when fired. I would say it kicks about the same as other hunting rounds of the same caliber or other premium ammo. Core Lokt bullets are known for their controlled expansion and weight retention. These are two important features to look for when buying a hunting bullet.
----------------------- The Bullet: ----------------------
This bullet is a PSP which stands for Pointed Soft Point. It weighs 180 grains and is also made in the lighter 150 grain size. The 150 will hold truer at longer distances and should probably be used for long range shooting or on smaller game. The 180 is an excellent size for whitetail deer, moose, bear, elk, caribou, and muleys. It will provide more knockdown power than the 150 grain and some hunters consider it a better brush round. I never really bought into the thought of a heavier bullet being able to resist deflection more than a lighter round. I guess it makes sense but the way I figure it is that if you hit a limb, twig, brush, or branch the shot is bound to be thrown off of course at the speed in which the bullet travels. It really doesn’t take much to change the flight of the bullet by way of deflection and all care and attention should be paid to making sure of a good clear shot before squeezing off the trigger.
The shape of the bullet is unique to the Core Lokt rounds by Remington. The bullet tapers away from the tip with a copper jacket around a lead core. By locking it to the core, the bullet promotes an even mushroom and weight retention. The copper jacket is thicker at the rear end of the bullet and gradually tapers and gets thinner near the tip.
Other 30-06 Core Lokt notable bullets are the soft point, hollow point, and bronze tipped point. The latter two are very difficult to find and I am not sure they are still making them. The soft point was once carried by Wal-Mart especially during deer season but I have not seen it now for two years so I wonder about that one as well. The PSP is always stocked in Wal-Mart and easy to find at other stores.
----------------------- Mushroom: ----------------------
One of the best features of this bullet is the mushroom or controlled expansion it produces upon impact. As a hunter, it is very important that when I fire a bullet at game, the bullet stays together and creates the largest possible hole while delivering the most amount of energy or knockdown power. This is important so the animal can be dispatched as quickly as possible. I think it is my responsibility as a hunter to make sure I have adequate power and equipment for a quick kill. This should go without saying. I don’t have a ballistics lab to test bullets, but I do test them in other ways. I have fired them into jugs of water, bags of sand, stumps, and flesh for the purpose of recovering the bullet and checking the expansion. In most of the cases, the bullet stayed completely intact and formed a mushroom almost twice the size of the round when fired. It makes an excellent mushroom and I trust them from the store shelf to the woods and wilderness.
----------------------- Price and Availability: ----------------------
One of my favorite things about this bullet outside of the contents of the box is it’s availability. It is one of the most popular companies, calibers, load and bullet. It can be found just about everywhere that centerfire ammunition is sold. I have bought it from big retail stores such as Wal-Mart and K-Mart, from big sporting goods stores such as Dicks, L.L. Beans, Cabela’s, Bass Pro Shops, and even a bunch of small Mom and Pop country stores. You should have no problem finding this ammo. With the recent price incline of metals such as copper, brass, and lead, the price of ammunition has gone up as well. You can still get this for a twenty-dollar bill but you can’t get a pack of targets or earplugs with the same twenty anymore.
© smallmouth 2008
Remington Premier Core Lokt
M.A.D. Egg Turkey Call
MasterLock Trigger Lock
Hoppes no. 9
Recommended:
Yes
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