Dear Ron: Let’s talk about the 300 Blackout Cartridge.

Q: Ron, I enjoy your insights on various cartridge calibers and types of rifles. My question is what are your impressions and insights regarding the 300 blackout cartridge and its use on boar & various species of deer.

Thank You,
Don

A: Hi Don, 

Glad you're enjoying my reports. As for that 300 Blackout, I first viewed it with a jaundiced eye, but it's proving to be one heck of an effective, close range hog sweeper. Performance varies significantly depending on bullet type and weight, but perhaps the most revealing way to look at it is with 150-grain bullets at 2,100 fps. Slow, yes, but only 200 fps slower than the old 30-30 Winchester. And, because Blackout bullets are pointed with higher B.C. than most 30-30 bullets, they actually shoot flatter and retain more energy after about 100 yards! And they do this by burning about 10 to 12 grains less powder than the 30-30. 

The Blackout is also more versatile than the 30-30 because it’s regularly loaded with bullets as light as 110 grains and heavy as 225 grains! The latter can be driven at least 1,400 fps from a 16" barrel to give about 1,000 fp energy at the muzzle. Not a lot, but those high B.C. bullets hang onto it while deflecting minimally in the wind. At 100 yards, energy is still close to 900 f-p, drift is only an inch or so in a 10 mph right angle breeze. The 200-yard drift is 4.5-inches, energy nearly 800 fp. A long, heavy bullet like that is going to penetrate like a steel rod. Momentum! Expansion might be the challenge, so consider fairly soft cup-and-core bullets or all-copper hollow points with big hollows for easy opening.

In short, the 300 Blackout — while far from perfect — is definitely worth investigating. 

Ron